VIA CARDUCCI LA SORELLA

A WBBM RESTAURANT REVIEW BY SHERMAN KAPLAN

BROADCAST  AUGUST 10, 2007

(773-252-2244)
1928 West Division

From my Truth in menu department, what Via Carducci La Sorella calls Chicken Vesuvio, is not what I call Chicken Vesuvio. Instead, this only weeks old restaurant, at 1928 West Division is serving skinned and boned chicken breasts in a cornstarch thickened sauce that has little if any similarity in style or taste to the real McCoy. Not just that, but it’s overpriced.

           
I guess this would not upset me so much, except that Via Carducci should be capable of much better. It’s the sibling restaurant to the very popular Via Carducci on Fullerton Avenue.

           
Not only were there too many food issues, but service was hit and miss. Our waiter was caring and polite, but backup people missed the boat. To cite a couple of examples, table clearance of plates between courses was sluggish, and a request for forks, brought spoons.

           
We finally did get the necessary forks for our pasta course, which proved to be quite good. Linguine frutti de mare, a collection of tender shrimp, calamari and clams, was served in an excellent marinara sauce. Papparadelle in savory Bolognese sauce was a close runner up.

Elsewhere on the menu, roasted vegetables taste fine, but the portion is skimpy for the price. Stuffed yellow peppers were delicious, with a flavorful meat sauce.

Sharing a pizza among three or four people is a good appetizer choice. However, Via Carducci’s version of Margherita falls way short of the mark. There’s too much cheese, and not enough basil on a crust which is on par with the frozen supermarket variety.

           
Overall, the menu is typical of many Italian American restaurants, though from what we tasted, there seems to be less an interest in authenticity than what I’ve found elsewhere.

The wine list is not especially interesting, and reds are too warm. Not only that, but the inclusion of two admittedly premium wines for about $250 each is way out of line on an otherwise pedestrian list. I can only hope the restaurant serves them in crystal stemware rather than the stock glass normally used. Via Carducci La Sorella is at 1928 West Division Street. It looks great, but otherwise has a K/RATING of 13.5 /20.