Let me tell you about a place that sparkles, day and night. No matter what meal you go to Davanti Enoteca for, the restaurant just has this atmosphere that catches you - this place is a neighborhood gem. Located at 1359 W. Taylor in University Village in Chicago (that's South of West Loop and West of South Loop!), nothing draws you in from the outside, but once your in, the exposed brick, chandeliers and wine racks put out a good vibe.
Hubby and I went here in July of 2011 for Brunch. Ignore the sleepy eyes, their coffee and food woke me right up!
We ordered the special of the day which was a fresh asparagus and swiss fritatta that came with a big pile of lemony arugula on top. Delish!
Like I wasn't making your mouth water enough, we also got a sweet dish. (TIP: if you get this dish, order it first, even before ordering other dishes, it takes a while to make). This Red Eye reviewer wrote it best:
"the calzone di frutta ($10) is a crusty sugar-kissed pocket of dough with steamy cinnamon-y apples and plump cherries inside. A generous dish of mascarpone whipped cream for topping was so simultaneously light and rich that it took all my composure not to lick the leftovers from the bowl."
Can't make brunch? You don't find a lot of places that have breakfast - dinner (and a bar) and each time of day is equally great. Well their dinner is just as amazing. My sister and her boyfriend took my mom and I here while we were visiting. They recommended 8-10 dishes for 4 people but as we had 2 larger items we went with 6. We started off with ricotta cheese presented in a mini mason jar with fresh honeycomb and toast crips to spread it on ($6).
Next up was Craig's recommended dish which we all absolutely loved. Focaccia di Recco ($15) is a baked focaccia bread with fresh soft cow cheese. The focaccia bread was thinner than a traditional one, I think because it was stuffed, but was still filling. This is a must get! The cheese has a strong taste but in a good way.
The pasta we ordered was called Cacio e Pepe ($9), its spaghetti noodles with pecorino and black pepper. This dish was nice and simple which was nice since a lot of our dishes had strong flavors.
I think if the salad we got had a lot more of the dressing (lemon and chili oil) on it, it would have been a bit better. It was beautiful but the shaved hearts of palm ($10) were a bit bland on their own.
Our grilled hanger steak ($17) was delicious but almost didn't taste Italian! It was a nice addition to the meal though. Served on a bed with oyster mushrooms and rhubarb with a salsa verde.
Ok, last but not least we got a pizza! We got the Pizza con Prosciutto e Rucola ($14) minus the Prosciutto for my veggiehead sister. We love arugula and it tasted great on the pizza. Points for cute presentation on a tomato can!
Like its not obvious enough, if you are in the Chicago area, this is a restaurant worth trying! The owner, Scott Harris, is the genius behind the Mia Francesca restaurants AND purple pig! And if you go at night and need a sweet treat after, stop by Mario's Lemonade Stand to get a frozen lemonade (comes in many flavors). ENJOY!
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