markh wrote:
Joey Doves wrote:
Seems to me Crown Point is the place to go for good food in NWI, so it can't be that bad.
Really? Where?
I'm only half-joking. Other than Lucrezia, which is good mom n' pop Italian, there isn't much else. And I would add that the original Lucrezia in Chesterton is IMO the better of the two locations. Munster (with Cafe Elise, Cafe Borgia, and Giovannis) and Valparaiso (with Bistro 157, Don Quixote, and Pikk's) offer IMO more choices in fine dining than Crown Point. I personally consider Valpo to be the destination dining town in NW Indiana.
I noticed you have tried a number of Italian restaurants. By any chance have you tried Gamba in Merrillville? Where Lucrezia's Chicago equivalant is something like Sabatino's or a simpler Merlo on Maple, Gamba's equivalent is something like Spiaggia (actually something between Spiaggia and Cafe Spiaggia). For reference, IMO the Chicago equivalent to Giovanni's is Vinci.
I've never been to Gamba, but I proposed to my wife at Spiagga.
I'm not sure there's ANY Italian restaurant in the entire Chicagoland area like Spiaggia. Not many Italian places require a suitcoat and tie.
As for the restaurants here, well, Giovanni's reminds me of the old Como Inn. Local favorite, big rep, above average food. Good place (Giovanni's), but nowhere near Vinci. Not even close. In any repsect. Used to live not too far from Vinci and was a regular. I still like Giovanni's and go often, but Vinci is not what comes to mind when I go there. Maybe Rosebud on Taylor.
I haven't been to Sabatino's for a long time. Had a buddy who lived in the six corners area and we used to go once in a while. Interesting analogy though. Maybe. Or maybe like Il Vicinato on Western.
I used to really like Cafe Borgia when they were in Lansing. Hands down my favorite in the area. Since the move, it appears the food has gone down considerably, however.
People may think I'm nuts, but I also like the tortellini alfredo at Taste of Italy in Cal City.
Seems like you know your Italian places if you pull Sabatino's and Merlo from a hat. Just be careful that somebody doesn't come on one of these threads and accuse you of being a "city lover". LOL! Maybe we should start another thread about Italian restaurants in the metropolitan area?
btw, the reason I mentioned Crown Point is because I went to Lucrezia's which was pretty good and a place called the Circle???? (I think) where I had a decent steak.