Antico

The restaurant has a lovely garden, but when I was there last night the cool June evening had us asking for the large gas heater to be lit. Unfortunately, it was out of gas, so we had to move inside where the music was rather too loud.
The service was slow as there were only two servers, one of whom was the surly guy who couldn’t/wouldn’t light the heater. There was no salt on our table.
The food was mediocre. I had the tagliatelle Bolognese. It had quite a lot of meat, but virtually no flavor. The pasta was way overcooked. My husband said the frito misto appetizer was delicious.
The menu was somewhat Italian, but also had listed lamb chops and steak. The pasta offerings were few and repetitious.
I would not go back.

Super nice servers. We tried the gnocci, scallops, and lasagne. Everything was cooked perfectly. I found everything a little more pricier than I expected, but the food is worth it.

Great outdoor patio, service and appetizers but don’t be tempted by the meat dishes. I ordered a $ 40 filet mignon that was more than 50% fat and only then learned they do their own butchering (but apparently not very well). They gave us a free $ 10 desert but still charged for the filet. Disappointing.

Just a great spot.
Located on a lovely block in Bucktown, just south of Armitage, I’d never heard of this place until a couple months ago. Imagine my shock when I discovered it’s been around over five years! And it’s less than a five minute drive from my house? I feel dumb for not knowing about this place sooner.
We went spur of the moment, mainly because it fit three criteria:
1) It’s close to our house, and it was already on the late side when we decided to go out
2) Italian food was the only thing my husband and I could agree on
3) It has an outdoor patio. Anyone who lives in Chicago knows that there are precious few days when eating outside is optimal (not too hot/​humid, no bugs), and last night was perfect
We didn’t have a reservation and fully expected to have to wait for a table outside, but we got lucky and were seated immediately. Off to a good start with glasses of prosecco, we perused the menu.
They had lots of wonderful sounding specials, as well as a good number of things on the regular menu. We ordered a fair number of dishes to try, in varying sizes (lest you think we’re pigs) of primi and secondi.
Caprese salad: I could eat this salad every day in the summer. When a salad has just a few ingredients, they better be all top-​notch, and these were. Fresh, fragrant tomatoes, creamy mozzarella, basil chiffonade, and just a drizzle of fruity olive oil. Yum.
Calamari: this was good, but pretty standard. I liked that there were pieces of fried lemon, but I didn’t like that there were strips of calamari instead of rings. Probably would skip next time.
Gnocchi: They offered three different sauces; a simple tomato, a bolognese, or traditional brown butter and crispy sage. We went with the browned butter and sage. The gnocchi melted in my mouth (definitely homemade). Another dish I can never get tired of if done well.
Beet salad with arugula, goat cheese, and pistachios (?): Again, pretty standard, but everything was fresh.
Sauteed wild mushrooms over saffron polenta: creamy, earthy, and savory. Would definitely get this again.
Salmon: pan-​seared and served with cucumber dill sauce, asparagus, and potatoes. I don’t know how they cooked the potatoes, but they had this wonderful smoky flavor that really made the dish.
Zeppole: you can never go wrong with doughnuts. Pillowy soft clouds of dough, with powdered sugar. So hot, so fresh, so scrumptious.
The service needs to be mentioned too. Two female servers sort of acted as a «tag team,» and they were great. They took care of all the tables on the patio by themselves (including bussing and serving the food) and despite it being pretty busy, they handled it well. They knew the menu well, were able to make recommendations, and were sweet to boot.
So glad I finally discovered this place!

We’ve dined at Antico few times, little Italian gem in neighborhood. All those times we went with same group of people, which consists of 5 couples .
Those dinners always take place on Friday evenings, when the restaurant is completely booked. The kitchen and waiters always manage to be in sync, to bring the food on time for the entire party of 10 and never make any mistakes. Great service and team work!
Food — home made pasta to die for it. And when it comes to their gnocchi with butter and sage, I melt before it melts in my mouth (and for the record, I never eat gnocchi in other places).
Their seared scallops are outstanding, made to perfection.
And then comes Panna Cotta with some pink reduction. What a divine and sexy way to begin a weekend. You can also add some port wine to complete the perfection .
So why only 4*?
Because 1 couple wanted prix fixe menu and we were told that entire party has to do prix fixe or nobody can do it.
Seriously? Husband and I we watch what we eat and how much we eat, neither of us can eat 4 dishes, we barely can split 4 dishes. So we were forced to pay for food that we physically could not consume. And, no, we never take leftovers home.
Not sure about other people, but our last visit was ruined, and we felt like we had too much of Antico.

