Started eating at La Barra shortly after it opened, due to its location. I live in the city and have family in Hinsdale and Oak Park, and it was a great middle ground (it's only a 20 minute train from Union Station). The food is awesome! It's very versatile; you can split a large pizza or get something a little more rich ($ and taste) on a Friday night! I have never had a bad meal, but I find myself continuously ordering the short rib - it is phenomenal. I always leave La Barra very full, because the menu is stacked with great options front to back (appetizers/entrees/desserts/weekly specials). The ambience is also very versatile. The dining room feels like an up-scale Italian restaurant, which it absolutely is, while the bar offers huge TVs and an awesome selection of drinks, along with the full menu. As a craft beer fan, I love their draft selection - it's not the typical selection you see in a nice restaurant. La Barra is the perfect option for any occasion. read more

My wife and I came here on a whim and found the restaurant quite nice. Nice decor inside and out. They didn't seem too crowded and we were seated right away. Our server was very pleasant but she seemed a bit frazzled. I figured she was just beat up from a busy night and we weren't in a hurry. So no big deal. We ordered small plates and drinks and the food was a little slow getting out to us. But our server graciously apologized and offered us dessert on the house. I think that's the right way to do business. We had the zucchini strings. They were very good. Someone on yelp complained that there wasn't much red sauce with them and there wasn't but I didn't care. I liked them as they were. We had mamas meatballs. They came with a scoop of ricotta and they were really good. The goat cheese with red sauce and toasted bread was ok. Nothing really special. I guess you can't have a winner with everything on the menu. As I said, our server offered us a dessert. We had the tiramisu. It was giant and fabulous! Overall we would certainly visit again. I'd love to sit in the cool bar for a couple drinks. La Barra is a cool, family friendly, hip joint. read more

Have been here two times and service was pretty bad both times. Food was extremely disappointing (pasta and pizza). Will not be going back.

Fun place, very typical bar food. Unfortunately there is little to choose from if you are gluten free.

Great food and atmosphere! My wife has celiac (gluten-free) and Mario came out personally to walk us through the menu. Also asked what we liked and that the chef could make anything work! The grilled octopus, corn clam chowder, halibut and cacio e pepe was fantastic! read more

Have had some good and some not so good experiences there. Yesterday was not a good one. Granted it was crowded because of the singer... but should service be compromised? read more

Very expensive and very mediocre - at best! Lots of choices in the surrounding area - I made a bad one. Suggest you look elsewhere. read more

Riverside has been needing a place like this for a long time.. Chew Chew and the Irish place has been pretty much the only option for good food and drink, with a bar. Nothing wrong with either of those, just not a lot of choice for the downtown area. We're in North Riverside, no downtown and have to branch out to the surrounding areas for dining. Service was great, owner circulated often.. The bar and restaurant space overall are sizeable compared to anything else in the area and far larger than it appears from outside. Atmosphere is fun and the place is decked out nicely. Really no complaints on our first two visits. Took the kids each time. Will be back! read more

Food is great but service is extremely slow. Every single time we have come (and we've come quite a few times) the service has been so slow. Even when the restaurant is nearly empty it takes over 30 minutes to get the food out. read more

I LOVE this restaurant! I have eaten here with family and friends about a dozen times since it opened, and tried several things on the menu. I can honestly say that every experience has been great. The ambiance is also very nice. The staff has been well-trained to be efficient and friendly. The owners are also very personable. Riverside needed this restaurant! read more

Surprised at some of the other reviews. The woman at the front door greeted us with a smile. How often does that happen these days, no matter where you go. She was impeccably dressed and genuinely friendly. How refreshing. We were sat immediately. The server got us our food and beverages quickly. You can tell from the delicate flavors that the food quality is very high; and, the prices are moderate. You can tell a considerable amount of time, effort and elbow grease went in to the place. The same woman who greeted us on arrival gave us a genuine Thank You For Coming, something else you rarely see these days. Definitely will pass along our positive experience to friends. read more

This place is AMAZING. They have reopened for carry-our and they are SO professional about it. The food was literally to die for we had a pizza and some small starters and a salad. Everything was so fresh and the pizza was one of the best Ive had. The staff was so friendly when I picked up my food. read more

