The food and the ambience was great great scenery looking out the balcony on Rush Street

The ambiance off the new outside dining is wonderful. What a great addition. The food was really good, the portions are very large so all is easily shareable. Our server was adequate. Got several things incorrect, talked way to fast for any of our party to understand. read more

Took my girlfriend to eat there today for her Birthday. it was going great until I got my chicken parm. I was enjoying the chicken parm until I got to the middle and noticed a big black curly hair that was cooked inside of it. I told the waiter and he told me to cut around and to give it to him. For the hair the waiter gave us a cannoli.. You would think we would receive a cannoli for a birthday not for a big hair on your $50 chicken parm. Incredibly disappointed and will insure that my friends and colleagues not take their business there. read more

Veal is very good thin with flavor. I wish it was a bit crispy on bottom. It was tender and warm not hot in temperature. Group of 13. Sat upstairs neat the patio. No cable for the tv in that room. Side of pasta comes with it. $49. Group opinions of the service varied, Valet $20. read more

Nice restaurant with great service. Bartenders were very helpful with menu recommendations. I have a very specific complaint though. This restaurant had the most amazing coconut cake I've ever had in my life, and I went Saturday and it was not the same at all. Cake was not as fresh or moist and the coconut flavor was just from the toasted coconut on the icing and not throughout like before. They also did not include fresh berries on the side. I am beyond disappointed. When you have something that delicious you don't mess with it. Just up the price instead of cheapening the product. read more

Just spent BIG BUCKS at Carmine's, expecting a good dinner. That did not happen. Ordered a Chicken Piccata, which is in a white wine sauce. The menu indicated it came with "pasta". It is my favorite chicken dish, and the pasta at all excellent restaurants I have eaten at comes with angel hair pasta in a "white wine sauce with olive oil and garlic". This dish came with "red, macaroni type noodles" with a "light red, ketchup, tasteless, type sauce", which was BLAND! I asked for "angle hair" pasta in olive and garlic. I received a "bland" dish that tasted like it was just "boiled". The real "kicker" was this restaurant that "pretends" to be so great charged me $15.00 for it! This dish was not seasoned, and tased like it was just "boiled". I noted the price, when the check was presented. That price, after complaining, was removed. We had bought a $68 bottle of Soave wine. As we were getting ready to leave, the waitress asked me if I wanted anymore wine, apparently thinking we couldn't pour our own. When I said "not now", she poured ALL of what was left into my husband's glass and quickly took the bottle away quickly! We were going to take the rest of the wine with us! . I then had poured some of his into mine, just after finishing that, a "small person", who did not speak English, abruptly grabbed my glass and took it, without asking if I was finished. I got up a d took it off of the tray he put it on, since I was going to pour some of my husband's into my glass. A man in a suit came over, as if I was going to steal the wine glass to "ask what the problem was". I explained, and he came back with a "small pour" of the wine we had bought and gave me barely an ounce. This is a pretentious place with tasteless food and arrogant wait staff and managerial individuals, who barely speak English. Save your money and eat elsewhere! It will be better and lots cheaper! The end for me! I am done!!! read more

We were so excited to try the new Carmine's, long time fan of Carmine's from Seattle was visiting. The food and service were good, pricey but the atmosphere was awful !! We were there with friends and family whom we had not seen in a long time. We wanted to share a meal and catch up but the noise and the music were SO loud to the point where we could not hear or talk to each other. Awful!! It felt like we were in a discotheque. We brought up to the manager but they didn't seem to care. They just said it's what the owner wanted. For this reason we won't be going back. read more

Carmine's needs to enforce their "no hat policy" or get rid of it. I recently walked into the restaurant, very well-dressed wearing a high-end designer baseball cap. The hostess nicely informed me of Carmine's "no hat policy" and asked me to remove my hat. Slightly embarrassed, I respected Carmine's "no hat policy" and happily honored it. After being seated, with my hat in hand, I observed at least five diners wearing baseball hats throughout the dining room. On subsequent visits I have also seen diners wearing baseball caps in the dining room. The number one rule of having a "dress code" is to either strictly enforce the "dress code" or remove the "dress code" entirely. While the food is great... I do not enjoy being singled out to remove my hat - when others' are not asked to do the same. This ruins the entire dining experience for me. If Carmine's is going to force me to remove my hat and not make other patrons remove their hats... there are tons of great Italian restaurants in Chicago I can enjoy while wearing my hat. And I look forward to having my next Italian dinner at one of those restaurants. read more

