Best gnocchi in town

Heading out to eat on Friday and would like to get the best gnocchi.

Bonus if it is made in-house.

Any suggestions for either downtown, near north, or west side? Thanks.

My favourite is that served at A Tavola, particularly at this time of year, when the preparation very often involves brown sage butter and parmesan.

A Tavola
2148 W Chicago Ave.
773.276.7567
Closed Sunday

E.M.

I'll second A Tavola.

The best gnocchi I ever tasted was a seasonal pumpkin-flavored gnocchi at Nicolina's Cucina in the NBC Tower (455 N Cityfront Plaza Dr). But that restaurant was replaced by Pazzo's, which is now being replaced by a burger place. Who knows? if you're lucky, perhaps a sous chef at Nicolina's spread some of the gnocchi love to Pazzo's at one of their other locations... Give them a try (although their hours may not be the best for Friday night dining.)

Pazzo's Cucina Italiana
100 S Wacker Dr
Chicago, IL 60605
Mon-Fri : 11am- 7pm
Closed Sat and Sun

Pazzo's at 311
311 S Wacker Dr
Chicago, IL 60606
Mon-Fri : 11am- 7pm
Closed Sat and Sun

Best gnocchi I've ever had was at Spiaggia. Delicious!

I will second Pazzo's at 311. I went out with a friend who loves it, and was quite leary of the place. I was pleasantly surprised. the gnocchi aredfinitely fresh and hand made, I have only ever had them that light when I have made them at home.

(The other dishes there, however, are very overpriced and mediocre at best)

I do NOT recommend the gnocchi at Via Veneto or La Donna. They are owned by the same people and the gnoocchi sound interesting (oo, squash filled!) but are always disappointing in flavor and texture - chewy? yuck!

Not sure this place been mentioned on the board yet, but I like the gnocchi at Franco's near US Cellular field. When I had them last year about this time, I thought they were the finest in memory; extraordinarily light, puffy, almost airy and not a bit gluey, in a marinara that’s thin (so as not to overburden the delicate pasta) and sparkling with freshly snipped basil. There's other good stuff on the menu, too, but gnocchi were a standout.

Franco’s Ristorante
300 W. 31st Street
(312) 225-9566

Thanks for the tips. I'll report back after the meal.

Daisy11 wrote:Best gnocchi I've ever had was at Spiaggia. Delicious!

Without a doubt. I was floored by the gnocchi at Spiaggia. In a way, I don't know if it's fair to compare anything to Spiaggia's gnocchi. A Tavola sounds promising - I'll have to give it a try.

Spiaggia's gnocchi is wonderful. I've had it at the Cafe many times and had it served as the pasta course for my wedding--it was served with shaved black truffles. I had the gnocchi at A Tavola once a few years ago and it's definitely a contender in my opinion.

I'm fond of the gnocchi at Franco's, too, altho when I had it a couple of months ago, I thought it was a bit oversauced. This, however, was adequately compensated for by a generous sprinkling of fresh ricotta, which added mightily to the richness of the texture. Definitely a keeper.

jbw wrote:I'm fond of the gnocchi at Franco's, too, altho when I had it a couple of months ago, I thought it was a bit oversauced.

I was surprised how restrained the saucing was on my plate of Franco's gnocchi, but this is definitely one of those plating characteristics that can easily vary a lot based on the preferences of the saucier (or his perceived sense of customer preferences).

Hammond

I've had some heavenly gnocchi at 312 Chicago. At this time of year, they may well reprise the pumpkin gnocchi I remember as particularly ethereal.

312 Chicago
312/696-2420
www.312chicago.com
Hotel Allegro,136 N. LaSalle St.
Chicago

Not around anymore, but Paul Bartolotta's Potato Gnocchi at Spiaggia. Man, that was amazing.

I would have to add the butternut squash gnocci at La Piazza in Forest park. The gnocci is absolutely amazing and homemade!

Re Bartolatta: Based on the somewhat disappointing gnocchi at his Vegas place, and the still stellar gnocchi at Spiaggia, I'd say the old gnocchi-maker is still in Chicago. (You don't think the chef makes every order of gnocchi, do you? I guess it's possible.)

I actually give a slight edge to the gnocchi at Tru. Both Spiaggia and Tru make gnocchi that is better than I have had anywhere else. Anywhere.

A big second for Chef Dean Zanella's gnocchi at 312 Chicago. I've never been disappointed.

I'll give a big vote for a Tavola. IMHO, the best Gnocchi anywhere.

Even as doggie-bag leftovers the second day, the gnocchi from Lutnia were still light and relatively fluffy, although they didn't do the fork marks to hold the sauce like other gnocchi I've had.

Well, I'm too late to help for this Friday night...though I am curious where you decided to eat and how the gnocchi quest ended!

One of my favorite, reliable places to get take-out, delicious gnocchi is from Pasta Palazzo on Halsted, just south of Armitage and next to Gepperth's meat market. This gnocchi is stuffed with very light ricotta and would be delicious in any preparation, but we like to get it with the bolognese sauce (you can choose from among 4-5 sauces).

Pasta Palazzo is in no way a gourmet experience, but honestly, this gnocchi is like eating little fluffy pillows from heaven. Texture and taste (of the gnocchi specifically, though not of most other pasta dishes) rival many of the city's better Italian places. I hope you'll try it some time and let me know if you agree.

I would like to add, for posterity's sake, that I (or more accurately, my husband did, though I took generous bites for myself by distracting him, usually pointing out the window and saying, "Look!") had an outrageous spinach gnocci in a tomato cream sauce at Via Veneto a few weeks ago. Amazingly light and pillowy. As a matter of fact, the whole meal was excellent, including the grilled portobella with red peppers and a walnut/gorgonzola/pear salad. It was our first time there, and we'll be back. Mostly because the husband can't stop talking about the gnocci.