Diners' Choice: Italian restaurants in North Suburbs

OpenTable

Updated January 05, 2025

Looking for restaurants with the best overall Italian cuisine in North Suburbs? You’re in the right place. Each month OpenTable analyzes more than 400,000 new diner reviews. We sort the results by category to help you discover new favorites. It's a great partnership: you reserve, eat, and review. We listen...and deliver the results for all to benefit. Enjoy!

Enzo and Lucia

4.8

4.8 (1454)

$31 to $50

Italian

Long Grove

About the restaurant

We invite you to enjoy a delicious and authentic Italian meal at Enzo and Lucia Ristorante. We use only fresh ingredients in our classic Italian dishes and cherished family recipes. Homemade Italian gourmet cappellacci stuffed with seasonal ingredients is the specialty at our Long Grove restaurant housed in a former and historic Victorian-style home erected in 1876.

Our outdoor patio gives dining “all’aperto” a whole new meaning, bordered by colorful flowers and foliage, the soothing sound of a fountain, and relaxing background music. Live music on the weekends.

Top review

JoanVIP

Dined 4 days ago

We go to this restaurant every month! It is a local/ not corporate amazing local restaurant!

Tocco

4.8

4.8 (328)

$30 and under

Italian

Winnetka

About the restaurant

Good Food, Good Wine, Good Shoes, Makes Life Better.

Born in Naples, Italy and raised in Milan, Bruno Abate was inspired at an early age by his parents for his passion for food and fashion. Bruno opened his first company in Milan, selling fish and caviar to high-end restaurants. His extensive travels around the world helped him appreciate fine food and design and eventually led him to Chicago in 1999, where he combined his passions. In Chicago, Bruno brought together his vision to marry authentic Italian cuisine with a modern design when he opened his first restaurant Follia, in the meatpacking district and currently, Tocco in Winnetka.

The concept was simple, make authentic Italian Cuisine with the finest ingredients and give diners an experience like they were in Italy.

Top review

Penny Florsheim

Dined 5 days ago

Bruno does it right, again. Lovely service and ambience complement the Yum factor. A treat!

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Popular dish

Lasagna Bolognese

Ristorante Bottaio

4.8

4.8 (1183)

$30 and under

Italian

Libertyville

About the restaurant

Ristorante Bottaio - Fresh vegetables, fish and various meats prepared as modern interpretations of traditional dishes from the Abruzzo region of Italy. All within your reach at our charming restaurant in Libertyville, Illinois. Stop by and see for yourself!

Top review

Bari

Dined 6 days ago

My husband and I decided to try Bottaio for his birthday yesterday. It was an amazing experience from start to finish. Our server was very friendly and helped me pick a phenomenal dessert. I had the spaghetti bolognese, which was very authentic and had great flavors. My husband had the veal chop, which was mammoth! I typically am not a fan of veal, but I must say I took a bite, and it tasted just like a wonderful juicy steak. We had the tiramisu which was pure perfection, along with an Italian apple cake with a scoop of gelato. My husband also had a chocolate martini, and I don’t know what the heck they put into it, but it was honestly the best one I’ve had at any restaurant. I highly recommend Bottaio, and am so glad we decided to try something new.

Mambo Italiano - Mundelein IL

4.8

4.8 (981)

$30 and under

Italian

Mundelein

About the restaurant

For 18 years, Mambo Italiano has been keeping Italian tradition alive for the generations to come by specializing in traditional styles of Italian Cuisine. Weekly, features highlight new menu renditions developed by the Cardone family. Every meal is prepared with care and the freshest ingredients. Mambo Italiano has been featured on Check Please!, is a Daily Herald Readers' Choice and has been voted the Best Italian Restaurant in Mundelein, Vernon Hills and Libertyville by Open Table diners.

Top review

NancyVIP

Dined 5 days ago

We have been coming to Mambo for years and the service and food has never let us down. The aroma will lure you in from the parking lot! Great atmosphere! A must to make it a staple in your dining out list.

Viaggio Restaurant-Highland Park

4.7

4.7 (791)

$30 and under

Italian

Highland Park

About the restaurant

An authentic Italian dining experience in Highland Park. We offer an elegant and charming dining experience that keeps guests coming back again and again. Our large menu of regional Italian pastas, meats and fishes is rounded out by a selection of salads, soups, and decadent desserts. Popular staples like Rigatoni with Braised Pork Gravy and Eggplant Parmesan are served alongside Executive Chef Nicolas Biscaglio’s signature interpretations of classic Italian dishes. We use only the highest quality ingredients to ensure a deliciously memorable experience! As a hospitality-driven establishment, it’s our goal to make every guest that walks through the door feel like family. At Viaggio, we invite you to sit back, relax and enjoy!

