Francesca's up North

I will be dining with my wife at Francesca's on Bryn Mawr in a few days and was hoping for some suggestions. I am open to just about anything, but like to try something that is unique to this restuarant or the Francesca family. Is there anything I should try, or am I looking at typical Northern Italian fare, which I could find all over Chicago?

I have had a few dinners there, and many light meal/apps at the bar.

First, it is an entirely mainstream upscale Italian menu with nothing unique that I can think of.

In my experience the apps. can be a bit better than the entrees. I have enjoyed the various pizzas (very thin crust, judiciously topped) and very much enjoyed the mushroom risotto.

The bruschetta style is thick slices of bread piled very high with stuff. Difficult to eat, but good tasting. Sort of the bruschetta version of a Carnegie Deli sandwich.

Calamari are good, i.e. not too greasy, tough, or heavily breaded.

Among the main dishes, I recall the roast chicken being very well done (in the sense of good), with a nice crispy skin.

I have had some pastas that were merely adequate.

I know I have tasted more, but can't recall specifics. This is very much a solid neighborhood sort of place rather than a destination place, but worthy.

I frequent the Francesca's Intimo in Lake Forest. I always order the carpaccio which IMHO is the best in the Chicagoland area. It is listed as an appetizer but it's large enough to be a light entree. It's thinly sliced raw beef with capers, sliced parmesan cheese, and olive oil. This dish is not served in many Italian restaurants, nor done as well so it is fairly unique.

Jesper

Francesca's in general are pretty reliable & affordable. I agree about the carpaccio, calamari, chicken, etc. Mussels are good, and salads also. Pretty much all the entrees are in slight variations of a balsamic/butter type sauce. Like anywhere else, each location is better somenights than others, but this restaurant group sure seems to be more solid than a lot of places. Nothing groundbreaking, but you're likely to have a good meal.
Note-many dishes, including some you wouldn't suspect like the mussels in marinera and pretty much all pastas are finished with butter. So, an irritation to purists, a flavor boost and a health concern all rolled into one.

I'm a big fan of Francesca's above-mentioned items (carpaccio and calamari, in particular). In addition, at least at the Naperville location, they frequently have off-menu specials that are very good (often heartier meat dishes, such as pork chops or filet, both of which I highly recommend).

Thanks for the suggestions. I am not expecting a jaw dropping meal, but have never been to any of the Francesca's and feel that we have missed out on an always busy group of restaurants. Maybe I am more interested to see what all the hype is about from the large crowds that seem to grace the city locations nightly.

Mr. X and I are fairly close to the Francesca's on Bryn Mawr. I have always liked their risotto. They have had a pork chop (I think it was a chop -- someone else ordered it) that was quite good. If I recall, I have also enjoyed their fish preparations. As others have said, it is a reliable option. If I want some risotto and a glass of wine, I am more than happy to hop on the el to head over to Francesca's!

Do they still have the skatewing? It seems like every time I've been to a Francesca's anywhere (and the reason I ask is that it's been years since I've been to one anywhere), skatewing was one of the daily specials, and I was always unable to resist ordering it, and I was always glad that I was unable to resist.

We dined last night at Francesca's and were quite pleased. As advertised, a nice neighborhood spot, by certainly not a destination.

Skatewing was unfortunately not on the menu last night, but they did have a pike entree which sounded interesting. I chose a pasta dish with spicy sausage and a tomato cream sauce. The sauce was very good, not too creamy, and not too thick and the sausage was tasty and plentiful. After sharing a salad, I was only able to eat about 1/2 my meal, which is always nice since I know today's lunch will be very enjoyable as well.

My wife was in the mood for fruti de mar, which was not on the menu, but the waiter said it would be no problem to make up that order. Her dish had a more plain tomato sauce which was fairly good, but along with the pasta, the dish contained large shrimp, calamari, mussels, and clams. There was an abundance of seafood (cooked correctly as well, not at all tough or chewy), which you don't often find.

Overall we were happy with our meal, and will go back when we are in the mood for an hearty Italian dinner. Next time however we could easily share an appetizer/salad and entree and both go home full and with more money in our pocket.