Great service I had the paella. It was good but Ive had better. The drinks were delicious and the decor was nice.

I came here tonight with family. The food is outstanding, the waiter was kind, helpful, and solicitous. The manager was very complimentary of his staff, and very sincere. This was a delightful place. I would highly recommend this restaurant! read more

Loved, Loved it!! Great food from being to end.. you get what you pay for but worth every penny!! Best food and satisfaction in a very long time.. A++ read more

I have visited this restaurant for Sunday brunch and for dinner. They are doing so little business I think it will not survive. The brunch was good. The dinner was not. There was only one other table of two and yet the service was terrible. We couldn't get a waiter to take our order or to bring the check upon finishing our meals. My friend and I each had just one item and we asked the waiter to put hers on her credit card and mine on mine. The meals were twice as much on the one than the other. When we finally got the check back he had done the opposite of what we asked. We then sat and exchanged cash to make it work. I didn't feel good after my meal and still had indigestion the following day. Ugh. read more

High hopes but will need to try one more time. Good: attentive and nice waitperson, generous portions of tapas, flavorful, nice variety. Not so good: we also ordered entrees and they took forever to arrive. pizza seemed undercooked and pasta dishes overcooked. read more

Service was horrible from start to end. When me and my date got seated right away, but we waited a good 10 min before any water was served along some burnt bread. I had asked the young man who brought the bread if he could bring out a new bread basket, since it was burnt, and he replied with "sure." The new bread never came to the table. We had ordered a pizza to start and it was under cooked and no flavor. We had ordered the pincho de solomillo and it was a small proportion something barley for one. We both got pasta and it was ok nothing to impressive for it being home made. We would have ordered desert but they had already let us down enough. And don't let me get started on the bathroom it was just a huge mess water and toilet paper all over the sink and floor. They need to get a better staff if they want to last until the end of the year. read more

My husband dislikes eating out because he compares every place to the quality of dining found in his hometown in Sicily. An Italian friend is visiting us and she wanted to eat out, so we convinced him to try Rustico based on the reviews here at Yelp. Happily, we all agreed it was very good! (And this is no small feat!) They happen to carry our preferred bottled water, Smeraldina from Sardinia, which was a good first sign. We ordered two tapas to start, the Pincho de Pollo and the Calamari Con Gambas Frito, both well done, followed with the seafood paella split three ways. Perfect amount of food, and the seafood was all well prepared. The service throughout the evening was excellent--the owner even came out to greet us at our table towards the end of the evening. We'll definitely be back! read more

I am between a rock and a hard place in reviewing Rustico. A 5 star review will help them but limit my chances of getting a table due to the crowds that will dine there. The food is outstanding and the price for wine is good. The service staff are very attentive without being bothersome. We ate outside and the noise from traffic wasn't a problem. I think that the inside could be conversationally challenged so bring your hearing aid or megaphone. This is one of the best restaurants in the suburbs. The owner/Chef takes time to get to know his customers. Class act and worth the drive! read more

Warm ambiance and beautiful place. Food was delicious. We ordered mostly from the hot tapas menu. We ordered the queso cabra, mussels with spicy tomato sauce, fried calamari and shrimp and potato brava. We thoroughly enjoyed the fried calamari and shrimp! Its melts-in-your-mouth tenderness!! We also tried the frutti de mare fetuccini and was also good! For dessert, we ordered caramel banana and tiramisu! One of the best tiramisu I've ever had! I'm giving 4 stars because we feel like service was slow, we saw our dessert sitting on the counter ready to be served but it took a bit while for them to serve it. We will definitely come back and would recommend this place to friends. This place is Definitely a good addition to the area's restaurants. read more

I had dinner with a friend and we loved our experience! We started off with fried Calamari it was hands down the best I've had in a restaurant and the wine selection is very well selected. I ordered the Penne Salsiccia, the sauce was delicious!! I know I will be back soon! read more

Awesome Dining Experience! We had dinner with some friends at Rustico Saturday evening and it was a delicious meal with really good food and wine for a reasonable price. We sat outside because the weather was nice and it was really loud inside. Started off with the clams and brussel sprouts tapas -which were outstanding. We also had the lamb and paella for our main dishes and these were excellent as well. Everything about the restaurant was good--the service, the food and drinks and the prices! I never expected to find such a great restaurant in the burbs but it was better than most places I have been to this year in the city. read more

Went to this restaurant on a Saturday afternoon. In a nutshell, food was fairly decent, but the service is horrendous and it was not even busy. One basket of bread for the entire table (11 of us) and it took four requests with two employees to get more. Food came out in three phases with 10-15 minute intervals. One reason given was that the oven was only big enough to cook one pizza at a time??? Would only allow one person to get a separate check and a very confusing long-winded explanation as to why the rest could not. Final check came and gratuity was already fixed at 22% of subtotal before taxes for a large party (we suspect this is why they would not allow all separate checks). Complained and they forgave $10 off total bill. Food is decent, but the staff has no idea what customer service is. None of us will ever return here. read more

Chief Gaberial does it right. The best dining spot in Oak Park. Highly recommend this place.

