After visits to Apizza Scholls and Ken's Artisan Bakery, ADC and I had but one high end pizza left to try. The plan was to hit all 3 of the top spots for pie in one week, and we have accomplished that goal.Last night, Nostrana (they have just been named Restaurant of the Year by the Oregonian (it's been 3 weeks to the day, in fact)). I've heard stories about hordes of people waiting to get in. We plan to go VERY early, and get a seat at the bar (if two are available)...
They open at 5. ADC plans to be home by 5 or 5:30, and we head right over. We arrive at 6, and the place is already full. There is a 30 to 45 min wait, but we snag a couple of seats at the bar in about 10 minutes (making it, I believe, the shortest wait of the three stops). One thing to note, the service seems to have improved. I have to guess they have brought on more staff with the ROY award and the crowds that follow. They actually had a hostess. Novel concept! ADC makes a comment, toward the end of the meal, unsolicited mind you, about how bad the service is. I tell her that it has gotten a lot better, and she finds that hard to believe...
I order a beer to keep consistent with the previous 2 stops, and ADC gets makers and ginger ale. We get the salami plate (consisting of meats from Seattle's Salumi), 4 meats, marmalade, and mushrooms. Pretty good, but in my opinion, the marmalade got in the way of the savory meaty flavors. ADC seemed to like the mix.
Course 2 is the salad. With the absence of a true Caesar on the menu, we get the Nostrana, "radicchio, Parmigiano Reggiano with rosemary and sage croutons in a Caesar style dressing (contains raw egg)." ADC admits she's not a fan of radicchio by itself, and I'm not that impressed anyway. The leaves are a little soft. Passable, but not exciting.
And, the pizza. Again, trying to keep the meals consistent, we get the margherita with prosciutto. As at Ken's, the basil is baked with the pizza, but unlike out other two stops, the meat is placed on the pie after it's cooked. The prosciutto is tasty, quite hammy. ADC likes the sauce and the crust, I find the sauce lacking. Seems to me that the kitchen at Nostrana is a little afraid of salt (also, no salt on the bar or at any of the tables). They use fresh mozz, but cut it a little thick for my taste. resulting in mushy lumps of cheese on top. I find it all a little greasy, too.
And now, for the 4 categories of judgment...
1-Beer list. Nostrana clearly loses here. 5 beers, all from bottle, none on tap. And, it's 2 Deschutes products, 2 Morettis, and Pilsner Urquel. Decent choices, but nothing exciting, nothing original, and a very narrow selection.
2-Salad. Again, Nostrana loses. I prefer Apizza, and ADC prefers Ken's. We both rank Nostrana's in 3rd place.
3-The pie. ADC ranks Nostrana's pie as 2nd place overall. She enjoys the crust and the sauce here a lot, but not the toppings. She still prefers Apizza, and I remind her that with a new oven, Ken's pies could improve. Me, I rank Nostrana's third. Crust for me is OK. I don't like the sauce, and I find the toppings to be lackluster, plus the absence of salt. And, you have to cut it yourself. I know, I know, this is traditional. I'd just like to not waste time and look foolish by cutting my own pie with a knife. At least give us pizza cutters! ADC likes the pizza, but says that she wouldn't come back just to eat it.
4-The locale. Finally, Nostrana loses on ambiance too. I kind of like the high ceilings and grand scale, but it needs to be broken up a little. Plants, something, I don't know. ADC compared it to a big cafeteria. The noise was loud too, not unbearable, but loud. There is a ton of exposed wood on the ceiling, again, it looks great, but reflects sound like nobody's business.
Alas, poor Nostrana, that is strike 3 for you. I won't be returning.
Overall rankings are the same for ADC and me...
#1 - Apizza
#2 - Ken's
#3 - Nostrana
Oh, and a quick note on pricing. None of these places is particularly cheap, but they are consistent. For two, with drinks and salad, you can expect to pay around $50 for any of the three options. Nostrana was the priciest (we did have an extra drink and the meat plate, though) and Ken's was the cheapest. Apizza? Just right...
Links to my previous 2 Nostrana visits...
http://tarteauxpoires.blogspot.com/2006/04/nostrana-with-cc.html
http://whatteats.blogspot.com/2006/03/thurs-march-2.html
And, the first two installments of Pizza Quest...
Pizza Quest Pt. 1, Appizza Scholls (a.k.a. WW's Cheap Eats Pt. 2)
Pizza Quest Pt. 2, Ken's Artisan Bakery
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