Nosh is one of those places that just feels like a good time. It has a way of effortlessly becoming a part of your story.
When I first moved here, one of my best friends lived just down the street in the Neighborhood of the Arts. Nosh quickly became our place—the spot where we’d meet for cocktails after a long day, laughing and venting until the ice in our glasses melted. I can still picture the first time I met her boyfriend there. We all squeezed around a patio table, realizing we’d both ordered the steak and noodles and taking it as a sign we’d get along just fine.
Even with an ownership change in 2023, it is still that comforting, celebratory spot worth returning to again and again.
While the menu has seen some changes, including saying goodbye (for now) to beloved dishes like lobster ravioli and steak and noodles, owner and proprietor Vicky Chanthavisinh-Carey assures fans they’ll both make a comeback this summer. That fluidity is exactly what she envisioned when she took over Nosh.
“I knew I didn’t want to take over a place that was locked into just one style—like all Italian or strictly one type of cuisine,” says Chanthavisinh-Carey, who ran Yellow Elephant in Perinton before the pandemic. “I wanted creative freedom to put anything on the menu without people thinking, ‘That’s weird.’”
Bold and vibrant Italian, Korean, and Southwest flavors still grace the menu, but the kitchen weaves in a hint of Thai flair.
Case in point: the Slammin’ Salmon ($42). On paper, red curry and sticky glazed salmon shouldn’t work this well. I feel like I’ve had both separately a dozen times, yet here we are, staring at a bowl that finally brings the two together. The fish and grilled shrimp are bathed in a velvety coconut curry so good I want to sop up every last drop.
Then there’s the crispy rice, adding an unexpected yet satisfying contrast with every bite, like crumbled crackers in soup. It’s the kind of dish that makes you wonder why salmon and red curry weren’t always a thing.
Rotating specials, like seafood stew with a spicy tom yum broth or Korean fried chicken and scallion waffles, allow the team to test the waters with their loyal patrons before cementing a dish on the menu.
A thread that Chanthavisinh-Carey and executive chef R.J. Wood hope to maintain throughout the menu is the flexibility to play. They don’t claim to be authentically Italian, Korean, or any single cuisine. Instead, they add their own creative spin.
“When you dine here, it’s not just the service and the atmosphere—it’s going to be very flavorful,” she says, noting that doesn’t appeal to everyone.
However, when I went on Tuesday night without a reservation, there was no problem filling seats. It was an hour wait for three, and the dining room was humming. And I was ecstatic for the place.
My disheveled family, toddler in tow, grabbed a corner of a long communal table by the bar. I was a little bummed not to be sitting out on the patio, but hey, I’m in a new season of life.
We ordered a cocktail and a beer at the bar, and I couldn’t help but feel a little relieved—some things hadn’t changed. Sure, the wine list now boasts more Finger Lakes options, and 2022 me would have been thrilled to see some NA drink choices that didn’t cue to everyone that I was newly pregnant and laying off the booze. But whiskey, tequila, mezcal? Check, check, check.
I toyed with ordering Ahi Noshos ($20), which are essentially the contents of a spicy tuna roll sprinkled over wonton chips. They’d been a staple during my vent sessions of yesteryear. But I chickened out. The group beside us ordered them, and the platter was much bigger than I remembered. (Chanthavisinh-Carey says there is a half-portion for happy hour.)
Feeling somewhat virtuous, I opted for the Belly Ache ($20), which was described as a braised pork belly with apples, pickled blackberries, and arugula. Basically a salad, right? Well, the joke’s on me because three indulgently rich slabs of pork belly arrived, accompanied by a creamy sweet potato purée that was more like a dipping sauce than anything remotely “salad-like.” I wasn’t mad about it.
For our main, we opted for more pork belly, which, as it turns out, was an unofficial theme of the menu that night. I’d always been curious about the Korean Sit Down ($50), but it seemed too hefty for just one entrée. But, with a very hungry hubby and a kid who considers bao buns her personal treasure, it felt like the perfect time to dive in.
Reader, I have no regrets. Paired with bites of salmon curry (another dish we ordered), it was the ideal solution for our “situation.” I got to feel healthy wrapping spicy marinated chicken in cucumber, kimchi, and crunchy bibb lettuce. My husband got to pig out (pun intended) on all the pork belly his heart desired, kicking it up with Korean red chili paste or mellowing things out with bean sprouts. My daughter, as predicted, polished off all the steamed buns and found a new favorite in the soy-sweet kalbi short ribs.
Best of all, no one seemed to mind that we brought a kid into an otherwise very adult establishment. The familiar roar from the bar did wonders for masking both the frustrated stories from the day (which I knew well) and the excited toddler shrieks. Even the fashionable patrons, who I certainly wasn’t on par with that night, seemed amused by her demand for more bubble water. Same, girl.
And that’s what I love about Nosh: It still carries that same energy, where laughter fills the air and every meal feels like a small celebration. The vibe is just as lively but with a few new bold flavors woven in. Sure, the faces and menu have evolved over time, but the spirit remains unchanged.
It’s a place that continues to make room for new memories, just like it did when I first walked through those doors.
Nosh
47 Russell St.
445-8700
This article originally appeared in the May/June 2025 issue of (585).
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