Food is always very good Their pastas are fresh and well designed It's a bit on the expensive side but pretty much worth it Staff and service are excellent read more

We mostly enjoyed a couples dinner here. The ambiance is much improved with better lighting and a bit more roomy. The menu is solid with all the Italian stand bys and decent specials. A good wine list too. We the fresh baked bread is a nice touch with parm and EVOO. It was a packed house and our server was trying her best but just couldn't keep up -- there were long waits between service steps and the lack of attention to water refills became annoying. We enjoyed our food-- the Caesar salads were fresh and crisp and the entrees were generously portioned-- the spinach ravioli, vodka sauce rigatoni, shrimp linguine, and eggplant parm. My EP parm was excellent -- still crispy with tasty marinara sauce and a nice portion of gooey mozzarella-- the side of linguine with tomatoes and spinach was a nice surprise. We enjoyed the Santa Julia Malbec bottle too. They tack on a 3% charge that the staff doesn't share in so we asked to remove it. Overall good but the service needs to level up! read more

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This was our first time visiting this Italian restaurant, and it was a really good experience. I took my nephew, and he ordered the vodka pasta. He loved it, though he wasn't a fan of the sausage mixed in. I had the eggplant Parmesan, which was tasty, just a bit too saucy for my liking. The menu has a lot of options, which made it easy for both of us to find something we wanted. The service was great--friendly, attentive, and on top of things even though the restaurant was packed. It was a Thursday night, and the place was buzzing, but everything still came out smoothly. Overall, we enjoyed our meals and the atmosphere, and I would definitely come back to try more dishes. read more

Service was not good from the start. The host was rude to my companion while we were there to celebrate her for Mother's Day. Not just that we had a reservation and were told we had to wait as there were no tables available. But there's nowhere to wait in the entrance of the restaurant as waiters fly by with plates of food to deliver to customers on the patio. We won't be going back. read more

The restaurant had a nice little section in the back for parties and separate restrooms. No automatic soap dispenser or paper towel dispenser or flush though. The fried calamari was crispy and light. The marinara sauce went well with it. I do like the lemon slices. The mushroom polenta was delicious. It was a little like a stiff pudding where I could cut off a piece of it. It tasted buttery or cheesy as well as a light mushroom flavor. The salad was fresh with green beans and snap peas. It had a balsamic vinaigrette that wasn't too tart. The rigatoni was al dente, which I liked with the typical marinara sauce on it. The sausage was flavorful. The salmon was moist and tender, very delicious with the spinach. The grape tomatoes were cooked. The cheese cake was light and creamy. It wasn't too heavy. They refilled my glass of water and tea quite regularly. I needed a lot of water from a long couple of days. read more

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Food amazing Service amazing Ambience. Tight! Prices perfecto! Parking in back The gnocchi is sooooo yummy read more

Had my sister's memorial luncheon here and Ivan and Benny were amazingly attentive to the needs of the gathering. Top ratings from both of these men and the general manager as well. Keep up the terrific work! read more

We went there on a busy weekday with reservations and were seated instantly started with a Francesca chopped salad it was split by 3 people as an appetizer. Also got a delicious fried calamari. Tender with a super light breading served with a fantastic marinara Which went great. If you order the calamari hit it with the lemon slice. It britens up the taste We decided to then order all specials off the special menu. We ordered risotto with seafood which was cooked perfectly. It had excellent scallops and large shrimp, tail on. It had a garlic, tomato base which paired perfectly with the risotto the waiter brought fresh bread along with oil and grated cheese it was all delicious I liked that they brought the oil in a little bottle of Evoo and a dish of cheese I made my mix and got pepper to taste. Then we ordered the halibut in a light lemon sauce with scallops and jumbo shrimp it was another winner perfectly cooked and seasoned. Enough for 2 after all the other food. The risotto dish was enough for 2. Every special dish we ordered was super tasty and enough to share then for dessert we ordered a unique Carmel pudding with gelato and as you might guess it was delicious. The pudding part was cake like paired perfectly with a delicious caramel tasting gelato and that was the end of an amazing meal with excellent service and perfect ambiance. Although they were busy it was very quiet in the dining room our table of 4 was able to talk and converse no problem. It was a10/10 experience from service to food. Total pleasure to eat there. From water to cocktails. All excellent top notch. Great ambiance and food from appetizers to mains. All pretty perfect read more

