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Tutto Italiano
Rating Details »
Neighborhoods: South Loop, Printer's Row
501 S Wells St
(between Grand Ave & Illinois St)
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 939-4824
501 S Wells St
(between Grand Ave & Illinois St)
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 939-4824
- Nearest Transit:
-
LaSalle (Blue)
LaSalle/Van Buren (Orange, Brown, Purple Express, Pink)
Jackson (Blue, Red)
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Good for:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
18 reviews for Tutto Italiano
2.5 stars.
Whoa - if you want to party like a rock star after work on a Friday then the party is apparently at Tutto Italiano. Shocking? Yes! The dance music was blaring full blast in the bar and revelers were smoking in droves outside.
The restaurant does have a more reserved section if you're looking to enjoy a satisfying dinner, and the old train car setting does have some charm. The best part about this place is that you get an interesting atmosphere and big portions for little bucks. I had a penne pasta dish with mushrooms, hearty sausage and broccoli. My BF ordered the bolognese special which oddly enough looked very similar to mine. The dishes were good and made for great leftovers.
If you're an NPR contributor you can use your 2-for-1 card here. Bonus.
For a moderately priced Italian place the food is good and the staff has always been the best. So why only 3 stars? The bar area tends to become a big rave club for older business men and these women who are clearly there to only receive free drinks and get some $ from these men. I won't even go into what some of them look like they'd be willing to do for these $. I wish the setup was different so that this area was in the back and you didn't have to pass through it. However, with that said I still enjoy going here and love sitting the boxcar area they have. If you live in the area of work nearby I suggest taking a stop in.
Tried to order a pint of Guinness here a couple of months ago. The result was as laughable as it was predictably bad. Opted for a Stella when the lovely young woman working the bar agreed that the Guinness line wasn't delivering the product that it should.
Very odd scene. Dudes partying with some Grade A skanks. Almost wondered if said skanks were pros.
The young woman working the bar was fantastic, though. Beautiful and genuinely friendly. Had I moved to the area as I was considering at the time, I'd be a regular just to see her every now and then.
I was not expecting to be overwhelmed either with the service of the food. I guess I do not have very high expectations with restaurants downtown. I am expecting to pay more to get less. I was very pleased with this place.
We sat in the train car that is attached to this place. It was a very cozy little table and the place was not very crowded for a Friday night which was OK by me. Our waiter was great. He was very friendly and helpful and did a great job. He knew the menu inside and out. We did not have many questions but I heard him talking to some other tables and I was thoroughly impressed.
We started out with toasted ravioli which were very good. I liked the marinara sauce because it was on the thicker side. Watery sauces have a way of turning me off, big time. I ordered the chicken Alfredo and it was delicious! I really can't put a finger on the flavor but it was a cut above your chicken Alfredo that is served up at about 100 other places. It came out quickly and smoking hot.
The only thing that really bugged the hell out of me was that the noise from the bar was a little louder than I would have liked in the dining room. It didn't take away from our experience much but it did start to get annoying after a while.
I ate at Tutto Italiano last night. I highly recommend! I had the Fetuccini Marinara with Italian Sausage (you can also get meatballs instead). HUGE portion for $14.95! Big mess of pasta and sauce accompanied by TWO full size sausages! Oh man...GO GO GO!
If you enter your email address on their website, you can get a $15 coupon emailed to you. I have another one that expires 10/26. I will be going back next week.
And at Tutto you can eat in an old train car that is attached to the building . You've probably seen it at Congress/Wells.
Why not 5 stars? Because they took the Prime Rib off the menu. It was sooooo fucking good! But, who knows? They may not have sold enough of it to warrant the beefy expense. I doubt an abundance of people order Prime Rib at an Italian restaurant.
Warning for lunch-goers: this is food-coma territory! Dinner and a bed are recommended!
We came here on a Friday evening around 6pm. We were seated right away in the train car, which is pretty cool. They had old Italian music playing, and everything was just fine.
But then the house music from the bar started getting louder, and it was just surreal: skankily-dressed women, drunk 20-something guys... is this a charming old Italian restaurant in the South Loop, or a meat market in the Viagra Triangle? Also, it smells like stale cigarettes and old carpet. (Think of the poorest friend you had growing up; it smells like their house.) And there was a baby cricket hopping around in the bathroom.
Weird atmosphere aside - service was fine. Prices were fine. Food was very good. I just don't know if I'd want to come back.
Quality / Taste (40%): 4
Atmosphere (20%): 2
Service (20%): 3
Value (20%): 3
Overall: 3.2
I have had a couple good meals here, but just today had something that definitely won't find me back any time soon.
I ordered risotto, with spinach, tomato, and pork tenderloin. I am a sucker for risotto - when done right, it's just heaven. What I got...wasn't even actually risotto. It was mostly, if not all, short grain white rice. Not arborio. The tomato was not fresh, and the whole thing was over salted. And, to top it off, the pork was over cooked and pretty much flavorless. But the ultimate sin is trying to pass a bowl of Uncle Ben's off as risotto.
