Huge menu, many other specials, authentic old Irving Park neighborhood restaurant-bar. Excellent food.
Jennifer
My favorite chicken vesuvio in the city. OG Italian American restaurant, with great servic and delicious food.
Varda
My first time at Avvio but it won't be my last. Everything was perfect and delicious. Extensive choices, delicious food, great service. Outstanding evening.
Peter
Let me preface this by saying that I ate at the famous Sabatino's at least 3 times a month for 15+ years. When Avvio opened with the same executive chef and almost identical menu, I was ecstatic. Every time I've eaten at Avvio, the food has been wonderful and this visit was no exception. The Dover Sole was to die for and the drinks and service were excellent. I am a bit disappointed that the value isn't what it used to be however. First they went from a soup and salad included with every entree to a soup OR salad. And then they removed the complimentary pizza bread (though you still do get the amazing Italian loaf). I know, times are tough for restaurants today and food is expensive, but I'd rather pay a bit more for the entree and still get the same items that separated this restaurant from its competition (and that differentiated Sabatino's for so many years.) I still ordered the pizza bread for my son, but at $10 for the order, I'm not sure it's worth it. You will love the food and it's well worth the trip to Avvio, but I can't help but feel that a bit of the past is gone for good.
Brian
our first time at Avvio. The food was fine - however did did not have a lot of taste. We celebrated a birthday. While it was acknowledged, the server said "happy birthday." Not even the little one scoop of ice cream with candle. That was it.
Victoria
We had a lovely meal, attentive service in a quiet, romantic atmosphere. Great fried calamari, eggplant parmesan, and pasta. The bread is extra special....warm, crispy crust, and the soup or salad served with the entree makes the meal a very good value. Will return and highly recommend.
Denise
We took my in-laws here for their birthdays since they were HUGE Sabatino's fans back in the day. My in-laws are old school Italians so they are very hard to please. They loved their dinner here. Our party ordered the Chicken Vesuvio, Linguine w/ white clam sauce, the crabmeat Ravioli, the Zuppa de Mare, and some Avvio special. We ordered the pizza bread with meat sauce as an appetizer. For dessert we ordered the tiramisu, the brandy ice, bananas foster, and the apple tart. Their martinis are excellent. All in all the food was outstanding, but pricey. My only 2 complaints would be: 1. There was a bad sewage smell wafting throughout the restaurant. It was a very strong odor that was quite off putting. They need to look into their plumbing. 2. I didn't care for our server, Efrain. He was a bit on the rude side. Please print out your daily specials on a piece of paper like other restaurants do. He got quite irritated with us as we had to ask him about 4 times about the specials since we couldn't understand him. It would be nice to read about the specials to see what each dish is about. I didn't like how he took it upon himself to split certain desserts either and I had to remind him it was their birthday even though I mentioned it at my reservation AND called the day of. My in-laws never got their birthday ice cream I was told they would get. I blame the server.
J. V.
Very friendly service, good food, and very cute atmosphere.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
John Brandenburg
Wedding reception. Great atmosphere and location.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Anand
This was a solid dining experience, the place has an old school vibe; Food was solid; I especially enjoyed the sea bass. Service was excellent! Denise, our server was solo in our area, yet she did a wonderful job being attentive to all the patrons as was the busboy ( didn't get his name) we also enjoyed "Kenny" who provided musical entertainment🙂 We will definitely be back!
Honestly, we drove past it as the street side signage isn't prominent. Once we arrived, all the staff were very welcoming and friendly. We chose Avvio, not realizing the Sabatinos link, because of the housemade gnocchi. I'm a sucker for gnocchi! The baked clams, gnocchi, black manhattans, and apple tart were all delish. We will definitely be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Myrna
Service was extremely slow. The food was average. Leaves me wondering if the management has changed
Denise Jones
The food was great, service was a bit slow but I assumed it was because of their small kitchen. I would go again on a date night. The selection of deserts is insane!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Jenny
Lovely ambiance and decent wine list. Menu prices up a bit and $80 for Lobster diavolo was a bit much but overall good.
