Petterinos

Tuesday night was reunion night for a college friend of mine and myself.  There were three of us that went out in all, and in trying to find reasonably priced places in the loop itself (think the financial / theater district) within walking distance of all of us, we decided on a restauarant called Petterinos.  It's on Dearborn and if you dine in after 7pm, they offer free valet service!

Overall, the atmosphere was excellent.  It likens itself closely to Maggianos, but then again, how could it not?  It, too, is a Lettuce Entertain Your Restaurant, and they all seem to have similarities amongst them, so another Italian style restaurant echoing Maggianos only seemed to be expected.  The booths, however, we very spacious, and it was never hard to hear each other talk. 

While we weren't going to the theater ourselves, the restaurant does offer "Theater" fair, or a $30, fixed-price meal option, for those patrons who find themselves heading to the theater after dinner.  The options seemed nice, although I do not know the specifics.  They can, however, be found on the restaurant's website.  My friends and I decided on the $20 menu option (available after 7pm), where you can choose an appetizer, main course and dessert from the options given on the menu.  My appetizer ceasar salad left something to be desired, as the dressing and flavor was lacking, but a friend had the corn chowder and said it was excellent.  My potato-crusted tilapia was outstanding.  Everyone at the table wanted bites!  Definitely highly recommended even if you don't choose the fixed menu option.  The blue-cheese steak was really fatty; I would probably pass.  Then my dessert was the chocolate ovation cake.  A-MAZING!!!  It was dense chocolate yumminess with a layer of raspberry goodness and raspberry drizzle.  It is intensely rich, but proved a wonderful end to the meal.  Walking a mile and half back to my car also helped, but we'll just say point goes to the tilapia and the chocolate cake.  :-) 

Wines of the night?  I had the Malbec, which was smooth, a little spicy and a great full-bodied wine.  Definitely worth the $9 a glass.  My friends said their Cab Sav and Reisling were equally delicious.  The service?  Ehhhhh, menza menz.  It could have been better, although the waitress definitely left us alone.

So, overall... probably a 3/5 for the restaurant and experience.  Try it for yourself, but get a good glass of wine and stay away from the NY strip steak!