Trattoria Trullo

Trattoria Trullo A.K.A. "The New Restaurant Now Open in Lincoln Square" served a fine lunch today. I know there is another string on this place that is similar to my quote above - I'll leave it to the moderators how best to accomodate these two posts but I think it wise to head the topic with something reflecting the place's name now that it's open.

I've bit on a bit of a dining out frenzy lately as is my want in the dead of summer in Chicago.

My Mother was down here on some personal business ths afternoon so I thought it a fine opportunity to try out our new entry into the dining options along Lincoln Avenue in downtown Lincoln Square. And, what a fine selection it was if I do say so myself.

Double T as you might have guessed is a nice new Italian restaurant in Lincoln Square to provide some competition for the consistently pleasing LS mainstay La Bocca Della Verita and the relatively newer, overpriced and underwhelming if "hip" Erba that probably hasn't hit its first anniversary yet.

It was just lunch today so a full menu review I cannot offer. There were about 25 options to choose from on the Lunch Menu, most $8 or below with a handful over $10.

Mother opted for the Insalata Spinaci which contained shitake mushrooms, pine nuts, goat cheese in a wild cherry vinagrette which must have been fabulous as Mom scarfed it down not leaving her commonplace half eaten plate on the table. I wasn't offered a bite - another sign the salad was good.

I opted for the Fettuccine Bolognese which here was egg noodles in homemade bolognese sauce and added sliced beef tenderloin for $4 more at Mother's suggestion.

The Beef tenderloin slices were fresh but unneeded in this dish and didn't particulary mesh well with the bolognese. Clearly patron error. Should have applied the implied hesitation from a perched eyebrow of the solid server when I opted to add the slices of tenderloin to my entree- but I did not. The tenderloin slices were very good but didn't mesh well with the entree.

Most of the time that I order bolognese, I get more sauce than meat but not this time. My dish was full of meaty chunks of homemade flavorful beef and sauce on a bed of fresh egg noodles. Nicely portioned and topped off with fresh shredded Parmesan. A steal at $8 before the patron-induced unnecessary $4 upcharge for the tenderloin slices.

Nice Foccacia and Italian bread basket to start and what appeared to be Orange Pellegrino from the Tap - unless they just poured in from the can? I didn't inqure.

The lunch ran just under $30 but should have been closer to $25 absent a snafu by myself. Not a cheap price but for what you get a great destination for lunchtime fare.

You should check it out

Bster

Trattoria Trullo
4767 North Lincoln Square Ave.
773.506.0093

I walked past the restaurant on the way home from work this evening. I didn't go inside the restaurant, but from what I saw looking through the window - it looks nice/comfortable.

Last night a buddy and I wanted to give Trattoria Trullo a shot.

We walked in. The airy front area of the restraunt features a deli counter with italian meats and cheeses as well as some pasta (both fresh and dried) and some other goodies. Looks like a great place to grab a sandwhich during lunch time.

The attractive and sharply dressed hostess greeted us and took us into the main room.

This inviting room room makes you feel like you're in a small seaside town in Sounthern Italy.

Unfortuneatley, while there were plenty of tables available, for some unknown reason we were escorted to what I'd describe as the worst table in the room, just outside the kitchen.

I didn't say anything, but gave the hostess a brief look, which she may not have noticed as my displeasure, and took the seat.

A freindly waiter appeared and delivered menus and took our drink order. Our martinis arrived in very nice stemware and the drinks were darn near perfect.

A basket of bread was delivered to the table along with olive oil and a very good, freshly grated parm reg. The bread was warm and the foccacia (sp?) may very likely have been baked in house.

The menu, while extensive and fairly traditional didn't really impress. The prices seemed a bit high too. Pastas ranged from 14-22ish with the majority being in the $17 range. Secondi were all just a bit over $20. These prices all seemed a bit high. I know much has been made here about Erba. People for some reason think the prices are high but I respectfully disagree. Of course thats all a matter of opinion. Erba doesn't have an entree on the menu above $20 typically and only one app. above $10. But thats neither here nor there. Anti pasti ranged from $6ish to $13.

The wine list, while resonably priced was somewhat underwhelming. One highlight was a nice sounding primitivo (desribed on the list as being made from "Red Zinfandel" vines, this brought a chuckle).

