Since its opening in a garage on Main Street over 20 years ago, Lost Dog Café & Lounge has remained a consistent fixture in the Binghamton community. Founded by former bandmates hoping to bring pieces of their favorite New York City cafes back to their hometown, it has cultivated a truly unique dining experience that cannot be overlooked while staying true to a love of music and commitment to a welcoming environment.

Having heard the buzz surrounding Lost Dog and its Restaurant Week menu, I could not pass up the opportunity to try the food myself. Accompanied by my photographer, Aine, we were welcomed into the restaurant and quickly made note of the decorations. The diffused colorful light that filtered through the variety of paper lanterns provided a fun and intimate atmosphere. The personality of the restaurant spoke for itself with instruments and pop art style dog paintings adorning the walls.

Aine shared that she had previously attended with her family and that the calming environment and staple dishes have since become a regular fixture in her life. For restaurant week, Lost Dog combined their classic dishes with delicious additions to create two new menus. At only $18, you can customize your own three-course lunch meal. My photographer and I were lucky enough to try the $30 three-course dinner menu.

After being warmly greeted and seated by the wait staff, we began with our first course. I ordered the house arancini — a Restaurant Week exclusive. The portion came with two tomato risotto balls filled with fresh mozzarella cheese on a plate of pomodoro sauce. Aine chose the Dog House salad, a refreshing mixed green bowl accompanied with chickpeas, peppers and onions. Both appetizers provided an exceptional opening to the meal.

The second course only raised expectations with five entrees to choose from, each with its own unique flavors. Aine insisted that we couldn’t leave without trying Lost Dog’s famous rigatoni ala vodka and we also decided to order the bacon bordelaise sirloin.

The rigatoni absolutely lived up to the hype, with the creamy vodka sauce and perfectly cooked noodles. It was clear why this dish has remained Lost Dog’s signature, with its garlic and tomato flavors present in each and every bite. In addition, the sirloin was served with perfectly whipped potatoes and grilled asparagus to provide an earthy flavor that melted together with the crunchy bits of bacon.

By the time that dessert came around, we were buzzing, knowing that we had ordered the strawberry tres leches and Katrina’s tiramisu. We were pleasantly surprised by the addition of the third dessert option on the menu — campfire s’more ice cream. My sweet tooth was more than satisfied with the variety of desserts in front of us.

The tiramisu’s classic mascarpone cream was light and cut with the strong coffee flavor of the ladyfingers. As the weather gets warmer in Binghamton, the s’more ice cream is a welcome item on the menu. Alongside the unconventional graham ice cream were bits of chocolate that added a nice bit of crunch. Topped with a wonderfully sweet marshmallow whip, the three elements put a fun twist on a childhood favorite dessert.

By far and away our favorite, though, was the strawberry tres leches. The Latin-style cake was moist with the traditional varieties of milk, plus the twist of adding strawberry Quik. Its subtle strawberry flavor worked well with the sweetened condensed and evaporated milk. Aine and I agreed that this take on tres leches was one for the books.

The fantastic food and attentive service cemented all of the positive reviews I had heard about Lost Dog up to that point. I will absolutely return for nothing more than to look up at the paper lanterns and appreciate the inviting atmosphere.