Rustico Ristorante

Loved this place and the service. I’ve eaten here twice now and each time was more than happy. It is a little pricey so if you’re on a budget skip it BUT if not then GO! The simple salad was so tasty. The pasta de mare was amazing… Only sorry I have to wait another year to enjoy it!

I’ve been coming here for many years. It’s hard to decipher whether my love for this restaurant is due to many fond memories here or if it’s because the food and dining experience. One is never rushed here; the food comes out as if it is cooked carefully and with pleasure. I’ve never experienced a server here who was not charming and warm.
I will say that the prices have gone up drastically! I’ve seen the price of the Pizza Rustico double since 2008, which I always get for the homemade sausage and delicate peporoncini. I will also admit that the quality of the breadbasket has deteriorated since I first started going; the last time I went the foccaccia was soggy and not fully cooked. The seafood pasta dish is always wonderful.
The tiramisu is delicious, and the limoncello is housemade and a wonderful end to any evening.

Solid. Menu lacks what Americans want.
I get the «authentic» Italian thing. Just give me an out, or another choice — like spaghetti and meatballs — nope.
Enjoy, but don’t expect American Italian here.

I have been coming to this Telluride favorite for years. Have always enjoyed the food and this time was no exception. What was exceptional was the service. Kind of used to average service but last night our server Decker was spot on. Everything was prompt and efficient.
Would recommend as a place to go in Telluride for Italian comfort food.

Everything was absolutely unbelievable… Service, food, ambiance… fabulous! We will be back!

This has been one of our favorite restaurants in Telluride over the years. It has a high-​end Italian restaurant atmosphere and the ravioli with Rosa sauce is absolutely amazing. It’s full of flavor, and you can’t get enough.

Absolutely the worst service on the planet!!!
Not to mention alcohol given to children… by mistake of course.
Don’t waste your time/​money!

Definitely not worth your time. The food was decent, but didn’t warrant the $ 25+ entrée prices. Owner/​manager rushed us through our meal & we were done in under an hour (for our party of 11)! If you do choose to waste money here, go with the pizza, it was the best food at our table.

Do it! Fabulous, fresh food. Great customer service. We ate here before the busy season officially began, so there was no wait. Service was excellent, food was perfect and the atmosphere was delightful-​warm and cozy.
We started with the calamari — not spectacular but tender. We chose Mushroom Fettuccini and Ravioli in Cream Sauce for our entrees. Portions were filling. no room for dessert. There were some excellent looking soups and salads too. Thank you for your hospitality.

My boyfriend and I chose Rustico for our one nice dinner during our Telluride trip this past weekend and we were not disappointed. We are foodies on a budget, so if we are going to shell out a little more cash than usual it better be really good! Well, it was. And it was actually a very reasonable price compared to other similar restaurants in the area that we looked into. The wait staff was extremely friendly and the food was delicious. He had the steak and said it was one of the only times he’s had a perfectly done medium-​rare. It was tender and juicy and the sides complimented it perfectly. I had the raviolli per a local’s suggestion. The pink sauce was the perfect balance of creamy and tangy… so good. Our plates were practically licked clean and not a drop was left in the wine bottle. Thanks Rustico!

Don’t waste your time and money here. Nothing for you here — keep moving…
Repeated bad experiences with the service, the food and the management. I vow never to return, but get talked into going with friends. Never Again
Did I say rip off?

Really lucky to eat here during the slow season. We were excited to hear the Italian language spoken as soon as we stepped inside.
Food was excellent– soup of the day & salad with shrimp (simple and delicious), the bolognese, two great wines, and tiramisu. Wonderful.
We had a great food talk with Charles, who steered us to the wines.
Wonderful place. We will return.

Took my parents here for their anniversary dinner (around 6:15 on a Thursday evening).
We were seated immediately; service was great, waiters greeted us in Italian (+10 points for authenticity?!), outdoor patio was comfortable, food was delicious… we got the lentil soup, margherita pizza, tri-​color rotini with the house bolognese sauce, and rigatoni with sausage (expensive, but such is the Telluridian lifestyle?)
But the dessert… dear god in heaven.
Please see the attached photo for the reason I thought this review was worth writing in the first place.
The End. ^_^

