Best Italian Restaurants in China Town

Our go-to place when in Chicago! Food is always great with service to match. The Boka Group had it right at Alla Vita

Due to a glut of options, there are few places in Chicago that spark the “when are we coming back?” conversation before the main course is finished. This is one of those places. The dishes were comfortable yet complex, making you realize, there’s a talent-level in the kitchen that makes them impossible to replicate. Each bite from first course through dessert was exceptional, which is a feat considering we were last seating on a Tuesday night. What made the experience was the service. Lauren S. was welcoming and informative without being pushy. She deftly answered all of our questions that felt like she was guiding us through the menu based on her expertise not her opinion. This included steering us away from certain dishes when she understood our flavor profiles, and explaining things without ruining the surprise. Her attention to little things without feeling crowded made us realize what front of house talent does to heighten the experience. The only knock was the nitty-picky things on the space. The bathroom was a bit disheveled, there was a crud on the handle of a fork (nothing on the tongs, I checked before using it). Extremely minor unless you’re judging for Micheline stars. Simply put, where it matters everything is well thought out from concept to execution. If you can get in, it’s an absolute no-brainer.

Great place and new restaurant in downtown chicago. The 40 ft ceilings and ambience gives it a very romantic vibe. Spent way more than I wanted to but it was worth it. Took all the recommendations of the server. We will be back.

Pizza Portofino is one of my favorite spots in the city. The garlic bread and truffle pizza (request hot honey, trust me) are GAME CHANGER. I went with a few friends and we all agreed that they both redefined garlic bread and pizza (at least in Illinois) respectively. Great service and great vibes!

The wait staff was friendly and accommodating. It was not busy so they allowed us to sit in the window area. Our service and food were good and because it wasn’t real busy it was not noisy. Our only negative was their signature appetizer—the crostinis were burnt, I don’t mind well done so decided to go ahead and try them but all I could taste was the burnt taste. We told our waitress and she got new ones that still appeared burnt but did not taste as bad, but still not great. Neither of us ate much of the appetizer, it just tasted like burnt toast.