Truffle Pig — Restaurant in Oshkosh

Deliciously elegant date night with white linen tablecloths, flawless service and exquisite food and wine.

We went on a Saturday at 410pm, unable to get online reservation. Greeted in small entry foyer by three people, including general manager Riccardo Lupi, we informed them we had no reservations. Riccardo informed us we could either dine at the bar, or there was some space in dining room, so we chose dining room and were shown to a table in beautiful marble floored, impeccably decorated (see photos) main dining room. Gorgeous mural, high vaunted ceilings, spacious tables ….

Our waiter, David, provided guidance/ interpretation on menu items some of which were only in Italian. We had four courses, all of which were delicious. Timing and delivery were perfect, we never felt rushed or neglected. On specific wine matching, Riccardo was of great help.

The specific foods we savored were Antipasto: -Prosciutto-Burrata. The burrata was perfect. Fresh, with firm yet delicate outer shell with creamy, thick center. Umami. Prosciutto was aged 18 months, nice balance. -“Calamari Gamberi Fritti” (Fried calamari and shrimp). Nice big shrimp, tender and fresh calamari, both with light breading, not at all greasy. No sauce needed, as savory just as served. The portion sizes are generous. We used the remaining prosciutto and burrata to make an omelette the next morning.

Pizza: Margherita. Nice thin but not crispy crust. San Marzano tomatoes, fresh basil, and fior di latte (means “flower of milk” in Italian) mozzarella cheese. Delicious, fairly light, a perfect intermezzo.

Pasta: -Agnolotti di Aragosta. “Half moon pasta filled with lobster mousse, finished with lobster bisque emulsion.” It is as luscious as the menu description implies. My mouth waters thinking of it, almost twenty four hours later. -Casoncelli Alla Bergamasca. “Candy wrapper shaped pasta from Bergano, stuffed with Italian sausage and cured meats. Parmigiano, brown butter sage sauce, crispy pancetta.” I had this topped with Italian summer truffles freshly shaved (by Riccardo, at our table (see video)) which was thirty dollars extra and worth every penny. OMG!!!! The blend of flavors was spectacular. I am normally a very fast eater but I ate this slowly, very slowly, as I did not want the culinary magic to end. For real.

Dolci (Dessert): -Panna cotta. Creamy, smooth rich custard with fresh raspberries and blueberries, luscious caramel sauce and a mint leaf. No leftovers on this one! -Tiramisu. Layers of espresso softened ladyfingers, mascarpone, and sprinkled with unsweetened cocoa. Good but not great. Ristorante Bartolotta has us spoiled on this, and this alone. -Affogato. Prepared at table, with espresso poured over vanilla gelato. Sorry, it happened so quickly I was unable to get a video. Even better than it sounds.

Drinks: Scarpetta “Frico” Friulano. A house Italian white, nice starter. TJ’s Original Bellini Falanghina Mastroberardino 2023. Dry white wine. Perfect pairing with the lobster. Amarone Castagnedi 2019. Half bottle! Nice full rich red to accompany the meat filled pasta.

Coffee: Brasiliano. Their signature coffee drink with layers of espresso, cream, foam and cocoa. It was ok. The best part was it was served with a Ferrero Rocher chocolate which I dropped in the bottom, savored at end. In future, I would order con panna, which was not on menu but could be easily made, as just espresso with whipped cream.

So, great and warm service, beautiful room, expertly sourced and prepared food, perfectly presented. Even the men’s bathroom was ornately decorated with a chandelier (see photos).

My highest...

Full disclosure: I worked in the food service industry for 10 years and managed a restaurant through some of that time. I don't often give bad ratings but when you're paying $50+pp, you need to have higher standards. So, when I saw this new fancy italian restaunt open up and saw they had risotto and tiramisu on the menu, I quickly made a reservation weeks in advance for my fiance and I to enjoy a nice fancy date night.

By 4pm I was already hungry and looking forward to it so I moved our reservation up from 8pm to 7:30pm. We showed up 10 minutes early and they were able to seat us right away.

Right away, the atmosphere is loud, you cannot talk to the person sitting next to you unless you lean in close to them.

When we sat down, there was already a table with a couple seated at the table next to ours. We were seated in a sectioned off nook with two booth, you can hear the table next to you since everyone is talking loudly. My fiance and I just scooted closer together so we didn't have to shout.

