Gussie's Handmade Italian — Restaurant in Chicago

This review is based on two recent visits to Gussie’s which is a relatively new Italian restaurant in the Old Town neighborhood in Chicago and I highly recommend it! Some pluses and minuses: PLUSES: The pasta is made from scratch; personable and efficient staff from the moment you arrive—special thanks to server Geoffrey and Luke for great recommendations and service; no covid issues; the food orders zoom out (could be a plus or minus); nice touch with carafes of cold water no ice which is great and filled regularly; interesting appetizers and entrees—try the ravioli appetizer with fried egg and parmigiana inside or the meatballs cooked to perfection with marinara sauce; the papperdelle with duck ragu and red snapper were fantastic; very good house red and white wines; price point for meal was average. MINUSES: Small place almost like a diner vibe which could be a plus or minus; the only wine you can purchase by the glass is the house red, white, rose or Prosecco—everything else by the bottle; music was a bit loud—the music is unnecessary; I’ve tried both the flourless chocolate cake and the lemoncello pie—sadly the limited desserts are not Gussie’s strong suit. The flourless chocolate cake was tough to eat and the lemoncello pie was over cooked with hard crust. I would skip the desserts here. I would normally reduce the number of stars because of this dessert shortcoming but everything else makes up for it.

I spend a lot of time in Italy and can attest to the authenticity of the food served here. If you like a casual, minimalist dining experience with no frills (vinyl booths, simple decor, single paper menu, no extravagance), this place is for you. But if you want a full service Italian restaurant with a nice ambience to impress business contacts or out of town guests, take them to Topo Gigio just around the corner on Wells or some other place. If you only want good food, come here. I only wish Gussie’s had a happy hour with genuine Aperitivo as is served throughout italy—Italian snacks with your cocktails for those not staying for dinner. Support...

My wife and I had dinner here on their opening weekend and it was an absolutely fantastic experience. We would give this place higher than 5 stars if possible!

First off, they were extremely safe and sufficient with COVID-19 procedures, which was an immediate relief.

The ambiance of the restaurant is beautiful. The sun went down by the end of our dinner and it was even more gorgeous due to the light fixtures and soft yet chic colors throughout the restaurant.

For appetizers, we had the Meatballs and Egg Yolk Ravioli. The meatballs were incredibly tender and delicious with the basil marinara sauce being the shining star of the plate. Additionally, the Egg Yolk Ravioli was incredible, especially the brown butter sage sauce. We were also served the house bread, which was a whole other level of great. It had a layer of ricotta cheese in the middle of it, which was amazing. It’s the kind of bread that would make us come back to this place just to get an order of bread if that’s all we wanted! But luckily the dinner is equally as amazing.

For dinner, we had Gnudi and the Spaghetti Carbonara. The Gnudi was absolutely divine. It had the same basil marinara sauce as the meatball appetizer, but the ricotta had a bit of nutmeg in it, giving it a very slight kick that was out of this world. My wife loved her carbonara, saying it was the best she’s ever had.

Lastly, for dessert we had Flourless Chocolate Cake and the Grilled Peaches with Mascarpone Cream. The cake was the perfect mix of bitter and sweet that topped the dinner off perfectly. My wife loved her grilled peaches and commented how she would come back to the restaurant just for those.

Our server, Luke, was perfection. He was kind, yet knowledgeable. Graceful, yet determined. He is by and far the definition of an absolutely tremendous server. The manager, David, was pretty great as well. He checked in on us a couple times and told us facts about how the food was made from his and his family’s recipes. It was pretty incredible.

My wife and I will absolutely be coming here...

I've been meaning to review our experience for months. It was so delightful, I can remember it like it was yesterday. These days I'm just a happy patron of the Chicago restaurants owned/operated by David, Bruce, & the Addingtons. Years ago, I was their server. Their outlook on what good service looks like sets an incredibly high bar, and their staff consistently shows the same commitment to that mission. Always with a genuine smile on their faces.

Worth noting: I brought my boyfriend, a gifted chef, with me on this trip to Chicago for his first time. We hit at least 10 different restaurants. Our evening at Gussie’s was, by far, his favorite meal, atmosphere—overall dining experience.

For starters, the complimentary bread (as others have raved) is something that will live in our heads, rent free, for all eternity. From the antipasti section, we got the Meatballs and the Grilled Octopus. Meatballs were 10/10 for both taste and texture. There was discussion of ordering more but we responsibly held off. The octopus dish, one I've gotten to try before, was equally delicious; taste and texture were perfect and that side salad has the perfect “spicy-to-refreshingly crisp” ratio. For our main course, we each got pasta. I opted for the special, Mushroom Ravioli w/ Seared Scallops. It was brown-buttered, perfectly seared—just absolutely delightful from start to finish. My boyfriend went with the Carbonara, a classic he loves to make, and was very pleased. A man of few words, we could sum this up as “no notes”. On the other hand, he came home with plenty of inspiration for handmade Italian dishes and presentation. Consider me very lucky! We shared everything and could have stayed at Gussie’s all night—but we had a wedding to get to, and they seemed like they had a busy night of reservations underway. Rightfully so.

We love Gussie’s!! Hope to see you...