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On a first visit, about a month after the\u00a0West University Place<\/a> spot opened, the crudo stopped my dining companion and me mid-bite. Our eyes widened. We paused and nodded in unison. Without saying anything, we shared the same thought: \u201cIf the rest of the meal is this good…\u201d<\/p>\n Tonno crudo served at Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n Neither of us was shy about ladling up the last of the fatty cubes of tuna bathing in a pool of ginger\u00a0brodo. We lingered over each spoonful of the raw fish with bites of Granny Smith apples, cut into half-inch rings and layered on top like perfectly placed mosaic tiles.<\/p>\n Executive chef Mauricio Alvarado described the acid from the apples and a squiggle of citrus oil as a palate cleanser of sorts, ahead of the richer pasta courses. He was right.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n As I twirled the last strands of spaghetti alla chitarra on my fork, I admired the dish\u2019s simplicity: The housemade pasta wasn\u2019t drowning in pomodoro sauce or too-sweet marinara. Confit Sun Gold tomatoes, which had been simmering in olive oil and butter, burst\u00a0open and collapsed on the tangle of carbs, resulting in a dish\u00a0simultaneously rustic and refined.<\/p>\n Osteria Di Mercato GM and sommelier Marco Thompson and Chef Mauricio Alvarado at the West University restaurant on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n Osteria di Mercato manages to do what I haven\u2019t found at many other Italian restaurants in Houston.<\/p>\n Places such as the newish La Griglia<\/a> or the recently closed Tavola<\/a> were made for expense accounts. Others focus on red-sauce nostalgia, including enjoyable versions like Milton\u2019s<\/a>, a self described \u201cAmerican trattoria.\u201d Coltivare in the Heights and Mimo in the East End feel like reliable neighborhood favorites without frills; I would recommend both any day.<\/p>\n Alvarado\u2019s ambitious cooking impresses. He sources seasonal ingredients for inventive, approachable dishes that utilize fine-dining techniques he’s picked up throughout his career.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n HOUSTON EATS: The Chronicle\u2019s Top 100 restaurants<\/a><\/p>\n Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle Mugs and moka ready to serve coffee at Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle Vintage mirrors reflect wine bottles on display at Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle Whimsicle decales on the windows at Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle An explainer of the coffee service at Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n Osteria di Mercato is attached to Mercato and Company, which Riccardo Valentini and Arlene Ventura opened in December 2024. The cafe and market, which the husband-and-wife team first debuted in\u00a0Brownsville, has a devoted area following.<\/p>\n Many of those regulars fill the 24-seat dining room and five bar stools, said Marco Thompson, the restaurant\u2019s general manager and sommelier.<\/p>\n The space is tastefully decorated with Herm\u00e8s orange walls, accents of azure blue and warm wood paneling. It feels like a chic Italian living room you’d see in a design magazine.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Marco Thompson, Osteria di Mercato’s general manager and sommelier, opens and pours a bottle of Italian wine.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley \/ Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n Osteria di Mercato is fully devoted to Italy. Thompson, a native Houstonian, moved to Italy as a teenager and worked in Toronto, where in 2023 the Michelin Guide awarded him Sommelier of the Year.<\/p>\n Except for Champagne, the restaurant’s wine list features only Italian wine. I love seeing a restaurant challenge its customers to go beyond those big California reds or other familiar wines.<\/p>\n Whether it’s Thompson or one of the knowledgeable staff \u2014 including a Camerata <\/a>alum who recommended a floral nebbiolo to go along with my spaghetti \u2014 the team backs up the restaurant\u2019s “osteria” theme, a casual neighborhood spot focused on wine as much as the food.<\/p>\n Antipasti, shareable small plates to kick off a meal with a drink, include saffron-tinged arancini with a golden exterior showered in Parmesan shavings or a bowl of stracciatella, the satiny-soft mozzarella garnished with mint leaves and peppers.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The pomodori e caviar charmed with its creativity.. Alvarado described the dish as an homage to his time at Cyrus, a Michelin-rated restaurant in California\u2019s wine country. (Aaron Bludorn<\/a> also cooked at Cyrus, and Alvarado was on Bludorn\u2019s opening team before heading out West for a few years.)<\/p>\n Pomodori E caviar served at Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n Just-ripe tomatoes marinate in olive oil and basil overnight before the clear juice is strained through cheesecloth. Caviar often feels like a superfluous addition, but it works here, adding a hint of salinity to the sweetness of the fruit. Every component of the dish is carefully planned, including basil shocked in ice water to keep each leaf crisp and mellow.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n MORE FROM BAO ONG: Review: Three Houston Italian sandwiches put mortadella in the spotlight. Which are worth ordering?<\/a><\/p>\n A variety of dishes from Osteria di Mercato, clockwise from left, scarpinocc and hanger steak.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley \/ Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n The lighter dishes set the stage for the heartier pastas, such as\u00a0fettuccine topped with braised rabbit or a rigatoni mixed with white\u00a0bolognese, a nod to Alvarado\u2019s time working for Tony Vallone as a teenager.<\/p>\n But it was the scarpinocc, stuffed with smoked ricotta, that rekindled the same excitement I felt over the crudo and spaghetti.<\/p>\n Alvarado joked that he and his team roll and fill this pasta each day as part of their team building in the kitchen. There\u2019s a garnish of morels gently cooked in browned butter, but the addition of tamari ramps up the earthiness of the overall dish. I swiped each dimpled purse of pasta through the green garlic sauce and wished it came in Olive Garden quantities.<\/p>\n Of course, that’s true to the Italian tradition, where pasta arrives in modest portions before the meat or fish course.<\/p>\n Branzino per due served at Osteria Di Mercato in West University on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley\/Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n The butterfiled branzino added to the growing list of must-order dishes at Osteria di Mercato.\u00a0Alvarado ensures the skin is crisp by lightly curing it with salt and sugar before it hits the grill.\u00a0The result crackles under your fork like glass.<\/p>\n The fish is sourced from Spain and arrives three times a week. Its delicate, pearlescent flesh flakes so beautifully you could almost mistake it for Dover sole, a far pricier catch.<\/p>\n Other entrees, listed under the \u201csecondi\u201d section of the menu, don\u2019t elicit\u00a0quite the same\u00a0ohhs and ahhs.<\/p>\n A hanger steak was overwhelmed by an au poivre sauce but that was corrected by my third visit. Chicken and duck breasts arrived juicy and cooked to the proper temperature, but without much artful flair, they felt pedestrian compared to the exceptional branzino and pastas.<\/p>\n A ginger chantilly with fruit, left, and chocolate Basque cheesecake at Osteria di Mercato.<\/p>\n Elizabeth Conley \/ Houston Chronicle<\/p>\n Ginger, one of Alvarado’s favorite ingredients, appears throughout the menu. While the attentive servers will likely steer you toward the delicate chocolate Basque cheesecake, the fruit-and-cream dessert is the more memorable finale.<\/p>\n A cloud of Chantilly cream carries just enough ginger to lend a gentle warmth, while oranges and fragrant mint keep the dessert bright and refreshing.<\/p>\n \u201cOur main goal is to show off what Italy can do,\u201d Thompson told me over the phone.<\/p>\n Simple yet elegant. That’s Osteria di Mercato.<\/p>\n Osteria di Mercato, 3642 University, No. 101, 346-920-5430, mercatoandcompany.com\/osteria-di-mercato<\/a> \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Three stars<\/p>\n Hours: 5-11 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday (closed Sunday-Monday)<\/p>\n Prices: $10-$29 shareable small plates, $18-$19 salads, $25-$28 pastas and $28-$64 entrees.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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