Our waiter took forever to come give us water and offered us a fancy sparkling water or a fancy still water, everyone got tap... we must have missed the memo that it was an option. We felt like we totally got swindled. He also came of super posh, only speaking in Italian when we clearly responded in English. I get trying to fit the atmosphere, but when your customers are responding with what's comfortable to them and you keep correcting them in Italian, it's just rude. The waitress for the table next to ours came by and poured them their wine and told them the specials. On the menu, the risotto says seasonal, so she told them what the risotto was for the day and some sort of meat dish.

When our waiter came back with our waters and take our order, he didn't care to tell us what the seasonal risotto was or what the features were. Their appitizer came before ours and their waitress offered them bread for the table.

We had ordered the calamari. When we were halfway done with the appetizer, he asked to take our individual plates away to make room for the entree. He said we can keep our appetizer dish. Ok, so we let him do that. After finishing the appetizer, we waited another 20 minutes for the entree.

It was at the point, a random lady came by to ask if we want some bread, and handed us two 1x1 pieces of bread.

When he served our food, I got the pasta where it gets tossed in the cheese wheel. Our waiter barely talked to us. And apparently the table next to us got the same thing and he was chatting them up. It just felt like he was not interested in serving us or taking care of us during the entire meal.... Maybe because we didn't respond in Italian.

The taste of the food: the calamari was probably the best tasting part of the meal. And I would NOT recommend the pasta with the cheese wheel; it lacked flavor or even salt. I'm not sure why so many reviews recommended this dish. It is not worth $25. I didn't finish it, neither did our neighbor. The risotto was a lot better. It was asparagus risotto with some button mushrooms in it. It was slightly more flavorful and saltier.

For dessert, we got tiramisu. It looked sad (see picture) and tasted watery. The cream barely tasted marscapone and the espresso was barely soaked in the lady fingers. The espresso also didn't have much coffee flavor either.

I don't think I will be going back. Coming here would really only be for the decor. We left a generous tip because supporting a local business felt right, total came to $120...

Overall the best place in Oshkosh though competition is nonexistent. If you were to compare this to Madison it would rank in the top of fine dining, but not the very top.

I only had 2 desserts to go and a glass of wine. The wine was decent, but not outstanding. The flourless dark chocolate cake with gelato was certainly a standout. Real dark chocolate, not much sweetness, with tempered earthy bitterness. Outstanding! The tiramisu was okay. Light and creamy. I make a fantastic homemade tiramisu that has more depth and complexity. Staff was very friendly, A+. As someone who has worked in fine dining before I'll say the staff could be more anticipatory of guests needs before the need them. When I walked in 3 people were at the front door, yet no one bothered to open it. Servers had guests move out of their way, rather than the other way around. If this wasn't a fine dining place I wouldn't be as nitpicky. But when you spend $36.50 on one glass of wine and two desserts, the expectations are going to be higher. The atmosphere is decent and unique. Nothing bad, but could have been better with a professional restaurant designer. The only real negative about the atmosphere is that the noise does carry too well due to poor design choices. It was often difficult to hear the bar staff even though she was speaking very clearly and enunciated well; there was just too much other competing noise. The place wasn't all that busy either, moderately but definitely not packed. The place is its own vibe, but too many competing architectural elements. Not a very cohesive design. Nothing bad, but with better design it could have had more wow factor.

Flourless dark chocolate cake with gelato, 95%

Tiramisu, 75%

Glass of wine, 80%

Service of bar staff, 92% Service of other staff, 70%

Atmosphere, 90% Cleanliness, 96% Noise, 65% Design, 84%

Locally the only real competition to this place is the Apollon in downtown Appleton. In Madison, two places to study for the head server/server trainer would be Cento and Pig in a Fur Coat. Little details not only make for better guest experience, but better tips as well.

Overall I highly recommend this place with a B+ rating. The menu is exciting with a good variety. A few small tweaks could make this an A-.

This place just opened this week. As they find their rhythm things will only get better and better.

I have years of experience in restaurants from family style to fine dining. I have been the head cook at a small café in Minocqua, prep cook at a James Beard awarded restaurant. I've also been a server, bartender, manager and even dishwasher at various other restaurants. I am a harsh but fair critic having been on both sides of...