We had lived right around the corner for 3 decades. Used to bring our family here often for dinner. The new restaurant was a big disappointment to us for a few reasons: 1. Higher prices across the board: couldn't believe that chicken parm is now $45. 2. Bread isn't warm or crispy. Tasted mealy and no olive oil. Just a tiny bit of butter. We could have skipped the bread completely it was so bad! 3. The elevator kept opening and closing and bringing in the freezing temps from outside so I ended up wearing my coat for dinner. 4. Lasagna was cold. Portion much smaller than previous lasagna. The inside was very cold and lacked sauce. 5. For the new higher prices no sides are included really. Disappointing. 6. Music was elevator music. 7. Bar doesn't make sense--too small and downstairs bar isn't really a bar. 8. Outdoor dining is now on the 2nd floor. Miss the patio downstairs. For these reason we will not be returning anytime soon. read more

Expensive, but best of the Rosebud Group and the old school Italian red sauce places. Good food, incluidng the baseball sized Shrip De Jonghe sent from heaven. Very efficient operation and great staffing, including noteworthy hospitality veterans like "Mike" on the floor and "Arturo" in the kitchen. Servers like "Haley" add further icing to the cake. Lost their street level presence & while the new decor looks like a lodge from the 50s, its too soon to evaluate the second floor outdoor cafe. read more

This was the best experience I have ever had at an italian restaurant. Our server Danny was hilarious, gave excellent recommendations with the food, and was the reason why this whole restaurant was so amazing. Atmosphere was amazing, and the service was quick. Shoutout to Danny read more

Went to Carmine's last night for my father's 75th birthday. My mother passed away a few years ago, so it's just been us celebrating big events since then. The hostess saw the reservation note and wished him a happy birthday as she seated us. The room was beautiful, but simply one, big open room adjacent to the bar. No separation with walls or dividers or elevated platforms, and tables were back to back. Ambient noise was LOUD, and you had to really raise your voice to be heard. Our waiter, Scott, had a pretty no-nonsense attitude - brusquely asked questions and never smiled. Ordered the fried calamari, Caesar salad, veal Milanese, and New York strip which were all, to be honest, average to above average. At the end of the meal, neither Scott or any other staff wished my dad a happy birthday or offered him anything (I'm not expecting a table-side song, but isn't a small dessert usually customary?). I had 3 $50 gift cards that I used to pay the bill and placed my credit card down the pay the difference. I handed the credit card folio to Scott flat so the cards wouldn't spill out and told him to be careful, there were gift cards in the there too. I proceed to see him tilt the folio as he carried it to the register to ring us up. By the time he came back he told me I had only given him 2 cards, and then accused me of thinking I had placed in more than I actually had. The gag is that a manager saw me crawling under the table with my light looking for the card and said "are you looking for this?" When I asked where he had found it, he played it off as if he didn't know - I think realizing that an incorrect answer could accuse the waiter - but eventually admitted to finding it on the ground away from our table. Scott did not apologize, he just walked away, rang up the additional card, and handed us the new bill. Management did not apologize or try to make it right. I will absolutely not be returning to any of these Rosebud/Carmines restaurants as there was just nothing about my experience that would be worth coming back for. I guess my Dad and I have a somewhat interesting birthday story to tell friends and family now. read more

Visited Carmines for the first time since it re-opened I was quite impressed with the food service and ambiance. Not a detail missed. I had the brick chicken it was so good easy to eat and full of flavor. My husband and son had the chicken parm (I've never seen anything like it so big definitely shareable) and short rib pasta Yum! The flavors were all there. I highly recommend the space. read more

Food is good. Potions are huge. But when is it going to reopen??? Website says mid 2025. It's almost 2026... read more

