Reviews & Ratings for The Rosebud

12/30/11

Excellent Gluten Free Pasta

by Dominicthorn at Citysearch

You no longer have to sacrifice great taste and texture to get a delicious gluten free pasta meal at Rosebud. The glueten free pasta is made with all organic ingredients. We enjoyed the Gluten Free Pasta Primavera in Garlic Olive Oil. Which is the perfect mixture of yellow squash, zucchini, mushrooms, bell peppers, carrots and sweet peas in a an amazing garlic olive oil sauce. The Rosebud Restaurants have decided to be pro-active and offer multiple gluten-free dining options. Remember to ask your server for a list of gluten-free dining options since they may only have a few may be on the menu.

05/30/10

Some of the worst Italian I've ever had.

by dysphoric at Citysearch

I am quite sure that at one point this was a great restaurant. I've talked to a few native Chicagoans and they said when they were kids this place was considered a hot location.

For whatever reasons (maybe a lot of midwestern tourists keep them afloat) this place is AWFUL. Cold diced tomatoes served on wet TOAST is not an appetizer. The calamari was drenched in butter and fibrous, tendony and mediocre. The main course, the pounded veal, was unremarkable, but at least edible. It appeared to be soaked in some kind of canned tomato stock.

The people who love this restaurant probably think the Olive Garden is great Italian food. If you agree with them, then go ahead and spend 5x as much eating there.

• Pros: At least they didn't charge us for appetizers.
• Cons: poorly made, poorly presented, bad food.

09/26/09

Horrible And Unacceptable!

by jimkev at Citysearch

First of all my wife wanted to celebrate her 50th Birthday at Rosebuds on Taylor. I thought great we have been going there periodically over thirty years. So i called and made reservations two days ahead of time. I asked for window seats and the person i spoke to said this would be no problem if i were to come in a little later around 9 p.m. I agreed and left all the infomation they required over the phone. When my two sons my wife and myself arrived I was told by Nick some twenty something ,that i would not be getting a window seat. After nicely explaining to him i had requested these seats days prior to, and was told this should not be a problem Nick informed me that he doubted the person on the phone told me that. Too bad because that was the wrong answer. Very unproffesional and inapporpriate attitude. So of course we were than given the seats from hell, in between two other parties crushed like sardines . Needless to say it was a very unenjoyable experience. And i would not have written this if not for my two sons infoming me that the internet is a powerful force. So if this deters just one person from not going to Rosebud on Taylor GREAT. P.S. It all starts from the top Nickey boy, and we will find a new Italian restaurant after this experience!

• Pros: Leaving
• Cons: Nick, worst host ever!!

08/02/08

Best Italian in Chicago (so far)

by njs29 at Citysearch

I have tried quite a few Italian restaurants in Chicago (Dinotto, Trattoria Roma, Club Lago, Bice, Quartino's). I found out about this place after reading revieiws for Spiaggia and Coco Pazzo. The cheaper cafes of these two (Spiaggia Cafe and Coco Pazzo Cafe) offer prices comparative to Rosebut and are highly recommended, however, I have not yet been to either.

The Rosebud offers family style portions, so for two people, one dish and one or two appetizers is more than enough.

Many reviews complain about the poor service. I would say taht the service is attentive, however, our server, Vita, was not as friendly as we may have liked. But keep in mind, the servers at The Rosebud are not 20 somethings bouncing around the restaurant like eager bunnies looking to please you and checking on you every 5 minutes. The service at Rosebud was good, not exceptional, but what I will be going back for is the food.

I had the Eggplant Parm and my wife had the Rigatone a la Vodka. Both were amazoing and we had enough leftover for dinner the next day. The eggplant parm was probably the best i have ever had.

Ambiance is good: dimly lit, and nice wood panel decor. Not the most romantic place since there were plenty of large tables (great for families) with kids, but the

restaurant was quiet enough for a romanttic dinner.

Street parking is available (be sure to pay the meter and leave receipt slip on your dashboard) but most people elect to use the valet. I recommend making reservations and opt for the tables by the Taylor st windows!

Overall, I highly recommend this place!

• Pros: Lots of great food (family style dining) at a good price.
• Cons: parking may be hard to find.

06/08/08

Wonderful food, excellent service

by StevenMichaels at Citysearch

My wife had the Ciapono and I had the Eggplant Parmigiano. Both were enormous portions, the eggplant thinly sliced and baked (not pan fried), delicate and delicious. The presentation on the Ciapono was appealing, and the calamari in the Ciapono was the tenderest I have eaten in a long time. We had the Ensalada Caprese, thick slices of tomato and delightfully fresh mozarella, topped with a thin slice of sweet onion and roasted red sweet peppers, and of course the fresh basil and tasty aged balsamic. We ate on a busy Saturday night, but service was brisk and attentive without being intrusive, and speed was consistent with meals made from scratch. A delightful authentic Little Italy experience, such as Chicago is known for.

03/16/08

Horrible service, Outstanding food

by margolis at Citysearch

I'll keep this short and simple. My brick chicken was amazing. His pasta side and chicken Marsala was great. Our beverages were outstanding. OUR WAITER WAS THE WORST EXAMPLE OF SERVICE EVER IN THE HISTORY OF MAN. I WANTED TO POKE HIS EYES OUT WITH MY FORK. HE RUINED OUR SPECIAL OCCASION WITH HIS FUMBLING INEPTITUDE AND COMPLETE LACK OF INTEREST IN OUR TABLE. WE WILL NOT RETURN!

• Pros: Excellent food
• Cons: Horrible service

11/11/07

Classic Italian

by Celstrial at Citysearch

I wanted to try the original location, never had any of the other Rosebuds. Made reservations a week ahead of time, had a window-side table. Great antipasto plate, classic caprese salad. All the pasta plates are classic, well made, perfectly seasoned. On the table were veal marsala, shrimp broccoli shells, and rigatoni with vodka sauce, everything was great! Generous portions, good times. Classic cannolli and creme brulee for dessert. Can not express how simple yet wonderful everything was. Highly recommended.

• Pros: classic italian, reasonable prices, good ambiance
• Cons: none

10/18/07

Great

by lauraflower at Citysearch

Food is awesome. Service is good too. Try the mushrooms for an appitizer. They are almost as thick as steak. If you go on a day you can sit outside, you will really enjoy it very much.

• Pros: Great food
• Cons: Price

04/09/06

Must Try

by waynefoodie at Citysearch

Went with a party of six. Were were seated right away and had an awesome waiter who patiently explained everything. Everyone loved their meal. The sea bass special was very, very good, but very pricey at $36 (the waiter did not say) Another special was also $36. Regular menu prices are much lower. Expensive drink prices. Stick with the better priced pastas and have a great meal. Old Blue eyes is there overlooking you.

• Pros: Pasta , service, seafood
• Cons: expensive specials

10/13/05

The Loooong Wait

by olde_bookworm at Citysearch

Arrived with a party of 10 at 6 pm on a saturday. we had reservations and were seated promptly. after the wine was served, and some bread and oil, out table was cleared of food and we had no service and no food for 1 and 1/2 hours. when the food did arrive the entrees were hot but the sides were cold. we wanted to impress our out of town guests, and we did,badly! never again.

• Pros: good valet, good taste of food
• Cons: poor service, veerry slooow