Bar Roma — Restaurant in Lake View Township

Goodbye & Farewell Bar Roma… 🥲 it was good while it lasted… The first two years we went to Bar Roma. We had great experiences- it’s been on its way downhill the last year and this last reservation led to wanting to post this review. All the same issue the last four times we ate there Staff being rude and Half of the items on the menu, either being undercooked or tasteless… We kept thinking the next visit would be like it used to be and chalked it off to them having an off night. This reservation was The last straw… It started off with a very unpleasant hostess, greeting us who clearly was having a bad day and not afraid to let it show.-to then getting seated at a table that was way too small for five people. we were crammed like sardines.

I politely asked if we would be able to lift the edge of the table up and if the restaurant got busy we would drop it back down Anything to accommodate the size of our party that had a reservation for 5 would’ve been great.

She said no. then left and came back and said she asked the manager and he also said no but never came over to see what he could do or clarify what we were dealing with, and we didn’t want to be difficult. So we decided to make the best of it not let it affect our evening. I basically sat 2 feet back and at my appetizer holding my plate. Then I ran into the manager outside the restroom and asked politely since no customers had come in and been sat in that area …the restaurant is very empty .. Could we please flip the corner so we could enjoy our main course with not being crammed in -he said NO again, because if the restaurant got busy. it would be tight for the staff to get through -which I understood. I thought well ??? don’t you know if your restaurant is booked for the evening or not- but I let it be.

He then suggested. Well you could move all of your plates and your drinks and your coats over to community table which had broken seating throughout, but we wouldn’t all be able to sit together🤪 Right in Front of the hot kitchen where everyone is yelling orders, back-and-forth and pick up and tons of traffic picking up food and serving .. Which is great if it’s one or two people, but not for mature group of five Intimately celebrating a family anniversary . I had to eat my meal with my chair, pushed out about 2 feet away from the table So everyone else had room to eat and they act like it was no big deal and that I was comfortable because I didn’t want anyone else to be uncomfortable. We were the only table in the restaurant at 5:20 -7:15 except for a two seater across from us as shown in the picture attached. .Not another single table was sat near us the entire time we were there for an hour and 20 minutes -see photo when we arrived & photo from when we left go to the Magic lounge show across the street. .

The manager had no desire to even try to accommodate a situation they created … The decline in the quality of food and experience at Bar Roma and my opinion is the staff and management. They were so good in the beginning, just really set the bar high and it’s below average now. There are better options in Andersonville, I suggest Tala house, Big Jones, Lonesome Rose, Hop Leaf. Bar Roma has gone from being a hit every time to a hit or miss to...

Well, I got dressed excited for date night at a new place with stellar reviews but the actual dining experience was disappointing, primarily due to the fact that the restaurant seems to have completely disregarded the fact that we are still in a pandemic! We were taken past the bar area and over to a space that was jam packed with people less than a full arms length from the next guest and there was a guest on both sides, in front and behind you, no air circulating, waiters could barely stand between each guest table! I had an entire anxiety attack within just seconds. That's how crowded this place was and it's not fair to put people in that predicament. We really wanted to try the food tho so we asked the host if we could sit on the other side that we passed up by the bar. It seemed to be ventilated with fresh air coming in from the door and was much less crowded. So we moved. Our waiter was great and very understanding. He provided really great service and helped ease the mood. The food was good but pretty basic. I had the squash ravioli with Italian sausage and she had the rigatoni special with veal. Not all that the other reviews made it out to be but definitely tasty. We also had the salad special that I didn't care for at all. The old fashioned drink was super yummy with what tastes like a hint of cinnamon. Delish! And lastly, my favorite Italian dessert, tiramisu was delish with a cup of coffee. I really wish restaurants would take into consideration their patrons who continue trying to support you by coming out, spending our money at your establishment. Why have us get there and feel soooooooo uncomfortable, put our health at risk and still impose surcharges. Seriously, the place was insanely and uncomfortably packed. Even if there was no pandemic I wouldn't have wanted to dine that close to strangers in a hot stuffy room when there are less crowded options just on the other side of the wall. It just didn't make sense to...

We visited on a Friday night at about 7:00 with some friends of ours who live in the area but had not yet been able to try this place. The restaurant was a part of a dining week in Chicago, so we knew it could be busy. We were told they had no available tables without a reservation, but that we were welcome to seats at the bar when they became available since happy hour had just ended. We were extremely blessed/fortunate as 2 different groups left 4 seats at the corner of the bar right by the host area within 5 minutes.

My wife and I prefer dry red wines, so we each ordered a glass of their Montepulciano ($14), which is an 8 oz. pour and comes with a small glass in addition to a carafe with the remainder of the pour that didn't fit in the glass. It was an excellent accompaniment to our meals.

We had eaten a late lunch, so we only ordered pasta entrees from the menu. The service at the bar was extremely prompt without being pushy. They quickly fulfilled our drink orders and our meals arrived in what seemed like less than 10 minutes. The house bread they brought out was very good and excellent for collecting the sauce from our dinner plates. My wife ordered Cacio e Pepe Ravioli e Gamberessa ($24), which tasted AMAZING! It was Rosa's house made ravioli filled with ricotta, pecorino, parmesan and fresh black pepper. It was served with sauteed shrimp. It would be difficult to return and not order this dish. I ordered Ricotta Gnocchi ($22), which was also very good. It included hand rolled ricotta dumplings with asparagus, pine nuts and a sage butter sauce. I very much enjoyed the combination of flavors.

The serving sizes were not huge, so this isn't a place you come to for quantity necessarily, but the quality of our meals were outstanding. Our friends indicated that they intend to...