Terragusto

Expensive, but very delicious.
Great option of fish and meat options for the vegetarians or fish only eaters in your life.
There was a variety of flavors in every dish.
Small place, somewhat close to others but nicely cozy.
Love the BYOB!

Good riddance.
You always had the potential for great meals at Terragusto, but the wait staff was ALWAYS rude, your kitchen was horrible about dealing with allergies and refused to ever remove any ingredient from a dish, plus your bizarre family style rules made it so that we could never eat there with more than 3 people.
You’re going to go down in flames in Bucktown where people have tons of food choices and don’t have to deal with inconsistent quality and jerks like you

WHAT IS HAPPENING OVER THERE???
Something is clearly up with this restaurant group, and as a loyal customer a little transparency would be nice.
I’ve been to both the Armitage and the Addison location of Terragusto and loved them both. However, now the Armitage one is closed «because the owner didn’t have time for it» (according to the only article I could find about the group), and the Addison one has stopped answering their phone.
We had reservations for 10 people last Saturday night (July 1). LUCKILY for us we needed to change the reservation to 8, so we called that afternoon, only to find a voice mail message telling us they were closed due to air conditioning problems! So now, wine for 8 people geared towards a 5 course Italian meal all ready to go, we had no where to go. We tried calling the Armitage location, unaware that it doesn’t exist anymore. But their voice mail message didn’t even convey that they had closed for good, but rather it said they had mechanical problems and wouldn’t be open that night.
I have been calling for a week straight to complain to the Addison location, and every time I get the same bogus message about air conditioning. Absolutely infuriating.

As you can see from my previous review, I used to love this place. I can say now that I would never go back. The food is still the same– quite good. But the bad way we were treated did not make up for it.
Our server was actually really nice and we had no problems with her. Our reservation was for 5:30 and we had a great time with the 4 course meal. Our desert had not arrived yet and we asked our server to open our second bottle of wine. She walked away and instead a hostess came back and said they needed our table and if we wanted more wine we would have to do that at the counter.
She tried to explain that they had a 2 hour time limit for tables, which is just ridiculous. I pointed out that it was only 7:00 anyway and we hadn’t even been served our desert that is included with the meal. She oh so graciously said we could keep the table until 7:30 but then we would have to leave, whether we were finished or not.
Our waitress came back and gave a kind of apology. I told her I didn’t blame her as I am sure she gets a lot of pressure to turn over the tables. I explained that I live on an extremely tight budget and for me to spend that kind of money for a night out is a huge deal and I don’t appreciate being rushed out of my special evening. It was such a shame because it ended the night on such a sour note.
The food is simply not worth feeling like cattle and being absolutely rushed through your meal. Our sever brought our check over along with our dessert. Sad to say that I will not be returning to an old favorite of mine.

I’m sad to give Terragusto a poor review because it used to be one of our favorite «go to» Italian BYOs. However, I have 4 words for anyone who wants to go there: BEWARE OF THE RULES! Over the years Terragusto has gotten stricter and stricter with their service– to the point where everything feels extremely aggressive, almost like they are trying to make your dining experience overly complicated and unpleasant.
Rule #1: You can only order off a pre-​fixed menu. This was not the case about a year ago. And they don’t tell you this when you make a reservation. No items (except for dessert) can be ordered a la carte. Someone at our table wanted to order a salad in addition to their appetizer. Not allowed.
Rule #2: Everyone at the table must order off of the SAME pre-​fixed menu. Meaning that one person cannot choose a 3 course meal and another person choose a 4 course meal. We asked why this was the case. No explanation. The 3 course menu includes pasta as an entrée. The 4 course menu includes meat or fish as an entrée. Someone in our group wanted pasta as an entrée and another person wanted meat, but we all only wanted 3 courses. Not possible.
Rule #3: Bread for the table is an «option» on the pre-​fixed menu. So what if you want bread in addition to an appetizer? Not possible. Shouldn’t bread just be a standard gesture at a restaurant? It says on the website that bread is offered a la carte, but we were not given this option. And we specifically asked for it.
Rule #4: They do not accept more than 2 credit cards at the table. This is also not mentioned when you call to make a reservation. We witnessed 2 large parties of about 12 – 16 people awkwardly scramble to figure out which 2 people were going to pay for the entire table because no one had brought cash.
Don’t get me wrong, the food at this restaurant is very good (although over the years portion size seems to have decreased as prices increased). It is the unbelievably strict atmosphere in recent years that absolutely ruins the experience. Over the past 4 years we have probably been there 7 or 8 times and we plan to never return.

