March 15--Relaxing with a glass of Italian wine sounds pretty darn good right about now. On Thursday, River North gets another spot where you can do just that: Il Porcellino, a trattoria from the Lettuce Entertain You empire.
The restaurant, a partnership between chef Doug Psaltis and sibling trio R.J., Jerrod and Molly Melman (kids of Lettuce founder Rich Melman), takes over the Hubbard Street space where Paris Club closed in January. It's a two-minute walk from RPM Italian, which Psaltis also oversees -- but expect a completely different concept, he says. While RPM is glitzy with modern Italian dishes, Il Porcellino is casual, with an emphasis on simple classics.
"Exposed, rough brick. Wooden floors," Psaltis says of the new restaurant. "You walk in to find a circular bar right there in the front, and huge French doors that open up to the street. Grab a seat, let your guard down. Traveling in Italy -- Treviso, Milan, Florence, Tuscany, the Amalfi Coast -- left such an impression on me, as far as how Italians relax and enjoy food."
His hope: You'll linger over antipasti from chef de cuisine Aaron Martinez -- perhaps the raw vegetable platter with anchovy-Parmesan dip -- and, if you drink, a selection from sommelier Richard Hanauer's all-Italian wine list, which has bottles as low as $22 and glasses as low as $10. There's also pasta, from mainstays like rigatoni alla vodka and gnocchi alla bolognese to a handful of new-school takes, including a farro orecchiette with Brussels sprouts and pistachios. Pizza comes Sicilian-style, with a thick focaccia crust.
Dig in until midnight Sundays through Thursdays, until 1 a.m. on Fridays and until 2 a.m. on Saturdays.
"My favorite thing is the il porcellino, our signature dish," Psaltis says, describing it as "this nice, thick piece of slow-roasted Berkshire pork rubbed with Tuscan spices and served over cicerchia beans, one of the oldest products in Italy. Picture a cross between a chickpea and a lentil -- the sturdiest beans available. It's a hearty, rough, Tuscan peasant dish."
Psaltis delivers the most praise, however, to chef de cuisine Martinez, who worked under Michael Tusk at San Francisco's Quince, one of the country's premier Italian restaurants; sommelier Hanauer, who has compiled lovely wine lists at both RPM Italian and RPM Steak; and Julian Cox, an LA transplant named one of the top 10 bartenders in America by Food Wine magazine. "It's those three guys who define what this restaurant is."
59 W. Hubbard St., 312-595-0800, www.ilporcellinochicago.com.
mconrad@tribpub.com
Twitter @marissa_conrad
