Ciccio Mio
- Dane Chilton
- Aug 8
- 3 min read
Chicago, Illinois – River North
Dinner – Summer 2025
Final Dane Score: 4.2 — Recommended.
A velvet-clad charm offensive that nearly earns its own myth.
Ciccio Mio is what Gilt Bar thinks it is: rich in tone and deeply aware of its own aesthetic. This is Chicago’s cinematic Italian supper club. Every corner of the room is dipped in amber: velvet upholstery, ornate mirrors, dark paneling, flickering candlelight. It's seductive in the old-school way and it knows it.
You're not here by accident. This is a restaurant you work to get into. Reservations are notoriously tight and not in the “we’re full” sense, but in the “use your Amex concierge and still get ghosted” sense. If it’s Valentine’s Day, forget it. This is the table you get when you're making a point. And that’s the energy that defines Ciccio Mio. It wants to be your move. Your ace card. And to its credit, most nights, it succeeds.
The Meal
The food is good, sometimes even great, but let’s not pretend it's rewriting the canon of Italian-American dining. What it does do well is deliver familiar dishes with elegance and restraint. This isn’t Nonna’s kitchen, and it doesn’t want to be. It's Nonna after a martini and an interior designer.
The focaccia is served warm, golden, and fluffy with fennel pollen and whipped ricotta. A strong start. Comforting without being heavy. The meatballs are classic and executed well. Pork, beef, tender, deeply seasoned, and plated in a sugo that clings. One of the better meatballs I’ve had in River North.
The Ricotta Gnocchi is where the charm started to fade. Not a bad dish by any means, but a little chewy, a little one-note. The browned butter and sage work, but the texture felt off, slightly doughy in the center, as if they sat just too long. Serviceable, but forgettable.
The rest of the menu reads as expected. We have the carbonara, orecchiette, branzino, steak, which are all textbook. The standout here is not innovation. You don’t come to Ciccio Mio to be surprised.
The Drinks
The cocktails are well-built and play their part. A Bellini to start, perhaps a Bergamot Spritz or a Classic Negroni mid-meal. The Amaro Shaved Ice is playful and dramatic, and fits the room's aesthetic. The wine list is compact and fine, though it doesn’t carry the depth or flair you'd expect from a place so theatrically Italian. In a restaurant this self-aware, it’s a small missed opportunity.
The Service and Experience
Service was smooth, but indistinct. No real stumbles, no real highs. You’re taken care of, but you’re not necessarily seen. In a room this intimate, one might expect more engagement. Still, no complaints. And frankly, when the mood is this good, the lighting this flattering, and the playlist this well-selected, the service could have phoned it in and you might not have noticed.
Ciccio Mio is a mood piece. You come here to impress someone, or to remind yourself you still know how. It’s not subtle, and it doesn’t try to be. But the act is well-rehearsed, and the room sells the performance. That said, the experience verges on self-fulfilling. It’s exclusive because it’s hard to get into. It’s romantic because everyone says it is. It’s good because you waited three weeks for it. That’s fine. But it also means it may never become that place you return to without occasion, the one you dream about on a Tuesday.
The Dane Standard
Category Score
Palate 4.1
Atmosphere 4.6
Service 4.0
Identity 4.2
Final Score 4.2 – Recommended.
Ciccio Mio delivers charm and just enough substance to keep its place in Chicago’s dining orbit. It’s a great date spot (maybe even a perfect one). Just don’t expect to be surprised. You’re here for the effect. And in that department, it delivers.
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