Recently, the gentleman swept the lady away from campus for a fine Italian dinner at Paolo Lombardi’s in Wynantskill.
The building is appealing to the eye, an elegant old home that has been expanded twice since its original conversion to a restaurant. This, in addition to the fact that our waiter never once referred to us as anything other than “the gentleman” and “the lady,” led the gentleman to realize that this was an establishment a bit outside the typical student budget. For a romantic engagement, however, it was quite ideal.
Warm bread with garlic butter was served immediately, and after our drinks were brought out, we were left to peruse the quite impressive menu.
Head Chef Paolo Lombardi has owned and operated the restaurant for 16 years. In that time, he has put together a fantastic array of both classic Italian dishes and originals that feel like they’re steeped in tradition. The one caveat is that there is almost nothing vegetarian on the menu, although having the chef come up with something on the spot was suggested as an impressive option.
My hunch about cost was also born out—entrees range from around $15 to $30, with the median somewhere around $22. Not someplace one makes a habit of (unless you’re on a full professor’s salary—faculty, take note!), but just right for a nice date.
After chatting for a bit, the gentleman decided to go the classic route, and selected veal marsala. The lady, feeling more adventurous, ordered pesce alla principessa, batter-fried scrod in lemon butter served over spinach and artichokes. In addition to a salad, we each got to choose between the standard bowl of linguini marinara or Italian potatoes.
While waiting for our meal, I realized that “the gentleman” and “the lady” were quirks of our waiter—I overheard other servers addressing other couples in the second person, which is a good thing overall: After a while, our waiter started to seem condescending.
The salads and side dishes were both excellent. The salad was made of several different types of greens, all of which were extremely fresh. The Italian potatoes were fried up with onions, garlic, and bell peppers and exquisitely seasoned—we could have made a meal just out of those.
The entrees, when they arrived, were equally impressive. The lady’s meal was the lightest, least greasy batter-fried dish we had ever encountered. The veal marsala was absolutely smothered in mushrooms and was fabulous. Portions were standard Italian-restaurant-sized, which is to say very large without being truly gargantuan; each of our servings was enough for two meals or so, and they made for very tasty leftovers the next night.
For dessert, the gentleman and the lady split a generous portion of homemade tiramisu. The texture was perfect, and the flavor was good, too; on the other hand, we’ve never encountered bad tiramisu, and this was not the best we’d ever had. Top five, perhaps.
On the whole, we enjoyed an excellent meal in an elegant setting. This is definitely a restaurant to which we will be returning in the future.
Paolo Lombardi’s is located on West Sand Lake Road in Wynantskill. To get there, go south from campus to Congress St., and turn left up the hill. Bear right onto Pawling Ave. and follow it out of Troy. About a mile past the Hannaford will be a junction with Route 150. Turn right, and at the next traffic light, turn left to remain on 150 (West Sand Lake Road). Paolo Lombardi’s will be less than a mile ahead on the right.
Editor’s Note: To recommend a restaurant, e-mail The Poly at restaurants@poly.rpi.edu.