Went on a date with the wife for dinner and drinks. We got there at 5 (before a show) so it was relatively empty but it started filling in by 6. We ordered the chicken and goat cheese croquettes and they were very good. The pasta with pork cheeks were delicious as well as the shrimp tapas. We ordered 5 different cocktails and they were all fantastic. We were very pleasantly surprised by how much we liked everything here; ambiance, food, drinks, and service. read more

We were having a party for my sister's birthday and Gabriel not only modified the menu to suit our needs but also personally delivered the trays of food to the OP Conservatory. The food was delicious. Would order from them again without issue! Thank you Gabriel for all your help. read more

Delicious! Many great options! Fresh! But I wouldn't call it tapas, it's more like side dishes to be shared by a large group. I have been there with one other person, and have been there with two other people, and there was still always leftovers. The plates are definitely larger than average for tapas. The food is so delicious, you would LOVE to clean the plates off but it just doesn't happen! You will definitely have leftovers. Of everything I have tried, the albondigas and queso de cabra were meh. The meatballs, as with most tapas places, lack seasoning, and the tomato sauce around the goat cheese tasted like it had been microwaved. But everything else made up for that. The patatas bravas were not too brava, and were coated in delicious sauce, so even picky "I don't like spicy food" folks would enjoy it. Their salads are so full of flavor, and their seafood dishes were cooked perfectly. The service is disappointing - if there are larger groups, you will be forgotten for a stretch of time. But I still look forward to going back with a large group and trying more of their menu. read more

Great new place in OP! Paella was delicious. I do not eat shrimp, and that was no problem as they simply made me a just as delicious paella without the shrimp. Will definitely return soon. read more

This restaurant defines the truth that fantastic food and and an terrific dining experience is available in a suburban location. The restaurant has a fun atmosphere that is a blend of fine dining and casual. They feature their cuisine as Mediterranean, but it seems to skew more Spanish with nice fusion additions, which is wonderful. The staff is joyously friendly and accommodating, and the portions of the tapas are quite generous; more so than any other tapas offerings I have seen. Great selections over the entire menu; after first visit, I have returned twice. Highly recommended without qualification. read more

This is a great addition to Lake Street in Oak Park. We started with brunch & were impressed with the quality of food. The dinner menu looked so interesting that we made a point of going back again soon. We ordered a tapas & two entrees, then were treated to an extra tapas special of roasted Brussels sprouts with mango reduction, yum! The grilled octopus was tender & delicious. I splurged on an entree special of lamb shank with truffle risotto. Lamb was fall off the bone tender, as expected, & the risotto was the best I've ever eaten. The owner came over to check on our meal & mentioned next weeks entree special of Osso Bucco with saffron risotto. We don't usually eat out that often, but I am planning another visit... it was just that good! read more

They know how to make a medium well filet mignon!!!! the meat melts in your mouth!!! the drinks selection is just as good!!!

What a complete disappointment. I was so excited to try this place and everything was wrong. Brick oven pizza was horrible; under cooked crust, tasteless sauce and margharita pizza had literally 2 small pieces of basil, it was completely wrong anyway you look at it. We ordered a few tapas, and all were cooked wrong. The scallops were a special and when arrived at our table, bacon was absolutely missing in the description and would have never ordered. Ravioli were under cooked so much that it was still hard. Not sure how this place is going to survive, it has a beautiful atmosphere, but once people go in, the service is slow, the food is all wrong and maybe just like us, we walked out! Go somewhere else, this place is going to flop. So disappointing that yet another disaster in this exact location, I think this address has a curse! read more

I am so sad to give this restaurant one star. I choose Rustico for my birthday dinner as I have always been a fan of tapas. With the prices a bit higher I waited for a nice occasion. All the dishes we had were pretty bland. The sangria was pretty much grape juice. I wish I could say I'll give it another try but i just can't justify it. :( read more

