Authentic Italian polenta meets American fast dining
The smell of fresh pesto wafts from the kitchen as Emile Chalouhi and Camillo Villa huddle over the stainless steel kitchen island, weighing ingredients on a small scale and exchanging banter in Italian. It is early afternoon at The Polenta Bar in the West Loop. White chairs and tables sit empty as the restaurant undergoes renovations to make the e...
Italian Chain Vapiano to Open Second Chicago Restaurant in River North
Vapiano, the Italian restaurant chain with a location in The Loop, is opening another Chicago restaurant. Ownership has leased space in the AC Hotel in River North, the same building where SafeHouse Chicago opened in March. Look for a two-floor, 9,188-square-foot restaurant to open this fall, according to REJournals.com. The location at 630 N. Rush...
Mishawaka's Di Loreto banquet hall gets major makeover
Vinnie Bilancio is quite the tour guide. He's been coming to the Di Loreto Club, an Italian-American social club at 914 Division St. in Mishawaka, since boyhood. Bilancio's parents were members. Their wedding reception happened on site. After spending 19 years living in California, Bilancio returned to Mishawaka five years ago to help care for his...
Italian restaurant coming to Old Town Warrenton
A new restaurant will open in downtown Warrenton next month. Denim and Pearls, featuring Italian and American food, whiskey and wine, will replace The New Bridge at 29 Main St. “The food will still be upscale, but the atmosphere will be more relaxed,” co-owner Thomas “T.C.” Robinson said in an interview Thursday. Mr. Robinson and Rick Marrero, bot...
Rockit’s New Italian Beverage Den Opens Next Week in River North
Italian food’s been done to death in Chicago, but Italian drinks are a different matter, says Rockit Ranch Productions partner and bartender Brandon Phillips. Rockit’s crew, including Kevin Hickey (The Duck Inn), are working hard at Otto Mezzo, 311 W. Chicago Ave., to ensure the new River North bar will open on April 26. It’s one of the season’s mo...
Italian-Inspired Cocktail Bar Set To Open This Week In River North
A new Italian-inspired cocktail bar is coming to River North. Brandon Phillips, named “Bartender of the Year” by Chicago Tribune in 2016 announced the opening of a new Italian-inspired cocktail bar, named Otto Mezzo – set to open Wednesday, April 26 at 8:30 p.m. The cocktail bar will join Rockit Ranch Productions, the Chicago-based hospitality grou...
Dino’s Restaurant stays true to its past while looking to the future
As two customers were leaving Dino’s Restaurant in Willowick on April 19, one stops at another table to share a memory of another visit to the restaurant. After nearly 40 years at 1200 E. 305th St., there are a lot of memories in Dino’s tables. “We’re told often by people how long they’ve been coming here and what they remember about it and that c...
Chef Fabio Viviani talks new web series, having a day named for him in Chicago
Siena Tavern co-owner Fabio Viviani lived in the area for less than six years before he scored one of Chicago's greatest honors -- having a day named for him. He joked that it also didn't take long for that recognition to go to his head. "I was like, 'Hello, what are we waiting for?,'" Viviani told the Tribune in a recent chat at Siena Tavern in Ri...
Meet the Westin's Italian steakhouse, Stella Van Buren
Construction of the downtown Westin Hotel is on pace for a June opening, and the hotel's Italian steakhouse is taking shape. It now has a name, Stella Van Buren, and a menu of steaks and house-made pastas. The 220-room Westin is the higher-end hotel going up at 550 N. Van Buren St., just blocks from the lakefront. It will be connected at its third...
Luca Italian Cuisine to open new restaurant in Westlake
The owners of Luca Italian Cuisine in the Flats are planning to open Luca West in Westlake this summer. The restaurant will be located at 24600 Detroit Road, in the space of the former Viva Barcelona restaurant. It's just south of interstate 90 and near the Columbia Road exit. It's about 12 miles from Luca in downtown Cleveland. Luca opened in July...
Chicago’s 12 Essential Italian Ice Spots, Mapped
Italian ice is unquestionably an essential summertime Chicago dessert. The basic recipe for the iconic frozen treat is fairly agreed upon: a proper ice should contain sugar, frozen water, and whole fruits or juice. Italian ice comes in a multitude of flavors, but the most classic and widespread variety is lemon, sometimes also called frozen Italian...
At Danelli's, you can go home again for fine Italian food
The village of Oswego has changed so much over the past 30 years or so. Two-lane highways have grown into five-lane highways. The farm fields that once separated the village from neighboring towns have been developed for shopping centers and new subdivisions. Places like Foxy’s Burger Bar and Scotty’s Drive-In are now but distant memories as the vi...