For some reason I just wasn't feeling interested in anything on the menu. This isn't typical at all for me. Our waiter came back and listed off the days specials. One sounded mildly intriguing, a stuffed pasta (might have been ravioli, I just don't recall) with lobster.

My friend and I decided that maybe we didn't want to dine here but since everyone had been so nice we wanted to give the place some business. We ordered an antipasti. Based on how this went we may ask for the bill or may order dinner.

While we waited for our starter I noticed that perhaps the reason behind the somewhat higher prices was the fact that the entrees were enormous. This thing kind of bugs me. I prefer a meal that is properly portioned. Just a per peeve of mine.

The plate we ordered to share was grilled octopus, shrimp and calamari along with rappinni and white beans.

The seafood was grilled beautifully the rappinni was nice and the white beans were slightly undercooked. The real downer however was that far too much olive oil was used to dress the plate. This oil added that heavy feeling to each bite. Too bad, it could have been really good with the exception of the white beans.

After we finished our waiter returned and asked if we'd like to order our entrees. Now I'm not in the habbit of ordering an app and bolting so I felt a bit uncomfortable asking for our check, but the waiter was all class and obliged with a smile which put me at ease.

We paid for our drinks and app. and left a very nice tip.

Overall a nice room, great service, unimpressive wine list, a bit high priced and an unintersting menu.

Although i have not had the opportunity to dine at this location I have had the opportunity to "peek inside" the place. I must say I was so thrilled by the Deli selections, the selction of breads , cheeses and italian meats. I saw their panini of the day and I must say, it was "ginormous".

One note I would like to make about this place is about the wine they serve. If you do happen to order a glass of wine, make sure the wine yo uare poured is the wine you ordered. They have a practice of pouring whatever is open and/or more available. Just an FYI.

DJM wrote: I saw their panini of the day and I must say, it was "ginormous".

Wife and I split the salami, fresh mozzarella and roasted vegie Panini for lunch last week. Absolutely fantastic !

They have a practice of pouring whatever is open and/or more available. Just an FYI.

I found that if you let them they will also pour you a VERY short glass of wine.

I have been 3 times since it opened. The first two were for lunch. The third for dinner. I have to say, from now on it will only be a lunch place--but a good one at that. (I just found dinner to be more expensive and not MORE satisfying).
For lunch, I do recommend the risottos (i have had the porcini and the seafood versions) and the eggplant appetizer.
Trullo also has a nice affordable wine list and a really nice staff.

I think this is a nice addition to the area. It also has sandwiches (huge and $6) to go and a deli area. We got some amazing pecorino cheese and olives.

I have been lurking on this site for the longest time and have finally decided to come out, as it were. LTH has been our "go-to" source of restaurant info for ages. I'm so grateful for all the excellent recommendations, information, and lively debate.

TT was one of our favorite places when they were in Evanston. The charm factor was high, french doors opening onto the street in the summer, the owner standing in the doorway enticing us in... It was always pleasantly crowded and cozy.

We visited TT in Lincoln Square for dinner a few weeks ago and found that the menu is the same, as is much of the staff. It's in the space formerly occupied by an old-time ice cream shop (can't recall the name), which is huge compared to their former location. I missed the coziness of the old place, however they have done a nice job with the new space.

We had the grilled seafood JLenart describes but I thought it was really, really delicious. Perhaps a different person preparing it? We also had the involtini and a fantastic pasta al tartufo.

SteveZ and my younger son and I had lunch at Trullo earlier this week. Physically it makes a lot more sense out of its bifurcated space than G.P. Franklin's did, with a (quite handsome) casual cafe/deli area up front and a dining room in back. At lunch, however, only the front was used.

As it turns out, however, the menu is bifurcated too-- and not in a way that has anything to do with the rooms. You can order a panini, or you can order pasta and salads and appetizers off a checklist menu. What doesn't seem to happen, however, is being given the panini menu (of which there's only one, handwritten) when you get table service. I'm not sure what's going on here-- it's not one of those situations where there's different seating for two ways of dining; you're just supposed to know that you either order first (if you want panini) and sit down, or sit down (if you want pasta) and order. Confused and confusing, one of those things where you wonder if the management ever sat down like a customer and tried to experience their restaurant the way we do.