Delicious interesting food. Our waitress was amazing.

The best Italian food in Chicago could be found in this little gem of a restaurant. I was visiting my cousins and they said that this was the most authentic Italian food they’ve ever had outside of Italy. The noodles are made in-​house, and you know the food is amazing when you forget to take pictures (also would have felt pretty out of place taking pictures of everything)
We started out with two appetizers, the fried calamari and fig butter crostini with prosciutto. The calamari were perfectly crisp and the crostini had the perfect balance of saltiness from the prosciutto and richness from the butter.
There were a lot of specials that they were offering, but three of us ended up ordering the gnocchi with brown butter and sage while one ordered the pappardelle with pork ragu for our main entrees and oh my goodness, I never knew that gnocchi could be so amazing. I felt like I was biting into pillows of clouds, and each piece had a generous coating of brown butter which was the perfect complement to the crispy sage.
We finished off with vanilla bean gelato with toasted nuts as well as a mascarpone cheesecake (one of their specials). The gelato was alright and it paled in comparison to everything else we’ve had that night to be honest, but the cheesecake was everything you could wish for.
I’d also like to add that the waiter was very accommodating. He added an additional crostini to the appetizer since there were four of us who were dining and gave each of us a serving and a half of pasta since the portions are usually smaller. In addition, we ordered a serving of pappardelle to-​go for my cousin-​in-​law who was babysitting so we could have a girl’s night out. The fantastic service was the cherry on top to this delicious meal.

Amazing service, everything made in-​house and was super delicious. Highly recommend the sage and brown butter gnocchi. Really, any of the pastas are top-​notch. Atmosphere is cozy and relaxing, not too noisy. Outstanding service though. Five-​star.

Some of the best Italian I’ve had. A short walk off the Western blue line, it’s convenient and insanely good! Small place, but being your appetite. My litmus test for Italian is the gnocchi, and theirs will melt in your mouth!

Excellent local spot that’s off the off the beaten trail. Stopped in for an early dinner and we were greeted by friendly staff who were helpful when it came to some food allergies. We started with prosciutto & fig butter crostini, house salad and melt in your mouth caprese salad. The braised pork shoulder with white beans was the star of the night and was on their specials menu. We were too stuffed for desert since the bread they serve when you arrive is just too good to pass up!

We love this neighborhood spot for a quality, quiet Italian meal. My husband and I agree that this is our favorite restaurant in the city. The staff is super friendly and help each other out so you are always taken care of quickly.
Each time we visited, we did the four course meal, which is a lot of food, but such a huge bang for your buck. Pick any appetizer, any house made pasta, most any entrée, and any dessert. Everything is so good, it’s worth being gluttonous :) Appetizer favorites are the scallops, figs, or any pâté available. All of the pastas are so simple and high quality (probably a highlight of the meal). Entrees we usually get the lamp chops — yes, lamb chops can be done right anywhere and everywhere, including your own home, but these are really top notch and sometimes come with bone marrow! For dessert, I always opt for the panna cotta — so refreshing!

First, food is great. Delicious. However plenty of restaurants seem to be able to serve good food AND a respectable level of service.
Food: everything is good but love braised lamb and gnocchi.
Service issues: first, Peter, do you always make people wait for 20 minutes and then attempt to take food and drink orders concurrently? Not good.
Second, we asked you about spirits. You told us a few choices on the BOTTOM SHELF. You’re aware your tip is based on the bill size, ya? We had to ask for what we wanted.
Start with the top shelf. Don’t insult me. We won’t be back. Good Italian food is easy to find and you’re a dime a dozen.

