Sage Restaurant

Sage is a wonderful restaurant in downtown Valparaiso. Chef Joe and his team are top notch and go above and beyond giving you a wonderful dining experience. There are so many delicious choices on the menu, today's review is all about the Chef Joe Burger. Loaded with Blue Cheese, Confit Bacon, Sweet Onions, Mushrooms, Garlic Aioli all on a pretzel bun. Oh yes, it is accompanied by crispy Parmesan fries. The burger is out of this world!!!! Seriously, if you're on a quest of finding the best burger, stop into Sage and try this bad boy. Whether you're on a romantic date or just want to sit quietly at the bar, Sage never disappoints.

So... I wasn't really that impressed.

My beautiful friend, MayJane, invited me to lunch. We each got a Risotto dish and shared. I got the Fried Rice Risotto which was so salty and she got the Smoked Lamb Risotto which was just slightly better.

I felt like a lotta money was spent on mediocre food...
Perhaps maybe we shouldn't have gotten the Risotto dishes.

I would definitely go back if invited but this would not be a suggestion I make.

UPDATE 7/31/20
I was so excited to see that Sage is back in business; I thought after Covid, it closed down. I am sad to say this because I used to love your truffle mushroom flatbread, Sage, but you disappointed me tonight. They must've forgotten the best part of the flatbread - the Truffle oil/flavor. All I got was a mushroom cheese flatbread, that had no flavor whatsoever. The pepperoni flatbread was way too salty for my 5 year old. The antipasto salad was good but nothing special. For the amount of money I paid for dinner; I unfortunately was not satisfied with my meal. I know it is their first day back after being quarantined and closed for months, but hoping this review will provide you with positive feedback so Sage can be the Restaurant I once loved to eat at!

My family wanted to stop by here Sunday night for an early dinner. The place was mostly empty but we rsvp just in case. There's a small outdoor seating and the interior could fit at most 50 people. Place was clean and service was attentive. Alcohol was available but I refrained this evening. Lighting was dimmed, probably to set a romantic mood. From the classic interior decor, I should've guessed this was an Italian restaurant.

The menu offered appetizers, salads, pasta dishes, pizzas, and burgers. The server also described the daily special they had (oysters and a Foccacia dish I think). Entrées mostly ranged from $10- $23, appetizers $7- $9. Bread was served on the house with olive oil and cracked pepper. Server offered cheese to top our dishes when they came out.

The chicken marsala was my favorite! A slightly sweet creamy dish. The balsamic salmon was cooked perfectly, blackened on one side, juicy, and the curried sprouts gave it a hint of Indian essence. The short rib ravioli was flavorful and yummy. Unfortunately, my seafood risotto dish was slightly too salty for me but otherwise would have been a solid dish. Everything tasted fresh. Everyone was full so sadly we didn't get dessert (nooooo!). I would've loved to try the tiramisu.

If it got busy, I wonder if the kitchen could keep up because there was a small wait with the dishes coming out at slightly different times. But maybe it was because we went during off peak hours. Also if someone was ravenous or with a hearty appetite, one entrée may not get you full.

Overall impression: quite pricy but very tasty, impressive cooking skills, great flavors, and pretty decor.

I recently moved away from NWI, so as goodbye dinner, my friend and I came to Sage. This particular friend and myself happen to really love Cooper's Hawk because of the high quality food. Downtown Valpo has two of my favorite restaurants, and several other great ones, so when Sage's menu reminded me of Cooper's Hawk, I wanted to go.

On paper, the menu looks really good - pizza, seafood, pasta - everything looked tasty. In real life, everything was not very good. My friend and I started off with the pizza rolls and some drinks. I think we both got gimlets. Drinks were fine. They weren't anything spectacular, but they weren't bad either. The pizza rolls were super delicious, so I was expecting my meal to be. I was severely let down by my meal though. I got the Short Rib Ravioli, and it was incredibly bland. I don't remember what my friend got, but she said the same thing. It seems a shame that my friend and I paid over $15 each for our meals, and neither of them had any flavor. Additionally, the portions were tiny, so we had to go get more food after to fill ourselves because we didn't want to pay more money there for food that wouldn't have any taste.

