Great simple spaghetti with marinara or meatsauce?

My boyfriend can't seem to find a really good bowl of spaghetti with a rich marinara or meatsauce.

He prefers simple, small, traditional restaurants, but would go anywhere for the spaghetti. Some decent meatballs on the side wouldn't hurt.

I've been to lots of the restaurants talked about on the site, but I'm not one to usually order this dish. And, after I search, I didn't find any spaghetti conversations.

Any spaghetti with red sauce lovers out there?

Thanks.

Mrs. JiLS would recommend highly the spaghetti and meatballs, with meat sauce, at Sabatinos. Although not high on my list as a dish, I concur that the spaghetti and meatballs at Sabatino's is as good as I've ever had. It also comes in portions that inevitably lead to leftovers, and it reheats nicely, so that is another plus. Sabatino's is not a small restaurant or even all that simple, but if you get a good table (say, one of the semi-private "grottos"), it can still be intimate.

In addition to the recommendation of Sabatino's (which I also endorse), I offer two other suggestions:

1) The excellent old school meatballs and meat sauce at MJ2 (fka Sonny's) on Devon in Park Ridge are now served on the dinner menu as well as the steam table at lunch time. I find the traditional meatballs here to be among the best I have found in Chicago. Meaty and garlicky versus bready and bland. MJ2 is located in the same strip center as Morningfields.

2) The sauce bolognese at Terragusto on Addison in Roscoe Village is wonderfully rich and more sophisticated than the red sauce at either Sabatino's or MJ2.

Sabatinos!

DebbieR wrote:My boyfriend can't seem to find a really good bowl of spaghetti with a rich marinara or meatsauce.

He prefers simple, small, traditional restaurants, but would go anywhere for the spaghetti. Some decent meatballs on the side wouldn't hurt.

Simple, quick and easy to find!
Try Barnelli's Pasta Bowl at most Portillo's locations.

Pizza Rustica

3913 North Sheridan
Chicago, Illinois 60613

Best Red Sauce Italian.....North or North Suburban?

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=13790&highlight=

Bella Notte or La Scarola, both on W. Grand Ave. in Chicago.

It's a chain, but I've always had the best spaghetti and meatballs at Maggiano's.

(And their calamari is divine...)

I've also had good spaghetti in meat sauce at Calo's.

Not exactly what you asked for but I am addicted to the Cappellini Marinara at Bacchanalia in the heart of Italy on Oakley.

The sauce is just right as is the cheese on top and it is so reasonably priced.

I generally love getting more complex food items when I dine which is why I always get this as an appetizer.

My mouth is watering now. Although I am preparing a pork roast with mashed potatoes tonight. (Hey I know it is the heat of summer but when you have a craving......)

I've had some very good
spaghetti at Greek restaurants,
usually with a very rich sauce,
gyro meat (so much better than
meatballs) and graviera cheese.

funholidaygirl wrote:My mouth is watering now. Although I am preparing a pork roast with mashed potatoes tonight. (Hey I know it is the heat of summer but when you have a craving......)

Tell me about it.. we're braising short ribs tonight.

at my restaurant. but if there's any left it's better and cheaper on Thursday's lunch. it's homestyle, doesn't taste like restaurant spag, which is why we run it. it's thick, meaty, a little spicy w/ peppers & shrooms, and just a tiny bit sweet. I'm not going to tell you the name tho, because it probably violates site rules, and it feels like blog-whoring. but I posted because I know just how your boyfriend feels.

dk wrote:at my restaurant. but if there's any left it's better and cheaper on Thursday's lunch. it's homestyle, doesn't taste like restaurant spag, which is why we run it. it's thick, meaty, a little spicy w/ peppers & shrooms, and just a tiny bit sweet. I'm not going to tell you the name tho, because it probably violates site rules, and it feels like blog-whoring. but I posted because I know just how your boyfriend feels.

On a website devoted to sharing information about good eating, I think it's a bigger sin to hold out. As long as you are up front that you are posting about your own restaurant, readers can make up their own mind. There are a number of professional chefs on this website and you might get a good idea about how to walk the line by reading their posts. It really doesn't do anyone any good otherwise.

dk is one of the owners of Feed, which she's mentioned before, well known for its Prince spaghetti nights.

And I do think most people prefer you both name your restaurant and your affiliation with it, rather than one or neither

DK and, hey, anybody else in the biz: it's okay to answer a question like this when your restaurant is, in fact, an appropriate answer. Please make your affiliation clear, and don't overdo it hyping the same thing in multiple threads, but nothing wrong with supplying information that's genuinely useful and on topic in a thread.

I've had good spaghetti and meatballs at Osteria di Tramonto in Wheeling ... as good as the spaghetti and meatballs I've had at Sabatino's.