Feb. 06--Overheard at the table adjoining mine at Volare: "Oooh, we can order the Restaurant Week menu!"
"No, that's too much food."
In general, Chicago Restaurant Week menus feature sensible portions. But Benny Siddu, who owns the city and suburban Volare locations (along with a couple of other properties), has a well-deserved reputation for abundant portions. Guests never leave hungry and only rarely without doggie bags.
I was in Volare's suburban branch. The Streeterville original (201 E. Grand Ave., 312-410-9900) is pleasant enough visually, but the west suburban location (1919 S. Meyers Road, Oakbrook Terrace, 630-495-0200), which must be twice the size of the city spot, is twice as pretty. Faux-finished and wainscoted walls soar 20 feet to reach the ceiling, and gilt-framed mirrors and cute art (a bit kitschy, but why not) abound. The main dining room overlooks the display kitchen; secondary rooms, including a semiprivate area with a copper-colored conical ceiling, are drenched with light on sunny days.
The first course options include a warm kale salad (loaded with toasted chickpeas, pancetta, Brussels sprouts and quite a bit more) and a fine, Neapolitan-style pizza with sausage and arugula. My friend and I polished these off (actually, some pizza remained) and declared ourselves full. But lunch (four courses, $22) was just getting started.
Next we had lobster-stuffed ravioli in tomato-butter sauce (fine, no big deal) and an even better dish of pappardelle tossed with ground veal and sauteed asparagus, a terrific three-ingredient plate. The following course offered braciola (pounded beefsteak rolled around sausage, egg and cheese) and an excellent warm prosciutto sandwich with chopped tomatoes (not the best choice for February), mozzarella and grana padano cheese on a crusty Italian bun; with a handful of truffle oil-drizzled fries, this is a sandwich I could order all the time.
Desserts are mercifully small. There is a bit of the restaurant's signature tiramisu, topped with cocoa nibs and impaled by a pirouette cookie, and a fine goat cheese panna cotta topped with a thin layer of apricot puree.
Service was very good. Most of the guests were on a working lunch and hurried out the door; once our waiter perceived that our table was in a more leisurely frame of mind, he gave us all the space we needed.
Chicago Restaurant Week features more than 300 restaurants offering three-course lunches ($22) and three- and four-course dinners ($33, $44). Chicago Restaurant Week runs through Thursday; for participating restaurants, menus and online reservations, go to choosechicago.com
pvettel@tribpub.com
Twitter @PhilVettel
