I have been wanting to try Elina's for a while. It comes highly recommended from my friends. I finally got a reservation and it was totally worth the hype. Our server, Nick was outstanding. We tried nearly everything and it was all delicious. The calamari tasted like a funnel cake! The vodka pasta was some of the best ever. I can't wait to go back. Definitely worth the wait! read more

I was really disappointed with Elina's which makes me sad because I was so excited try this place. The restaurant is really small which explains why it is so hard to get a reservation. My boyfriend and I were seated in a dark corner which was fine for us. The complimentary appetizers were really good but sadly they were the best part of the meal. We got the calamari and it was just really bland and disappointing for $20. I ordered the vodka rigatoni for my entree and it was honestly awful. It was so dry and cold to the point where I almost sent it back. I hope this was just an off day for them but I really did not enjoy my time here. read more

Elina's - Complimentary Bread - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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One of the best Italian places I've been to in Chicago so far! I think one of the best qualities of Chicago restaurants is good food without pretentiousness, and you definitely get that here. It has a very "neighborhood Italian" vibe. The decor is understated. The food and service was great, everything does better family-style so it'll only be better with a group, but my husband and I went together and it was still great. It's a little tight as the location is small (outdoor seating also wasn't open when I went during Easter weekend), but I personally enjoyed it. It is a little dark, which I didn't mind now but might when I'm a bit older! I have been to Carbone in New York too, and I'd say Elina's is definitely the Chicago version of that! read more

My husband and I loved this spot! We started with the caesar salad and fritto misto and then split two pastas, the rigatoni and fusilli. The food was delicious- the vodka rigatoni was our favorite. Service was also great- our waitress was very friendly and attentive. Highly recommend! read more

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Excellent meal at Elina's last night! The space is cozy and warm, but know that you'll be seated in pretty close proximity to other diners. The service was attentive and provided good recommendations. The menu feels big enough to give good options without feeling overwhelming. All of the food was excellent and it was close between the rigatoni and the bolognese for our favorite. Would definitely recommend and return! read more

So good. Everything was amazing. Will be dreaming about the pastas forever. Can't wait to go back! read more

Elina's - Chicken parm, vodka rigatoni, and carbonara - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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JP the server said the food was good and I listened and learned real quick that he was correct. Shoutout JP!!!

*DO NOT EAT HERE* Ok, hopefully you have picked up on my sarcasm as I rated this place 5 stars. I would give this place 10 out of 5 if I could... I don't want you to eat here because I would like to get a reservation when I want to. Which is definitely once or twice a week. I have been here 3 times in 3 weeks, with 3 different groups of people. The only way I can describe it is FOODPHOURIA... I was in such a state of euphoria after I had the bread, and salami, and pickled eggplant... who knew eggplants were pickleable ? (Not me) that each course after, Caesar salad... I don't even think Cesar himself ate a salad that good. The croutons... I have no words... ok, focusing, sorry for the digression! Each course after, had me dancing in my seat! The baked clams casino!?! Cha-Ching?! (See what I did there?!) I felt like the guy from Alice in wonderland. (Cartoon version) then, the angel hair scampi that we paired with the chicken parm?! Omg! Yes, I ate my weight in food... honestly I think in my 3 visits I've tried almost everything on the menu and I've gone home each time and had sugar plum dreams... that's what we get at Christmas... this place is Christmas... on a Wednesday at 9:15.. In your late 30's... anyhow, the staff is incredible, the food was incredible, the music was incredible... all in all a foodphouric experience I will try to get into any chance I have. 14/10 but again... *DO NOT COME HERE* so I don't have to wait 2 weeks to get a res, and I can come at 7:30, which is the time young puma's in their late 30's like to eat! read more

Elina's - The decor, but also me when I ate salad, bread, pasta and chicken! - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Place is BYOB my friends and I didn't know before we arrived however there is a restaurant across the street that sells wine by the bottle. 4 stars bc there was a $10 per person corkage fee. Everything else was amazing patio seating outside very nice on a summer evening read more

