Tufano’s Vernon Park Tap

My family and I have been going here for years. Never been disappointed in the food or service

I have two words for you: lemon chicken.
I remember tasting this delightful dish about 25 years ago, when my college girlfriend was a student at UIC. We came here for dinner a lot, and I vividly remember the dish. It is, hands down, one of the best chicken dishes you can get in the City of Chicago at any given time. I get the whole chicken– because I like to take it home and it tastes just as good the next day. The potatoes that come with it are addictive– think thick cut potato chips.
What else? Salads are awesome. They only take cash or check (yeah, checks!), but there’s an ATM right nearby. Parking in Little Italy can be a nightmare, so plan to valet.
This place is a Chicago classic. If you haven’t been, you must go.

Great Local place. Bring cash!

Delicious neighborhood gem. If you aren’t looking for frills, bring a few singles for the valet and drive over here. This place is easy to miss, but you shouldn’t. We all had pasta; large portions and plenty of flavor. Though intimately sized, it is still kid friendly as well. Our waitress was a sweetheart and so attentive. Next time I’ll go for Chicken Vesuvio or Veal (shhhh) Marsala. The people next to us had some meaty deliciousness and it looked really good.

Family favorite! I’ve been coming here with my family ever since I was a kid. Great Italian food and great service! This place has a family vibe and we always leave satisfied.

Free valet parking! Yay! Saturday night and did not have to wait for our table for two! Woo hoo! Water without requesting it! Bread and butter, a nice olive oil and cheese on the table. Wait staff was attentive but not pesty. Michelle provided answers to my questions, allowed time for us to decide, and gave good descriptions of the dishes. We had some Chianti, dry, as it should be, and served in a juice glass. :) Tufano’s special salad did not live up to its description, just a couple of slices of very tasty salami, good cheeses, artichoke hearts, veggies on a bed of iceberg. Hubby had the chicken limone, pretty good. I had the eggplant, a good portion of dredged and sautéed eggplant thinly sliced and layered with cheese. Excellent! We ended our meal with a couple of cappuccinos and spumoni. We left full but not stuffed, very satisfied with a wonderful meal.

The ideal family style Italian restaurant in the City. Wonderful food, great service and a reasonable price. Lots of daily specials and everyday favorites. Highly recommended.

Very friendly old school Italian place. So old school it’s cash only. Reasonably priced drinks and food. We were there at a very busy time before a Blackhawks game and still had no complaints about service. Staff was really nice and helpful. My husband and I shared the Tufano’s salad and it was great! Full of cheeses, salami and artichokes, and veggies! Warm crispy bread was served on all tables. My husband had one if their specialties, sausage and peppers. He said it’s the best he’s ever had! I had the chicken Parmesan which was good except for the pasta and marinara. I was really on the fence with my meal, but I’m definitely going to go back!

It was 30 years ago when I was a wide eye southsider, working a night shift making gum and putting my time in on classes at UIC. Took an extra job working the parking lot, wouldn’t ya know it, had the sat afternoon shift for a gospel convention. Man did it pour.
After a long day, got invited in for a bowl of minestrone and some bread. Been going back ever since.
Great food and service. Pork chops are top notch. Mussels and angel hair my personal favorite. Had the shells broccoli and shrimp yesterday. Wow. Wicked good. My date had the chicken picante. Very, very good.
The house chianti is top notch and they have perhaps the best fried calamari I ever had.
Take advantage of the valet. Well worth it.

Been eating here off and on for over ten years. Consistent quality, always great service. A nice family atmosphere. Yesterday re-​visited the Lemon Chicken with Potatoes. It was good, a tad over done, but great flavor. My friend loves the pasta and from what I have had there I think that is where they shine.
Valet parking which is nice. Reasonable prices.

