New East side Mexican Food - YUM!

We are so excited that on the far east side we continue to attract new places to eat. The newest addition is Cucos a little joint on Buckeye that took over the Papacornopulis location. What an improvement - the place is really bright, clean and comfortable place to grab dinner any night of the week.  The menu is huge with a huge number of choices - all the usual Tex Mex items I grew up with, enchiladas, nachos, fajitas and a huge combo section. The beer is cold and the margaritas look tasty - we have not had one yet. The service is spectacular - always friendly , attentive and present when needed.  We have found a couple of things that are the best kept secert at this new favorite go to spot. First - ask for the hotter salsa - it is smoky, deep with rich chili notes and nice punch of heat! And second - order the Pork Carnitas dinner - holy cow - a plate full of the most tender, slow cooked pork with crispy exterior. This is by far one of the best plates of carnitas I have ever had in my life - and I have eaten a lot of Mexican food.  The platter is accompanined with nice refried beans, rice, lettuce, pico de gallo , fresh guacamole and crisp pickled jalapenos. You get to choose either corn or flour tortillas which are served fresh and hot. It is a build your own taco bonanza - we usually have leftovers for the next day - what value for about $10 it is a must seek out spot when the craving for Mexican food hits! While the west side has Taqueria Guadalajara and we have a few others spots around town - this is our new favorite place in the neighborhood!  We can't wait to explore the menu even more - if we can get away from ordering these succulent carnitas.

Happy Eating!

Jim

Pig In a Fur Coat!

Yes - it sounds like  the beginning of a joke - "A pig in a fur coat walked into a bar...." Well we did feel like a pig in a fur coat the other night when we visited the newly opened restaurant on Willy Street. It seemed the air conditioning was not working on what was a very hot evening. Despite the environment the evening had some high points. The space formerly Roccos Pizza has been transformed into a smart space with two large communal tables and a section of banquets. The vibe was very much West village in NYC, smart looking people - mostly from the neighborhood. Gray walls with raised mirrors and Edison bulb fixtures gave the feel of an established joint. There was a small stand up  bar in the back next to the open kitchen.  The menu is pretty tight - focused and "Pig centric" as the name implies.  Mostly starters, small plates and a limited selection of large plates. We decided to stick our favorite thing when trying out a new spot - sharing many items.

The wine list had a nice selection of old world wines that will have you doing some tasting to find a selection for your meal. The only down side for our Leyda Pinot Noir from Chile was that is was served at the same temperature as the room - a nice 80-85 degrees not really appealing. After our wine arrived we ordered our round of small plates which arrive in no particular order which is fine as long as the spacing of courses matches up with the tiny two top table we were seated at tonight. First up - the Charcuterie platter - not really a platter but a nice offering of house curred sausages and salumi  including a  blood sausage and chicken liver mouse with cherries. The platter had nice toasted thin cut baguette and the serving portion was ample for the price. Overall while taste of the platter fell flat on being very one dimensional - our favorite in the city these days is the Charcuterie board at Nostrano - with its little extras of house pickled vegetables, mustard, and other accompaniments. It seems the kitchen is still working on the presentation of the platter here and I think they will continue to fine tune it over the next few weeks. We will try it again if they update the selections with additional variety. Next to arrive the Ravioli with duck egg, overall a nice dish expect it lacked basic seasoning which would have helped balance the dish out since it was so rich with the duck egg, ricotta and a little too much brown butter - it was swimming a bit - this dish had great bones but need a little finessing. Moving on to the Pork belly - what a great combination with little pickled carrots - they gave a nice hit of acid and left us wanting a little more to balance out the dish. Overall this dish delivered a great combination of flavors and textures in a dish that was not too heavy as pork belly can be on occasion. Still wanting a little more we opted for the Dates with chorizo and piquillo peppers - the best for last, this was the most well constructed dish of the evening -- a wonderful balance of the sweet dates, the smoky chorizo and the wonderful fresh flavor of the piquillos - well seasoned and really tasty. Despite the uncomfortable environment the service was friendly, even paced and attentive which is hard to find in a newly opened restaurant. Time will tell as the kitchen team find their rhythm but I think that Pig in Fur Coat will only get better as a new hot spot on the East side.

Cheers

Jim

Nostrano its whats for Dinner!

We ventured out on a snowy evening about a week ago on a Friday evening in search of a restaurant that was not participating in restaurant week. Before we made it to our dinner spot we stopped by our favorite distillery - Old Sugar Distillery to have a Queen Jennie Old Fashion. If you have not been to OSD it is one of the hottest micro distilleries in the Midwest. Check it out here http://www.madisondistillery.com/

We finally landed at Nostrano - despite not participating in restaurant week the dining room was full with a smart looking crowd of Madisonians. We decided to dive right into one of the best meals we have had in the last few months. Since the first week they opened over a year ago they have continued to deliver some of the most professional service and top notch food in Madison. We often say a trip to Nostrano is like going to a restaurant in Chicago - simply a complete experience! We had a wonderful bottle of a French Cabernet that got better with food. Here is what we had from the menu - we tend to share a lot so we can taste a lot.

Dinner
Marinated Olives
Sourdough Focaccia 5 - these are always fresh and tasty and the Focaccia is a great foil for the marinating oil of the olives. It really gives your palette a nice jumpstart.

Celery Salad
Heirloom Apple Chickories Parmesan Pistachio Vinaigrette 10 - fresh and vibrant the flavors took a quote "Waldorf salad" idea and spun it into something new and exciting. The crunch and crisp greens were a great lead into the next course.

Charcuterie Board
Pâté Salsiccia Salame Grain Mustard Pickles 17 - sounds simple but the combination of flavors and textures are a symphony for the mouth! If you don't order this board here you are missing out on some of the finest Charcuterie anywhere. And they will pickle anything and it is delicous

Orecchiette
Fennel Sausage Brussels sprouts Parsnips Fiore Sardo 21 - wow another amazing combination of flavors, the pasta was perfectly cooked and tender combined with the caramelized parsnips, slight bitterness of the greens and the house made sausage delivered a flavor explosion that had so many layers. Each layer of flavor was easily identified as we enjoyed every savory bite of this dish.


Dessert

Tortino
Chestnut Crumble Cake Bourbon Gelato Moonglow Pears Fior di Latte 10 - you have to order dessert here it is a must - both the chef owners have very deep pastry backgrounds. The flavors of the crumble cake with the Bourbon gelato were simply sublime.

Linda and I look forward to more frequent dining at Nostrano this year - it is one of our new "go to" places to share with fellow chefs when they are in town. And the gang at Nostrano also deliver the most underrated and overlooked lunch in town. Same quality and care at about 40% the price of the dinner menu which is a steal and would be a lot pricier if the restaurant was located 122 miles further south.

Cheers!
Jim