Bella Via is a fabulous gem in Highland Park. I am very disappointed that they are being forced to leave due to an enormous increase in rent. I hope Highland Park helps them find a new location. It's one of our favorite spots.
LeeS
Food and service was very good as usual. Enjoyed the teramasu to celebrate my wife's birthday. Very sorry to hear they closing February 18. Hope they can find a new location. If not they will be missed
RobertoD
Sorry to say but I I think that was my worst Italian meal I ever had. I had Spaghetti vongole , the spaghetti were over cooked and shredded to small pieces. The vongole were not fresh , over cooked and when you ate it if felt like rubber. My wife had spaghetti with tomato sauce. Same issue pasta was shredded and over cooked . Who does that ? My dauther's pasta were old , pre-cooked a few days ago. They were rubbery. I am from the industry so I can tell. We got a tiramisu for dessert for free. Unfortunately that was also very bad. Super dry , they did not soak the cake in coffee, I am sure they forgot. I believe that is why we got it for free . Not sure if the restaurant is under new ownership because we ate there before but this was not that bad . Not sure if we will go back. My advice ,people eat with their eyes so presentation is important, your food looked like prison food slapped on a plate. No love at all.
MillieG
Such a surprise, service was a little off, but understandable, great waiters, nice buss boys, food came hot. No complaints. For New Years, it was quite pleasant, we could talk without yelling. All in all a pleasant evening.
Tony Miguez
Great food. Great
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
JD Stillwater
This place is the hidden gem of Highland Park. Food is exquisite. Service is excellent: friendly, attentive but not intrusive, efficient. Percent except for one minor quibble: the tomato slice on my salad was not quite ripe. Highly recommend this place! Taken there by my daughter and son-in-law because they love it.
Bella Via lost their top Chef before the pandemic - it has been downhill since then. Never returning.
Food: 1
Service: 1
Robin Stillwater
Yall. Yall. This place is amazing. We tried them for the first time today, take out, and of this is the take out I REALLY need to try them in person!!! So. Good. We got the grilled calamari, seafood risotto, short rib ravioli, and chocolate mousse. We ate the calamari so fast I didn't take a picture. And the ravioli was half gone by the time I took a picture!! My husband has been expounding on how good the risotto is for at least 4 minutes now. So do take into consideration that your spouse might not be able to stop talking about how good it is. And it was so much food we have leftovers!!!And the service was absolutely impeccable. So kind and friendly when I came in to order takeout and wait on a Tuesday! We will absolutely be back.Dietary restrictions: Lots of really good gf options! The chocolate mousse is gluten free!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Ravioli, Chocolate Mousse
Phedippides
Many Italian Restaurants in this area. Bella Via has probably the best Italian food in Highland Park and its surrounding areas. Simple place, but food cannot be better. Fish, pasta, all wonderful. Surprisingly it is often not as packed as other places. It is independently owned, by a chef, not on a prominent street in Highland Park. The people in the front are polite and nice, but they are not seemingly involved as owners or even managers. So there is no particular human beings who will recognize you, thank you except in a polite way without particular recognition.
Deanravine
We are regulars and have never had such unpleasant service. Our waiter brought a wrong dish and became belligerent when we told him. He did offer to change it but said it would take a long time. I did talk to the hostess at the end and hope she dealt with it
What a great meal at Bella Via last night! We had dinner with friends in order to catch up and all aspects of the meal were nearly perfect (except for the heat not working when we first arrived). The food was excellent! Two orders of Pollo Marsala, one order of Veal Marsala and one order of Pistachio-crusted Salmon. We all loved our meals! Service by Gustavo was excellent. We were never pushed. So glad we picked Bella Via for our catch-up dinner!
Dominick Pietrantonio
I just hosted a rehearsal dinner for my son and future wife here. I and my guests were extremely satisfied with the service and food. We had fried calamari and bruschetta for appetizers, Dinner was chopped salad, rigatoni with vodka sauce and chicken vesuvio. Desert was tiramisu and coffee. Carmela was the best in taking care of all our needs. Her staff was impeccable. I strongly recommend Bella Via to all.Dietary restrictions: I had one guest that needed gluten free menu and Carmela was quick in finding other options for her.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chicken Vesuvio, Tiramisu
Sydney rosenthal
Quite expensive but delicious sea bass and beautiful presentation.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Nina Gorges
First time trying BV. Started with the fried calamari, and it was delicious. For dinner, we ordered chicken Ala vodka and it was tasty. I would have preferred a bit more sauce ? the chicken Parmesan with a side of bolognese pasta was also very good. Chicken fettuccine was perfect! The servers were all very nice and did a great job!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
robins
The food is delicious. There were four of us and all of us enjoyed the meal. My gnocchi melted in my mouth. The service was impeccable. All the food was very fresh. Great value, neighborhood gem.
