Friday evening says more about Northbrook’s restaurants than any long directory could. Families settle in for pasta, friends meet over drinks, and regulars return to places where the staff already know their faces. Italian food has a particularly loyal following here. Some kitchens have been serving it for decades, so their history belongs as much to the village as the shops and streets around them.
A good dinner does not always fall neatly within Northbrook’s borders, though. Wheeling and Glenview are only a few minutes away, and both bring something different to the table: Georgian dumplings filled with broth, karaoke that runs late, fresh bread, pastries and pistachio-topped cannoli. Together with Northbrook’s old-school trattorias, these nearby places make the local choice considerably more interesting.
Here are five places worth knowing when you’re deciding where to eat in and around Northbrook.
Red Bottle: A Big Menu and a Late Night in Wheeling
Address: 401 E Dundee Rd, Wheeling, IL 60090
Hours: Mon–Thu, 12 PM–12 AM; Fri, 12 PM–2 AM; Sat, 9 AM–2 AM; Sun, 9 AM–12 AM
Specials: More than 60 dishes, full bar, karaoke, live music, trivia and private events
Yelp Ratings: 4.6/5
Usual spend: $20–80 per person
Red Bottle comes in handy when a group has reached an impasse over dinner. One person can order rigatoni alla vodka, another can have steak, and somebody else can ignore both in favour of shawarma. With more than 60 dishes, the restaurant covers far more ground than its Italian and European label suggests.
Pasta includes familiar choices such as Alfredo, while premium steaks, pork medallions and beef stroganoff take care of the heartier side of the menu. There are burgers, stone-baked pizzas, salads, vegetarian options and food for children as well.
Seafood is given plenty of room. Fried calamari is an easy starter to pass around, but the Dark Side of the Sea platter requires more commitment—and preferably more than one fork. House-made desserts are available for anyone who has planned the meal wisely.
Red Bottle becomes livelier after dinner. Karaoke, trivia and live performances take place on selected evenings, with cocktails and other drinks coming from the full bar. Friday and Saturday hours run until 2 AM. It is possible to visit for a quiet early meal, though late-night guests should expect more noise and a much longer stay. The restaurant also hosts private parties.
Francesca’s North: Regional Italian Cooking Since 1995
Address: 1145 Church St, Northbrook, IL 60062
Hours: Sun–Thu, 11:30 AM–9:30 PM; Fri–Sat, 11:30 AM–10 PM
Specials: Private dining, cocktails, vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free choices, Happy hour on Mondays
Google Maps Ratings: 4.8/5
Usual spend: $30–70 per person
Francesca’s North has been serving Italian food in Northbrook since 1995. The kitchen takes its lead from Rome, Tuscany, Umbria and Lazio, keeping the food rustic even though the dining room has a more dressed-up feel. You could plan a birthday dinner here, but there’s no need to save it for a celebration.
The happy hour menu is worth a look, especially if you’d prefer to share a few smaller dishes. Spinach and ricotta arancini come with black truffle fondue; Roman-style fried artichokes, bruschetta and baked goat cheese offer a few other places to start. There are meatball sliders, too, while the pizzetta specials change and seasonal dishes make their way onto the menu.
Francesca’s is also prepared for a table with mixed dietary needs. Vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free dishes are all available. In warmer weather, guests can sit outside; larger groups have the option of a private room.
Francesco’s Hole In the Wall: Four Decades of Family Cooking
Address: 254 Skokie Blvd, Northbrook, IL 60062
Hours: Mon and Wed–Fri, 11:30 AM–2 PM and 5–8:30 PM; Sat, 5–9:30 PM; Sun, 4–8:30 PM; Tue, closed
Specials: Family-owned, with vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free choices
Google Maps Ratings: 4.5/5
Usual spend: $20–35 per person
Francesco “Frank” Gallo opened Francesco’s Hole In the Wall with his father more than 40 years ago. The restaurant still carries that family history. It is small, warm and personal, with the slightly crowded comfort of an old trattoria rather than the polished symmetry of a newer dining room.
The kitchen cooks around fresh ingredients, the season and whatever the chefs have decided to prepare. Guests may hear choices such as rigatoni, linguine, baked clams, lobster ravioli or osso buco. Chilean sea bass and chicken Vesuvio also make appearances.
Outdoor seating is available when Northbrook weather allows, and carryout can be ordered for home delivery. Even so, the dining room is a large part of Francesco’s appeal. Forty years of family stories and returning customers have left a character that cannot be recreated in a box of pasta.
Kitchen House Cafe: Georgian Food for the Whole Table
Address: 341 E Dundee Rd, Wheeling, IL 60090
Hours: Mon–Thu, 11 AM–9 PM; Fri–Sat, 10 AM–11 PM; Sun, 10 AM–8 PM
Specials: Vegetarian choices and high chairs
Google Maps Ratings: 4.6/5
Usual spend: $20–30 per person
Kitchen House Cafe changes the pace after so much Italian food. Georgian cooking is made for a table willing to share, and the two obvious starting points are khachapuri and khinkali.
Khachapuri is bread filled with hot, melted cheese. It is rich, comforting and best eaten as soon as it arrives. Khinkali are large pleated dumplings filled with meat or another savoury mixture and a pocket of broth. The usual method is to hold one by its doughy top, bite carefully into the side and drink the broth first.
The rest of the menu includes soups, salads, grilled meat and vegetable dishes. For a first visit, ordering several plates for the centre of the table is more interesting than choosing separate entrées. Vegetarian diners have a reasonable selection too.
Kitchen House keeps the setting relaxed and the average cost at roughly $20–30 per person. Families can request high chairs, and pickup and delivery are available for at-home dining.
Sorelle Italian Market: Coffee, Cannoli and Family Recipes
Address: 1941 Tower Dr, Glenview, IL 60026
Hours: Wed–Sat, 8 AM–9 PM; Sun, 8 AM–8 PM; Mon–Tue, closed
Specials: Fresh bread, pastries, organic coffee and tea, pizza, pasta, panini, desserts, wine and cocktails
Google Maps Ratings: 4.6/5
Usual spend: $10–20 per person
Sorelle Italian Market combines three places people like to have nearby: a café for morning coffee, a counter for lunch and a market stocked with Italian food. Its Glenview location sits on Tower Drive, not far from the control tower left behind by the former Glenview Naval Air Station.
The day starts with croissants, pastries and organic coffee or tea. Later come Italian-style pizzas, panini, pasta and generously filled sandwiches. The dessert counter has traditional Sicilian cannoli, including versions dipped or finished with chocolate chips and pistachios. Going in only for coffee may require some self-control.
The family story is tucked into the name. Many of the recipes and cooking habits at Sorelle came through earlier generations, giving the modern market an older backbone.
Sorelle is easy to use in different ways. Sit down for breakfast, collect lunch, pick up food for home or browse the market shelves. Prices generally stay within the $10–20 range, so it feels closer to a regular neighbourhood stop than a restaurant reserved for elaborate plans.
Northbrook’s strongest restaurants tend to have a personal history behind them. Francesca’s North has been feeding the village since 1995, while Francesco’s Hole In the Wall goes back more than 40 years. Sorelle carries its family connection in both the recipes and the name. Red Bottle adds late nights, and Kitchen House brings Georgian food meant to be passed around the table. Different kitchens, different moods and, of course, plenty of reasons not to drive all the way into Chicago for dinner.