My husband and I are always on the lookout for great BYOBs. Unfortunately due to the awful service, we will NEVER be returning to Terragusto.
We had a very early reservation on a Wednesday night, and in a completely empty restaurant, we were sat inches from the only other dining couple. No big deal, «I guess they have a lot of reservations,» I thought. Our server (a dark haired, tall woman) greeted us immediately and gave us the spiel about the handmade pastas and fresh baked bread. We were surprised (but excited) to learn the menu is all in prix fixe form. For meat eaters, you can opt for four courses which include 2 appetizers, 2 small pastas, 1 meat to split, and a dessert to split. Or you can do the Chef’s choice where the chef sends out his choice of food to your table for the same price of $ 42 a person. We were a bit indecisive because we had to agree on a method (one person can’t do one option and vice versa). I think our indecisiveness must have upset our impatient server because she got very rude.
Finally we decided to choose our own four courses. We had heard a different server at the table next to us ask if they wanted a bread plate. We were fairly ravenous and we’re hoping to nosh on some bread too. Our server immediately took our orders and disappeared before we could even ask. We didn’t see her again until she brought the appetizers, at which point my husband said «We’d like a bread plate, please.» She then condescendingly responded (as if we were cheap), «You would like to PURCHASE a bread plate?» «Ummm. Yeah. I would like to purchase a bread plate.» Seems a bit strange to go on about how your restaurant is known for baking fresh bread, and then treat customers like morons for asking for it.
I wish I could say it got better, but unfortunately it got worse. After our appetizer and bread course we stacked our dirty dishes in attempt to make some room on the small table. I kid you not, the server came over and said «Oh. You may need these later,» and she unstacked our dirty dishes (covered in meat and bread crumbs) and put them back in front of us. Not something I would expect when we’re dropping a hundred bucks on food.
Our pasta dishes were yummy, however, we were not even half done with them when the server dropped the meat course off at our table. It sat there for ten minutes getting cold before we were able to get to it. By the time I even got to the meat dish I was so upset about the service that I had lost my appetite. I felt as though she was just trying to rush us out of the door. At the end of the night our check amounted to around a $ 95 (after the bread basket purchase, of course). If the service was better, I may say the food was worth it. However, it’s never worth paying someone to treat you like scum when you’ve only got one date night a week.

We went to Terragusto for a birthday dinner. I think they made us do family style, but I greatly enjoyed it. We got to try 8 – 10 different dishes and almost all were fantastic.
Standouts included:
Garlic Sformata (holy crap, this was amazing)
Gnocchi
Pasta with bolognese
Wagyu steak (melted in my mouth like buttah)
Pistachio ricotta mouse (one of the top things I’ve eaten in 2010)
One of my very picky friends mentioned that every dish that came out was better than the last, and only half joked that Terragusto was the best restaurant in the world.
Great value too at about $ 60 per person all-​in.

I went to dinner here with a large group last week and it was probably one of the best meals I have had in my life!
With a large group they do family style. Each dish was better than the last and they even accommodated our vegetarians. Some of the highlights were the antipasti plate that we started with, the trout, the trout ravioli, the wide egg noodles and the steak. I think we end up with about 10 dishes to split amongst the group.
The best part… the place is BYOB.
The worst part… if you are going with a large group, you need to plan months in advance as reservations will must.
I will definitely be back and am excited to order off the menu and see what other delights Terragusto has to offer.

I just went to Terra Gusto last Friday night and I was blown away by the authentic Italian gourmet dining experience! We called ahead and the hostess told us it was a good idea to come really hungry — that the servings are deceptively small. I’m so glad we took her advice because she was spot on. Each serving IS small but you get so much food that I felt absolutely STUFFED by the time my companion and I left two hours later.
A few things to know about Terra Gusto:
This is not a chain restaurant; nor is it a diner. In Italy, it is an insult to the chef to ask for menu substitutions. Don’t do it here. The staff isn’t rude about it but, as a fellow diner, I’ll tell it like it is: if you want an American Italian restaurant, this isn’t the place for you.
If you want a true, authentic, gourmet Italian culinary experience, I have one word about Terra Gusto for you: Foodgasm.
Come hungry and be prepared to take your time. You’ll need it. Don’t just snarf down your food. Experience it and savour it. My companion and I let the chef select our menu and we said the same thing after each selection was sampled: «no, THIS one’s my favourite!» I never could decide which dish I liked best but my companion swore the Japanese beef was the best he’d ever had.
PS — extra bonus points to Terra Gusto for using all local, sustainable products!

