Francesco's Hole In the Wall

Recommended by a friend and headed to the Marriott theater afterwards, we were there promptly at 5 PM to make sure we got a table as there are no reservations. With the ever-changing menu on the wall we had a difficult time making a decision but so happy with what we ordered. The good crunchy on the outside soft inside Italian bread with olive oil and Parmesan cheese was the best Italian bread ever. My mom wanted to try the Chicken Vesuvio and it was delicious. I went for the Osoco Bucco, which was fall off the bone tender and tasty. We ended our meal with some spumoni and two cappuccinos. It's a little bit far from me but would go out of my way to come back here and try other dishes. Our waitress, Jenny, was friendly and informative of the menu, we enjoyed sitting in a covered outdoor patio, which was quaint.

Great food and excellent service. The calamari was delicious- well seasoned and big portions. I had the shell pasta with veal meatballs in a light tomato sauce and it was yummmmmm! The meatballs were not dry and were full of flavor. For dessert, I recommend the angel cake with vanilla gelato- portion enough to share between 2-3 people!We brought our baby, and while they were really nice about it I would not recommend small children- no high chairs and small (somewhat cramped) space. If you do bring kids, come early! They were very accommodating and super sweet to our baby but the spot itself isn't the best for families with small children.

They don't take reservations and it's a small restaurant so the wait can be very long. However, if you're in no rush and want really delicious food- the wait is worth it. You can avoid the rush by going in right when they open and can be guaranteed a spot that way too. We went with a party of 8 for a birthday and waited a little over an hour. We didn't mind, as we were busy catching up and chatty. You can order a drink while you wait and that's exactly what we did. The menu is on the wall and it changes daily. Our group shared appetizers of: calamari- my favorite here bc it's so light and sauce is also light. It really tastes like Italy bc how simple it isGrilled artichokes- holy!! Soooo good! It is fork tender and just melts. Amazing flavors. On to the entrees-Everyone ordered their own but I was lucky enough to try a bite. I ordered the sea bass and it was divine. My sisters gf ordered the lobster bucatini and that was so delicious too! My husband ordered a rigatoni and that was probably my least favorite. My father in law loved his skirt steak and mother in law also loved her pasta dish. My husband's family is Italian so considering everyone was licking their plate was a good sign. LOLI ordered the bread cake and it was delicious.The service was fantastic and our waitress didn't skip a beat with funny sarcasm and jokes. My FIL can have crude jokes and she fired back hilariously!! Soo funny! We all had an amazing time and the owner even stopped by and chatted with us for a bit. We will definitely be back but preferably in a smaller group or earlier so we don't have to wait as long.

Small. Busy. Fresh pasta. Intimate. Must get there on time with the no reservation policy. The food is plentiful but not overwhelming. The menu is written on the wall, and it's updated as the night goes on. Get there early and enjoy.

In honor of Zack and Cody's 730pm reservation at Gigis on November 16th, 2023, I got Italian for lunch with my mom at Francesco's. Francesco's hole in the wall, is truly a hole in the wall on lake cook rd. It's been here forever and I've never noticed it. But Im glad I finally did. The servings were big enough that I split everything with my mom and still left plenty full. The grilled calamari and shrimp is the largest plate of grilled calamari I've gotten at a restaurant. The brussel sprouts so perfectly soft, mine never turn out like this when I cook them myself. Then they were able to substitute gluten free pasta for the lobster, shrimp and crab in a garlic olive oil sauce with some roasted tomatoes pasta dish. The menu is written by hand on the whiteboard every lunch and dinner as their menu revolves around what are the freshest ingredients they can buy at the time.

Honestly well worth the drive! If you want authentic Italian dishes and an experience this is the place! I would definitely drive an entire day just to have dinner here! They accommodate any request no matter how odd. The daily specials are very fun! It keeps the restaurant fresh and fun! Call ahead for a daily menu that will be texted to your phone. It's a very authentic experience that whisks you back to that fun summer vacation you took to Italy overlooking the vineyards. The pasta is always fresh made in house and cooked to perfection. The sauces are unique and all taste totally different and unique from one another. If you want authentic this is the place! They never cease to amaze me! Definitely well worth the 3hr drive HANDS DOWN Every-time!

Fracesco's gives you the feeling of home. It is tightly packed inside and super busy, so expect to wait for a table. The service was awesome. The menu is just on the wall, so maybe take a picture while you are waiting so you can decide what you are getting so you do not have to strain your neck haha. Everything was delicious. 10/10.

This place not to be mistaken as the Francesca's chains. It's a stand-alone restaurant by a completely different owner. The food is deliciously addictive. It's a small place, I mean less than 40 tables (estimating). It's one room and they don't take reservations. The menu is on the wall and there is always a wait for a table so you'll have plenty of time to decide. If you don't see it on the menu, chances are high that they can make it for you! Now that's top notch service! The baked clams are SO FREAKING DELICIOUS! Seriously, not even exaggerating here. I could just have 4 dozen as my entree and still want more! Fried calamari always seems to taste better here than other restaurants, maybe it's what they season it with after being fried. Even if you don't have an appetizer, the warm and crusty bread that gets brought out is highly addictive! My husband loves their veal chop, it's tender and prepared perfectly. It's a large portion so depending on how hungry he is, it makes a good lunch the next day too! He's also a huge fan of their spicy seafood diavolo with linguine. They put in ample amounts of seafood like lobster, shrimp, scallops, clams, and salmon. The pasta and grilled bread is just the right thing to sop up all the very spicy sauce. My favorites are the osso bucco with risotto, the bucatini with lobster, crab and shrimp, and the black linguini with mussels, clams, and cherry tomatoes. The osso bucco is melt in your mouth delicious and there's nothing more sinful than digging out the marrow with a tiny shrimp fork to spread on a small piece of fresh bread. The black linguini is prepared just right with an ample amount of clams and mussels. There is a down side to the dish - the last few times the clams and mussels were not cleaned well so all the sand and grit really ruined the dining experience. The bucatini is just as delicious, but the last time I ordered it there was no lobster and they used fake crab (Gross!), and there was tiny broken pieces of salmon - it looked like someone's leftover meal and wasn't quite what I expected. It was rather disappointing since I wanted lobster and crab with pasta. They didn't let me know about the substitutions and NO quality restaurant should serve fake crab in place of real crab!I guess I'll stick to the osso bucco or something more consistent.

We are from California and found this gem on Yelp! The food is delicious with a menu that changes daily depending upon the fresh ingredients available. After having a stuffed clam appetizer, we decided to return the next evening even before we had our entrees! Sadly the best server ever, Laura told us that they are closed Tuesdays.We will return home thinking about the wonderful pasta meals and the delightful Laura.PS the gnocchi and the linguine are the bomb!!! And don't even get me started on the butter cake

We took a group of 6. The food was delicious. The fried artichokes and pastas were delicious. The service was excellent. The owner was so kind and hospitable. This is the 2nd time we have come after visiting Chicago and will most definitely come again!