Elina's - a fork and knife on a plate - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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We finally got in to Elina's tonight and it did not disappoint! It sounds like they recently opened up for Sundays and Mondays but if you can get a reservation for any night, you should snatch it up! I loved the vibe - it reminded me of many New York restaurants. It was very cozy and intimate - warm candlelight everywhere. If you want more intimate, request to sit in a private booth. With every order comes a selection of bread, salami and pickled eggplant. This was the perfect little starter. I opted for the rigatoni - huge portion and the vodka sauce was incredible. I couldn't stop eating it. We also had the chicken Parmesan, broccoli and a single meatball. The standard order of Silvio's meatballs comes with 3 but our waitress said we could get one or two so of course we had to try it! Definitely get the table wine - the Italian red was so smooth and only $12 for a glass. We will be coming back soon! read more

Beautiful atmosphere, great cheesy bread at the beginning, but my crab pasta (although great!) portion was itty bitty compared to my friends' macaroni bowls and the clams (I had 4) gave me such bad heartburn I thought I was going to be sick later that night. I knew it was the clams too because the breaded topping was extremely salty, and I thought I would get used to it. The vodka mac looked good too, but I had a couple bites of a friend's and it wasn't anything special to me? My mojito was great! The prices reflected the atmosphere and service, just not all the food. read more

Honestly don't understand that hype about this place. As soon as we walked in the chairs felt extremely cheap. The food was subpar at best. Reviews: Crab dip - absolutely terrible and tasted as if it were just bought at Jewel Osco 30 minutes prior. Definitely stay away. Too cheesy and pretty blend. Meatballs - they were okay. Too fatty, nothing special at all. You could make better meatballs. Free bread service - focaccia also tasted like it was just bought at a nearby grocery store. Not that good. Vodka pasta - I really do not understand the hype about this dish. It was a 6.5/10 at best. It's hard to justify paying $23 for something that literally would cost $4 especially when it tastes as mediocre as it did. GO TO LA SCAROLA, their vodka sauce is about 150x better than what my table had last night (my table also feels the same on all these dishes) Italian ribs - only thing worth trying at this place. These were actually pretty damn good. Italian style ribs with pepperonici and marinated in Italian dressing with a Korean zest twist. Overall, I would steer clear of this place unless you want to try overpriced and bland contemporary Italian food. 2/5. read more

New school take with an old school Italian mentality- Elina's definitely delivered a 5 star experience with delicious Italian eats. Their unique take on classic Italian dishes like chicken parm and rigatoni vodka is what elevates the meal to new heights. Everything from the chopped salad, to the table bread- pizza/garlic unreal combo, the meatballs, Chicken Parmesan and Rigatoni vodka are equally enjoyable. Will be back to this gem on Grand Ave. read more

I've been to Elina's twice now. Food is great. The Rigatoni is almost identical to Carbone's -- so so good. You can't go wrong with their Chicken Parmesan either. My last visit was quite disappointing (about two weeks ago). Service is sub-par at best. Service during my first visit was ok, waitress wasn't that friendly. During my second visit, we received our bill and noticed a $30 total corkage fee ($10 per person; we were a party of 3). We split a cheap bottle of wine, and if we knew there was a $10 per person fee, we would've stuck with water as we didn't need any alcohol with the meal. Our waiter did not mention this fee when opening our bottle. When receiving the bill, he argued with us that this fee is disclosed on the website. I pulled up Resy and the website and saw this fee nowhere (I tried to explain this to the waiter, but he constantly spoke over me stating it is disclosed everywhere). He comes back and says he was misinformed, it is in fact not on the website and he will remove the fee. I find it really dishonest to not disclose such a fee anywhere and surprise customers with it at the end of the meal (it looks like they have now made this change after I reached out to management 2 weeks ago). The food and ambiance is what saves this place. read more

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Very pleased with a late dinner for four. Interesting drinks, two appetizers and four entrees all shared. Two pasta, short ribs and scampi. All hits. Service was efficient and well timed. read more

Deliciously authentic Italian food served up on grandmas china. Cozy atmosphere excellent service and plenty to eat

5/5- we went here for our two year anniversary and it was such a cute little Italian place! Best food we have had in a long time. Get the Caesar, rigatoni vodka & chicken parm!! read more

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I came here for dinner over the weekend and was extremely excited to go based off of how hard it is to get a reservation. We ordered the vodka, rigatoni, chicken Parm, and eggplant Parm. I will save the rigatoni and chicken Parm. We're pretty basic and didn't really blow my mind away for based off of how hyped up they are. I will say though that the eggplant Parm was by far one of the best things I've ever had. It was like a giant cake of eggplant put together with an awesome red sauce. I would come back just for that. read more