This little eatery tucked off the main trail is well worth the visit. In pursuit of a good Italian restaurant, some key questions to ask, do they have good bread, good olive oil? Yes. Good calamari? Definitely. What about a good vodka sauce? I absolutely recommend the rigatoni with vodka sauce. There is a pleasant upscale eating area with a comfortable atmosphere. This is a place that I long to revisit. read more

We really enjoyed our dinner--salad, two pasta entrees, and dessert. All were delicious and were appropriately sized. Becca was a great server who nicely spaced out our courses and wine. She checked on us without overdoing it. I'm always happy to support a Northbrook restaurant. read more

I have been eating at Francesca's all over the city and suburbs for over 20 years. I LOVE them so much! I only drop a star for two reasons: (1) they have recently returned pizza to the menu and it was terrible and (2) I just athe lunch pannino and it wasn't worth the calories. Everything else they do is amazing! I fully recommend the Carpaccio! read more

Had a team event here. Food was ok, service was pretty patient and nice. Good atmosphere. Can be a little slow sometimes. read more

Francesca's North - Italian Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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We celebrated my husband's birthday at Francesca's North this past Friday. The food is ALWAYS awesome here. Our waiter, Moises, was so warm and friendly. read more

I co-hosted a birthday party for my wife and it could not have been better. Moises and his crew did a great job of servicing the event. The private room was perfect, and everyone raved about the food. The menu, from appetizers to desserts was perfectly served and the generous portions meant that no one left hungry. Many of the guests took home their leftovers to enjoy a second meal. I cannot say enough about Moises attentiveness to the details so that the event was the perfect party for my wife. read more

Good food. Good service. Good times! I just wish they found a way to figure out the acoustics.

We've always loved this place, but they've kicked it up a notch after a recent remodeling. Great mussels and pasta lunch today with old-fashioned service from veteran Greg H. Give it a try! read more

Service good, food terrible. I ordered rigatoni with vodka sauce. Sauce was yellow not even peach colored. tasted bland!!!! read more

I had the special that night, the lams shanks, and they were prepared to perfection. Terrific Negroni to start and I finished with their superb lemon olive oil cake. All of this was served up graciously by Pablo. read more

Our go-to in Northbrook - and it has been for years!! We rely on the yummy seasonings, quality, great service, and best of all it's local!

Came in over the weekend with out of towners. It's a really neat Italian restaurant. It has 2 dining rooms I had the Vodka Rigatoni which was really good. Highly recommended. read more

I hosted a bridal shower here yesterday, and everything was perfect! We had Greg, Kim and Moises assisting/serving our guests. We made a timetable for when each course should be served in between all of the bridal shower games. This team brought everything out at exactly the right time. Our guests were very happy with the food quality and service. The entire staff is great! I highly recommend this restaurant for private events! Their private event coordinator, Lisa, is very helpful and responsive as well. read more

Francesca's North - Italian Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

The food was delicious but we felt rushed by the food runners. They brought our main course before clearing the plates from the 1st course. Also, at this quality they should know what seat gets what dish. My husband is handicapped and they tried to hand him a hot plate across the table! Our server was helpful, but not always observant about what was happening. read more

I had an amazing dinner at Francescas's North. I consider myself to be a foodie and am not in the habit of writing reviews but was compelled to after last night. I had the Pesce Lombarda which is sauteed cod, jumbo shrimp, capers, tomatoes, baby spinach, pinenuts, lemon and white wine. Positively one of the BEST meals I have had in my life! And that includes restaurants in our beautiful north shore, Chicago as well as in Europe. To complement this, we ordered a bottle of "The Critic" which we all thoroughly enjoyed! And it was 50% off the bottle as is their Tuesday tradition. Always love a deal! Service with Pablo Martinez was stellar, so warm and friendly! This experience gets an A+ in my book!!!!!!!!!! read more

