Francesca's Recommendations

Went Francesca's (South Naperville). This was first time for us. Very impressed with quality, service and atmosphere. Seems to be a very well run chain. Kind of like a junior Maggiano's. Both of our pasta dishes were excellent and had plenty of leftovers. Gelato was terrific also. Would like to try another one. Are they all the same as far as menu, service, etc., or are there significant differences? How do you rate their pizza? Which location would you recommend? Thanks!

Menus vary from place to place, but they are all fairly similar. I have had very good carpaccio, one of their signatures, at several of the locations. I like the menu selections better than Maggiano's.

I'm a HUGE Francesca's fan. But I have only been to Francesca's Intimo in Lake Forest and I hear they vary a lot!

I've been to that one location 3 times though and have loved it every time. My boyfriend and I love to start with the mussels in spicy tomato sauce and then get two different pasta dishes. I've gotten rigatoni with eggplant and fresh mozzarella (wonderful) and even a rigatoni with mussels (can you tell we like mussels)?

I could go there every weekend!

Has anyone been to Francesca's Forno in Wicker Park? I hear that one isn't as good but it's right near my boyfriend.

I've been to the one in Wicker Park. It's best for a weekend brunch in my opinion. It's just not as good as Mia Francesca's in Wrigleyville, my favorite. TheWP location is very loud, to the point you can't enjoy each other's company loud. The food I had for dinner wasn't very memorable.

nicinchic wrote:I've been to the one in Wicker Park. It's best for a weekend brunch in my opinion. It's just not as good as Mia Francesca's in Wrigleyville, my favorite. TheWP location is very loud, to the point you can't enjoy each other's company loud. The food I had for dinner wasn't very memorable.

I have to agree with everything nicinchic said about the WP location (except for the comment about brunch, to which I've never been). IMHO, there's not a whole lot of good eating in that neighborhood.

I agree too. It's not gross, but after going to the other Francesca's (I've been to like four others, lol!), it's nowhere as good as those.

Have you guys ever been to Bluebird nearby? I've been curious about that place. I saw a thread on here about it.

Received a gift card for the holidays, and am wondering which location is the best to go to. I know there are quite a few of them spanning the city and the suburbs. We are looking for a relaxing dinner with another couple. Thanks!

My guess is that they're fairly consistent across the board. Not sure where you're located, but Francesca Fiore in Elmwood Park has easy parking and is probably closest to most western and southwestern suburbs.

My favorite one is Francesca's Intimo in Lake Forest. I've heard the one in Northbrook is good too but that Francesca's Forno in Wicker Park is just eh.

Here are photos from one of my many meals at the Lake Forest location:







If you want to see my blog post about the restaurant, go here: http://chewonthatblog.com/2008/07/29/on ... as-intimo/

Enjoy your gift card!

We have been to the one in St Charles and I have friends who go often to that location but I thought it too noisy and not a good place for conversation.

I would also post a similar complaint about Francesca's Fortunato in Frankfort. They have tall, tin ceilings that reflect all the noise and make the environment unnecessarily loud. On the other hand, Francesca's Vicinato in Palos Park is a more modest space with better noise levels. The food at both locations has been consistently decent. I generally order at least one thing off the specials menu; I've never been disappointed by them. In fact, my only real complaint about this chain is that I've never been a big fan of the (free) bread they put out at the tables. But, for something that comes gratis, I probably should let it go...

In my experience, La Sorella di Francesca in Naperville (which was one of the first, if not the first, suburban locations) consistently serves very good food. However, the noise level is very, very high and it consistently is extremely crowded regardless of the day or hour. I suppose this is true of all the Francesca places, but it makes sense to make a reservation (BTW, Francesca's restaurants now are on opentable.com).

We go to the one on Bryn Mawr, and I think it's quiet enough to hear everyone at the table's conversation, and I feel like it's an especially cozy place in the winter. Do get the carpaccio appetizer, it's delicious.
1039 W. Bryn Mawr Ave. • Chicago, IL 60660 • 773-506-9261

I've been to the one in Dundee 2-3 times, and the one in Northbrook once. So far so good.

LikestoEatout wrote:We have been to the one in St Charles and I have friends who go often to that location but I thought it too noisy and not a good place for conversation.

There are two dining rooms at that location. The one in the front is REALLY LOUD. I've only sat in the back once but it was a much better experience.

We went over the holidays. Steak was fine. Pasta wasn't up to previous visits.