We were fortunate enough to have made it in before they announced they would be closing for over a year for remodeling. I really hope they keep that Classic old school Italian look. We made reservations for a Saturday night. And despite it being packed, we received great service. We started off with their Bruschetta. Here you get three gigantic pieces of toasted bread with fresh diced tomatoes, coated in olive oil, and then topped off with fresh basil, Parmesan cheese and olives. I forget that they put olives in their bruschetta, otherwise I would have ordered it without. But overall a very delicious bruschetta and a perfect way to start off the night. My wife ordered their Spaghetti Primavera. I honestly did not care for this dish. Perhaps it's too healthy for my taste. It was just spaghetti with a bunch of mixed vegetables. I ordered Cavatelli Cacio e Pepe. Tasted similar to Gnocchi, but these are handmade ricotta dumplings, served with pecorino Romano cheese and fresh black pepper. Although this dish looks small, it's actually a very hearty and filling dish. The Cavatelli was cooked perfectly and very flavorful. I've been to Rosebud a few times and have always wanted to try some of their other restaurants. Carmines on Rush is in a great location. I'm glad I was finally able to come in, but Rosebud will forever remain my go to. read more

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Went to the newly opened Carmines. Unfortunately, we just didn't enjoy it. You walk in on the first floor, where the front desk is located. If you don't have reservations, you will be nearly ignored and told that there may be seats at the bar upstairs. That's it. Now get away from the desk. You walk upstairs to be met by another desk at which to be ignored. There is a bar, you try to ask about finding seating and they tell you to look at the bar area. They don't tell you where the bar area is and where the dining area begins. Turns out there are dining tables in the front area around the bar that are first come first serve. It was really a task to get enough attention to get help figuring it out. As if you might be wasting their time. Got it. On to the service. The waitress seemed bothered that we did in fact sit at a table that was determined to be available. It seemed we were a bother asking about the menu. Either she didn't know or didn't want to be there. Ordered our food. Salads came and were fresh and well presented. The chopped salad at $23 was generous in size. Same for the $12 house salad The eggplant Parmesan clocked in at $33. While good, not anything special. A couple of us had the Linguine with Clams, one red sauce and one white. Both were $42, on the smaller side yet fresh and well prepared. We felt like it was a mad race to get us in and the table turned. Personally, that was our first and last visit. Felt like a tourist trap rather than a neighborhood place. Left feeling like we were at an express line where overpriced food and rude people were running the show. Chicago has many other Italian spots that appreciate your business and prepare fresh delicious food. read more

My usual go to for Italian food has been Maggianos Little Italy, but I decided to give this place a try after seeing ads on FB. I ate here for the first time last evening. I ordered the lollipop lamb chops and the eggplant parmesan. The food was good, but lacked salt. There were no salt and pepper shakers/mills on the table and I didn't ask for any because I prefer to have my food salted before cooking rather than adding at the table. Also, the temperature of the eggplant was warm, but not hot as if it had been freshly prepared. I like my food to come out hot. However, the service was excellent. I was greeted promptly and courteously and seated immediately and the wait staff provided excellent service. Will this take the place of Maggianos for me, probably not. read more

Food was excellent. Ordered garlic knots instead of bread, wasn't told they were $14 for an order. And $4 for a small side of Marinara. My bad for not asking price. Same exact items are available 6 blocks south at Rosebud on Rush, their sister restaurant. For an average of $9 less. Paying to be in Viagra Triangle. I live a block away, but I'll go to Rosebud next time to save about $30 for the same items read more