I have only 3 things to say about Terragusto:
1) handmade cuttlefish ink pasta with shrimp
2) bread gnocchi with rabbit
3) braised duck with local, organic asparagus
Um, yeah. Do I need to say anything else? I think not.
Oh wait! Panna Cotta with sour cherries?
mmmhmmm. Go. Go now.

I was extremely disappointed in this place. BYOBs that are not of Asian influence are difficult to come by in this city, so when I discovered this place I just had to try it.
The menu is seasonal, which I can appreciate. The bread and pasta are made daily on site (hence the 2 stars), and all the produce and proteins are derived from local sources. However, just because things are fresh does not mean they are inherently tasty.
The menu is prix fixe, and your party gets to choose between a two course meal and dessert to share, or a three course meal in which you choose the first two and your table splits the third (a meat) and two desserts. I can appreciate this (sort of), but more often than not people do not agree on what to order. This happened to be the case when I dined here. While it is not the restaurant’s fault that the three of us do not share the same taste, there was nothing they would do to accommodate this dissemblance of our flava flaves. Instead, we had to «ro sham bo» to see who would go without the third course. Turns out that person was lucky to have their scissors crushed by a rock so they did not have to consume the final course.
After a disappointing round of starters for all of us (appetizers and pastas, all under/​over-​seasoned and… just bad), the final dish arrived. A whole Orata on the «bone». An «Orata» is apparently a fish with an overwhelming «fishy» flavor that dominates regardless of the quantity/​quality of spices. I love fish, but this F***ing sucked. The singled-​handed best part about this dish was the photo-​op at the end in which I took pictures of it’s head with a jury rigged «ball gag» (an olive and a piece of spaghetti) to make it look like an S & M participant. Freakish you say? Well, so was this damn fish.
Dessert was OK. We got a vanilla honey panna cotta and a trifecta of gelatos. Nothing orgasmic, which is why people eat desserts correct?
I wouldn’t waste any more money or taste buds on this place. Ciao Terragusto.

Unfortunately, I’ll never be able to go back to this place. The last time we went (a party of 4), we ordered the family style dinner.
The pasta was gooey. The sauce was over-​salted. The meat was overcooked. My dad ordered the fish against my advice. He took one bite and couldn’t eat any more because it was so fishy.
I’m so disappointed. This place went downhill fast.

I must… write this up… before I food coma…
Do the 4-​course meal option. Best way to taste a bit of everything… ugh…menu changes monthly. The lasagnette neri con gamberi & cappesante (squid ink pasta with shrimp and scallops) was amazing. Amzzzzzzz…
Gah! Uhhh… protein choices change daily. We had a sea bream filet that redefined what my family thought about fishhhh… shh…
Mmm, loved the quaintness of the place, service was great. Food came out kind of slow, but it worked ok considering how much food we got. Soooo much foooood…
Fun times! A+! Now time to sleep!

Ugh. you guys. Idk. I WANT to love Terragusto. And I mean, I do think it’s one of the better places to eat some pasta in Chicago, but I feel that they are capable of so much more. I had the Pasta with meat ragu and it was a YAWN. I ate half of it and then meh’d my fork back down to the table. It was our 3^rd time here, and seeing that we live so close, it’s BYOB, and it’s generally pretty good (and the portions are spot on), I don’t think we’ll STOP going, but i’d like to try and find somewhere that pays a little more attention to what they’re doing. We sat for 20 minutes before someone came over (granted the server then did surprise us with on-​the-​house panna cotta — weee! It was like eating a wonderful little cherry covered cloud) I can say that since we called the same day and didn’t get reservations until 9:30pm, the place was much quieter than usual, which I was WAY ok with.
Before I end this so-​so post, I do want to comment on the Polenta. I ordered it because I knew the ingredients were as fresh as can be (polenta covered with egglant and tomato) after seeing what was offered at Green City Market earlier in the day, and I was right. It.was.awesome. The best thing we had. I’d say anytime you can get something with in-​season veggies at terragusto, go for it, you can’t go wrong.
All-​in-​all, we’ll go back, but it just doesn’t seem like this place is trying as hard as it needs to, which is disappointing.

