Gentile's

I have eaten some good food and some great food at many restaurants here in Syracuse but the dinning experience I had at Gentile’s Restaurant was remarkable! This has to be up there as one of the best dinning experiences I have ever had. When someone prepares food with the kind of passion for food that Chef Kevin Gentile has, it comes thru in the flavor.

It was a brisk fall evening when my friend Derry and I arrived at the restaurant, and the cool air had me in the mood for some comfort food.

Gentile’s Eclectic Italian Restaurant is located at 305 Burnett Ave. in Syracuse. You can enter from the front of the building or the rear. It’s a little off of the beaten path but not hard to get to at all and reward is worth any effort it takes to get there. Reservations are requested. I actually prefer to make reservations because I almost never have to wait to be seated.

At Gentiles, you are greeted by a professional staff that has complete knowledge of food and beverages. Our waitress was Kat. She filled our water glasses with water that had a hint of grapefruit and orange - the water here is always infused with a little citrus flavor. Kat gave us a detailed description of the specials, and we were left to study an amazing menu. We were told that the menu changes four times a year. This is so Chef Kevin can select from the freshest, in-season ingredients. That explains some of the items on the menu like: Butternut Squash & Rappini Risotto: topped with Grana Padano garnished with an Amaretto Cookie ($17.95), or Trisha’s Raviolis: pumpkin raviolis atop fried Rappini finished with a shitake walnut glaze ($18.95).

I couldn’t help but wonder how some of the menu items have been named. Chef Kevin has each one of his wait staff give him a list of some of their favorite ingredients, and he creates a menu item and names it after them!

Kat came back after a few minutes and took our dinner order. I ordered the Lobster Pot Pie (a la Gentile): fresh lobster, veggies & cream sauce topped with phyllo dough ($26.95), and Derry ordered Eric’s Angus NY Strip: grilled, topped with portabella asparagus gorgonzola crust set in Chianti demi-glaze ($25.95). Two different warm breads were served with a sesame bean puree with a hint of lemon with sweet balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. I had to stop myself from eating all the bread so I would have room for my entrée!

The décor is warm and cozy, and lighting is soft and comforting and decorated for the season with fall colors. It’s a perfect place for date night or a night out with the family. I was also very impressed that Chef Kevin caters to special diets. Special requests are really ok. Don’t be afraid to ask for gluten free pasta, or a vegetarian version of anything. Chef Kevin is not only the cook but is the owner, bookkeeper, and interior decorator! I don’t think there is much he can’t do, and his goal is to make your dinning experience at Gentiles one of the best you have ever had.

We ordered the Fried Calamari as an appetizer: with a sun dried tomato chipotle honey aioli ($9.95), and it was by far the best calamari I have ever had. The outside was fried and crisp, while the calamari was soft and cooked perfectly and served on a bed of greens. The aioli had a hint of smokiness while creamy and a perfect compliment to the fried calamari.

As we were waiting for our entrees to be delivered, I couldn’t help overhearing the table behind us just after their dinners arrived: “Oh my gosh, this is delicious! Who would have thought pumpkin raviolis would be this wonderful! How am I going to eat all this?”

As our meals were delivered we had to just look at them for a couple of minutes. The plate was a piece of art. I almost didn’t want to eat it looked so nice. My lobster pot pie was garnished with a mixture of greens, yellow pea shoots and the pink empty lobster tail positioned on top of the greens. The puffed pastry looked like a pillow on top of the crock. Finally, I couldn’t wait any longer I had to dive in. There was a mixture of corn, zucchini, edamame, potatoes, and large pieces of lobster in a delicate cream and seafood stock. The next time I go to eat here I may just have to order it again it was so delicious.

Derry’s plate was not going to be outdone by mine. Her steak was surrounded with apple matchsticks and sliced grapes, and her grilled Angus NY Strip was in a pool of a rich Chianti demi sauce. The steak was topped with an asparagus, portabella mushroom, and gorgonzola crust. She said she could tell when she cut into the steak that it was cooked perfectly. The combination of the toppings was a perfect compliment to the steak. I prefer gorgonzola to blue cheese - it tends to be a bit milder in flavor. I have to tell you again this has to be one of the finest dinners I have had in Syracuse. Neither of us could finish our plates there was so much food. We had to ask for to go containers.

Soon after we finished our dinners Kat came around with a dessert tray. There was a red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting, a walnut apple cheese cake, a pecan pie, tiramisu, and a berry tart. I thought choosing my entrée was hard! This was a tray of beautiful desserts! We decided to split a piece of pecan pie. Kat offered to warm it and serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

While we were waiting for dessert Chef Kevin invited us to come back to the kitchen. I have been doing these reviews for over a year now, and I have never been invited into the kitchen, but often thought I would love to check out the chef in action. Not only was I impressed with the front of Gentiles restaurant I was just as impressed to see the master chef run his kitchen. I also got to meet Mr. Marcus, who is the garnisher extraordinaire. He gets the credit for making all the plates so beautiful! When we returned to our table there was pecan pie alamode waiting for us. Again, I had to just take in the beautiful plate art. There was a raspberry and caramel sauce on the plate with ice cream just starting to melt around the edges and whipped cream piled high on top of the pie. The first bite had a little of everything on it. There were so many toasted pecans with the rich sweet center and one of the flakiest crusts. I thought my sister in-law was the only one that could make a pie this good!

If you have never been to Gentiles, it is a must try. I hope to see you there on a Tuesday night when they offer bring your own wine night, or Thursday when they offer pasta night they offer ten types of pasta and risotto. Four Stars!

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