Detail for Cafe Clemenza : Restaurant, Italian

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Wide variety of homemade pasta dishes, gnocchi, veal piccata, and linguine in clam sauce. Valet and free parking. - sys, 12/26/1999

I am an IT manager. Last wk there were heavy thunderstorms in the area when I was driving kids (5&3 yrs) home from school. It was raining pretty bad and I stopped in the parking lot for 10 mins before deciding to take the kids into Cafe Clemenza as it was bright & could see a few people inside and thought it would be safer in case something happened from the lightnings. It was a tuesday at 6pm. So, wouldnt expect too many customers in that crazy rain. After I explained why I was there, the owner gave this ugly look and asked us to wait between 2 glass double doors so we wont block the front desk!? All they had was a grp of 8 on 1 table. Did not even offer to sit us down at the back table if he was concerned about the kids disturbing. Talk about courtesy!!I just stood there deciding what to do, while kids starting playing with the umbrella. There he was again to say that its bad to have an open umbrella in a business. I come from a pretty orthodox country and I never heard about that. But certainly have been taught to take care of any guests especially those who seeked help. Made me so furious that I left in the rain with the kids. I pass this restaurant daily on my way to work & always wanted to go for a quiet dinner. But will never ever visit after this incident. Wish nobody else does either. - Disappointed Visitor, 10/04/2010

Recently dined at Cafe Clemenza and enjoyed the food tremendously. The portions are fantastic and I enjoyed the entertainment. I particularly like the idea that it is family owned. I asked the young lady at the door who the owners were, she told me that she and her father owned the restaurant. This reminded me of days when you knew the owners of a restaurant. I look forward to many dinners at this restaurant and I hope things don't change. - JenJ, 07/20/2010

Well to all my old and hopefully new customers.Myself along with Pete Taroro have purchased Cafe Clemenza's in Oct of 2009.ASfter a complete rehab inside,menu and price wise we have reopened with great anticipation.The food atmosphere and service are as good or better then the original.After many copies and two years of some difficult partnerships.The original Cafe attitude and food has returned.For those who have had a bad experience I would offer you the chance to give us another try if for any reason your visit is not to your expectations I myself will pick up your check.Thank you and hope to see all my old friends and hopefully new friends at the Cafe - Rich, 04/06/2010

There will be a grand re-opening later in September. It has changed owners, new and improved face lift & best of all Richie's Back. For those of you who did not like the food. Give it a shot at the end of September. - Patron, 09/09/2009

Richies' Cafe Clemenza has recently changed owners and remodeled the entire restaurant. It looks beautiful!! The best part is, Richie is now back as the head Chef. The food & service is to die for. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone. The new director of catering & events is also a doll to work with!! - Jenn McIntyre, 10/25/2009

I FOUND THE FOOD AND THE SERVICE WONDERFUL. I HAD A PROBLEM WHEN I CHECKED THE BILL. I HAD ORDERED SCOTCH ON THE ROCKS AND WHEN THE BILL CAME THERE WAS A CHARGE OF $1.25 FOR ROCKS. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME, IN MY LIFE, THAT I WAS EVER CHARGED FOR ICE CUBES. - GORDON STANLEY, 04/08/2009

We tried out the new Cafe Clemenza on Nov. 30. It was recommended to us so we were excited to try a new italian restaurant. We enjoyed the atmosphere and the service was decent. The waitress did bring the wrong entree for me so I had to wait for my order while my husband went ahead and ate (so it wouldn't get cold). She was apologetic and the food was decent when it arrived - although we've had better. The bread and salads were good. The worst part of dinner was dessert. The waitress informed us there was no formal dessert menu as the desserts are made fresh daily. We ordered the Tiramisu. It looks good but just as I started to take a bite, my husband stopped me. He found MOLD growing on the top of our piece. There was no mistaking it...it was all over the top (hidden by the chocolate sauce). We told the waitress and after about 10 minutes of waiting, the chef came out to apologize stating that they go through so much tiramisu each night and this was the last piece. Not sure what the true story was since I'm sure it wasn't made fresh that day...and if they were going through it so fast, when did the mold have time to grow. He did give us our meal for free...but we won't be going back. I wouldn't recommend it. I keep wondering how many people ate the other Tiramisu pieces that had mold on them.... - DnJ, 12/06/2007

