I was very excited to check out Nostrano and did so for the first time during restaurant week (RW). Not sure if they were having an off night or if it was the syndrome of not putting your best foot forward for the RW masses but I just wasn't impressed. First the good: very friendly and attentive staff. The hot apple toddy was five stars. Most excellent. It smelled much stronger than it was (a good thing) and was delicious. Perfect for the chilly winter evening. It was served in an adorable little metal pitcher.
We started with the olives and focaccia (not part of the RW deal) which was good but nothing special. First courses were decent and my lamb terrine was easily the highlight. Something about the farro tabbouleh just fell flat. It lacked any real flavor. Second course was super disappointing. I had the winter squash risotto which lacked any flavor and the risotto was not well cooked. It was just a bowl of orange goo. Very odd. Sadly the walnuts accompanying that dish were the highlight. The bf had the cavatelli which just kinda tasted odd. The pasta was chewy and the sauce was blah.
Dessert was just okay as well. I'm super bummed. And very surprised. I left feeling like Nostrano was capable of so much more. I have a feeling it was the RW syndrome but nothing really made me excited to come back.