If you don’t absolutely love this restaurant then you should have someone get a small mirror and hold it under your nose. If there is no steam on the mirror, then you are dead.
On three separate occasions Terragusto has done nothing buy wow me and everyone in the party. Two times we went with a group of about 4 and the other time with a group of 20. Regardless of the size of the group we were treated great and fed well. Yes, we had a table of 20. Granted, I called about 3 months ahead of time and begged. Theo was happy to have us and agreed to serve a meal that consisted of 3 apps. 3 pasta dishes and 2 meat courses plus dessert for a fixed price. Food was served family style and by the end of the dinner we were stuffed. On top of that we brought 2 cases of wine and 3 bottles of port — all of which was served based on the course that matched the wine.
Yes, the space is small. But so what? For food this good, I’ll make the sacrifice. The polenta alone is rich and buttery enough to drag me back and if I have to sit on a bar stool by myself, I’d do it to devour some more of it.
The pasta is amazing and served the right way. No, you will not get spagetti and meatballs. If you want that, go find some fake American-​Italian place. This isn’t that kind of place. What you will get, though, is fresh seasonal ingredients prepared to perfection.
Meat and fish will not disappoint, either. The trout we had was awesome and the roast chicken that we had had skin so crispy and meat so moist that people still rave about it. Great stuff.
Make a reservation, bring a bottle of wine (or three) and sit back and relax and enjoy.

BYOB
36/​person for 4 course meal (the whole table has to order it though)
Yummy polenta antipasta with tomatoes and cheese
Fresh pasta, soft and silky with fresh mushrooms and peppers
Great fish and dessert was highly satisfying.
FRESH INGREDIENTS
We were so full from the meal, but didn’t have that weigh down feeling that we can easily get after eating heavy Italian food.
Definitly a MUST try!!!

My mom was in town this weekend and we both love a good BYOB, so we thought Terragusto would be a perfect restaurant to try. What a great night! We decided to go all out and get the four course fixed price dinner since everything on the menu looked so good. Here’s a rundown of what we got:
First Course:
Warm savory «sformato»: This was probably the best dish of the night. It was kind of like a fennel panna cotta surrounded in a fontina cheese sauce and topped with roasted fennel. It was light but rich at the same time — a perfect first course!
Proccuito salad: This was simple but tasty. Thin slices of prosciutto di parma were topped with arugula and parmigiano and drizzled with olive oil.
Pasta Course:
Maltagliate in sugo d’anitra: This homemade parpadelle-​like pasta was tossed with braised duck and topped with parmesan. You can’t go wrong with that combination; it was delicious.
Gnocchi di semola con gamberi e cavoletti: The gnocchi was tossed with shrimp and brussel sprout leaves. It was surprisingly not saucy, but the gnocchi was immensely flavorful. This was definitely another winner of the night!
Main Course:
Braised lamb shank: I always forget how much I love a good lamb shank. There was nothing particularly different about this one, but the meat was falling off the bone and had amazing flavor.
Dessert:
Fruit tart: My only gripe about this was that the tart shell was impossible to cut without it crumbling everywhere. The fresh berries inside of it made for a light and refreshing dessert though.
I will definitely come back to Terragusto. My only major complaint really was that the restaurant was very loud. However, I can’t complain too much because everyone just seemed to be having a great time!