We went to Francesca's North based upon the fantastic reviews and we were not disappointed. All the food we had was delicious and the drinks were great. Equally important as the food and drink, all the staff at the restaurant were extremely friendly, attentive, and accommodating as we were with our young children. Our waiter, Moses, was the best. He had great food and drink recommendations and could anticipate all our needs with our children, which made our dining experience as parents with young children enjoyable. Thank you, Moses! We will be returning! read more

Why has Francescas's been around so long? Consistency, quality and service. They do it all properly. They warmly greet you when you enter, the table service is fast and friendly, the food, while not Michelin quality, :) is very good. They're simply well managed and they provide a consistent quality experience. Highlighted dishes that were fantastic: Francesca's salad, lentils and goat cheese, fried calamari, half roasted chicken, sautéed mushroom. For the burbs, it's very solid and never disappoints. read more

We came for lunch. Our server Kim was amazing. Really great vibes. Great personality. She had good suggestions for menu items and drinks. We loved her! read more

We had a beautiful evening at Francesca's North recently. . Everyone was so friendly, and, our food was so delicious. Our server, MOISIE, was outstanding! He made sure that my food selection would be gluten free. He also offered excellent selections for our desserts. My husband had the gluten free flourless chocolate cake, and, I had a gluten free banana fudge gelato. Both were fabulous. We can't wait to return! read more

Food and service are excellent. Moises was our server and he was attentive and kind to our elderly parents. Fish was prepared very well. The braised lentils are great. Sat outside in a lovely evening. read more

Easy parking, Great food....go early evening before it gets very noisy. Try the mussels and also try the sausage and peppers(outstanding)

5 stars for food! 5 stars for service! We were seated promptly and greeted by our server Pablo. I already knew it was going to be a great night with Pablo as our server. He was enthusiastic and provided excellent service! The drinks came out SUPER fast as well as our food. All our dishes were timed perfectly and we thoroughly enjoyed our meal! It had been awhile since I got to see my girlfriend so we definitely got talking and Pablo never rushed us out. He encouraged us to stay as long as we wanted and we enjoyed more drinks and conversation through the night! He checked in with us at the right moments and always made sure everything was the way we expected. I'll definitely be back and I'll be asking for Pablo! Now for the food! I highly recommend the bruschetta, the mushroom ravioli AND the raspberry beret cocktail. I had 3 and wanted more! It was absolutely delicious! The mushroom ravioli was truly the highlight of the evening. It was absolutely delicious! Pablo treated us to a tiramisu for dessert for my birthday. It was more like a fluffy creamy chocolate cake more than your typical tiramisu coffee/espresso flavor but it was still delicious and the perfect way to end our evening. Definitely recommend Francesca's and I'm super glad it's so close to home. Can't wait to come back and try some of their other dishes. I'll be back Pablo! Thank you for a great evening! read more

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Had a very nice team lunch here a few months ago. Food was delicious, with a special nod to the artichokes and eggplant caprese. Decor was elegantly holiday. Service was hit or miss. read more

The food was good but the waiter kept touching me when ever she would talk she would grab me

Been here often, perfect go to in downtown Northbrook. Good for ladies lunch, couples date night, or family dinner. If it's so great than why only 3 stars you ask. I'll tell you in one word, expense. My pasta with eggplant and spicy tomato sauce was $25. I know expenses on food items and good help has gone up but I don't think that's the case with pasta or eggplant. Additionally, the sauce was barely spicy but I recognize it might've been too spicy for some reading this review, personal taste. The host was quirky but kind. They've smashed more tables into their space and our little table wasn't in a particularly good spot, my husband and/or his chair was banged into multiple times. The waiter was adequate and I wish him well, he needs to calm down a bit, he told us several times, "you're food is on it's way" and we could hardly decipher what he was trying to say. Also, it's not like we were waiting so long. Anyway, the bread is good. Lastly, they seem to have taken the pizza off the new menu. This was my husband's go to. Please bring it back as we, despite the 3 stars, will likely keep returning because of the convenient location. read more