Came here for our Anniversary dinner. My husband made reservations for 2 at 7 pm for a Friday night. We were quickly greeted, seated and acknowledged right away without a wait. We opted to start off with 2 signature cocktails. Citizen Kane Martini and the Man O' War as well as the Sausage & Peppers antipasto. Citizen Kane Martini: Don't let the name fool you, this is not a gin inspired drink. The combination of Grey Goose Vodka, St. Germaine, Lemon, and Pineapple make this drink a refreshing delight. Originally I had ordered a Crown and Sprite, my waitress suggested I tried the Man O' War, I'm glad I did. Bulleit Whiskey, Cointreau, Sweet Vermouth, with a Lemon Twist, packed a punch but if you are a whiskey drinker this is a must to add to your cocktail choices. Sausage & Peppers: traditional classic Italian-American dish here. The fact that it's served whole and not sliced up is my favorite part. I find that it maintains the juiciness. The sweet bell peppers and garlic compliment this dish and elevates the flavors of the sausage. Tortellini Carbonara: I asked for mine with extra sauce because they tend to come a little dry. Al dente Tortellini and peas made this dish perfect and not a mushy mess which is a common mistake at other places with similar dishes. My husband ordered Veal Calabrese from the Italian Specialties and although I didn't catch a picture I did take a taste. The Veal was tender and soft, well seasoned and almost melted on your mouth. A perfect velvety texture that you would expect to have from a good veal cutlet. Godiva Chocolate Mousse Cake: Talk about RICH! So good and even better paired with a tall glass of Cold Iced Milk..lol. Our waitress had great suggestions, the busers were great at refilling our waters, the cooks obviously know what they are doing and management was well present and involved in helping the crew out. read more

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The food at Carmines has always been meh, but I never actually went for the food--I actually really like the atmosphere. The new buildout is pretty but it wasn't worth the wait even a little read more

Carmine's never disappoints! Delicious Italian food, and a fun, lively atmosphere. Perfect for sharing with friends or family. Highly recommend! read more

Stopped for brunch. I loved the fact I could get pasta, and my husband could get eggs!! The rigatoni with vodka sauce was amazing. I added side of meatballs, also delicious!! Outdoor seating - great for people watching. read more

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The renovation is beautiful. The service was amazing. And unbelievably great homestyle Italian food that you are accustomed to with Carmines. Strongly recommend coming back. Fantastic renovation, and amazing food. Large portions. read more

My husband and I are city rats that live in the loop and think that anything above Chicago is a hike for us. It's dumb and we're trying to be better but so it goes. We planned a afternoon to go to the Chicago History Museum and I thought to check out restaurants in the area we haven't been to / or been to in a while and I let the restaurant week list help guide. My husband's thinks restaurant week is a bs rip off but I showed him the Carmines menu and he was surprised by the good deal. He liked the place, and we hadn't been in almost a decade since hearing they had discriminatory hiring practices. When we got there we got the bait and switch where they changed the offerings. Hubs was super annoyed and will never do Restaurant week again. I ordered based on the online menu not checking the paper, and was told it should have had an OR between pasta and entree... should have shown the correct menu online... the kicker is that a table next to us asked if they would honor online when we were at the end of our meal, and they did... The service was extremely slow. It was a 2 hr lunch for an appetizer, pasta, and dessert. It wasn't busy, there were 2 other tables. The server was friendly. We had bites of each others: The sausage and peppers are fantastic. The salad was meh. The pasta serving was the size it should have been if they were doing pasta AND entree, not OR. The risotto was ok. We were going to give Carmines another chance after redeeming themselves from the racism scandal, but I guess they're back in the bad list :( read more

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A very attractive restaurant that needs to up its game in order to match it's prior status. The waiter barely knew what was on the menu & had to go back 3 times to answer our questions. Menu selection is narrow in scope. We were charged for items we did not order and overcharged for items shown on the menu at a lower price. We called back the next day & some adjustments wee made. Management needs to more carefully train the staff if they want local customers to return. read more

Food was good, huge portions, service was excellent! Dining room nice. I like to go to the bar for a pre dinner beverage.. especially at 6:30pm .. not an option here... bar at "full capacity" all night... so no before or after option to visit the bar area. That seemed odd and was disappointing. Not sure if bar can be reserved before/ after dining but didn't seem to be an option. Only option was to leave and go to one of the many nice restaurant bars in the area before/after. Bar downstairs tiny and standing room only. I frequent the area a lot... hopefully they will make the upstairs bar more assessable to all and improve the overall dining experience. read more

Remodel looks amazing! Food was great, and our server Matt made the experience extremely enjoyable!