This may be the best rigatoni Alla vodka I've had in chicago yet. I finally made my way to Elina's which is an Italian-American restaurant in West Town. I had the Caesar salad that had an amazing edition of garlic bread croutons, if I had to live one salad, this caesar would be it. Finishing things off is the famous Rigatoni Alla Vodka with Calabrian bread crumbs, it had the right amounta sauce I felt like I could eat it all day, definitely make a reservation for their patio seating read more

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I came for the rigatoni pasta and loved every bite! We also ordered the Caesar salad, it is crispy and fresh with giant croutons. Soo good. Chicken parm for the table was perfect size to share, we were a party of 3. Had to get the parm fries as well. Overall great dining experience and would definitely come back. read more

As a Chicagoan and a devout foodie, I don't say this lightly: this is my favorite restaurant in the city right now. And that's saying a lot because Chicago is filled with top-tier dining experiences. I've been three times now and the music, ambience, and service (special shout-out to Joseph!) is always delightful. I've tried most of the menu and it is all phenomenally executed Italian American staples. My favorite entree items include the crab angel hair scampi and branzino cioppino but you also can't go wrong with the more popular (and equally delicious) items like the rigatoni and chicken parmesan. Additionally, the complimentary bread basket, salami, and pickled eggplant is a beautiful opener to the meal. BYOB until their liquor license is approved so bring your favorite wine and anyone you want to impress with an incredible dinner! read more

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Pros: it's a BYOB (no corkage fee) and the service was great. Actually, the free appetizers were our favorite part of the meal, would gladly pay for those. The garlic bread and tomato bread were great, the salami was a nice starter, and there was a pickled eggplant which I've never had but it was interesting to try. Cons: the food. The calamari was undercooked and soggy, almost inedible. The meatballs were good, but I personally would have liked a little more sauce with them. They were listed in the entree section but no bread or pasta served with them. The chicken parm was ok, a little thin and dry and extremely smothered in cheese. The rigatoni a la vodka was ok, but a little chewy, not much sauce, and very salty... and I love salt. The fusilli bolognese was even more salty, and nothing near a traditional bolognese, even with the different description of a white sauce. Ambiance: the place was cute and romantic but way too packed in. I understand it's small and they are trying to make the most of the space, but the other guests table was exactly 2 inches from ours, and you actually had to move the tables to touch each other to get up from the other side where there were other tables. It was very loud and no where to put coats/purses. read more

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Delicious pasta, great service and complimentary bread service was awesome. Ambiance was great, small place but very cozy and loved the music playing. BYOB was an added plus. Very much enjoyed our meal! read more

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Second time having dinner here and everything was as excellent as the first time. And the owner and our server both welcomed us back after only attending once before! Top notch customer service and delicious food. This new gem will be our go to all winter long. Resos fill up quickly so do not sleep on this newcomer. Thank you chefs Ian and Eric and your amazing team! read more

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Elina's is one of (if not the) best Italian restaurants in Chicago. A rare combination of immaculate food AND immaculate vibes. I've eaten here at least 10 times since it opened so this review is long overdue. It never misses! It's a tiny restaurant, but it has a great ambiance and contemporary decor. The menu is also small, but it is impeccable. My three favorite dishes hands down are the spicy vodka rigatoni, the chicken parmesan, and the Italian chopped salad. This is THE best spicy vodka rigatoni in Chicago (it's obvious that the chef came from Carbone in New York City!) It's always served piping hot, and the flavors are impeccable; it has that classic vodka rigatoni taste without being too spicy. The chicken parm is also phenomenal; again, it's always served warm (one of my biggest pet peeves is when Italian food is lukewarm), it has just enough breading, and the sauce and cheese are delicious. The eggplant parm is also a winner. Service is always attentive, and this is definitely a restaurant that pays attention to the details. Like Carbone in NYC, Elina's serves complimentary homemade table bread, pickled eggplant, and cured meats at the start of the meal. It's a nice, elevated touch! I cannot recommend Elina's enough! I LOVE this place, and I definitely get cravings for that spicy vodka rigatoni. read more

Came here with a friend. Food was really Good. The ribs and rigatoni were delish. Really liked the ambience. Small and intimate. One thing that i was put off by was the unwelcoming staff. The front of the house seemed a bit rude and annoyed. But would come back again for the food. read more

