Nicole's Restaurant

"Excellent chicken, parm, moist flavorful and linguini and clams. Our server was fantastic right on top of everything. First time there, and we will be back."

"We had a dinner party for 18 people in the capitol room and it was an amazing experience. The process of booking the event was made very easy, Nicole was incredibly helpful leading up and made sure our group had a great time. At the dinner, the waitstaff was top notch - they went above and beyond to make sure each one of our guests was taken care of. The food was excellent. Everyone raved afterwards about what an excellent restaurant Nicole’s is. Definitely would recommend hosting an event there or just going for a nice dinner!"

"Fantastic cuisine, attentive but not obtrusive staff, romantic luxurious atmosphere. The salmon and roasted chicken were prepared perfectly with delicious sauces and fresh herbs."

"Nicole's Catering was a wonderful choice for our wedding at The Sablewood. Katie and Kate, the coordinators we worked with, were very easygoing and helpful throughout the entire process. They handled everything from the menu to setting up our decor on the tables, including plants and candles. On the wedding day, their staff was friendly, professional and attentive, making sure everything ran smoothly. They even ensured that my husband and I had a chance to enjoy a meal and a drink amidst all the excitement. The bartenders did a great job with our signature drink, which our guests appreciated. Nicole's Catering provided delicious food and reliable service, making our wedding day special. We're happy we chose them as our caterer!! Highly recommend!!"

"A quick visit to Nicole's Restaurant in Albany last week. Located in an old building on Albany's "original main street" Delaware Avenue, it looks like it could have been lifted right off Mulberry Street. The interior didn't disappoint either; dark and cozy. The service was excellent as we were greeted warmly and quickly at both the table and the door. Our waitress was very attentive and never overbearing. We started with the fried calamari ($14). I haven't mastered the correct pronunciation of calamari to suit our new home, but it sure ain't "galamar" like it is in Sheepshead Bay. The fried calamari was served with fried jalapeño slices and a very tasty marinara sauce. The fried calamari was fresh and tender, but the portion a bit skimpy. Rings were rare and tentacles the majority of the portion. For our mains, we opted for the substitute house side salads. They were beautiful salads, dressed perfectly and nicely balanced. Well done. The plain house salad added $3 and an additional $5 for the salad with Bleu cheese. For dinner my lovely wife ordered the chicken saltimboca ($26) which included excellent sides of sautéed spinach with garlic and oil and roasted potatoes. The chicken however was a mixed bag, one cutlet was overly salty with over cooked prosciutto. The other was more succesful, but hardly memorable. My meal was a house specialty of "hazelnut chicken" ($28) This is the dish I heard most about when researching the restaurant. This is two boneless chicken breasts, breaded and fried, topped with a sickly sweet hazelnut cream sauce crowned by some canned mandarin orange slices. This is served with a side of pasta coated in the same sauce. This dish screamed for some relief from the sweetness. It's pure sugar with the cream sauce burying what's left of your palette. Ugh. But that wasn't the worst of it. My chicken was raw. The flour coating was raw. This is the first time in my life that I've ever sent back a dish. The waitress was apologetic and quickly returned the dish to the kitchen. When it came back to my plate, it was obviously the same dish, as my sliced chicken breasts were in the exact same position on the plate as I left them. I assume that the chef just placed the plate in the salamander for a few minutes to finish the chicken. Then, the chef dumped more of the sickly sweet sauce over the plate. While the meat was now cooked, this did nothing for the flour on the underside of the cutlets. This quick fix, left the upper cutlet steaming hot, with the cutlet on the bottom of the pile still barely warm. As I mentioned, the waitress was apologetic and quickly worked to remedy the situation, but there was no mention of any accommodation for our trouble; no offer to buy us a drink, dessert or reduce the bill. Not even an apology from the host or manager. We won't be back."