If I could give half stars, I would rate this place a 3.5, but I’ll bump it up to a 4 for the nice ambience and great service.
We started with an appetizer of fig butter crostini with prosciutto and cantaloupe, which was definitely the best dish of the night. Prosciutto and cantaloupe is just a classic combination, but the fig butter definitely made the crostini great. Strongly recommend.
For our pasta we had pappardelle with pork ragu. While it was enjoyable, nothing really stood out. I expected more out of both the texture of the pasta and the flavor of the sauce, but sadly it did not meet those expectations.
Afterwards, we had the pan fried pork chops. The meat was extremely tender but slightly on the greasy side.
We ended the meal with a dessert of the panna cotta, which was strongly recommended by our waiter. I enjoyed the texture, but since I’m not a big fan of sweets, the panna cotta was definitely a bit too much on the sweet side.

I’d give it a 3.5 out of 5, rounded up to 4 for the service.
Fig butter crostini with prosciutto and cantaloupe (4.5÷5): Definitely the standout of the night. The fig butter was light and fragrant, elevating the typical crostini into something refreshingly unique. I did find the prosciutto a bit too salty, even with the sweetness of the cantaloupe, but overall, I loved this appetizer.
Paparadelle with pork ragu (³⁄₅): A solid dish with a pork based meat sauce; however, the flavors were pretty standard and lacked the special aspect that would have made it worth writing home about.
Pan fried pork chop (⁴⁄₅): I loved the red wine reduction – mixed with the sage, it complemented the richness of the pork chop with the perfect amount of acidity. The pork itself was cooked very well – juicy and not too dry.
Panna cotta with a red wine caramel sauce (3.5÷5): While the panna cotta had a nice, thick consistency, I wasn’t a huge fan of the sauce – it was a little too sweet for my tastes.
Overall, all the food was well executed, the service was fantastic, and the ambiance was nice; however, the flavors themselves lacked the amazing factor that would’ve made this a solid four or five star establishment.

I came alone on a Saturday night (Saturday night turn up giiirl) and sat at the bar. It’s a bit awkwardly high (or I am short) but the servers did not make me feel odd for sitting there. They seemed a bit short staffed — like they could use one more person — but they moved quickly, efficiently and were apologetic for any wait. They also did not rush me when ordering or asking questions.
Ambiance is casual but sexy… like you eat here and have a pricey dinner and get wine wasted, but then you go home and have really awesome sex. There were people here with young children but surprisingly they were all well behaved and unobtrusive.
FOOD — to start the bread focaccia hybrid thingy was BANGIN’. Then I had the roasted beet salad which was delicious, but not the craziest amazing thing because I THEN had the rib eye. BRUH. I am eating it as I type this review and concede that it may be the best piece of meat I’ve ever had in my life (don’t tell my mother). I CAN’T EVEN.
I love this place!!! If it were a wee bit less expensive I’d probably be all up in it every weekend. Definitely bringing my parents here when they visit!

Started with a fresh squeezed grapefruit martini which was very refreshing and hit the spot after a long day. Next, we had the special salad of the day, which was shaved asparagus, shaved parmesan with a fresh lemon vinaigrette. Delish! For my entrée, I had the gnocchi with the brown butter and crispy sage. The gnocchi was soft little pillows and just melted in my mouth. The sage was crispy and perfectly complimented the brown butter sauce. I will definitely be back to order the gnocchi again! It will be a tough decision figure out f I am willing to try something new or stick to what was so good before…
I should also add that I was there with a friend who had a small toddler. The staff didn’t seem annoyed that we brought a small child into the restaurant and instead they were very accommodating to ensure he was happy.

I had to go 3 times before writing the review. The first time I went and had the gnocchi Bolognese. It was good but undersea aimed. Unfortunately it rocked my stomach afterwards.
The second time I had the steak. It was good, but a little tough. Calamari needed salt. The bread is great. Again, stomach didn’t like it.
The third time I had the pork Milanese. It had everything except… Seasoning. It needed salt.
I like the people. I like the food. It needs more seasoning and I’m not sure what killed my stomach. I really wanted to love this place. Instead, it’s ok and a short walk from the house.