Our Christmas dinner was delightful. We both had chicken dishes. The Francese and braciole are enough for a leftover dinner (two leftovers in my case). For dessert we managed a few bites of the Ghirardelli cake. It's HUGE! If they charged by weight we couldn't afford it. Do NOT pass it up! read more

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Came for Christmas Eve dinner with my family and the restaurant had a lot of people celebrating. We sat upstairs with a row of the other tables. Our waitress was great and let us know the specials for tonight. All sounded amazing! We had the chicken parmigiana- which is huge, the Fettuccine Alfredo, steak and Chicken Vesuvio. We then split a tiramisu and a cheesecake. read more

Carmine's - Fettuccine Alfredo - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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My wife and I had a table at the bar last night. I ordered bone in Chicken Vesuvio. As I asked questions about the preparation and time it took for the dish, it quickly became apparent that our server was clueless. When the food runner brought my "bone in Chicken Vesuvio" to the table, it was clear that either the server or the kitchen had messed up my order. What was delivered was a pounded, flat, chicken breast cutlet (probably Milanese) with Vesuvio potatoes and peas on a side plate. I questioned the server about whether it was bone in Chicken Vesuvio, and he tried to say the kitchen messed up the prep and he would take it back to the kitchen to fix it. Then the server came back with a boneless, flat, Milanese cutlet, with Vesuvio potatoes and peas poured over it, and tried to convince me that it was indeed "bone in Chicken Vesuvio", the kitchen may have messed up, but there were a "few bones" in the dish. The server flat out lied to me, was arrogant, condescending and insulted my intelligence. I explained that I was 71 years old, I knew what bone in Chicken Vesuvio looked like and that he did not get me what I ordered. He continued to lie, dodge, waffle and prance around the issue - which was that he served me something that I did not order. The manager came, looked at the dish, immediately said "that's not Chicken Vesuvio" and offered to make things right by either getting me what I ordered or comping me the meal that I did not order. I appreciate what the manager did. But, what the server did was inexcusable and it really still bugs me. Lying, being arrogant and condescending is no way to treat guests that order a $45 chicken dish. Chicago has plenty of places where the staff are nice, friendly, knowledgeable and truthful. I'm done with Carmines, thanks to our server T (I won't mention his name, he knows who he is). It's a shame. Mark Thomas read more

Great atmosphere and food!!! We had spaghetti and meatballs, meatballs and polenta and orecchiette with sausage and broccollini ...all were absolutely delish!! We also had the calamari (lightly breaded) which was yummy! There were good value wines and service as great! The bar was fun, too! Don't miss this spot! read more

Carmine's - Orecchiette with sausage and broccollini and a bit of calamari - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

First time here and it was a nice experience. The server Fernando was great, kept refreshments coming and was attentive. I started with the Pomegranate Cosmo and it was delicious! Averagely priced for a city cosmo. Our table got the Grigliato Misto which was raved about but our group didn't care for it much - maybe an "acquired taste". I personally got the chicken Parmesan and WOW for the size (see picture) - taste was average though. Overall, a nice experience but wouldn't select as my first choice Italian restaurant when coming to the city. Good to make a reservation if coming as the place does fill up both inside and outside. read more

Carmine's - Chicken Parmesan - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

For years I have wanted to try Carmine's as I used to/still love the old school marquee in the front as I walked to the no longer existent bars/clubs I used to hang at in my late 20s lol! Still have not tried dinner, but have been to brunch a couple of times over the past few months. Both times I sat outside due to the nice weather of course. The crab cake benedict is very delicious as well as the denver omelet along with the peewee breakfast potatoes. I like how both platters came with a side of some sort of fruit. I took a different date each time and they both went the route of bananas foster french toast in which they let me get a taste or few lol. Each time I felt it was better than what I got but I still liked my dishes. It comes with vanilla gelato, caramel sauce, whipped cream, maple syrup and powdered sugar...a sweet explosion basically lol. Mimosa game is on point of course! I like the joint and plan on coming back for lunch and dinner. Better late than never I guess :) read more