Others in our party had what they said was good gnocchi bolognese, and a veal dish that I don't remember the name of. And I've had the gnocchi before - good but a bit salty - and the veal saltimbucca, which is good. I guess I'm just angry about the risotto thing.
I went to Tutto on a date with my boyfriend a couple of weeks ago. I ordered the salmon served over horseradish mashed potatoes with a pesto sauce. My meal was delicious, the wine not so much. The glasses we were given were so small that when I tried to inhale the fragrance I REALLY inhaled it and ended up snorting red wine all over my napkin. The only positive aspect to this experience was that my boyfriend was provided with some interesting entertainment that he so kindly shared with all of our friends later. My pride and sinuses are still injured....
Dining in the box car attached to the side of the restaurant was incredibly romantic! Apparently (according to our waiter) I was sitting in the exact seat that Sandra Bullock sat in during the filming of The Lake House. Next time I eat at Tutto I will be sure that there is not a major sports game on TV because there was a lot of audible swearing emanating from the bar where a baseball playoff game was showing.
I was incredibly impressed with my meal and the service but not so impressed with the ladies sitting at the table next to us. There is no excuse for being condescending to a server that is doing his best to provide you with an exceptional dining experience. The server in question was incredibly attentive and personable.
I would definitely recommend Tutto Italiano for its cozy, romantic vibe and excellent food. This is probably not a restaurant for a first date but great for down the road when you want a more relaxing fine dining experience. Oh, and definitely try the salmon!
This is a nice Italian place downtown, steps from the LaSalle Blue Line stop. Nothing really special about it though. Nice interior, friendly staff, yummy food, everything you'd expect from an Italian restaurant. I think for taste, though it was nice, if I were to go downtown for Italian again I might try to find someplace a little less generic.
Love this little place tucked away in the loop. They have this wonderful, herb-infused olive oil and bread for dipping. The staff is always friendly and the owner has been there every time i've been a patron. I've tried their salads, risotto, pasta, lamb...and I have not been disappointed. Generous portions and wonderful flavors come together in their traditional Italian dishes. There is a train car that has been converted into seating, and the setting is very quaint. I recommend going early for lunch, as it gets crowded.
This is a great little restaurant that actually has a box car attached to it and it's fun to sit there while having your meal. I just love the cozy feel of this place and the food was pretty good too with reasonable prices. Helps that it's only a couple blocks way from my work but can't frequent there too often for lunch because it'll give me crazy food coma!
A wonderfully cozy little restaurant that is obviously loved by many as an after work go to spot. I came across the restaurant while on my way to work one day and decided I had to eat there. I admit that the novelty of eating inside a train car hooked me.
The food was delicious. I ordered sicilian chicken and absolutely loved it. The portion was huge. I took a little over half of it home and will probably have enough for two meals (I overate). The bruschetta with roasted peppers and goat cheese was delicious, but the portion was pretty small for the price.
Service was so-so. The waiter showed up once or twice. I was also disappointed that they didn't serve bellinis. I was really looking forward to one. They did have a nice albeit modest selection of draft beers (I got the 312) and their bottles were not overly expensive.
Despite the few downsides there is no way i could pass up food this good. Maybe next time I'll order something to go and pick it up on my way home.
okay. this review is based on a holiday party that my old job had here.
the food was really good, the drinks were strong as hell. AT LEAST two people passed out before the open bar was over (okay, i worked with traders) but we had a wonderful time! the shut down the entire bar for us and it was a booze filled holiday extravaganza!!
check it out! the fried raviolis were the SHIZ-NET.
The rail car is unique and adds a bit of class but I can't say anything else stands out. We asked for more bread and didn't get a second basket until we almost finished our meal. The chicken marsala was pounded to a pulp and there were seven mushrooms. The bar area is very small and awkward but they were friendly with us after we told them we were new to the area.
This is a "down-home"-ey Italian restaurant. Not fancy or chic, but it was a great on a rainy weeknight when I just wanted a bowl of pasta and a glass of wine. Also, their toasted ravioli are absolutely awesome. Even though they're not on the dinner menu, they'll make them if you ask (and you're sweet about it).
Excellent for lunch. The vegetarian risotto is divine. The staff is friendly and attentive. The train car attached to the restaurant gives it a unique feel. They do need to bring back the appetizer Scoozi, a blue cheese flatbread, permanently.
The risotto and baked ravioli are to die for. I recommend dining in the attached rail car, it's cozy and romantic. When I was there (it was a Tuesday night and the place was pretty empty), the people at the bar were a bit noisy and I could overhear their Top 40 music at my table. Otherwise the ambiance was good, as was the service.
The food here is really good.. the service is so-so, the waitstaff sometimes seems like they'd rather be elsewhere. The ambiance is great though, its like you're in Italy instead of right next to the highway!
