A Tavola
Fumei Jackson · 73 Google reviewsA Tavola — straightforward italian in Ukrainian Village. The room is built for conversation, not crowds. If you drink, start at the bar. [$$, patio]
What 235 diners keep saying
What 235 diners keep saying
verbatim, from Google
“Boutique Italian restaurant, hidden away in a 2 flat. Very nice patio for al fresco dining if that is your preference. Friendly staff, curated wine list, and daily menu specials.”
“It’s my new favorite place! They have half-price wine bottles on Tuesdays, great service, and the staff are so easy to talk to. Perfect cozy spot for a date night.”
“We were early for our reservation, but they were very accommodating. We enjoyed a leisurely dinner with no rush. The service was wonderful, the food excellent. Highly recommended.”
“Came in for a date night dinner, very cozy and intimate atmosphere in the dining room. Enjoyed everything we ate, it was all very light and fresh- brown butter sage gnocchi almost melted in our mouths. Really loved the muscles & clams and the grouper. Server was friendly and had good recommendations for wine. Can’t wait to come back and sit on the patio!”
“A Tavola in the West Loop was an exceptional dining experience. The ambiance was warm and inviting. The menu offered a delightful selection of Italian dishes, each crafted with fresh and high-quality ingredients. I particularly enjoyed the handmade pasta, which was cooked to perfection and paired with a rich, flavorful sauce. The service was attentive and friendly, enhancing the overall experience.”
“Incredible Italian food, in a great setting with fantastic service.”
“If you enjoy the feeling of accidentally breaking into someone’s house for dinner, A Tavola is the neighborhood gem for you. It is remarkably easy to miss from the street, and yes, that is the correct door. When you open it and immediately find yourself standing at someone’s table, don't panic—just keep walking toward the counter to find the hostess. It’s intimate, dark, and thankfully avoids the deafening roar of most modern dining rooms. We kicked things off with the limoncello martini, which comes with a sugar rim that adds a bit of "fun" to the start of the night. The focaccia was genuinely yummy and packed with flavor, which was lucky because I needed it to survive the olives—they were aggressive enough with the heat that the bread became a necessary safety measure. The service is patient and friendly, which is helpful when you need someone to guide you through the logistics of the menu. On the pasta front, they’ll let you upscale the gnocchi to an entree size, but I found it a bit too heavy on the cheese to actually let the brown butter shine. The short tubes, however, were a much bigger hit and arrived in a very respectable portion. If you have any room left, the panna cotta is creamy, smooth, and highly recommended. It’s the kind of place that feels like a well-kept secret, provided you can find the door on the first try.”
“We recently celebrated a birthday at A Tavola, and it was an unforgettable experience from start to finish. This cozy Italian gem, tucked away in a charming converted house, offers a warm and intimate atmosphere that makes you feel like you’re dining in a friend’s home rather than a restaurant. From the moment we walked in, the service was exceptional. The staff was incredibly welcoming and went above and beyond to make the evening special. They acknowledged my guest’s birthday with a personalized touch that felt genuinely thoughtful rather than just routine hospitality. Now, onto the food—absolutely phenomenal. Every dish was beautifully prepared and packed with rich, authentic flavors. Overall, A Tavola is a must-visit for anyone looking for an intimate dining experience with incredible Italian food and outstanding hospitality. Whether it’s for a special occasion or just a great meal, this restaurant delivers on all fronts.”
“My wife and I are baffled by the business practices here. We had dinner here on Thursday as walk ins and we were seated right away. The food was just fine, nothing to write home about and either too heavily salted or undersalted and bland. But when we received the check, there was both a 3% service charge (without the usual disclaimer of being able to ask to have it removed) as well as an added gratuity of 20% (we were a party of two). I understand added gratuities for larger parties, but for a party of two at 20% feels insane, and i don’t recall seeing a disclaimer about it on the menu either. Furthermore i asked if the 3% service charge could be removed and they stated that it can only be removed for cash payments. It feels almost criminal to have that much mandatory on top of the subtotal, and i can’t stop them from doing that of course, but i can recommend against giving them a try. The food and the service were definitely not worth the price and i would not support these opaque shady business practices. Also as an aside, there were literally only 3 parties dining in at the time, two couples and a 4 top, and after i signed my copy of the receipt, left it in the receipt book, and walked out the door, the waitress came running after me asking me to sign my receipt. They had somehow misplaced they signed copy in the 20 seconds it took for me to walk out the door. Just a completely bizarre experience for such a slow night of service.”
“My girlfriend and I had our anniversary here last night and it was such a romantic evening, thanks in huge part to the A Tavola staff! I had a custom menu printed out that I dropped off the day before and asked them to bring it out with our regular menus. Not only did they execute that seamlessly, we felt like we were being treated like guests of honor throughout dinner. The patio in the summertime is one of the most romantic places in Chicago. It was quiet, peaceful, and beautiful. A Tavola made our night feel so special and the food and wine were just all so excellent. I can't wait to come back here!”
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