This new restaurant is absolutely delicious. It is very reasonably priced with good sized portions. It is BYOB which we weren't aware of, but the restaurant across the street sold us some bottles to go. Overall, great, knowledgeable staff on service and the ambiance was beautiful. read more

Came in for a preview and was blown away! The chefs came out personally to suggest our order. For a party of four we got a variety of plates to share and each one was better than the last. We even doubled up on a few. This is a great addition to grand ave. and will definitely stand out in a neighborhood already full of great restaurants. read more

Elina's - Italian Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Food is top notch classic Italian. Bread is to die for. Music/ambience are expertly curated. BYO so bring a bottle and enjoy a perfectly coursed dinner. Service was great too. Wish I tried desert. read more

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There is nothing like going into a restaurant... not knowing if it will be amazing or mediocre. Gambling on the menu with a $180 steak... and doubling down on $150 here & there- only to be met with a waitress letting us know we can finish our night "at the bar". Really- what a unique and unexpected experience. I don't recommend coming to Elina... unless you want to be moved around like you were in college read more

I really enjoyed the pasta here. It's definitely a small restaurant, as there are really only a few tables, but I liked the decor and service. Everyone was very nice here. I'd definitely go again for the pasta. read more

What an outstanding meal! We were kindly greeted, seated in an adorable booth and given the Capital One prosecco. Our server was warm, kind and informative. The four of us shared Caesar salad, meatballs, house pasta, steak and eggplant parmesan. The food was so good! Each dish was deeply flavorful. My personal favorite, the eggplant. The bread, pickled eggplant, wonderful extras. We were full but got a tiramisu for dessert. Best ever!! Highly recommend for the food, service and setting. We will return! read more

Second favorite restaurant in Chicago next to Avec. But this restaurant, paradoxically, I'm giving 5 stars unlike the 4 for Avec. That is because not only is the food outstanding but the service is good too. Food is fast, water is refilled without my even noticing, etc. One tiny nit is that the rigatoni (which I get every single time) tasted a little flat this last time. It just didn't wow me the way it has in the past. read more

I was super excited to try this place, but it was a huge miss for me. We ordered a bottle of red wine which was recommended by the server, but she never mentioned it was chilled. Strange?? For appetizers we ordered the clams (way too much breading) and the caesar salad (tasted like Texas road house just more expensive). We also ordered the vodka rigatoni which was good but Trivoli's is better. The entire experience felt rushed. We had half a bottle of wine left and the server was already telling us we needed to leave because her next table was arriving. I could not believe that. Won't be back. Really impacted the experience but looking at the reviews now I guess they are known for rushing people out. read more

One of the best trendy Italian spots in the city!! Vodka pasta has to be one of the best around, service was great, vibes were great!

If I could go back in time and choose another place to have dinner on 8.25.24 I would go to McDonalds instead of Elina's. We are a party of 5 and had a reservation for 9pm and showed up and checked in with the hostess at 8:58pm who then informed us that it would take 15 minutes to get our table ready as there was a party still at our table. She informed us that we could wait at the bar if we wanted. We opted to walk around outside and we came back after 15 minutes, she then told us again that it will take a bit longer as they just gave that party the check and that they were still seated there, so we went out again and came back after 20 minutes ( 9:35pm now) and then the hostess ignored us and walked away so another person at the bar came by and asked us about our table and we told him that we've been waiting for over 30 minutes and then he checked our reservation again and then asked the other table to leave because we were waiting. He was rude to them, when they asked him if he wanted them to leave now he said " Straight up yes" which was rude, they all left then and they got our table ready. We then ordered, sat down and ordered our food. We ordered the Caesar salad, Mozzarella En Carozza, Rigatoni Ella vodka pasta and Chicken Parm. We got wine and coke to drink. The bread service was good, nothing extraordinary, the Mozzarella En Carozza was okay -Akin to a fancy grilled cheese, the Ceasar salad was okay - there was too much parmesan in my opinion. The Pasta was not cooked Al-dente and felt undercooked. The chicken parm was average. The highlight of the night was the coca-cola in a can, We asked them for straws for our drinks twice which were not brought. The service was 0/10. The hostess was the worst I've ever seen, she was disrespectful and rude, she straight us said there is no way we can reduce the volume of the music, we felt like we were at a concert which does not fit the vibe of the restaurant. She said there is no way they could do that, we then asked our waiter if he could reduce the volume and then he went to reduce it and it was down for a minute and then it was louder than before, he came by and apologized and said that the dial for sound was not working which I highly doubt is true when you have a state of the art sound system . After this, we were going to just leave but the appetizers arrived so we decided to stay. It was understood that after we asked different staff members about this that we could clearly see that the hostess was looking at our table and laughing at us which made us feel very uncomfortable. While our waiter did his best, the behavior of the hostess made us feel unwelcome and disappointed. I will never come back here, food is average at best, service is trash and ambience is sub par. I recommend you avoid this place. Chicago has a great food scene and you can find a better alternative with ease. To the restaurant - Your staff needs retraining and reassignments, you have the worst possible person to be a hostess. read more

