Grotto Steakhouse – Oakbrook

I had been near this restaurant, but had never tried it. Early this week I saw a notice, I think on the Trib’s web page, that they were offering a special today:

Chicken Parmesan over Pasta & Meatball
Comes with House Salad & House Dressing only $12

This seemed like a good deal, so I thought I would try it. Oh, just a caveat, I think I have an experienced palate, but not a knowledgeable one.

I had never been here before and just walking in, it looks like an upscale restaurant. It is roomy and has a very nice appearance. The house salad (field greens, etc) was of a type that I attribute to upscale restaurants. It came with garbanzo beans which I thought was a nice touch. The dressing was a little too oily for my taste and could have used more seasoning.

I thought the chicken parmesan was excellent. It was a large piece that was moist and flavorful with a good breading. I thought there was too much cheese on it, so I scrapped half of it off. The meat ball was a decent size, not dry, and was ok. I thought it was missing something. It just didn't taste like an Italian meatball to me.

The rigatoni pasta was way over cooked, and yet served barely lukewarm. The sauce was very bland. To me it tasted like something out of jar.

Oh, the service was top notch. My server was the bartender Michelle and she was absolutely terrific. Since this is based on one visit, I would be interested in anyone else’s comments.

D.

Grotto Oak Brook
Promenade Shopping Center
3011 Butterfield Road
Oak Brook, IL

I'll tell you what....after that review I won't be paying it a visit.

The place to go in that mini-mall (Oak Brook Promenade) is Labriola. Great sandwiches and pizza and gelato and it is a great bakery so you can pick up some great bread there.

I have also been to Kona Grill at that mini-mall and I cannot remember what I got, but I do remember it was very bland and overpriced and I made a note to myself to never go back there again.

Thanks for the info!

From what I've read here in some old posts, chicken vesuvio is the thing to getat the Grotto.

Warning: Rant to follow...

I went to the Grotto's web page to check it out and opened the link for their photo gallery hoping to get a visual idea of the menu and plating as well as a view of the room.
What I found was 102 pictures of drunk, dancing 20 somethings. Perhaps it's my personal bias but this tells me what crowd you wish to attract and how much priority you place on the food.

OK – rant over.

stevez wrote:From what I've read here in some old posts, chicken vesuvio is the thing to getat the Grotto.

That might get me into the Grotto on State - but I'm avoiding Oakbrook.

At Grotto in Oak Brook, we had a bone to remember.