Tuscany Chicago – A Place to Reunite over Italian Food

Written and Photos by Jessica Lewandowski

On a Tuesday evening, myself and my foodie date took a short drive to Tuscany Chicago Italian Restaurant in Oak Brook, a small suburb not far outside of the city. We stepped inside and were immediately overcome with the hustle and bustle of the dining room and bar. We were guided to our table and noticed the gathering amount of 9-5ers eagerly getting their after-work drinks. There were also many families meeting for a special night. So much going on for a Tuesday night!

We were greeted by a marvelous server, who happily helped us with picking the best dishes at Tuscany Chicago for the evening. She served me a glass of Kim Crawford Wine and my date a Whiskey and Coke (couldn’t go wrong there). The wine menu at Tuscany was definitely intended to serve groups by the bottle, but there were certainly enough options for wine by the glass, as well.

For an appetizer, we chose the Calamari Fritti, which came with Housemade Cocktail Sauce and a super creamy Lemon Garlic Aioli. Our calamari were cooked to a perfect crisp, and there was plenty of them. I also wanted to mention the smoky Jalapenos in Olive Oil our server brought out to dip our bread in. I highly recommend you ask for this when you visit Tuscany!

The menu had a variety of very classic Italian fare. From antipasti, to pasta, to pizza, to entrees, the menu was very recognizable. It was also easy to notice how poplar Veal and Seafood seemed to be on the menu, so that’s what we went with: my date decided on the Veal Montecarlo, which was a huge Veal Chop butterflied and cooked with Prosciutto in a Savory Brown Sauce. The whole thing was topped off with melty Fontinella Cheese. I ordered the Penne e Capesante, which was a full plate of Penne with Garlic, Evoo, Hot Pepper and Tomato Sauce, all topped with soft Sea Scallops.

Ah, finally, dessert! I could not stop myself from ordering us the Chocolate Profiteroles. Mm! We were served three larger-than-life sized Cream Puffs rolled in Chocolate Mousse, surrounded by Raspberry Sauce and Blueberries. A sweet fini!

Tuscany Chicago is open Monday through Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Saturday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. There are also two other locations in Chicago and Wheeling.

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