Anyway, having gotten the one and only panini menu into our hands for a moment, we ordered one of those and two dishes off the appetizer menu. The first was a caprese-like salad with burrata, the creamy-centered cheese that's like mozzarella with extra oomph:



Unfortunately, maybe the (huge) ball of burrata was a little over the hill, because what it had inside was not the sensuous ooze we'd heard tell of but a substance not unlike cottage cheese. Not bad, but not ecstatic, either. Tomatoes were decent, not stellar, as they could be this time of year coming from a really careful kitchen.

The second dish, alas, was pretty bad, or at least botched. It was a housemade barese sausage, on a pile of herb-white bean stuff, and what could have been a pretty good sausage was bungled in the cooking, or overcooking, or microwaving, or whatever happened to it to rob it of that fresh-grilled sausage snap. Dry, rubbery, bland, a real disappointment we didn't finish.



Then there was the panini-- which was quite good. Good quality Italian meats, a huge portion-- each of us had a half that would have counted as a good full-size sandwich-- a big slice of cooked zucchini and some olives alongside it. Better yet, or worse, depending on your point of view, was that it was by far the least expensive thing on the menu-- $7.95, versus $10-12 for the other things.

I liked the look of Trattoria Trullo a lot, and I hope it can work out some kinks and make some sense out of its confused ordering procedure and resolve the fact that its ambitious but so far middling appetizer/entree items just aren't cutting it next to the excellent panini. In the meantime, for $7.95 you can get a heck of a nice sandwich in a very attractive atmosphere, overlooking a large window by which pass quite a few of the well-dressed young women who have moved into Lincoln Square lately. They certainly got that part of the Italian cafe experience right.

My husband and I stopped at Trattoria Trullo for a light dinner last night at about 8:30pm. The rooms are beautiful and the crowd seemed a mix of couples and small parties of six to eight people. We were greeted warmly and seated immediately. After that, the experience became a bit more mixed.

Water was poured quickly, but both my husband and I received glasses that were dirty (mine with lipstick on the rim). The appropriate apologies and replacements were made swiftly.

I ordered the fried calamari antipasti and the caprese salad. DH ordered Cappellini con Pola di Granchio (angel hair pasta with crab and peas in a tomato sauce).

The bread arrived and was cold and kinda stale - however the freshly grated parm cheese was a real treat so we ate the bread drowned in olive oil and cheese. Next came the calamari which was absolutely yummy. It was cooked perfectly and the breading was light, and very tasty. It did not need accompaniment, but arrived with a spicy marinara sauce. The sauce was excellent - we wiped the bowl clean with the last ring of calamari!

Next DH's pasta and my salad arrived. DH's pasta looked much better than it tasted. He pronounced it "okay", but not worth the $13 price. I tasted it, and the flavors seemed scorced to me - seemed like the sauce had spent too much time in a hot pan. My salad looked pretty, very nicely presented. This time of year I expected really nice tomatoes in the salad as they profess that everything is made fresh and tomatoes are one of the primary ingredients in the dish. The tomatoes didn't appear to be vine-ripened, and they were cold. And I mean COLD, so that the olive oil that was on them was a bit congealed! Even I know that the flavor of fresh tomatoes is ruined when refridgerated. While the mozzarella cheese that was on the plate was lovely, and the balsamic was a wonderful vintage, the treatment of the tomatoes was a crime.

Because I was suffering from a sinus episode and pounding headache, I did not offer feedback to the waiter. There was a manager-sort of person working the room, but he never stopped to ask us how we liked our food - we may have told him. I haven't decided if I'm going to call today or not.

Overall, the calamari was a big hit with us. The rest of the food was "eh". There are better italian restaurants, so likely won't return to Trattoria Trullo unless we are really hungry for Italian food while we are in Lincoln Square. If we're really just "hungry" while in Lincoln Square, we're more likely to just hit Garcia's.

Hey Vicky,

Still seems like TT is underwhelming in the dinner department. I thoguht it was decent, it a bit pricey for lunch. However, as I mention in my OP, there are two other very close Italian (non-pizza focused) dining options within reasonable walking distance south from TT on Lincoln:

1. La Bocca Della Verita next to the Davis Movie theatre (very good standard Italian); and
2. Erba slightly less than two blocks further south of La Bocca on Lincoln(relativelty new and though I'm not a big fan some LTHers are).

