Trattoria San Nicola, Paoli
4 Manor Rd.
Paoli, PA
610.695.8990
There is a second TSN location at 668 Lancaster Ave. in Berwyn. 610.296.3141
Rating: 2 silver spoons out of five
Overall: San Nicola serves traditional Italian food that is well-prepared but lacks creativity. It is absolutely a reasonable neighborhood restaurant for a weekday meal, or someplace to take a larger group where everyone will be satisfied. For a special night, however, the lack of ingenuity falls short, especially for the adventurous eater.
Food: Standard Italian fare, simple but well-executed. Start out with the Cheese & Pepper plate, served family style ($3 per person), to enjoy homemade sweet roasted red peppers and a variety of excellent Italian cheeses. The grilled red snapper fillet served with a white wine cream sauce, roasted peppers and toasted almonds ($17.50) was a nice dish, if a tad bland. We also tried the beef filet ($21.50), grilled a perfect medium rare and served with a red wine demiglace and garnished with whole roasted garlic and fresh rosemary. The Misto di Carne ($19) offers a nice variety of sauteed sausage, chicken breast and veal tenderloin topped with a cream sauce of peas and carrots, but again is a pretty boring dish. The best dish we’ve had is the grilled salmon filet ($18) served with salmoriglio sauce (olive oil, lemon and garlic) — the salmon was perfectly crispy on the outside and tender within, and the simple sauce brought out the fish’s flavor.
TSN recently started offering a side of vegetables instead of the longtime tradition of a pasta side, perhaps in part because of the suggestion on this very page.
Ambiance: Several small rooms, decorated Tuscan-style, with windows surrounding the entire building. Because the rooms are small, it can get very loud, which can either make it seem like a hot spot or cause a headache, depending on one’s mood. There is also a small, smoke-free bar area for a quick drink and meal. The Paoli location is nicer than the Berwyn location.
Service: Pleasant and competent. A few blemishes — had to wait for a table with a reservation on a weeknight, even though there were several open tables, and one request for a minor plate change (from the menu) was not handled correctly. A few years ago at the Berwyn location, we had to wait 45 minutes for a table with reservation.
Value: The prices seem a tad high for the quality of food, especially considering the fact that they sell alcohol. One nice feature is the BYO policy — although they do have a full bar, they allow BYOW for a $10 corkage fee. Granted, corkage fees are generally evil, but when faced with paying restaurant markup or bringing a nice bottle from home and dropping an additional few bucks for the privelage, this seems to create a good value proposition.
Details:
#of times we’ve eaten there: 3
Cards: Yes
Reservations: Yes (you still may wait at busy times)
Bar: Full, BYOW with $10 corkage
website: http://www.tsannicola.com
April 9th, 2007 at 6:17 am
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July 2nd, 2007 at 10:07 am
The food I’ve had at San Nicola hasn’t been bad. But I think they could use more choices. It seems almost odd that they don’t offer any basic Italian dishes like ravioli or tortellini — and I don’t think there’s a single meatball offered on the menu. Nonetheless, the veal dishes I’ve had have been quite nice. It’s a basic weeknight restaurant for comfort food in my book…
July 18th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
I have always had a great meal at both locations. I am from Italy and go frequently in order to have good food like in my country. The word trattoria means that the restaurant is a step down from a ristorante, and is supposed to offer simple classic dishes rather than off the wall stuff. I think they deserve at least 3 or 4 spoons, 2 is an insult.
July 22nd, 2007 at 2:17 pm
Although we are aware of the difference between a trattoria and a ristorante, we have always left TSN with the feeling that what we had to eat just wasn’t all that great. There is nothing wrong with simple fare, but it must be fresh, flavorful and well prepared. At TSN, the food it is fine, but is not spectacular by any means and is generally overpriced for its quality, hence the 2 rating.
July 24th, 2007 at 10:50 am
Couldn’t disagree with you more. Having dined many times at both Trattoria San Nicola locations, I have never been disappointed in the food. It is always fresh, always served at the proper temperature, and certainly not overpriced in my view. You rate them much differently than I. Were I a food critic, both TSNs would get, and deserve, at least four spoons.
August 7th, 2007 at 6:47 am
I’m with Ramondo H. on this one. We recently brought friends to the Paoli restaurant and they were shocked at how inexpensive dinner for four was! They have one of the most reasonably priced wine lists on the Main Line. What I like about their Italian cuisine is that the emphasis is on simple grilled fish and fresh salads, as opposed to heavy red sauces and entrees smothered with cheese. If you want spaghetti and meatballs, go somewhere else. But if you want to eat like the Italians do in the “old country”, this is the place!
September 25th, 2007 at 10:15 am
I agree with Ramondo H and Jeanne S. as well. My husband and I dine at the Paoli location and have NEVER received a bad meal, both lunch and dinner. We also do take out and the food is just as good. I’d give them 4 spoons as well.
October 8th, 2007 at 9:37 am
Recently ate here for the first time and left underwhelmed overall. While the staff were courteous, we did not have to wait (had a 7:00 reservation on a weekend), and the food is relatively inexpensive considering the location, I was less than impressed with the fare. The bruschetta was phenomenal and the limoncello I had for dessert was fantastic, but our main courses were mediocre. The chicken saltimbocca was drowned in sauce that completely overwhelmed the dish, making it hard to taste the proscuitto or provelone. My girlfriend’s veal had the texture of salisbury steak and was very chewy. While they were both palettable, neither was spectacular nor appealing visually. Probably would not go back.
December 10th, 2007 at 4:13 am
We ate at San Nicola Sat night, and we had such a spectalcular meal my wife and I had to let everyone know about it. I started with the tomato crab soup which is out of this world, and followed up with the best veal chop ever!! It was so tender and moist, I never can get it to come out that way at home. My wife had the San Nicola salad which I tasted and it was incredible, she then had the lasagna, which was delicious and different then the other Italian restaurants claiming to be “Italian”. Then to top the dinner off we had a limoncello and a tartuffo. They were heavenly. A must go to restaurant with great atmsophere, great service and great food.
May 31st, 2008 at 12:16 pm
We were at San Nicola the other week, and it was great. A must visit!! Great food, service was very friendly and willing. Love their crab soup. Cannot wait to return
June 15th, 2008 at 6:02 am
After living in center city Philadelphia and frequenting the restaurant scene fully for the last 10 years, I was eager, if somewhat hesitant, to explore the Trattorias, Bistros and brew houses of the main line following our move to Tredyffrin Twp. For our first adventure, we tried Trattoria San Nicola
San Nicola lived up to our best experiences in town. First, the service, on a Saturday evening, was excellent throughout the evening. Second, the food was superb. For entree, I had a menu item, Linguini Veneziane, black pasta with crab meat and spices, and my wife had a daily special, stuffed veal and spinach canneloni with tomato sauce. Both compared most favorably to any of the numerous center city Italian restaurants. Third, our server knew the wine list and recommended good wine matchings for all of the dishes. And fourth, I’ve actually paid as much for a BYO in town as I did last night for dinner including wine!
Thanks to Lauren and everyone else for an excellent first impression of main line dining.