Cento

We went here on a whim with friends and were lucky enough to nab a table on a Friday night. The service was friendly and attentive and the menu eclectic with decent choices. We always judge Italian places tough because they are usually so far from the realities of what is Italian food.
We started with the Octopus appetiser which was wonderful. In totally non-​American fashion it is not deep-​fried and served with marinara sauce (although they have traditional American Calamari served in this fashion), but instead chickpeas and chorizo. It was a unique taste on a Southern Italian dish and we enjoyed it immensely.
For main courses we did risotto and pasta and both were very tasty. The drink menu includes staples of Italian beer, liqueur, and wine.
The key though is that for 3 people (4^th just drinking a few beers) we walked out the door for around 125 USD. Considering the quality of the meal and diverse options we were pleasently surprised. We will be back.

Main takeaway: not worth the price.
Loved the décor, service was pretty good, wine was recommended by server and was a good choice.
We started with the butcher board which was delicious, but nothing we could’t have assembled ourselves. I generally like things to be a bit «out there» when it comes to charcuterie, but we could have found the components from the grocery store.
Companion had Alaskan Char which was well prepared and beautiful. I had Garganelli pasta which was underwhelming but pretty good. I suppose I shouldn’t have gotten pasta if I wanted something extraordinary, but it seemed to be their speciality.
It’s more of a traditional upscale restaurant, and in comparison to more experimental places in a similar price range, I was unimpressed. If you’re looking for a place to take your grandparents and they are footing the bill, it’s a good choice. If you’re a 20-​something looking to impress a date, keep looking.

My boyfriend and I came here for our valentine’s day dinner. It was both our first time and our waiter was genuinely the nicest girl I have ever met.
The interior is beautiful! Very simple and elegant. It’s a great place for dates or dinner/​lunch dates with friends. It’s actually a lot bigger than it looks from the outside! There’s two sections to the restaurant. One thing that was «eh» for me was
our table. My boyfriend made a reservation like two weeks in advance and they gave us kind of a sucky table. The table was small and there was no where to put my purse besides the ground. Also it was kind of crammed in between two other tables. We looked around and there were booths and better table available so that kind of irked me.
Other than that the food was great! We both got pastas! My boyfriend got the seafood pasta and I got the braised beef. They were both delicious! Pastas are from $ 14-​$ 16 which isn’t too bad!
I also got their limoncello and mannn it is STRONG! I’ve had limoncello from other restaurants in chicago and san fran. but this one by far packed a punch. It is really sweet but it also stings cause it’s that strong!
For dessert I got their Affogato (they use collectivo espresso!) and it was amazing! Such a huge fan of it! Not too sweet and not too bitter!
Overall great dinner date experience! I’m a fan! Hopefully we get a better seat next time!
Hope you guys like it too :)!!

