Francesca’s Famiglia (Barrington)

It's Friday night and time to eat at a new restaurant for Ginger and me.  We made reservations earlier in the week at a place affiliated with Fat Rosie's in Schuamburg, Illinois.  Expectations were high for Francesca's Famiglia in Barrington, Illinois. The reservation was made in a proprietary reservation system similar to Open Table but without the description of the restaurant atmosphere or ability to indicate a special occasion as it was in this case.  We were celebrating our anniversary and based on the menu and prices I had to make some assumptions.  In special requests I requested a booth.   

We arrived right on time and were promptly escorted to... not a booth but a table for four despite booths for four empty and apparently available.  Oh well so much for special requests.  The room was smaller than I anticipated and definitely the tables were closer to each other than in other recent dining experiences.  Obviously social distancing was no longer deemed necessary here.  It was not an intimate environment and the noise was much louder than we expected.  The music didn't fit the theme but was more a sport's bar vibe and definitely intrusive in the dining room.  The dining room was separated from the bar by a room divider that acted as a screen but I caught a glimpse of it as we walked in.  There was large screen TV on the wall behind the bar and folks watching some game and talking loudly at the bar and at the few high tops contained there.  The divider didn't stop the music from blaring. 

After we were seated it took a dozen minutes or so before we even got a glass of water.  Bread and parmesan cheese with olive oil was dropped off at our table before we finally did get a server.  We ordered our cocktails and waited until he was back to order calamari as an appetizer.  We continued to tear off morsels of bread to dip in olive oil, pepper and cheese.  It was a good way to get started and I probably ate more bread than I should have.  The calamari arrived and frankly they were ho-hum.  Not terrible but not outrageous either.  Definitely missing seasoning.  I have had calamari in many, many cities and in many restaurants.  The gold standard for me is a place in NYC... a little mom and pop named Mama's Ristorante with about ten tables.  Outstanding and not the chewy type often served in places I have been.  These weren't rubber band texture but had some chewiness to them.   

We ordered our main courses and Ginger selected Frutti Mare Acqua Pazza which is sautéed  jumbo shrimp, sea scallops and calamari with a spicy cherry tomato sauce, capers, garlic and white wine over sautéed spinach. Ginger asked that it not be served with the capers.  I ordered Rigatoni Dei Sardi also sautéed in a tomato sauce with Italian sausage, wild mushrooms, onions, herbs, and parmigiana.  It looked good on the menu and I was looking forward to a good Italian dish.  I enjoy good Italian food and anticipation was making me hungry and was looking around at other tables to catch a glimpse of the food being delivered there.  Our food arrived and it looked delicious.  Ginger was particularly happy with her seafood and vegetables.  My rigatoni was more than al dente. It was too hard. I understand al dente but this needed to be dropped for another 30 seconds or more to hit that perfect al dente texture.  I nibbled around the edges but enjoyed the Italian sausage and sauce.  I knew I wasn't going to eat it all but knew if I took it home I could fix it as a leftover and get the pasta just right.  Ginger was signaling that she probably would be able to eat much of her dish either... darn bread!

As we were eating a table next to us had two young women and three children and they were making a huge ruckus.  The children were rowdy and the two moms took no interest in keeping them from running around and rough housing at the table.  They simply continued drinking their wine and carrying on their louder than necessary conversation.  Finally Ginger turned in her chair and said point blank... "A little loud over there!"  One of the mothers asked her what she said and Ginger repeated it.  They were a bit taken aback but they did manage to quiet down some while giving Ginger's back some less than friendly glares.  

We were finished with our dinner (or should I say half our dinner... darn bread!) and decided to ask for boxes to take home our leftovers.  Our server brought the aluminum round dishes with plastic domes and we scooped our soon to be leftover dinner on Sunday into the containers.  Just as I started to wonder where the server was to bring me the bill he appeared with a cream puff stuffed with gelato and topped with whipped cream and a candle.  I forgot that I had told him we were celebrating our anniversary so this was a nice touch.  Ginger and I appreciated it and we ate the entire thing despite all of that darn bread.

The bottom line is in my opinion this restaurant is struggling with an identity crisis.  Is it a sports bar serving up music and high end bar food or is it an Italian restaurant with a nice menu and a suggestion that it would be a relaxing place for a delicious dinner?  The music, loud buzz and somewhat slow service coupled with some food mistakes makes it hard for me to recommend Francesca's Famiglia.  If you know what this restaurant is about and accurately structure expectations you will have a good time and a good if not a great meal.

https://www.miafrancesca.com/location/mia-francesca-famiglia/