When my wife and I first looked at the menu, we were not excited because we did not come for pizza and my wife is not a pasta lover, but then we found the tapas menu. We had a side of asparagus, which was grilled and very tasty. We also enjoyed the fried calamari and the pincho de solomillo (beef tenderloin) ... which I recommend ordering medium rare. The caramel bananas with gelato was an excellent conclusion to a meal we thoroughly enjoyed. The coffee was also quality and shows an attention to deal. This was our first visit, and we intend to be back again soon. This is a restaurant that has something for the whole family, as kids will enjoy the pasta and pizza. read more

This is an excellent restaurant! We are visiting from Austin, Tx, where we have amazing restaurants. We tried the gaspacho, the patatas bravas, gambas al ajillo, and the pulpo a la plancha. Everything was the highest quality and prepared immaculately. The octopus was tender and delicious. The waiter recommended an excellent wine, and our whole party was very impressed. Our Oak Park friends are hooked, and we will definitely come next time we visit. read more

My husband and I tried this restaurant this week -- Monday night - we split their house salad and Bolognese -- both delicious - we also split fried banana dessert with gelato - fantastaic -- service good - chef friendly -- I will be going back. read more

Love, love, love. Enjoyed first meal at Rustico. Soooo good! Great menu, great food and drinks (loved the bottomless mimosas and bellinis), cute interior, and the service was attentive. Can't wait to go back! This may be one of my new oak park favs. read more

While we miss Fuego Loco which was in this space, Rustico has turned out to be a fantastic replacement. The food is consistently exceptional. We had brussel sprouts, calamari, and a "beet tower" for appetizers. You can find similar dishes elsewhere but the prep here resulted in the best tasting versions we've ever had. The salmon stuffed ravioli was to die for. And the service was great too. The staff clearly wants to stand out and treated us like special guests on New Year's Eve. The chef personally served us shots of tequila which were in addition to the complementary glasses of champagne. There weren't any weaknesses which is why I'm giving it 5 stars. Plus I want to give this place a boost so it will stick around. We're always interested in helping out good restaurants close to home, and Oak Park has come a long way in the past 10 years. Rustico is a great addition. read more

Rustico is a neighborhood restaurant that we go to on a fairly regular basis. The food, service and ambiance are always top notch. An added plus is that we usually know people at multiple tables so we are always able to have conversations with other diners. The last time we went our server was Freddie - it is the first time he was our server. He made our meal an incredible treat. I usually like to talk up our server and Freddie was up to the challenge. All of us spent a lot of time laughing and when we left Freddie and I gave each other a hug. We will definitely ask for him next time we go. Highly recommend this venue. Bob read more

Great lunch at Rustico with my wife and daughter. Two appetizers, brussels sprouts and queso de cabra, a mushroom & sausage pizza, and two spinach salads. All delicious. Great atmosphere. We'll be back! Thanks! read more

I love Rustico. I can't believe this place isn't packed every night of the week. I feel like since the business here before opened and closed so quickly people do not even give this place a chance. But the food is really authentic and the entire staff is so friendly. Support your local business and go to Rustico! read more

We got the shrimp and calamari appetizer which was really good. Service was good, servers were friendly. I was pretty disappointed with my pasta dish. I ordered Amatriciana, a favorite Roman dish of mine, but this pasta tasted nothing like amatriciana - it was more like a bolognese that needed salt. I think it's a little overpriced for the quality of the food. read more

Went there with my family on a Sunday night and was pleasantly surprised when we walked in the door. Atmosphere was nice, staff was exceptional, and the food was excellent. Had appetizers , entrees, and desserts and can say we had no complaints what's so ever, will definitely be going back as soon as possible! read more

Probably our best meal during a long weekend in Oak Park. While the tapas were tempting, we went for the cod and lamb chop entrees, and they were delicious. We loved sitting out front on a beautiful evening, and arrived late so may not be the best judge of the atmosphere and service - which was quiet and great, respectively. As he was finishing up his night, owner/chef Gabriel stopped to chat, and was as charming as his food is good. We hope to come back on our next trip to Chicago! read more

This place is HOT! I live in the area but always end up in the city to find these type of dishes and quality. Oak Park needed a new and vibrant resturant. A must try because soon you will not find a table available. The food is delicious and ventures with great drinks to quench the thirst. An added touch was talking to the Chef. He walked around each table and asked how everyone was doing, I can't remember the last time I had a chance to do that. It shows they are committed to their customers and the community of Oak Park. I'll be back with company! read more

Wonderful restaurant with amazing food and fantastic service. Came back for my birthday dinner and it was even better than our first visit. Highly recommend. read more