SABA Italian Bar + Kitchen — Restaurant in Jefferson Township

Food: I ordered the white Sangria which had a refreshing, light citrus flavor. I could have several of those back to back. My friends and ordered a pizza as an appetizer, half mushroom and half margherita. The margherita is a safe choice but slightly on the bland side. The mushroom half had a savory sauce and was more flavorful. The crust was thin and reminded me of NYC as the crust was very flexible, and floppy, not very sturdy. I folded my slice in half to eat it for durability. Afterwards, I ordered the seafood pasta which I was not a fan of. The tomato,garlic based sauce did not compliment the seafood iny opinion. I think it would pair better with a cream based sauce. However after explaining my feedback to staff, I ordered the lobster ravioli as a replacement. It was extra saucy. The perfect portion size. Very savory, chunky, and cream-based tomato, bisque-like. It had a pile of lobster chunks in the middle. Absolutely I would go back just to have this pasta again. To finish off, I ordered the cannoli which came with two small portions. I had one in the restaurant and finished the second on my drive home. The filling was smooth and had just the right amount of sweetness. The shell wasn't overly thick or damp, it tasted freshly baked with a durable crunch. My friends got gelato paired with espresso and dessert liqueur of their choice. Presentation was pleasing.

Service: Where do I begin? I LOVE the staff here. They take your feedback very seriously. When my waitress inquired about my seafood pasta, I gave an honest reply about not enjoying it and it not being too flavorful. She seemed disheartened at the news and said she appreciated the feedback and that she would let the chef know. About 5 minutes later, a staff member, presumably the manager, appeared at my side to ask about my feedback. He tried mixing up the pasta. He asked how they could fix. He offered to send it back and have it made right, I accepted the suggestion. About 15-20 minutes, it came out again, with small increase of flavor but still not to the liking of my palate. The same staff apologized for this and suggested an entirely different pasta. When I asked what was the best pasta they had, he said " There is no best pasta. The best pasta is the one that you like." After discussing the kind of pasta I prefer, more savory and saucy, I ordered the lobster 🦞 ravioli. It was perfect and worth the wait. That same staff member checked in on me and my table repeatedly. They really went above and beyond. 5 stars for service! Additionally, this visit was a birthday celebration - my friend got a complimentary tiramisu and the whole table got dessert lemon 🍋 liqueur shots- very potent but incredibly smooth!

Atmosphere: This Italian Restaurant has ample seating, with cozy lighting and modern decor. Definitely a restaurant that you can dress up a little bit for. Overall, a classy and...

My first time here was during Chicago’s restaurant week. This was my second time here and I am disappointed… That it took me so long to come back! The first time, i didn’t get any photos. The food was so good, i ate it before I could even take pictures! Haha I’m glad I came here for restaurant week. This place does it right! I am now a fan. And that is what restaurant week is for, right!? To try new places and their food, without breaking bank, and see what they have to offer! Well, Saba, you are an example of how to take advantage of that because I am now a repeat customer! And my friend and I enjoyed meeting the owner during our first trip. He came in to check on the restaurant and customers and I love that! Also, we joked with the manager cisco which was nice. Idk if that is how he spells his name but he definitely doesn’t spell it like the singer Sisqo! Lol

Overall: A nice atmosphere. Friendly staff. They’ve have a cafe there. It is clean. And the food is great! Service: i was assisted by two servers. Tara and another woman. They both were attentive, quick, polite, and great! Atmosphere: it’s a nice place for a date night or just a quick bite to eat. The decor isn’t overwhelming and it is clean. I love that the owner is from logan and is trying to keep business in the area! If you want to read about that, I took a photo of his story as seen on the Saba menu! The food: This is what you came for, right!? The food is hot and fresh. They start you off with some hot bread. Which was nice and fresh. Soft of the inside with some crunch on the outside. It was good the first visit, it was great the second! I got meatballs as my appetizer. I love that the sauce for them has a bit of spice. Adds another layer of flavor! I could use a bit of sear on them, but that isn’t a deal breaker because the flavor is astounding. Then, I got the penne ala vodka. You can really taste the flavor of the sausage. That sauce is divine! I would love just some of the sauce to dip my bread into! It isn’t flavorless at all. For dessert, I got tiramisu. It was between this and the chocolate cake. I did ask the server, and both desserts are NOT made in-house. Kind of a disappointment because it is an Italian restaurant. I would have liked in-house desserts. Hopefully, one day they can change that. However, the tiramisu was delicious. I’m not mad at all. It could have had a bit more espresso flavor, but I think the chocolate sauce drizzled on top may have dulled that flavor a bit. I enjoyed my visit and I will be a lifelong supporter; granted the food and service doesn’t decline and they always keep this same...

New to Logan Square and wanted to try out some local spots. The place is nice, cute decor, good feeling. I had some OpenTable points, so I made a reservation and also redeemed points for a $25 reward. (They send it to you like an electronic gift card, and the restaurant manually keys in the card.) Anyway, we arrived, checked in with the host (who is also apparently the manager) and were seated. The cocktails were good, and the arancini appetizer was pretty tasty. The spicy pomodoro was just right. We ordered two glasses of wine with our entrees, the Risotto and Lobster Ravioli. Risotto was alright, but grossly under-salted. The shrimp were served tail-on, but no small dish for the tails, so I left them in my dish after pulling the tails off with my fingers. The Lobster Ravioli had about 4 times too much tarragon. It completely ruined the dish...couldn't taste the lobster, or anything but tarragon. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to request an alternative dish. The tiramisu was good, nothing terribly unique or inventive. The caramel drizzle on the plate was unnecessary. After dinner, we gave our dining reward card to the server. Neither he nor the host/manager could figure out how to apply it, even though it operates just like a credit card. So we didn't get to use it, nor did the restaurant offer anything to apologize for their lack of knowing how to use their own system. Upon contacting OpenTable the next day, we discovered that we'd been marked as a 'no show' when checking in, so the dining card was deactivated. Had the host/manager checked us in correctly when we arrived, we would have at least been able to use our dining reward. We might give the place another chance seeing it's in the neighborhood, but given other similar reviews (lack of salt/seasoning) the second chance may not happen until we've explored the many other establishments...