Osteria Via Stato
620 N. State Street, Chicago IL; Phone 312-642-8450
Date of Review: November, 2006
Osteria Via Stato is not your typical Italian restaurant. Let me step back for a minute. This may be your typical Italian restaurant, but only if you have called some city in Italy your home for some portion of your life. Rich Melman, chairman of Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, new “concept” draws from the wonderful meats, cheeses, atmosphere and range of courses that you might find if you were sitting in an Osteria in Bologna or Florence or Naples. In fact, before opening the restaurant, Melman and his team sent a ‘research team’ to Italy so that they could get as close as possible to the cuisine and concept of what they were trying to emulate.
The atmosphere here is busy and welcoming, just as an Italian Osteria should be. The lighting creates a warm feeling and there is a lot of energy in the restaurant with tables everywhere including on what feels like an indoor terrace that opens out to the atrium of the Embassy Suites hotel that the restaurant is located in. The bar area also has tables and there is an expansive back room of the restaurant where the majority of tables are located with the open kitchen in full view.
Osteria Via Stato does offer a standard menu that you can order from. That said, I have never ordered off of it. To me, the beauty of this restaurant is the 3-course ‘Italian Feast’ menu option they offer. This is a selection of courses for $35.95. It is a great way to sample a variety of dishes. For the 1st course, an assortment of chef selected antipasto plates is brought to your table along with some warm, crusty bread and a plate of olives. Some of the antipasto dishes that have stood out during my visits include the veal meatballs in a red sauce and wood roasted sweet onions with crumbled parmesan cheese melted on top. You can request as many helpings as you want of any antipasto dish you would like to try more of.
The next course comes in the form of pasta and risotto. There are hearty ragus and perfectly cooked noodles and rice that remind me of the pasta and risotto dishes I have enjoyed while in Italy. All are served family style and you can request more of any dish that you deem worthy of another helping. It is always a surprise as to which two dishes will show up on your table as the chef is still ‘making the call’ at this point in your meal.
Your third course is the only course you choose yourself. Your server uses one of the small black chalkboards hanging on the wall to describe the 8-10 options you have available to you. You have a wide range of options ranging from veal meatloaf to a lamb t-bone (5$ extra), porterhouse for two (8$ extra), short rib on a bed of polenta, pork shank, swordfish or salmon. All the items I have tried have been good but my favorites are the tender lamb t-bone and the succulent short rib. There are 2 side dishes that are brought to the table to pass with your entrée. Some I have had include glazed carrots and onions, sautéed cauliflower and a wonderful sweet potato puree.
From a dessert perspective, I have been too full to ever actually order a dessert although the chef did come out on my last visit and offered a complimentary sampling of sugared orange peel and chocolate peanut brittle which was very good.
The prices are fair for the quantity and quality of the food that continues to show up on your table during your meal. On my last visit, 5 of us dined and the total bill was $244 plus tip. That included a $37 bottle of wine. They have an extensive wine list with bottles from every region of Italy and you have the option to try 3 different glasses of wine paired with your meal for as little as $15 per person as part of the "Just Bring Me Wine" program.