To mark the start of our seventh year of marriage — *and what my wife assures me as the defining year of a crumbling marriage which certainly must end (gawd — I hope she’s kidding) — and to celebrate six successful years shared together, Antico quickly came to my better half’s mind as a place to celebrate and have that one final hurrah before filing divorce papers and figuring out which domestic beast goes with which parent.
Not sure why she feels so strongly about this. I’ve heard of the «seven year itch» but it makes me wonder if the sentiment of a permanent break in our marriage comes around the seven year mark, or if that seven year mark was that finish line inside her head all along and the excuse to eventually abandon me.
Either way, she made an excellent choice on the venue.
About the only thing that could have come off as anything other than stellar was walking in, stating we had reservations, and then being told to choose where we want to sit. As a couple who is perpetually hemming and hawing over any and every option — we probably would have preferred to just be told where our place was (the rest of society seems to have no problem doing just that).
In hindsight the skilled, professional and friendly staff here went out of their way to ensure our comfort and happiness through the evening (not realizing our marriage is crumbling) — so the offer to have us choose where we sit almost certainly fit more into a conceptualized service strategy rather than complacency and poor front of house management; especially considering just how well-​run the service was for the rest of the evening.
On to the food — as mentioned above, my soon to be eventual ex-​wife and I have a hard time with decision making, especially when there are many appetizing options on offer for our choosing. To keep things a bit simpler, we inquired into and eventually chose the four course meal for $ 55/​person (I believe it moves up to $ 63 with specific entrée/​secondi options) and realized its value. Each diner at the table is asked to partake in that option (all or none — like how a true marriage is supposed to work), and it gives you a starter, a pasta, a main dish and finally a dessert.
This four-​course option made things a bit more streamlined and therefore easier to decide what to order until our thoroughly nice and attentive server rolled off the top of her head a great description of seven more specials to get us second guessing all of our choices (and not just the one around our commitment to each other).
In the end, I remember having the following:
— Chicken and Duck liver pâté, served with pickeled beets and a house made mustard
— Pan seared scallops
— Gnocchi comes with choice of sauce — gasp — wifey chose wisely, going with brown butter and sage — really delicious!
— Risotto done as the daily special — our meal was primavera style
— Pork tenderloin cutlet milanese served with arugula salad and shaved Parmesan
— Pan roasted halibut with a smoked, citrusy potato and broccoli
— The greatest panna cotta one could ever devour. Seriously. We plan on coming back for at least some wine and this one day soon.
— Lovely slice of flourless chocolate cake
We drank a bunch of wine also to take away the reminder of my wife’s promise that the seventh year equals marital doom.
I’d definitely come back to Antico for another celebration or special evening out. The food was delicious, service was excellent and they played Tracy Chapman through most of the evening which was both sweet and made me sob over my food.
*Our marriage is both strong and flawed, yet beautiful and funny and good. She’s (I’m sure?) joking about the 7 year curse, besides — what Tracy sang over our great meal:
«With you I am revealed
All my shame all my faults and virtues
Behold body mind and spirit
Heart and soul devoted all to you
Can I get a witness
There is salvation and rapture for the lonely
Can I get a witness
Bless this day sacred and holy
Sacred and Holy»

How have we not been here until now!!! This is the best Italian food I have had in the city! So cute and quaint. Excellent service and a romantic atmosphere, but also kid friendly.
We went for date night — sans kid. We started with a champagne and grapefruit cocktail that was great! The wine we ordered was awesome too and our waitress knew a ton about it. In fact, she knew a lot about everything that had to do with the menu which was really nice. We did the $ 55 4 course special which is one of the best deals out there.
We had the mushroom polenta and beet salad to start, both were awesome. Now to the pasta course… amazing! I am a sucker for homemade pasta. This was so delish! We had the braised pork paparadelle and the sweet potato gnocchi in a brown butter sauce with crispy sage. What is crispy sage you ask? The most amazing thing ever. We weren’t sure if you were supposed to eat the sage, but we tried it… wow! It sounds so weird, but it was great, like deep fried sage. We had the filet, which was really big and really good. The pork tenderloin was also good, but the filet was much better. For dessert, the donuts (duh) and the flour less chocolate cake. Both incredible.
I think I gained like 5 lbs. You must try this place, or maybe don’t because I don’t want to have to fight for a table:)

What an awesome secret to have this little trattoria in Bucktown.
(I like it being a secret, but I want to give some exposure so the doors don’t shut forever!)
The four course deal for $ 55/​person is an absolute bargain.
It’s good, wholesome Italian cooking in a cozy environment.
The waiters are fun and focused, and the food is always consistent.
My favorites include the chicken liver crostini, the scallops, the gnocchi in brown butter sage, veal milanese chop, and the ribeye.