great addition to the edwardsville food scene. my wife and i went sugo’s with somewhat muted expectations, given some of the reviews, and we were really impressed by the entire experience from start to finish. this is a well thought out restaurant in many respects, and i think some of the differences between this experience and other italian restaurants in the area will serve them well.
the first thing i noticed about sugo’s was the spare menu. their choices are limited, although pretty much every important italian cuisine category was represented, albeit with fewer choices per. but look them up and check out their menu. for me, a limited menu is often agoodsign that a restaurant has made a business decision to offer fewer choices, but to really execute what they do decide to serve decisively and well.
next, the service was really spot-on. our waitress (tiffany) was pleasant and informed, and answered the couple of questions we had regarding the menu with obvious pride in the restaurant’s offerings. she explained that everything is prepared fresh everyday, the meatballs, the sauces, the bread made on site, etc. she obviously believes in what she is serving, which is always nice.
the business about all the food being prepared fresh answered the issue of the limited size of the menu. when you are going to make everything anew everyday, you have to make choices about how much you can execute well day after day, and your menu has to reflect those choices.
last night (friday 2/22) my wife had the mushroom pasta, and i had the seafood pasta. mine was really good, and i’ll definitely get it again. my wife’s mushroom pasta was truly awesome... something unique that you won’t find at what might seem like similar restaurants. you gotta like mushrooms to love this one, and the roasted garlic is a prominent flavor, too. but this was one of those dishes that makes you just look at one another across the table and say, “wow!” it is so good, so earthy, and the mushroom broth light yet substantial. i’m getting that the next time we go!
we were full after the pasta, so we ordered the tiramisu to go. later in the evening we divided it up and dug in. delicious. my wife said it might be the best tiramisu she’s ever had.
one other thing that was a fun bonus: the general manager, micah, came over to ask how dinner was. we struck up a nice conversation, and it was a pleasure to meet him.
oh, and by the way: the house wine ($18 a bottle) is a quite decent table wine to go with the pasta, and a bargain at that price. truth is, the whole experience seemed like a bargain at this price point... which is why i suspect we might become regulars of sugo’s!
i’ll close by sharing a couple of thoughts about some of the negative reviews. i think many americans eating italian fare are used to the big, thick sauces, alfredo that has the consistency of grandma’s sausage gravy, etc. but just as there are differences in american cuisine, from the generally light pacific northwest seafood, to crispy-crusty southern fried chicken and creamy grits, there is a lot of variety in italian cuisine as well. it’s all a matter of one’s personal palate, but i like the lighter more brothy sauces sometimes. if one doesn’t care for that style of italian cooking, that’s fine. but i still found that the food was well executed.
one reviewer recommends going to bella milano instead, which is certainly fine to say, as by nature restaurant reviews have some elements of subjectivity to them, and my pick may not be your pick. but to assert that bella milano has “better food... similar price... better atmosphere” is to ignore that there are important differences between the two offerings.
my wife loves bella milano, and i like it “ok,” too. but we were both impressed with sugo’s tonight, and really think that they have found a unique sweet-spot that will make them an edwardsville fixture for a long time to come.