My wife and I just tried the new Cafe Clemenza, hoping for an improvement from the old. We were not satisfied. My wife ordered the stuffed eggplant and we both agreed (although we are both 100% Italian, we are not high-maintenence) that it was nearly inedible. The flavor was lacking and the ingredients did not taste fresh. I had penne marinara which was nothing special; I'd equate it to that of Macaroni Grill. We have been trying out local Italian restaurants for years, and our favorite in the area is, hands-down, Amore Mio Restaurant, off of Palatine Road. The food there is much more authentic, creative, and all-around delicious than the food at Cafe Clemenza. I am shocked that others rated it so highly. - Gianno Botelli, 11/18/2007

1 star out of 5 This was my first trip to Richie's Cafe Clemenza, on or about Nov 12, 2007. The restaurant had opened its doors a couple of weeks prior to our visit, having moved into a restaurant previously occupied. There was a crowd. Good sign. The hostess was a bit snippy, but I presumed she was stressed out. We were seated quickly and we had a short wait for the waiter. His demeanor was down to business, not a lot of chit chat, which is something you may want in a neighborhood small restaurant. We ordered wine by the glass (cabernet and chianti). Bread arrived, which had a nice flavor, was crusty and warm. The olive oil on the table was flavored with a pepper which was okay. It looked like the parmesan was a pre-ground canned. Nothing to write home about. I ordered angel hair pasta w/ vodka sauce and garlic. My companion had a tortellini paglio fino - a house specialty. I ordered the minnestrone - which was very good, on a par to Emil Tosi's original minnestrone served at Tosi's in Stevensville, MI - which I base all my comparisons. My date had the house salad - mixed greens with a lot of dressing - an omen. My pasta could have fed a family of 4. The tortellini portion was huge also. Consider splitting the main dish. Both were swimming in sauce. My date was not impressed with his selection saying it didn't have a lot of flavor. Mine was okay, but watery. The floor plan is not laid out well for the wait staff and they have some trouble getting around the lack of aisle space. The bussers were marvelous. Meticulous in the table set up, courteous, and attentive. Possibly the best part of this restaurant. Pricing of the entrees was typical - running about $15 - 20 for a decent restaurant. However, we were charged premium price for our wine, which we did not get, nor challenged. All in all, if you're looking for a cozy little restaurant in the neighborhood with great food and personable staff, you'd be better to go somewhere else. We were hopeful we had found an alternative restaurant, and were disappointed. Doubtful we'll be back. - whiskeys girl, 11/15/2007

We had a dinner party and it was delicious between all of us we shared: Veal Saltimbocca, Veal Napolean, Chicken Napolean, Farfalle Suprema, Pollo Suprema, Fettucini Alfredo. I am not a fan of eggplant but this stuff was all so delicious, the only reason I stopped eating was because I knew dessert was on the way. I strongly reccommend this restaurant. - Gloria Celaya-Silva, 07/11/2007

You can not get better Italian food anywhere nearby. The veal is so tender it literally melts in your mouth. Sizes of entrees are huge...you will be taking home containers. Service staff knows their stuff, some have followed Richie around for years and know the menu backwards and forwards. Manga. - Patrick, 05/09/2007

Richie Mancini has the talent and expertise to re-establish a wonderful dinning experience for his loyal as well as new customers. He is an excellent chef who presents a wonderful Italian Menu with great wines. With good judgement and good management he will re-create wonderful experiences for all his guests. Perhaps even Tony Ocean will come back to serenade his fans? - Robert D, 02/26/2007

The original Richie's Cafe Clemenza is coming back. I have spoken to the owners and all of the menu favorites will be offered. Their have been some imitaters but no one came close. Hoffman Estates is finally going to have great italian food again. It's location will still be on algonquin road and huntington. - past customer, 01/16/2007

we think it is the best restaurant in chicago - teeks4, 11/28/1998

Tell us about your experience at Cafe Clemenza
1 planet: Below par, skip it.
2 planets: Has redeeming facets.
3 planets: Decent, worth checking out.
4 planets: Excellent, we'll be back.
5 planets: Stellar .. out of this world!
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