The place is excellent, always a place that we love going to dinner - lately though, not so great! I think it is the lack of not having enough waiters?! Have experience waiting quite a bit to get service just to order a drink or to order a dessert at the end of our meal. Hoping they get more staff to keep giving the amazing service that was there in the beginning, this will not interfere with me eating here though but would help a lot...still love this place!! read more

BANG. I love this place. a gem in a gem of a town. nice people, great service, always super eager to please, great food. try the Danny's deep dish. it takes a little time but so worth the wait. I have had many menus items all very good. great place with friends etc. read more

I've eaten at La Barra a couple times before and I have always been impressed with the atmosphere, food (delicious) and staff. My husband and I went for out Anniversary dinner last Friday since it's a local spot and we wanted to keep it simple. Well the experience we had was anything but simple! They really rolled out the red carpet for us. The manager recognized us from the last time we were there and offered to send offer a couple of their signature cocktails since it was our Anniversary. The food was delicious as always and at the end of our meal they brought out some amazing tiramisu with Happy Anniversary written on it. What a fantastic evening and I can't thank the staff enough! read more

Love LaBarra!! Good cocktails, friendly service, great contribution to the community and delicious food. Best deep dish pan pizza EVER!! We eat there often and carry out as well. read more

My husband and I had dinner for our first time tonight. I must say, we were very impressed. Our waiter, Marcello was wonderful, very informative and was able to suggest some delicious plates. My husband decided to have the white fish with green beans, which was excellent. I had the pork chops, garlic mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach; which I will definitely be having again in the near future. For desert, Marcello suggested we try the tiramisu which is made in house. Everything we had tonight was fabulous, flavorful and fresh. We will be visiting more often! read more

About time.... 10 long years later. The empty storefront in the center of town is gone. The space is nicely laid out with a spacious bar in the front. The dining area is comfortable and elegant. The food was what I would expect for the wait. Perfectly made pie get the pan though. You won't be disappointed. The appetizers-drinks were extremely tasty. The service was fast and courteous. For the area, one minor issue was the lack of kid friendly items on the menu. Fortunately for us our kids like pepperoni n cheese pizza. We'll be back. read more

Great food and excellent service. We stopped there after the zoo lights and had a wonderful meal and were able to warm up and visit without feeling rushed. I highly recommend it. read more

Service is incredibly SLOW I went there with my family as soon as it opened NO OTHER CUSTOMERS took them 15 mins just to bring the DRINKS and another 50-55 to bring our food out after we ordered it. ALMOST AN HOUR. The calamari tasted like they microwaved it. You think for the prices you'd get way better quality . I ordered the pasta with crab meat. I had at most 2.5 pieces of crab in it.. never again. Save your money and go else where service is so lousy. read more

This is an awesome new restaurant in downtown Riverside. They have a great bar to grab drinks at before eating dinner. The food was delicious, especially the calamari, as well as the handcrafted cocktails. I would definitely go back! read more

This place gets a solid 4 stars. My first experience with La Barra was dining in with my husband. We ordered the Provolone Croccante. I was hoping it was going to be made with a sharper provolone. It tasted more like a mozzarella but wasn't bad. The marinara it came with was very good which gives me high hopes for their pasta dishes. In fact, as we waiting for our main course my husband and I were able see many of the dishes coming out of the kitchen and they all looked fantastic. We ordered a deep dish pizza for the main course. I anticipated it would taste like Lou Malnati's. It was similar, the sauce and crust were different but the assembly of the pizza was very similar to Lou's. The unfortunate part was the crust of our pizza was burnt so badly it was inedible. The parts we could eat tasted good but it was nearly impossible to enjoy a pizza with an inedibly burnt crust. However, the ambience, service, and edible parts of the meal were good enough for us to give the place a second try. For our second attempt we ordered a thin crust pizza for carry out. I called and waited a long time before someone answered the phone to take my order which really wasn't a huge deal but I wondered if anyone was there taking carry out orders and almost huge up. I finally placed my order and was told it would take 30 minutes to be ready. I got there in 30 minutes to pick up my pizza and it was already cold. That sucked since one of the perks of carry out as opposed to delivery is it's pretty much guaranteed to be hot and fresh. I was really disappointed to be picking up a cold pizza. I've had delivery from my usual pizza place that shows up much hotter than this pizza I picked up from La Barra. Another downside is the pizza was more expensive than your usual pizza place and I wasn't thrilled to being paying extra for cold food. Plus it didn't really taste better than my usual pizza place so I could justify the increased cost. For me, if you want to go out to a nice place La Barra is a good choice. I will go back to try some of the pasta dishes but pizza-wise I will probably be sticking to my old stand by delivery joints. read more