Bella Via is a fabulous gem in Highland Park. I am very disappointed that they are being forced to leave due to an enormous increase in rent. I hope Highland Park helps them find a new location. It's one of our favorite spots.
Food and service was very good as usual. Enjoyed the teramasu to celebrate my wife's birthday. Very sorry to hear they closing February 18. Hope they can find a new location. If not they will be missed
Sorry to say but I I think that was my worst Italian meal I ever had. I had Spaghetti vongole , the spaghetti were over cooked and shredded to small pieces. The vongole were not fresh , over cooked and when you ate it if felt like rubber. My wife had spaghetti with tomato sauce. Same issue pasta was shredded and over cooked . Who does that ? My dauther's pasta were old , pre-cooked a few days ago. They were rubbery. I am from the industry so I can tell. We got a tiramisu for dessert for free. Unfortunately that was also very bad. Super dry , they did not soak the cake in coffee, I am sure they forgot. I believe that is why we got it for free . Not sure if the restaurant is under new ownership because we ate there before but this was not that bad . Not sure if we will go back. My advice ,people eat with their eyes so presentation is important, your food looked like prison food slapped on a plate. No love at all.
Such a surprise, service was a little off, but understandable, great waiters, nice buss boys, food came hot. No complaints. For New Years, it was quite pleasant, we could talk without yelling. All in all a pleasant evening.
Great food. Great
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place is the hidden gem of Highland Park. Food is exquisite. Service is excellent: friendly, attentive but not intrusive, efficient. Percent except for one minor quibble: the tomato slice on my salad was not quite ripe. Highly recommend this place! Taken there by my daughter and son-in-law because they love it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Ravioli, Chocolate Mousse, Gelato
Bella Via lost their top Chef before the pandemic - it has been downhill since then. Never returning.
Food: 1
Service: 1
Yall. Yall. This place is amazing. We tried them for the first time today, take out, and of this is the take out I REALLY need to try them in person!!! So. Good. We got the grilled calamari, seafood risotto, short rib ravioli, and chocolate mousse. We ate the calamari so fast I didn't take a picture. And the ravioli was half gone by the time I took a picture!! My husband has been expounding on how good the risotto is for at least 4 minutes now. So do take into consideration that your spouse might not be able to stop talking about how good it is. And it was so much food we have leftovers!!!And the service was absolutely impeccable. So kind and friendly when I came in to order takeout and wait on a Tuesday! We will absolutely be back.Dietary restrictions: Lots of really good gf options! The chocolate mousse is gluten free!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Ravioli, Chocolate Mousse
Many Italian Restaurants in this area. Bella Via has probably the best Italian food in Highland Park and its surrounding areas. Simple place, but food cannot be better. Fish, pasta, all wonderful. Surprisingly it is often not as packed as other places. It is independently owned, by a chef, not on a prominent street in Highland Park. The people in the front are polite and nice, but they are not seemingly involved as owners or even managers. So there is no particular human beings who will recognize you, thank you except in a polite way without particular recognition.
We are regulars and have never had such unpleasant service. Our waiter brought a wrong dish and became belligerent when we told him. He did offer to change it but said it would take a long time. I did talk to the hostess at the end and hope she dealt with it
Restaurantji Recommends
What a great meal at Bella Via last night! We had dinner with friends in order to catch up and all aspects of the meal were nearly perfect (except for the heat not working when we first arrived). The food was excellent! Two orders of Pollo Marsala, one order of Veal Marsala and one order of Pistachio-crusted Salmon. We all loved our meals! Service by Gustavo was excellent. We were never pushed. So glad we picked Bella Via for our catch-up dinner!
I just hosted a rehearsal dinner for my son and future wife here. I and my guests were extremely satisfied with the service and food. We had fried calamari and bruschetta for appetizers, Dinner was chopped salad, rigatoni with vodka sauce and chicken vesuvio. Desert was tiramisu and coffee. Carmela was the best in taking care of all our needs. Her staff was impeccable. I strongly recommend Bella Via to all.Dietary restrictions: I had one guest that needed gluten free menu and Carmela was quick in finding other options for her.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chicken Vesuvio, Tiramisu
Quite expensive but delicious sea bass and beautiful presentation.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
First time trying BV. Started with the fried calamari, and it was delicious. For dinner, we ordered chicken Ala vodka and it was tasty. I would have preferred a bit more sauce ? the chicken Parmesan with a side of bolognese pasta was also very good. Chicken fettuccine was perfect! The servers were all very nice and did a great job!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
The food is delicious. There were four of us and all of us enjoyed the meal. My gnocchi melted in my mouth. The service was impeccable. All the food was very fresh. Great value, neighborhood gem.