Alejandra Kedzie
The best Italian that I have had in Chicago. The veal parm is amazing. Great food, great people, great time. Definitely a restaurant to add to your list!
Huge menu, many other specials, authentic old Irving Park neighborhood restaurant-bar. Excellent food.
My favorite chicken vesuvio in the city. OG Italian American restaurant, with great servic and delicious food.
My first time at Avvio but it won't be my last. Everything was perfect and delicious. Extensive choices, delicious food, great service. Outstanding evening.
Let me preface this by saying that I ate at the famous Sabatino's at least 3 times a month for 15+ years. When Avvio opened with the same executive chef and almost identical menu, I was ecstatic. Every time I've eaten at Avvio, the food has been wonderful and this visit was no exception. The Dover Sole was to die for and the drinks and service were excellent. I am a bit disappointed that the value isn't what it used to be however. First they went from a soup and salad included with every entree to a soup OR salad. And then they removed the complimentary pizza bread (though you still do get the amazing Italian loaf). I know, times are tough for restaurants today and food is expensive, but I'd rather pay a bit more for the entree and still get the same items that separated this restaurant from its competition (and that differentiated Sabatino's for so many years.) I still ordered the pizza bread for my son, but at $10 for the order, I'm not sure it's worth it. You will love the food and it's well worth the trip to Avvio, but I can't help but feel that a bit of the past is gone for good.
our first time at Avvio. The food was fine - however did did not have a lot of taste. We celebrated a birthday. While it was acknowledged, the server said "happy birthday." Not even the little one scoop of ice cream with candle. That was it.
We had a lovely meal, attentive service in a quiet, romantic atmosphere. Great fried calamari, eggplant parmesan, and pasta. The bread is extra special....warm, crispy crust, and the soup or salad served with the entree makes the meal a very good value. Will return and highly recommend.
We took my in-laws here for their birthdays since they were HUGE Sabatino's fans back in the day. My in-laws are old school Italians so they are very hard to please. They loved their dinner here. Our party ordered the Chicken Vesuvio, Linguine w/ white clam sauce, the crabmeat Ravioli, the Zuppa de Mare, and some Avvio special. We ordered the pizza bread with meat sauce as an appetizer. For dessert we ordered the tiramisu, the brandy ice, bananas foster, and the apple tart. Their martinis are excellent. All in all the food was outstanding, but pricey. My only 2 complaints would be: 1. There was a bad sewage smell wafting throughout the restaurant. It was a very strong odor that was quite off putting. They need to look into their plumbing. 2. I didn't care for our server, Efrain. He was a bit on the rude side. Please print out your daily specials on a piece of paper like other restaurants do. He got quite irritated with us as we had to ask him about 4 times about the specials since we couldn't understand him. It would be nice to read about the specials to see what each dish is about. I didn't like how he took it upon himself to split certain desserts either and I had to remind him it was their birthday even though I mentioned it at my reservation AND called the day of. My in-laws never got their birthday ice cream I was told they would get. I blame the server.
Very friendly service, good food, and very cute atmosphere.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Wedding reception. Great atmosphere and location.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This was a solid dining experience, the place has an old school vibe; Food was solid; I especially enjoyed the sea bass. Service was excellent! Denise, our server was solo in our area, yet she did a wonderful job being attentive to all the patrons as was the busboy ( didn't get his name) we also enjoyed "Kenny" who provided musical entertainment🙂 We will definitely be back!
Restaurantji Recommends
Honestly, we drove past it as the street side signage isn't prominent. Once we arrived, all the staff were very welcoming and friendly. We chose Avvio, not realizing the Sabatinos link, because of the housemade gnocchi. I'm a sucker for gnocchi! The baked clams, gnocchi, black manhattans, and apple tart were all delish. We will definitely be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Service was extremely slow. The food was average. Leaves me wondering if the management has changed
The food was great, service was a bit slow but I assumed it was because of their small kitchen. I would go again on a date night. The selection of deserts is insane!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lovely ambiance and decent wine list. Menu prices up a bit and $80 for Lobster diavolo was a bit much but overall good.
The best Italian that I have had in Chicago. The veal parm is amazing. Great food, great people, great time. Definitely a restaurant to add to your list!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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