La Barra - Riverside - This is a picture of my inedible burnt crust - Pizza Near Me - Riverside, Illinois

I placed an order for pick up, 2 pizzas from the regular menu nothing special, I ordered it at about 3:45pm and was told 25-30 mins.. I ran some errands got there at 4:45 an hour later pizza should of been ready at about 4:15.. I had to wait till 530 for the pizza!! Not ready probably wasn't even in the o en!! That was totally unexplainable!! Granted it was a busy day but that time i had to wait was ridiculous.. they had a poor tour boy working there who seemed confused and scared to be yelled at!! (Not his fault btw but someone should of come out and spoken to me and the other 4 people waiting on late pizzas)!! lou malnati's would probably be cheaper, faster and better!! Now we know read more

I've been to their Oakbrook location and will never go back for the terrible experiences I had there, but because the food is good my boyfriend and I gave this location a shot Sunday evening .As for the staff although they are all very nice they are also very sloooooww. It takes forever for a server to come to the table, it takes for ever to get your food and even longer to get the bill. We sat with out water in our cups a few times as well. Again, the food is really good so we went back again Thursday despite our crappy service on Sunday. My salmon had paper in it. Yes paper! Not sure where that came from,but definitely not part of the dish ( it was not small either) . I noticed it as soon as we get the food. The server took the dish back and apologizes. The manager walks by and sees me picking off my boyfriends plate, because I'm starving and makes a joke like oh you're sharing a dinner or something along those lines ( not in a mean way) but I said " no I ordered the salmon , and there was paper in it" he apologized and said it should be right out... 8 minutes later... I get my salmon which was decent .. definitely not worth $22 . Since I ate half of my boyfriends food he was still hungry and ordered a dessert. We get the bill. $84. They did not even offer to discount or comp the dessert on the bill which was a $6 scoop of gelato. Thanks for your amazing customer service we'll definitely be back! NOT read more

Decent place for a casual night out. Mussels tasted great and the pasta was good as well.

Amazing place to dine! Not too fancy not too casual. The service food and atmosphere complement each other perfectly. If I could rate it 6 stars I would. Enjoyed every aspect of my dining this evening. Little pricy but nothing too concerning! read more

Great spot. Their mule was phenomenal! Very refreshing! Recommend the ravioli nachos. They are absolutely phenomenal. Service was okay. Nothing out of this world. The patio is very comfortable and not to clumped together! Will definitely be coming back. read more

Me & my boyfriend order from La Barra often & eat there once in awhile but last night we received the worst service. Our waitress only brought us our bread once we asked for it which was by the time we got our meals. She didn't explained the specials or went over the menu like we've had experienced other times. When it came to getting our food boxed she brought out the box instead of doing it for us, when we had seen she was boxing everyone else. She was not friendly at all. Have had great experiences before but last night service was definitely disappointing. Won't be dinning there anymore. read more

Wow, I have been here five times and the service is just amazing. It all starts since you walk in the door. The host, the waitstaff, and the manager Suzan are amazing. Our server patty is always amazing I truly love coming here. Definitely recommend this place! read more

La Barra - Riverside - Pizza Near Me - Riverside, Illinois

Pizza is excellent! Deep dish or thin. Appetizers are very good, plenty to choose from. Great wines. Small town America neighborhood but 5 minutes from the city. read more

Their artisan pizza is super thin, you feel like you're not consuming a lot of carbs. My kids love it, but it's expensive. Their chicken parmigiana and calamari were good too. read more

Amazing food, great customer service. Had the pan pizza, was so good. Will definitely be back. Owner went out of their way to make sure I was taken care of. Riverside has a long history of not supporting their local businesses, hoping the town won't let this gem leave. read more