After hearing so many great things about Cento both online and from friends, we ventured in for Sunday brunch. We arrived just a bit before they opened (9:55am) but the host happily let us in and we grabbed two seats at the bar. Found it a bit odd that he asked if we had reservations, and when we didn’t, suggested that we «should» be ok with sitting at the bar.
I say it was odd because, during our entire time there (over an hour), we saw a total of 5 tables with people at them… absolutely no need for a reservation on this particular Sunday.
Bartender indicated he wasn’t fully set-​up yet; we weren’t there to drink, just to grab food and some coffee, so it was A-​OK with us if he tended to other activities (more on this in a bit). Food was ok, but it didn’t have me jonesing to rush back.
+ Interior is gorgeous. Subtle and muted earthy tones, perfect lighting, tons of windows.
+ Comfy seating — bar seats are nicely upholstered, and there’s a fair amount of seating at the L-​shaped bar.
— Looking around near the high-​top tables, I noticed the floor was extremely dirty… a hair scrunchie, some wrappers, some cocktail napkins — all scattered about around the tables. Obviously leftover/​missed from night before.
+ Excellent temperature. Despite it being cold and rainy outside, it was comfy inside.
— Background music was about 30% too loud considering the small number of folks eating, and given that it was 10:00am on a Sunday.
+ Interesting brunch menu
— Fairly pricey…
+ Interesting cocktail menu
— Light on «traditional» drinks; limited beer list
(that’s ok, though — I get that they’re trying to stay true to the Italian intent)
+ Coffee (first cups) came out hot; excellent creamer on the side — really rich & creamy. Colectivo coffee was delicious and well brewed.
— Onion frittata with prosciutto… super-​overcooked (literally crispy throughout). Rubbery. Mild onion flavor. Prosciutto (shaved) served on top at room temperature. Traded out potatoes for mixed greens, which were extremely over-​dressed.
— Market omelet… very small single-​fold omelet (maybe 1.5 eggs in size) featured a mixture of cured meats (soprasetta, prosciutto, and salami?), goat cheese, and mushrooms. Eggs were excellently cooked, but the fillings were sparse, save for the huge glob of goat cheese that resided on the last ¹⁄₃ of the omelet (there was no cheese in the first 2/​3s). Greens were decent, but semi-​overdressed.
Bartender was a friendly guy, but he initially forgot to bring coffee refills, despite asking for them. It wasn’t terribly busy while we were in there, and in his defense, we did tell him we didn’t need much attention. But he seemed to wrap-​up his prep work and never really checked-​in much. No real complaints about the service, all things considered.
Two breakfast dishes with two coffees and a Pellegrino came to $ 40 before tip. Just seems steep, given the overall quality and portion sizes. Not sure I’ll rush back, but if friends suggested we drop-​in for dinner/​food/​drinks, I wouldn’t hesitate to go.

Magnifico! The first of the Italian Regional Dinner Series at Cento was absolutely fantastic. This January dinner was perfect for a cold winter evening with the recipes coming from the snowy, mountainous region of Italy near Austria, the Alto Adige. Every course was paired with a wine of the area — Perfectly.
Amuse — a small plate with speck and kale to get our palates ready and in the mood for…
First– Spinach canederli with creamy cheese sauce. These were sort of a spinach pan-​fried dumpling, but super light and crispy. Gorgeous presentation here and at every course. With a yummy Pinot Grigio.
Second– A housemade wurst with a great mustard sauce and a few sprigs of sauerkraut. The snappiness of the wurst with the snap of the whole mustard seeds was lovely. With a pinot noir.
Third — a Trentino (beef) goulash on rich and creamy polenta; an excellent winter hearty dish. with a «Langrein» — a red wine– (a new grape for me).
Dessert knocked our wool socks off! Apfelstrudel — the best I have ever tasted — a flaky pastry ring around apples and dried fruit, served with a scoop of vanilla gelato. With a sweet wine that was SO GOOD — incredible layers of flavor in this Gewürztraminer, honey, apricot, vanilla… and I do not usually like sweet wines at all.
Grazie to Chef Michael Pruett and his team who were there all evening to explain the wines and food origins and answer questions. Lovely lovely dinner in the beautiful Cento banquet room. Wonderful service and — it bears repeating — stunning presentations.

The Spousal Unit and I attended the first of Chef Michael’s Italian Regional dinner series. At $ 60/​person, including wine pairings, it’s a steal. This one featured food and wine from the NE-​most corner of Italy and so had a German. Austrian slant to the offerings (think wurst, goulash, strudel) but definitely Italian. The wines from the L’eft Bank Wine distributor were unique to the region and excellent. Alois Lageder Pinot Grigio and Pinot Noir (no oak), Lagrein and a ‘knock your socks off” late-​harvest dessert Gewurztaminer served with the best apple strudel I’ve ever had.
Madison is lucky to have Chef Michael Pruett and the best way to experience great chefs is to give them free rein, sit at a big table and let them strut their stuff. I’m looking forward to the next in the series.