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The place: hopping. We were lucky to grab a 6:45pm reservation at 6pm on Opentable and I'm glad we did. It was bustling, and when we left at 8:15, couples were being quoted a 40 min wait time. In and out in 90 minutes also should tell you that service was pretty solid. We didn't wait long for food, bread was on the table within minutes of arrival. The taste: very okay. We shared the rigatoni ala vodka, a house salad, the baked cavatelli and the cannoli. Everything was good. Portions were bigger than necessary, but nothing was exceptional. It's probably a good place for large groups though as there's something for everyone - steak, seafood, hefty salads, etc. My face: we were celebrating our anniversary so we shared bottle of Pinot noir. Mostly was smiles as we were celebrating love. The damage: $136 pre tip, including a $62 bottle of wine. read more

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Have you been had lasagna melt in your mouth? Well, you definitely haven't if you have not ordered it from Carmine!! The is hands down theeeee best lasagna I have ever had. The cheese literally melted in my Mouth and the sauce was so fresh. Everything we ordered was good! The lamb chop lollipops we cooked to perfection! Our waiter was the near ever. He was so sweet! I've gotta go back soon. Need more lasagna! read more

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Where to start. I've eaten at Carmines pretty much my whole life & have been counting down the days for its reopen. We have celebrated over 10 birthdays, anniversaries, 1st communions, 1st birthdays and holidays. The old Carmines was a tradition, pristine service, food that made you dream of Tuscany & ambiance that made you feel like you were eating with family. I don't know where to start but upon arriving we were greeted that we could not bring in our Sweet Mandy B's (local bakery) cake to celebrate my sisters bday. Okay, no bigs but can't tell you how many local bakery cakes we have brought in over 30 years. Again, not a big deal but not a great start. We proceeded to look at wall paper that looks like a microscope of skin cells, very distasteful & not Italian. They have the circle lights that you seen in Cracker Barrel & pendants from Home Depot around the bar. Stained mirrors & orange booths....who did they hire to decorate? Then we hear "YMCA by the Village people followed by Bruno Mars, Nikki Minaj and all recent pop hits....no where near the piano, Italian vibes an Italian restaurant should have. Food was super sub par which was a huge let down. Grilled calamari was tiny & not served on a hot plate like before. Ordered their famous dishes we have eaten 100 times before & nothing was the same. Not bad but don't need to go back. Rigatoni alla vodka was the best in the city, this sauce tastes like it came out of a jar. Square noodles lacked flavor & the orecchiette brown sauce was dull. I can't tell you how upset we were as we have been waiting over a year to come back to our happy place. Service was very sub par but they all could've been having a bad night. Rose Bud has impeccable food & service but this seems like they let a new manager/someone run this. They went with a modern flare & forgot their roots which led to all of us wanting more. Can't tell you how sad we are with this redo. read more

Went here for lunch before going to see a musical. This was one of the best services I've received! I asked if I could get something that wasn't shown on their brunch menu, and they easily obliged. It's a cute little setting and we were sat at one of their booths. They pay close attention to when your water needs to be refilled or plates need to be taken away. I highly recommend coming here, especially when you want large portions. read more

Carmine's - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

This place is always on my list when I visit Chicago. The food is incredible and the service never dissapoints. There's a variety of excellent entree options, wine that pairs well, and dessert if you have the room for it. My friend ordered the square noodles, one of their most popular dishes, and was so happy with her selection. I'm always a succker for the Tortellini Carbonara and my mouth is watering just typing that out, that's how good it was. read more

Disappointing. I walked in just before 2pm, eager to try the Restaurant Week special and was given a dinner menu. A couple of other friends have reported that the Restaurant Week menus online from this group differs from what is actually offered. I feel bad for the service staff who have to accommodate this when I'm sure it's not their choice. The food I ordered off the dinner menu was decent but the whole thing left a sour taste in my mouth. read more

Square noodles sound simple but are incredibly delicious. I was a little perplexed by this item since it sounds like something I could make at home: noodles and tomato sauce. And it's true, the noodles seemed simple enough. The tomato sauce was magicalthough, and somehow transformed this dish into a star! So why isn't it a five stars? Well it's very pricey and they cram a lot of tables into the space which makes it less intimate. The music is a bit loud and the service is a bit slow. TLDR: square noodles for life read more