Top review

Keller

Dined 6 days ago

I hosted a work dinner here and we were extremely happy with the service. The quick service, friendly staff, and great food makes this restaurant perfect for productive work dinners and get togethers.

Del Rio

4.7

4.7 (1160)

$30 and under

Italian

Highwood

About the restaurant

Come enjoy our family's 100 year-old Northern Italian restaurant.

Whether you dine with us in our main dining room, the Terrace or upstairs in what was once our family's home, we warmly welcome you. If you're looking for that special restaurant where you can take a a breath from the fast lane and go back to a time when restaurants were not part of a chain and the owner became a friend, the food was always great, and as my grandmother said, "You feel better for coming"....then you've found the right spot. We combine the classic Italian Menu and new creative dishes, with full attention to both. If you enjoy fine wine, you've found a new home. Our cellar contains well over 3,500 choices dating from the late 1800's.

Top review

Shannon

Dined on Dec 23, 2024

This is our second visit to Del Rio and we were so excited to return. This time around, the food was much less impressive. Wait staff was perfect, responsive and friendly. Menu was limited due to special events in the main dining area, which was fine as our preferred order was on the limited menu. Disappointing.

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Popular dish

Ravioli

Gale Street Inn

4.6

4.6 (120)

$31 to $50

Italian

Mundelein

About the restaurant

In 1974, George and his wife Joan ventured out to what was then considered the country. They found the perfect location on the shores of Diamond Lake. A great deal has changed since then, but our commitment to service and great food hasn’t. We welcome you to visit and see what’s new. It’s the Gale Street you love and remember with a more comfortable and updated atmosphere. Come for your favorite dishes prepared by our award-winning chef and stay for the sunset, a good cocktail, and many more memories to be made.

Top review

AngelaVIP

Dined 4 days ago

Great first time experience. Food was outstanding.

Francesca's Intimo

4.6

4.6 (1707)

$30 and under

Italian

Lake Forest

About the restaurant

Francesca’s Intimo is located in vibrant downtown Lakeforest. A restaurant with a contemporary, casually sophisticated trattoria ambiance, rustic cooking, friendly service, and fair prices.

Top review

Kim

Dined on Jan 7, 2025

Wait staff was great - very responsive! Food was delicious - especially the Sophia's Sausage & Peppers and the Rigatoni Alla Vodka! Followed up by an awesome Tiramisu and cappuccino! Will be back!

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Experience

Happy Hour

Destino

4.6

4.6 (164)

$30 and under

Italian

Gurnee

About the restaurant

Destino Ristorante looks forward to warmly welcoming you to Gurnee’s newest addition to casual fine dining with an emphasis on the most beautiful and classic Italian cuisine this side of the world.

From signature, craft cocktails and wines to the highest quality Italian specialties created by our accomplished and award winning Destino team, we very much look forward to becoming your preferred dining destination to truly enjoy “la vita bella” in every culinary sense. Our goal is to create a warm and inviting atmosphere that makes you feel at home.

Whether you’re dining with family and friends or hosting a special event, Destino Ristorante will provide the perfect setting for any occasion. We look forward to meeting you.
– DANNY S. LEGATOS

Top review

Carolyn

Dined 4 days ago

Our server Tommy offered excellent service. We were in a private room. It was nice and quiet and we had a great time. The food was excellent my favorite Italian go to restaurant. I highly recommend them.

Francesca - Lincolnwood

4.6

4.6 (367)

$30 and under

Italian

Lincolnwood

About the restaurant

Mia Francesca features the zesty, earthy cuisine of Rome and the surrounding areas of Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio. It was one of the first restaurants in Chicago to encourage the lively art of dining with a contemporary, casually sophisticated trattoria ambiance, simple, rustic cooking, friendly service, and fair prices.

Waiting for a table at the beautiful antique bar is part of the charm of Mia Francesca. The plush upstairs dining room and lounge can be reserved for private events, as can the more intimate coach house tucked away behind the restaurant. In the summer, al fresco dining is also available on a charming cobblestone terrace.

Top review

LeslieVIP

Dined 1 day ago

My family has been missing Francisca's since Francesca's on Bryn Mawr closed, so we were thrilled when Mia Francesca Lincolnwood opened. The food is delicious with many old favorites on the menu: wonderful lentils w/spinach, pasta with eggplant and spicy sauce, asparagus salad, profiteroles w/gelato. Who could ask for more? Service was really impeccable the night we were there. We will be back.

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