We had the best dinner at the smashing new La Barra in quaint downtown Riverside! The place is beautiful indoors and out and with a huge bar. Our group of four shared small plates of brussel sprouts with bacon which are already famous, the yummy baked goat cheese and the thin crust Barra Supreme pizza which was excellent. The swordfish special was superb as was the Cacio Pepe (spaghetti with pepper and pecorini cheese sliced on top) and Chicken (breaded) Milanese Caesar salad. My husband loved his Garganelli Panne pasta dish. AND -- if you want the best cocktail, try their awesome Italian Manhattan and you won't be disappointed. Molto bene! read more

La Barra does what it does. The pizza was good and the thin crust was better than most available options in Riverside that I've tried. Particularly liked the cheese. The margherita was devoid of any sign of basil. The two ceasars we ordered were soggy. Grilled romaine was soaked in I assume olive oil. Crouton was super thin and barely noticeable-no bite at all. Kudos though for the skin on anchovies- that was a nice touch. Service needs a bit of work- might improve over time. I will also go back and update. Very nice addition to Riverside read more

I've been to many restaurants and had many experiences but I have never had quite an experience like this one. We came here for a friends birthday dinner and it was probably the worst service I have ever experienced. We had a waiter named Sharon whom was extremely rude from the beginning. For the dinner we had a few people who unfortunately canceled last minute. We kindly notified her and she responded very rudely and just walked away and took another 15 minutes to come back and see if we were ready to order. Then as we ordered we notified her that we wanted split checks as well, again was extremely rude. Our food then took another 45 minutes for it to arrive at the table. Then just to top it off the food was extremely bland. Overall, I would not recommend this place to anyone and I will definitely not be returning again. read more

So hot and humid, we had to leave. Food is good but the air conditioner wasn't on and it was way to hot. I hope they turn on or fix it ( if thats the case) read more

I have waited years to write this review. I've given La Barra countless chances, but have been burned almost every single time. The bottom line is that this place has not been and will not be worth keeping around in Riverside. First time we came in, waiter spilled a tray of drinks on my family. Gave them the benefit of the doubt because it was opening weekend. A few mediocre trips after that, followed by a takeout pizza with raw dough in the middle. The restaurants response was to make us another one, which we obviously had to wait another hour for. Hard to fend off my hungry little ones while waiting for a not raw pizza. Last straw was our dinner a few weeks ago...stale, rubbery bread to begin, followed by the the worst lobster ravioli we've ever had. The sauce was awful, shredded lobster inside. It was so bad we left the entire meal on the table. We also had to flag someone down to get a drink order in after sitting at our table for 15 minutes when we arrived. Tried to salvage the night with chocolate cake (certainly you an't mess up cake!) only to receive what appears to have been a slice that was cut hours ago and stashed in a fridge. It really is too bad because we love having this option within walking distance of home, but we sadly must accept this place for what it is and stop wasting our money, only to be super disappointed. Other reviewers have had similar complaints about the raw pizza, which is unacceptable, but I know it's not just a one-off if multiple people have complained. read more

Friendly staff, wonderful atmosphere and great food! Worth the trip 4 sure!

This was our first time here. We have been wanting to try this place for a while as we pass by it all the time. Went on a Friday during bitter cold snap. Parking is difficult to find and had to walk several blocks. The staff was very pleasant and friendly and our server, Bud, really went the extra mile describing the menu. I had the thin crust pepperoni pizza, my wife had the chicken parm. Bread before the meal was really good. The pizza was terrific, as was the chicken, good size portions. The only compliant was that the chicken came with an arrugala salad instead of a pasta, which would have been ok but neither of us liked the it. That being said a manager came by and ask us about our experience, we mentioned about not liking the salad and he immediately offered to substitute a pasta. The restaurant is beautiful and cozy. The prices are a little steep, but we most likely be back. read more

Wow, where to begin. My husband and I had dinner here last night and was the most amazing meal! Ambiance was wonderful, as we sat outside. Tables nicely spaced apart and not too cramped. We had goat cheese crostini, seafood salad, and Arugula pizza. Have not had such an excellent meal in awhile. Flavorful, delicious and fresh! Service was impeccable, as well. Christian was our server. We also enjoyed a delicious bottle of Zinfandel wine. I HIGHLY reccomend this restaurant!!!!!! read more