You might want to try one of those places next time.

Bster

Thanks Bster for the suggestions. We like Erba and drove right by it last nite. Honestly, we were headed to Garcia's for a quick bite. When were parking we saw TT. I knew that I had read about it on LTH, and I thought that I remembered that the reviews were mixed. DH and I thought we'd take a chance. Sometimes those things work out, sometimes you say, "eh". Fortunately there's a lot of us like that on LTH who report their experiences, so I'm able to try new things and avoid disappointment most of the time!

Comparing my 2 experiences with those in this thread, it seems that TT is just bumbling along and not learning some important lessons for survival in a fairly competitive neighborhood.
Really like the space, but...
Went in once a couple of weeks ago to the deli counter hoping for a loaf of fresh bread and maybe some extra nibbles to take home.
Late afternoon, the place was humming, but not really crowded. A hostess watched me come in, but never approached or greeted me. I went to the counter, very purposefully looking in the case, at the signage, at the bread on the back wall. A man was behind the counter in restaurant wear doing something. Couldn't tell what because the meat case and displays on it blocked my view, but all his focus was toward the floor. Despite being positioned behind this counter, in the midst of all the product, he never looked at me or acknowledged my presence. Neither did anyone else. Ever. In any way. Finally, I just left.
This Mon. my wife and friend ended up there because Sel Maire was closed for dinner. They brought home left overs. I ate these just a couple of hours after they had been served, gently reheated. Margherita pizza was puffy and largely flavorless. A pasta with strips of white meat chicken and mushrooms in a cream sauce was OK. Noodles were properly cooked, and some real earthy mushroom flavor came through, but the chicken strips seemed commercial, and the cream sauce kind of gloppy and not very Italian, in the sense of something you might actually be served in Italy.
For Italian in the area I'd just go to Bocca, or Spacca, or DOC, or Sapore, or.....

This was a nice lunch:

Cavatelli Crudaiola:


This is homemade pasta with a raw sauce, as the name of the dish indicates. It only works if the tomatoes are top notch, which these were. Simple as can be: diced and seeded tomatoes, olive oil, arugula and ricotta. At Trullo, they used ricotta forte, which has a delicious, zingy bite to it. That worked well only because the tomatoes were so powerful, and the arugula was good enough to stand up to the cheese too. This is the type of dish that really benefits from breaking out a pricier, full-flavored oil. Trullo's oil was only fair, but it's hard to complain given the dish's $8 price tag.

It's been a couple of years since I've been to Trullo, but based on the excellent value of this well executed dish, I'll be back soon.

Lured in by a grumbling stomach and a sign proclaiming a $7.99 pizza or panino lunch special (soda included), I grabbed a seat at the bar and chose the Lincoln Square pizza: artichokes, mushroom, and sausage. Menu had it priced $12 normally, sans accompanying beverage.

Thin-crust (the one I had today, at least, was bordering on cracker thin) with some nice char. Light hand on the sauce. Nice hand with the toppings. Nothing revelatory, but a pretty good pizza at a pretty good price. The guy behind the bar said the special is offered 11am-4pm everyday they're open.

PSA - attempted to dine here tonight. Lights out, sign taped to the window "Temporarily Closed."

LynnB wrote:PSA - attempted to dine here tonight. Lights out, sign taped to the window "Temporarily Closed."

Closed at least several days now . . . not sure what's going on.

From their Facebook page:

We are very sorry to announce our customers ,friends and family that Trattoria Trullo restaurant will temporarily be closing the restaurant for legal matter between property owner and Trullo corporate that require us to close until future notice.
Trullo restaurant crew and family is very sad about this situation ,we will keep everybody updated with what will be next for Trattoria Trullo.

Within the comments you can learn more details, but I will omit them here as, for all I know, they might only represent one side of the story.

The situation appears to be complex and somewhat longstanding. DNAinfo has a story on the mess and also links a story in the Cook County Record on a defamation suit filed by the restaurant owner against the landlord in 2014.

The likelihood of reopening seems low.