My wife and I were excited to score a reservation at Elina's, as it is listed as one of the top Italian restaurants to try in Chicago. We love Italian food, have been to all the hot spots, and the reviews we read gave the impression that this one was not to miss. So we invited our close friends to join. The service was abysmal and impacted the entire experience. There was no sense of hospitality and everyone's attitude was that we should feel lucky to be there. The meal started on an awkward note when bread service arrived. The rolls were all covered in butter. My wife, who has a dairy allergy, asked the server if they have any plain bread. The server shook his head. "They're all cooked in butter," he said and turned away from the table. That is odd, we all thought. Wouldn't he at least check in with the kitchen to see if there was anything they could do before dismissing the request outright - or at least convey it in a nice way & offer to help provide another option? In any event, cocktails arrived and the food followed. The Vieux Carre and Toronto were fine, though we've had better at other Italian restaurants in the city. We brought our own bottle of wine, knowing they assess a $40 corkage fee. Although the bottle was sitting on the table, our server failed to deliver wine glasses for about an hour after we sat down and only after we asked. We ordered the Caesar salad and shrimp cocktail as appetizers. The portions were large enough to be shared and they were perfectly fine; nothing to write home about, which was disappointing given our expectations. Then the Chicken Parmesan, angel hair pasta dish and filet mignon were served. All were shareable and rich. They were all adequately prepared, but none of the dishes distinguished themselves from the main courses at superior restaurants such as Ciccio Mio or Alla Vita. If the meal ended at this time, we would've walked away feeling fine with the experience, unlikely to return. But then the bill came and we dropped our credit cards to pay. The server returned and said flatly that the restaurant accepts only one card per table, which was frustrating since the restaurant's website makes no mention of this nor was this policy conveyed to our table when the bill arrived. Why wouldn't you mention this when you set the bill on the table with two couples instead of annoying guests after the fact? And on top of that, the restaurant assesses a 3% processing fee, effectively passing on the credit card cost to paying customers, which I have not seen in any other Chicago restaurant. Again, there was no mention of this before the bill came or reference to this on the website. I felt like I was being nickeled and dimed, and I wrote the same on the receipt. (The restaurant should impute this cost into the menu prices rather than passing it on to the customer.) Overall the restaurant made no effort to make its customers feel welcomed or valued. So we all left the restaurant with bad tastes in our mouths and vowed not to return to Elina's. There are too many fantastic Italian restaurants in Chicago with great food, transparent payment policies, and hospitable service where we would rather spend our dining dollars. Don't waste your time. read more

The table we were sat at was literally inches away from tables on either side of us. The food was average at best. We ordered our meal 5 mins before the table next to us who ordered the exact same meals as us. They were served well before we were. At some point in the night they decided rap music was appropriate for an intimate Italian dinner. The tiramisu dessert was very good. Will not be back. read more

Went to Elina's for a Valentine's Day dinner date and when I tell this place lives to the hype! The Ambiance screams romance which was perfect. The service was good and quick. The food, man when I tell you it was good. We ordered the chopped salad which was hands down one of my favorite salads I've ever had from a restaurant. The house bread with salami and pickled egg plant was delish. For entrees we order the rigatoni, ribs, and chicken parmigiana. I will say that the rigatoni was phenomenal but the star of the show were the ribs. They were savory with some sweet and enough acid to balance. We will definitely becoming back for those. I will say the chicken parm was a little overhyped in my opinion, it was good but nothing to write home about but everything else was beyond stellar. This place is a must try! read more

Great food, great service, and amazing vibes at Elina's. We came from Michigan to celebrate my 40th birthday on the recommendation of several friends who live in the area. We were not disappointed! We will definitely be back again soon. read more