Osteria Via Stato

Dinner. Free bread: very good, and nice and fluffy and warm ... but cooled off and then was just OK. Smoked salmon: pretty good, surprisingly. Fried onions: tasty. Other antipasti: good, but I've forgotten them. Long flat noodles with sausage and red sauce: good. Orechetti with oil and other stuff: good. Filet with salt and olive oil: good.

The "communal" tables stink. Should request a normal table. The crowd at this joint is crazy -- maybe mostly tourists staying at the attached hotel? Our server was a little weird, but fine.

The all-you-can-eat starters were better than the fancy meat entrees.

Osteria Via Stato
620 N. State St.
312-642-8450