Francesca's North - New menu - Italian Near Me - Northbrook, Illinois

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We were going to eat outside but it was a rainy evening g so we went inside, they were able to accommodate that change pretty seamlessly. Tables were spaced very closely together, which lead to feeling a bit cramped. Our server was good friendly, helpful. There was a large party in party room. 2 people ordered the a chicken dish and 2 ordered pasta. About 10minutes later server informed us the chicken dish wasn't available. Huh? It was only 7pm on a weekday? Was it due to large party? Idk? Then pasta dishes took @ least 20minutes after that? Server apologized and the manager did buy us drinks and dessert. The pasta dish was ok. I don't think I would run back to this restaurant but as crowded as they were on a weeknight Mabe they don't need me too? read more

My mother unexpectedly passed away late last week and I was tasked with finding a luncheon location for our guests and had limited time in which to do so. I reached out to a handful of area restaurants on a Sunday late morning, but Megan at Francesca's kindly replied back to me within the hour. Already I felt completely comfortable and at ease with making our plans @ Francesca's - the next day after speaking with family we confirmed our party. The day of, we could not have asked for better food and kinder service. Margo, Robbie and Greg were fantastic - we always had full glasses of wine, refills of whichever dish we had asked for, and leftovers packaged up at the front table. One of our guests even arrived late (like after dessert late) and they made him a fresh plate of hot food. Everyone was full and happy, sharing memories of mom. Francesca's really made a very difficult time so much easier for us - I highly recommend their venue for a private party, as it was outstanding read more

We went to Francesca's North for lunch. We were disappointed with the lunch menu because it was just salads, sandwiches, and pasta dishes. We were hoping for other choices like chicken limone, veal, vesuvio, etc. Once we resigned ourselves to pasta, we were not disappointed. They served nice fresh bread as a starter with all the makings for Italian butter (grated Parmesan, olive oil, black pepper). Greg, our waiter, was cheery, delightful, funny, and attentive. Our pasta dishes were exceptional. I had the mezza rigatoni alla melanzane. It was delicious. I added in half in the sausage and peppers contorni, which itself was quite tasty. The overall combo came out just as I like - a bit spicy, peppery, good tomato presence, and filling. I had to take about half home. One disappointment is you have to add contorni to get protein so when you add in a protein add on, your lunch meal is now like $25 a person, an expensive lunch compared to pasta meals of many other comparable restaurants. We finished with tiramisu, which they do almost perfectly. Too many restaurants serve tiramisu with dry or nearly dry lady fingers. At Francesca's North they properly marinated the bottom layer of lady fingers in espresso so it was moist, juicy, and overflowing with espresso. The higher, second Lady Finger layer was not as thoroughly soaked but overall the dish had adequate espresso marinating and was one of the better tiramisu I have had at any Chicago area restaurant. read more

Great food and friendly , fast service. We were able to get a last minute reservation . read more

Pablo was a great. Quality service that was not too much and not too little, just right.

Food was good. Service was ok. Restaurant was clean. They really squeezed us is where we had to move the table so someone could sit down. Prices have increased significantly. I know it has gotten more expensive to eat out but shocked at how much the prices have increased here. Although the food was good, not sure I will be back. read more

I've been to this Northbrook location several times the past month and everything was good. Unfortunately my visit today was poor. Had 6:30 reservations and was seated quickly (that's the only thing they got right) After sitting for 15 minutes we had to wave down a waiter to get acknowledged and receive service. The restaurant was only 1/2 full. The poor service was followed up by my salmon dish being served cold (waited a long time for entrees to be served). My wife's pasta was hot. Now we're waiting another 15 minutes to receive our bill. We were never asked if we'd like dessert just basically ignored the entire visit. Tab came and it was just shy of $100, a complete waste of time and money. Where was the management? read more