This was our absolute favorite meal of our recent 5 day CO mountain trip. I love Italian food, I make lots of my own Italian specialties and I rarely eat Italian meals out that I love. But this was it. Probably because it was not a traditional red sauce place but truly fine food, cooked and served by knowledgeable talented Italians. And in a wonderful setting. Covered outdoor dining right on the main street of Telluride with perfect weather to eat out. It is a very large dining space, not just a little patio, with a canvas roof.
The menu was quite full, with all the traditional Italian courses, salads, fish, pastas, entrees and desserts. And from our perspective, all incredibly authentic and well made. We opted to share 3 small plates as we often do, looking for balance of ingredients and flavor without more volume than we can handle. These plates were certainly ample for that. Our waiter heard our choices and chose the order and pacing. He stayed on top of it every minute of the meal, being friendly but never intrusive. He apparently came to Telluride six years ago from Italy and he is totally charming.
Before truly indulging, we had a small basket of basic white Italian bread along with a very tasty rose wine, but I don’t remember which. Then we started with the Rustico salad, simple but refreshing, absolutely crisp fresh mixed greens, roasted red peppers, black olives, and with some herbed goat cheese and a citrus vinaigrette. This was followed by a marinated salmon plate, which included a pickled onion and some sliced, dressed cabbage. Our largest plate was the polenta topped with melted Fontina cheese and a hearty serving of sautéed wild mushrooms including fresh local porcini, one of my favorites. We are glad we saved room for dessert because the seasonal special just took the prize! Being August in Southwest Colorado means Palisade peaches in some form, and this was elegant and huge and gorgeous to look at as well as tasty. Even with two of us we could barely finish it. The skin-​on peach slices were marinated in a chianti Sangiovese, served over homemade vanilla gelato, I think with a touch of a liqueur and the whole thing topped with fresh whipped cream.
The End.

The super thin vegetable pizza was tasty. DH’s sausage w rigatoni pasta was so-​so. We were not overwhelmed by the quality nor experience and it felt very over the top pretentious with all of the build up over the ingredients. The gelato was good, but at $ 78 before gratuity for two lunch items and gelato to share… it felt like the short end of the deal. Nice patio, but meh… there are far better places and especially for the money.
Oh, and skip the free bread. It was supposedly focaccia but it was dry, flavorless… not so inspired.

I had a nice time here. Service is really friendly, and the food was really good. A bit expensive, but welcome to telluride. The ravioli was simple but good, the mushroom soup was sublime.

I live in Telluride and eat here all the time. The staff is always friendly and the food is delicious! In the summer they have amazing gelato as well. Everything on the menu is fantastic, but my favorite is the mushroom fettuccine! If you like ravioli the pink ravioli is also amazing and my favorite pizza to get is the chicken one. All their meat is great too, especially the veal which comes from Ralph Lauren’s ranch. Definitely one of the top 5 restaurants in Telluride!

A friend and I hoped for a good dinner. The food was mixed: good salmon appetizer, extremely mediocre salad and entrée. What made the evening memorable? Extraordinarily poor service. The restaurant wasn’t busy, but our waiter was too preoccupied taking care of a group seated next to us to bother to inform of us of the specials or even ask if we might want a drink. After mentioning this to him he ambushed us as we attempted to quietly leave the restaurant. When I asked to speak to the owner or manager, he pointed to his chest, identified himself as the manager, and went into a tirade.
Back at our hotel, when we mentioned our experience to the front desk, they knew the fellow right away.
The food’s not worth the abuse, and the prices aren’t low enough to consider the experience cheap entertainment.

Arrived last Thursday for dinner and sat at the bar which is actually a bit too high for the height of the chairs. It kind of made me feel like a small child at a big table. Maybe get chairs that are a few inches higher. My friend who is 6’3″ felt the same way. Made it slightly awkward to eat but that is just a side note.
Our server behind the bar was very good so kudos to her. I ordered the Rucola Gamberi ($ 17) which is arugula, three marinated grilled shrimp, a tiny amount of goat cheese and lemon which sounded awesome. However the portion and taste did not warrant the price. (See picture)
The shrimp was perviously cooked and was served cold. I’m giving this review 3 stars based only on the meal (not the establishment) because although the salad was overall good it bordered on lack luster for flavor. I added some olive oil to give it more flavor. When I see grilled shrimp on a menu I tend to expect for it to be freshly cooked. Maybe that’s just me but my friend who also ordered the same thing was not impressed either.
On the other hand the apple tart was VERY good. I’m sure other dishes are far more appetizing however I would not order this salad again. Just saying.

The fettuccini with mushrooms is excellent, the sea bass was the best my mother ever had, and the veal scallapinni was tender and flavorful. Service is great and they accommodated our kids with half servings of pasta.