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Tutto Fresco
Rating Details »
- Nearest Transit:
-
Sheridan (Red)
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good for:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
10 reviews for Tutto Fresco
This place is incredibly charming. It's in the old El Mariachi space in what some people would call Broadway's Theatre district (not so much, but go with it) across from the ever so lovely Hotel Chateau across the street.
Recently, El Mariachi, in the new location has been very busy. When I've walked by or stopped in for drinks, the place has some followers. Hearing that they are the same owners, I would assume one would help market and drive traffic toward the other.
Tutto? Again, not so much. My friend and I were excited to go as it's only been open for five months and we're both crazy for Italian food.
Went on a Monday night. Bought a bottle of wine for half off - not too shabby. Ordered the calamari, I've had much better, they weren't even worth the time it took to squeeze the lemon over them. I had the Tortellini ala Crema - excellent if you love white cream sauce on your pasta. Friend had the Gnocchi with red sauce, and she too enjoyed it..
Our waiter, Fernando was great. Charming accent as some other Yelper's noted, and just all around good service.
Yes, we were the only table in there, all night. We arrived at 6:30 and left at 9 (yes, I know, that's too long but we were drinking wine).
I would highly recommend people to check this place out. With a couple of patrons a week, they won't stay in business. There food is great, the service better than most restaurants as well, and the people of the North Lakeview/Buena Park neighborhoods complain that there aren't any options.
Well, here is an option. And by the looks of it, too many people opt-out.
Not too many places you can just show up with a group of 8 and get a great dinner. Kudos for that.
But watch out for the add ons! When ordering your main meal, the server asks you if you want soup or salad, so you figure that comes along with dinner like at other places, right? (Ahem, Olive Garden.) But apparently it's an extra $5 per plate depending on which preference.... shady!
And, anybody that got the spinach had intestinal issues the rest of the night, which is less than pleasant when you are in the middle of a show at the theater... :(
We started off with the portobello polenta. The sauce on it was great... really great.
I had the chicken Vesuvio, a Chicago classic. It typically is baked with a crispy skin, but theirs felt like it was deep fried almost... It was good, but didn't have much in the way of sauce and no green peas or any vegetable w/ the potatoes. The waiter told me it was the "Italian" version (as opposed to the American), but I'd be surprised if such a thing exists since the dish is believed to have been invented in Chicago..
Our waiter was good for the most part. He had a very thick Italian accent, which felt authentic while also making it at times hard to understand.
The wine menu didn't have much in the inexpensive category, they could really use some improvement there... cheapest bottle was a Robert Mondavi Pinot Noir at $28... we had two.
it came up on my credit card as el mariachi, so not only is it in their old space (which they didn't change much other than painting) but probably is owned by them.
I was really impressed. I had the pumpkin ravioli and it was very good. I could not taste the pumpkin, but the ricotta cheese inside was the freshest I have ever had.
Service was wonderful. I felt treated like I was at a 5 star restaurant. Hope more people go here so it stays open.
The staff was friendly and inviting for the most part. I love the location of this spot and the environment is inviting (decor is delightfully a little bit tacky). It was Wednesday, so house wine was half off. Calamari was not greasy and melted in the mouth--done just right. I had the tortellini de crema fresca (i believe that was what it was called?) and it was delicious. Tortellini noodles, peas and pancetta with mushrooms--all in a tasty white cream sauce. The crusty bread the started the whole experience off was even just right--crusty enough and served with some good olive oil! mmmm...olive oil.
I hope this place manages to survive the recession--I think it could blossom into a great little spot for italian at a reasonable price!
This restaurant opened just last Friday in the old El Mariachi location on Broadway. Now the Mariach is located across the street and down the block in a much bigger venue. But the same owner has joined up with a new partner to form this Italian delight. For those of you who don't remember, its a small space which they split into two areas - one the dining room and the other as a bar.
The man and I went for dinner tonight. It's the usual suspects as far as the menu. Chicken, fish, a couple of beef and of course the beloved pasta dishes. It started with bread to dip in olive oil and Parmesan cheese. It was love at first sight from that point on. I'm a carb lover so they had me at "would you like some more bread?" It was a little dry but I just took it for another swim in that pool of oil on my plate.
I ordered the fusilli primavera - pasta with veggies in garlic and olive oil. I would definitely get it again. And for $13 it was worth every penny (still undecided as to whether it was worth every calorie). The man ordered a pasta dish with sausage and peas in a tomato cream sauce, again $13. I can't remember the name, and we definitely couldn't pronounce it ,but he loved it! I ate around the sausage and even went back for a second bite.
Service was prompt. Atmosphere was casual. Our waiter had a very thick Italian accent. Anyone remember Sneaky Sneaky from Old Deeds?! His brother is the chef. And the Sneakster told us he made the tiramisu himself. The man and I actually opted for spumoni. Ice cream and bread - the perfect couple.
Overall for the price it was a great deal. We will go back.
I was so excited to see this space finally being filled! And with a lovely little Italian restaurant, no less.
Hubby and I came here for date night.
Space is small and quaint, but lovely; definitely fits the neighborhood. Very clean and relaxing atmosphere. The staff are all very attentive and took time explaining the menu and the specials and even made a few wine recommendations.
I had the ficulle primavera with the pomodoro sauce, which was excellent. And hubby practically inhaled the white fish he ordered.
The dessert menu was tempting, as we saw this lovely looking plates being brought to other tables, but we were both just too full. Maybe next time...
The only thing I'm not a fan of is how they split the area in to half dining room, half bar. It's just not the sort of place I'd see people going to drink, and the flat screen tv looks odd next to the paintings of italian landscapes. They should have just used one big room, imo.
I went for dinner this evening with my other half. It was good. It could be better. The points lost were due to saltiness for the most part. (I'm really not a salt person.) I'm also allergic to shellfish which seemed to really limit my options here. We started with the portabello and polenta which was very good. My partner had the chicken parmigiana and I had the chicken Marsala. His entree was ever-so-slightly over cooked but otherwise very good. Mine was tasty albeit too salty.
I have to give the proprietors props for what they did to the space. It's unexpectedly upscale for being across the street from the Chateau. The service was four star.
The pastas looked very good...we'll be back. I'll be reporting again soon.
Went out for a spontaneous date with my husband, walked in and out of this restaurant because we had already bought wine to go to Pizza Rustica which is a BYOB. Walked all the way over to Pizza Rustica and it completely was not what we were expecting.. so we went back to Tutto Fresco.
It's the perfect Italian ambiance except the tables aren't completely on top of one another which is great.
The service was fantastic, although I would like to see what it's like when the restaurant is super packed. My water never went below half full, which is a big plus for me on service.
We each had the mixed salad which was.. a mixed salad. Nothing special.
I had the Spaghetti with clams, scallops and shrimp and it was fantastic! This is pretty much my staple dish, and I would compare it to the same dish at Scoozi or Sapori Trattoria. (two of our favorites) I was pleasantly surprised.
My husband had the gnocchi, which he said was good but not great. He likes is gnocchi heartier and he said the sauce wasn't anything special, but it was still good.
Our experience here was really great and we will definitely go back. Let's keep this restaurant in business!!
This is my second visit to Tutto Fresco, and I was equally pleased, along with my friend. The ambiance of the room is Italian with an accent of Mexico. Efram, the chef, makes fresh tomatoe sauce and their eggplant parmegian is delicious; the breading is light and the serving generous. My friend had the polenta with portobello mushrooms, and the sauce was rich and flavorful. It's great to have an Italian restaurant of this caliber in the Lakeview area.