Oh yes, folks, this is my 500^th review. Just wanted to put that out there.
Ahhh, Terragusto. It’s taken me awhile to really wrap my head around the experience that we had here. The entire dinner was excellent from start to finish. I made reservations about two weeks in advance for my boyfriend’s Wednesday night birthday. I highly recommend reservations as their spaces fill fast, so make them in advance. When I made the reservation, the manager made sure to remind me that the restaurant is BOYB — I like that kind of reminder!
Upon arrival, my boyfriend and I were very surprised about the décor of the restaurant. The ceilings are very high and everything is sleek and modern. I was expecting something a bit more cozy and romantic but I think the look worked out for the restaurant. The tables are close together, especially back toward the kitchen. I will say we were both a bit disappointed with the fact that the restaurant was loud. Louder than we wanted it to be, especially since we were on a nice date. There was just a lot of general din created by the patrons. However, it didn’t ruin our mood and it got quieter the later it got.
The service was impeccable! Our server knew the menu, made great recommendations and was present at exactly the right moments. He was super nice and really, really friendly. I enjoy a server that knows the menu and exactly what to recommend.
Ahh… and the food! Amazing! Brilliant! Delicious! We both decided to get the tasting menu for $ 37.50/person and it was definitely worth it. I began my meal with the Baked Polenta and I highly recommend. The sauce was savory with just the right amount of cheese. The spinach added just the right flavor touch. I proceeded to the Gnocchi made from semolina instead of potatoes and it was light and delicious. The sauce was light (not heavy cheese) with just the right amount of Gorgonzola and the shrimp added a nice touch. My boyfriend started with the Mixed Salad and said it was very fresh and delicious. He proceeded to the Ravioli and said it was amazing. I tried a bit and the cheese was excellent. There was seriously tons of cheese stuffed in to each ravioli and it was pure cheese heaven.
We split the beef steak and it was yummy. Note that ordering any meat other than chicken will add an extra, one-​time charge to your bill (in our case it was $ 12 extra) but it was worth it. Most of the steak was cooked to medium-​rare perfection but some pieces were erring on the side of well done and it wasn’t as good as the rest. In any case, it was still delicious and worth ordering.
We ended the meal with the flourless chocolate cake, which is really just like a giant brownie. Served with nice whipping cream on top it was the perfect end to the meal. My boyfriend really enjoyed it (he loves chocolate way more than me) and I bet would order it again. I was happy with the dollop of whipped cream on top but would probably order something else in the future.
All in all, an excellent foodie experience. Terragusto is BYOB and that is awesome. I love BYO and all that it entails. $ 2 «recycling» fee is attached to each bottle that you open, FYI. Everything in the restaurant is made in house and it’s fresh and organic. I love the care that the staff put in to everything they did because that care is evident in the food. I’ll be back to sample more of their tasty homemade pastas. Make sure you make reservations — it gets full fast and the wait is long.

Caution: Dining at Terragusto will result in sensory overload!
After the first bite of my baked polenta with fontina and asparagus appetizer I knew this place would put me in a food coma. The flavors and textures were seriously out of control! This dish contained all of my faves: (crispy polenta, asparagus, cheese AND truffle oil). Absolutely perfect.
My friend adores carpaccios, so naturally he got the wagyu beef carpaccio. I’m afraid of eating raw beef (I mean, come on, it’s RAW cow. Moo)…but I did try it, and to my surprise, really liked it!
For our main courses he got the baked swiss chard pasta with bolognese sauce, which was soooo yummy. I thought it was going to be really heavy on the meat, but the meat was balanced really well with the flavorful pasta and sauce… so good! In fact, I liked it much better than what I ordered for my main, which was the pappardelle with asparagus and basil. It was a very simple dish with fresh flavors, but it just didn’t have that spark that I was envisioning.
Our server was trying to rush us out, didn’t offer dessert :(Rule #1 about Caroline M: don’t deny me sugar!!! So we asked to see the dessert menu anyway. We shared the espresso mascarpone mousse. Soooo rich and delicious. My arteries hate me right now.
The only downfalls were, we had to wait about 15 – 20 min beyond our reservation time… which was fine, they opened our wine we brought and gave us some bread and awesome olive oil to nibble on while we waited. And also the noise level got rather loud.
Make a reservation now – (seriously, you do not want to miss out on the baked polenta experience)!

I let the pure food ectasy of this foodie experience ruminate for several days before I felt it appropriate to pen the review…
Sigh. My tummy was full of Terragusto, and the world was better for it.
Right off the bat, our service was beyond DELIGHTFUL. It was one of those moments, when the beautiful waitress beams at your table and the thought «this will be a very worthwhile experience» strolls through my brain… she was STELLAR. I am not sure of other people’s experiences (I’ve read about the hit/​miss of the staff), but this girl was a home run. Well done.
BYOB: Um. Yeah. I am obsessed with bringing my own wine and saving money. So, yay for that… they do it up right, too. No making you feel all peasant-​like, they whisk it off, grab an ice bucket and cork that shizz… time to drink and be merry!
FOOD: Well, as I am still dreaming of Paulina market sausage, creamy sformata, ripe olives, tender chicken and masterfully medium pork, I have to say… wow. I mean, Italian… what’s there to it? Well apparently I’ve been missing out. We all did the $ 37, 3-​course meal (and of course we then added dessert), and it was approximately $ 60 per person with tip. Not bad AT ALL considering the food coma that this left me in for days… the flourless chocolate cake almost brought a tear to my sugar fanatic eye. mmmmmm.
It’s quaint and the word is OUT. Make reservations. Bring wine. Eat your heart out. It’s worth it.