We had dinner at San Morello at the Shinola Hotel in Detroit when we stayed there overnight at the end of last year. I wanted to get a feel for everything the hotel had to offer, so eating at its primary restaurant was a no-brainer. Plus, I was really craving some good pasta after all of the Christmas fishes and meats.

San Morello is in a very large space which is connected to the hotel through a very inconspicuous door. It faces Woodward Avenue as well, so you can get into the restaurant from the outside, or from inside Shinola Hotel. I had made a reservation over a month beforehand, and we were seated right away. The restaurant has a bistro type of feel, but with lots of comfortable banquettes as well. It’s a pretty large space too, with lots of different seating areas. It was super busy when we were there on a Friday night, and pretty loud too – there is not too much softness there to soak up all of the voices, since the ground and walls were tiled and wood. There’s a beautiful bar on once side of the restaurant with comfy chairs.

We were seated at a table along a banquette, and our jovial server stopped by right away to set us up. The menu is heavily Italian, with lots of pastas, and starters like prosciutto, but has some meat and fish as well. We opted to start with the whipped ricotta and honey, and the San Daniele Prosciutto. Both starters were extremely flavorful and delicious and we soaked up every drop of the ricotta. The prosciutto was super delicate and had some olive oil drizzle which amplified the taste. It was paired with Kabocha Squash Mostarda which had a soft, tangy flavor and mouthfeel and was a great accompaniment to the delicate prosciutto.

For the mains, we stuck with pasta, Brian opting for the Mezze Rigatoni with veal, and I got the pumpkin agnolotti. I thought the rigatoni, which was super fresh, was easily the best of the two. The veal bolognese was super flavorful with lots of spices and it was a really interesting dish. It was tossed with a really light white sauce, which was perfect and not too saucy. The pasta itself was so good that you don’t want to mask the actual taste of the pasta in this case – which the sauce definitely didn’t do. The pumpkin agnolotti were a bit less delicate than I was hoping for, each piece being about as big as a small ravioli. It didn’t have a ton of flavor beyond the pumpkin, but it was still very good. The pasta itself was not mushy, which is no easy feat when it is stuffed with very soft, moist goodness.

The pasta dishes were not super massive, so we had plenty of room for dessert. Brian ordered a slice of pumpkin cheesecake, which was good, but he complained that the slice was too small. Not the worst complaint out there! I ordered the pistachio cake with olive oil gelato. It was a revelation! I friggin love pistachios and this cake was a pistachio jubilee! There was a nice crust, and there was a crunchy top. I could’ve done without the olive oil gelato, not because it was bad, but it was just not necessary – it did give the cake a bit more moistness, though. Seriously, this is one of the best desserts that comes in cake form that I’ve had as far as I can remember. If you’re in Detroit, I would say it’s worth a stop at San Morello, at the very least, to grab a slice of this cake!

The wine list here is mainly very comprehensive with an obvious focus on Italian wines. They showcase a few wines in each section – often slightly more obscure wines that folks might want to try if they are feeling adventurous. We had a few wines by the glass, which was more appropriate for the pace and duration of the meal, but the bottle prices were not crazy. The most bizarre thing, to me, was the total and complete lack of any kind of dessert wine or fortified wine on the list. They had a few brandies, but no sherry, port, madeira, nothing. It was a strange oversight, because I’m not really sure what else you would drink with dessert? I ordered a glass of cognac, but Brian went completely without anything! A travesty!

Service here was excellent, if not a bit aggressive. My wine glass was swept away from the table before I was done, but quickly returned as our server realized his mistake. Unfortunately, a bunch of the wine had already splashed out of the glass and kind of made a mess at the table. Other than this minor snafu, however, the service was lovely and well-paced.

San Morello was a lovely place to spend a few hours during our stay at the Shinola Hotel. It wasn’t super stand-out but it most definitely wasn’t bad either. I would recommend it for a casual and fun night out in Detroit.