Stagioni - Charlotte

Oh my. This place was phenomenal. We started off with the forcaccia loaf, beef tartare, and mussels. The bread had a THIN crisp to it with a perfect soft interior. The beef tartare is my personal favorite. It's seasoned, cut, and presented in the most perfect way. The texture was not overly chewy or bland, nor was the fresh beef over flavored, basically incredibly well balanced. Mussels were plump, really well cleaned, and refreshing to the table. Next, the doppio ravioli was light and unique. It really tasted like a sunny fall day. The gnocchi was interesting. Good, but it's a bit underwhelming comparatively. The duck was a bit too chewy for my liking, and the star of the dish was the brussel sprouts. The pepperoni sausage pizza has a perfect crust, and we loved the fennal sausage on it. Tartufi pizza, my second favorite. It had a gently sweet undernote to it and great umami flavor. Lastly, for desserts, we had the carmal apple bread pudding and ginger cake. The bread pudding had good texture, but the sweetness level would definitely suit a sweet tooth instead. The ginger cake, on the other hand, was perfectly semi sweet. The restaurant is beautiful, clean, and service was pleasant. I would come back for the beef tartare on it's own!

Food and cocktails were pretty good, our server was excellent, and the atmosphere was okay. We started with the Mini Focaccia Loaf which is anything, but mini. Bread was very good with the provided olive oil. We then had the Charred Octopus dish for an appetizer. This was the star of our dinner. Octopus was cooked perfectly and the white bean and kale salad was really tasty. The octopus portion was solid. My wife had the Truffle Tagliatelle and I had the Rigatoni. Both were good, but the presentation was a little underwhelming. I purposely order rigatoni a lot when at Italian restaurants in CLT and I'd put this mid-pack. I really wish it was served in a bowl with a rim as it looked pretty meek on such a large plate, and it is a fair portion. Iust doesn't look that way on a large, drab colored plate. We also weren't offered any fresh parm or anything, which I thought was strange. It didn't need any, but it would be nice for those who like a little added cheese. Overall, it was a good experience, but I honestly expected more since it can be difficult to get a reservation at prime hours on weekends if you don't book a couple weeks in advance.

Went with a party of 5 for an early dinner. We had the Stag Board, meatballs, and their appetizer special (Brussel Sprouts) to start. We added the mini focaccia loaf to go with the sauce the meatballs came in. We got a variety of pastas for our entree from gnocchi to rigatoni, the ravioli and tagliatelle. Everything from start to finish was fresh and flavorful. Great portion sizes and we still had Zepollis even though we were so full. I can't wait to go back and try more things on the menu.

Another recommendation from Where Chef’s Eat (if you don’t have this book, you should def buy it. No, I don’t have any financial stake in the sale of this book I’m just obsessed) and it was a winner. The atmosphere is casual and cozy. The kitchen is open concept, so you can see all the action while you’re warmed by the pizza oven which makes the best pizza in Charlotte (according to the local we chatted with at the bar). We started with the focaccia and the grilled romaine salad with calamari. YUM. We then ordered the pepperoni and fennel sausage pizza and it was the most flavorful pizza I’ve ever eaten. Ever. No idea how they pack that much flavor into a pizza, but it is seriously addictive. We didn’t try the pasta, but we stared longingly at every dish that passed out of the kitchen and questioned why our stomachs refused to consume more food. We ended the meal with an order of zeppole (think Italian beignets). I could bathe in that salted caramel sauce. Overall, a wonderful dining experience! NOTE: make a reservation if you want to guarantee seating. This place is clearly a community favorite because it was packed. We were just passing through Charlotte, so we did not have a reservation, but were able to snag a seat at the pizza bar facing the kitchen. All tables were totally booked!

Great for late reservations so dont shy away from the 9pm. Great and flavorful food and really great service. dont let my 4 star fool you, its only 4 because i like my pasta a little more full of stuff but it was great here and get a pizza to go for when the drinks kick in later.