Not only was the quality of our food poor, our server wasn't great either. I think it was a Tuesday when we went, so they were pretty slow. The server was a bit of a hover-er. It seemed like every two minutes or so he was sticking his head around the corner to check on us. Him checking in so frequently felt like a disruption to our conversation and meal.

I wouldn't go back to Sage. The food was lousy, and so was the service.

You want a review of this place?My husband was the sou chef at this place, they cook your food with no masks, no gloves & vape smoking. Really?!? In this day and age! Both chefs walked out last night because of this. They owe money to all delivery services. They make the chefs shop at grocery stores because they owe everyone money...Sad. Oh how the mighty have fallen. If you would like to eat at a place that has a seventeen year old cook your food without a mask or gloves & smoking then this place is for you.

Food is always on point. I have been here several times. Today's service was ok miscommunication is definitely to blame. Will be back!

I went here today with a few of my friends. The restaurant was small, quiet, and nicely decorated.

I had the short ribs ravioli, and it was delicous. I highly recommend it! I was also able to try some of the stuffed shells, veggie sandwich and the gnocchi. All were very tasty.

The prices are a little higher, I would be prepared to spend at least $15 on an entre. The wait staff was attentive and amenable. I will definitely be back!

I loved the food, and the staff!
First off our waiter/bartended was friendly, as well as the staff. The chocolate orange drink was pretty horrible, maybe the worst part of the experience, but their other fruity specialty drink was really good and I would recommend that one. The beers are pretty reasonably priced. Its a small bar menu, the waiter explained it but I wasnt listening, sorry friends.

We shared a cheese plate. It wasnt bad, but I wouldnt recommend it. Very filling for an app, not a great selection of cheeses. We loved the bread at the table, basically filled up on it.
I ordered seafood risotto. Kind of bummed it only had two scallops in it but they were really yummy scallops!
My friend ordered a margharita flatbread, and liked it. it was well cooked, not burned like a lot of pizzas end up getting when they are thin.
My other friend got a chicken pasta, and said it was very good as well.

The ambiance is a little sparse, but its nice. I think this would be a good place to take a date, not too loud. Seemed very allergy-friendly.
Will return!

Let's talk about what going out to eat really comes down to... the quality of the food... and this place... is quality.
First, we couldn't even decide on what to order because everything sounded so good so we got a little bit of everything and nothing was a disappointment.
Burrata appetizer - giant chunk of creamy burrata on top of their amazing homemade marinara I couldn't get enough of (so I literally ordered a quart of it to take home with me-amazing that they did that for me)
Beet salad- perfect balance of sweet and tart - bright flavors were welcomed on my tongue
Mushroom pizza- you say truffle and I come running. Thin and chewy crust topped with incredibly fresh and tasty ingredients made for a wonderful flatbread
Balsamic salmon - PERFECTLY cooked salmon and every bite was delicious
We did get two desserts also which were just phenomenal. I needed to be rolled out of this place.
Other than the amazing food the atmosphere is very romantic. You could tell there was a little tension between the staff, but it was easy to ignore that because of everything else that was AMAZING.
I love supporting places like this (husband and wife owned - Chef owner)
I recommend this to everyone and I can't wait to go back

Seafood risotto was just ok. Risotto was a bit undercooked and under seasoned. Scallops were very good. Shrimp almost seemed boiled and dumped in. No seasoning or searing on them like the scallops had. Red sauce for gnocchi was very good. Bloody Mary was excellent. We had the squash/sausage appetizer and focaccia bread and would definitely order those again. Atmosphere was a bit lacking. It's a sub par attempt at a upscale restaurant. Overall, doubtful I would go back. Bring your own salt shaker if you do.