OSA — Restaurant in Middletown

Osa, Middletown, Connecticut

Interesting décor. Not quite sure what to make of the integrated bench style seating but as each course came out I warmed up to it…

First out, the bread… Served with whipped lardo & cultured butter. It’s offered as either or but my position is, when in doubt, get both… nice crispy bread reminiscent of that wonderful bread you get on Arthur Avenue. Both the lardo and butter were delicious. Had to pick a favorite.

The menu is very much ala carte so here are tonight’s selections…

Smoked carrots (gf/by) with black crème fraiche, puffed grains, carrot pickle + herbs… I’m not sure how healthy this was because healthy food is not supposed to taste THIS good!With it’s contrasting textures and flavours , my palate was in foodie Nirvana.

Crispy beef shank, beef shank croquettes, horseradish mayo, bordelaise syrup, picked onion + arethusa blue cheese… Another wonderful surprise… Generally speaking I don’t consume onions unless they’re sautéed but these pickled onions were so good I had them all.

At Pete, my servers suggestion, my next course would be the baked semolina gnocchi with spicy sausage ragout, melville fonduta, fried garlic, herbs + calabrian chili. Great recommendation! Unlike the traditional gnocchi, this was two gnocchi cakes served in an iron skillet. And like the carrots before, a blend of textures and flavours

Across the room I saw a French Press which is usually an indication that there is no cappuccino here… My suspicions were correct. That would be my only complaint. I suppose there are bigger problems in life. My suggestion…, get a cappuccino machine… Its how I finish every meal…

This has been a fabulous dining experience and one I would highly recommend! When you come here, tell them you heard about them on The...

One person’s attitude can ruin an entire dining experience…and for us, that person was Ben, the host. Ben, the host, was the reason our entire experience at this restaurant went from promising to extremely disappointing and would never recommend to others.

We arrived at 5 PM to a nearly empty restaurant with only two tables seated. Ben told us we could only stay until 6:30 PM due to upcoming reservations, which we were fine with. We asked for a booth since we were dining with our 8-month-old, and all the booths were empty. He tried to seat us at the booth directly next to the entrance (it was 60°F outside), and we didn’t want our baby near the cold door. We politely asked for another booth and were told no…not because it was reserved, but because, in his words, “I control who sits where.” He added, “If you don’t like it, you can leave. I’m not going to argue with you.”

When I asked to speak to the manager, Ben claimed he was the manager which my gut told me wasn’t true. We chose to calmly seat ourselves elsewhere and were kindly welcomed by our server, Katie. Ben yelled “WOW” multiple times from across the restaurant in frustration, which we ignored because we were simply trying to enjoy our meal.

Katie later confirmed Ben is not the manager and provided contact info for the owners. I spoke to one of them directly, and they confirmed the same.

The food was good, and the space is beautiful but how guests are treated matters more. Ben’s rude, dishonest, and unprofessional behavior ruined the entire experience.

As an influencer with a platform, I was excited to try this restaurant and potentially share it with my audience but unfortunately, I can’t in good conscience recommend this place to my community.

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I posted the first Yelp review for this restaurant when it opened. I went for dinner yesterday, with an old friend who was new to it. It remains as good as ever, probably the best restaurant in central CT and possibly the whole state. The chef André has hit his stride in the last couple of years and is consistently creative and attentive to quality. I´ve noticed in the past year or more that he´s been experimenting with Spanish flavors and inventive flair. Yesterday was a case in point: we had the seared scallops with a romesco sauce and shaved radishes. Unlike most American restaurants, which often confuse romesco with an Italian tomato sauce, André´s was all about the nuts and complexity: hazelnuts, in this case (in Spain, too: almonds and pine nuts, chile peppers, herbs, garlic, etc.). We shared the split pea soup, but here again André surprises: who knew split pea soup could work cold, in this case thick, with a nice crunchy, salty counterpoint (bacon?) and a dollop of creme fraiche? We finished with Osa's stacked, piping hot, decadent chocolate chip cookies. The coffee and cocktails, as usual, were equally excellent. The staff as always friendly and helpful. The space has been updated since the fall, with highlights and partitions meant to muffle some of the sound bouncing off the beautiful blonde-wood interior, enhancing its already splendid look and feel. The owners of this restaurant, Rich and Kevin, are also responsible for the equally good and beautiful wood-fire pizza, bourbon, small plates, and cocktail joint, Krust, up the street. This remains a...