Tufano’s is a Chicago must. Classic, authentic and smack dab right in the heart of little Italy. The place has literally not changed in years… and let’s be happy it didn’t. From the chalk board menus to the cash only protocol, Tufano’s ambiance is Old school Italian at its finest.
The fiancé and I, (I just love saying that) strolled up here one lazy afternoon for lunch. It was quiet and romantic. We chose to sit outside to enjoy the beautiful day and also the serene sounds of the fountain right next to the restaurant. We were greeted with a delightful waitress who couldn’t be any sweeter. She even informed us the paper menus were the same as the ones inside and the only difference was a couple of quarters:) we decided on the tomato mozzarella salad for an appetizer. It was perfect for the two of us to share… And the warm bread accompanied it nicely. For my main I chose the cavatelli with sausage, and my boo went with the stuffed shells and a meatball. Both dishes were delicious. Despite being very generous portions, we finished everything. Sadly no leftovers for us to take home! There is an ample dessert menu but we didn’t leave room to try it unfortunately.
Tufano’s is a no muss no fuss kinda joint that serves up seriously solid Italian food. It’s perfect before or after a game at the UC… or even a regular night out, just don’t forget to make a wish in the fountain before you leave;)

Chicago Institution. Get the Lemon Chicken. Get the eggplant. Bring cash. One thing I wish they would do is brine their chicken, or get some pastured chicken. At all Italian restaurants, chicken can be a little dry.

Excellent food /​very reasonable prices /​free valet. My wife was here over 20 yrs ago and remembered it being very good and wanted to take my daughter and I. I had the eggplant plate and it was the best I ever had. The food was better than high priced fancy places that I actually hate wasting money on. I live 40 minutes west into the suburbs from the restaurant and I would go back in a heart beat just to run out for dinner. 4 of us and we didn’t hold back on ordering food, was well under $ 100.00 with tip. If you like Italian food you must at least try it.
Oh yeah, service was a little slow but friendly. Don’t go there when your in a hurry. Just saying. :)

Oh, so good! Enjoyed a fantastic lunch with the Bishop, today. Started with one Tufano’s Special Salad. Was more than enough for two. Filled with enough salami & cheese to make a sandwich with the D’Amato’s bread. My friend ordered the Veal Parmigiana. It was done to perfection. A thick slab of veal, breaded and drowning in marinara sauce and mozzarella cheese. I had the Lemon Chicken. 8 Pieces of baked then broiled, chicken swimming in olive oil, crushed garlic, olive oil and lemon juice. Loved It!! l

When I saw the name of this place, I assumed that it was a Chicago location of a restaurant in the suburb of Vernon Park. I guess I don’t get out enough, because there is no suburb called Vernon Park. In fact, there’s no park named Vernon Park in Chicago. There is, however, a Vernon Park Street that runs into UIC. Maybe there had been a park before the university eminent domained the place? Enough speculating; let’s eat.
Six of us arrived without a reservation on a Saturday night, after having another place misplace our reservation. Joann jumped into action, finding us a nice round table (perfect for everyone to converse with everyone – the Chinese are onto this; I’m glad Tufano’s is too). We waited less than ten minutes, probably closer to five, and she came back a few times to make sure we felt taken care of.
It turns out that Joann is a part of the family that has owned this place for 85 years. How wonderful that the second (or third?) generation still hustles to make sure their guests are having a good time at the party.
Soon after we sat down, Bobbie was there for a drink order. Since this place has that old-​school, Frank Sinatra type of vibe, I went for a tasty dry martini, which came in the appropriate iconic, conical glass. She also set us up with the recommended salad: the Tufano for four, plenty for 6. Funny how a few slices of salami and some cheese can make a salad that much tastier.
Warm, crusty bread was soon on the table, with both packets of whipped butter and a cruet of olive oil. Nothing extraordinary about the bread, except that its warmth and crustiness made it delicious.
Two of us had one of the house specials, the eggplant parmesan. It was a Viennese torte of savory goodness: stacked high with fluffy layers, with the right amount of cheese, tasty tomato sauce and no oily mess like many places. One of the best I’ve had, and I do like my eggplant parmesan. Like my beloved chile rellenos, a lot of people make them, but only a few achieve excellence.
Others in our group got lemon chicken, one whose lips, between smacks, wished he had gotten a whole instead of a half.
Six spoons and my friends’ traditional passing of the desserts ended the evening: lemon sorbet, cannoli and tiramisu, all very tasty. I also had an espresso, which was the only weak part of the meal. Just strong coffee with no crema.
Normally I would dock a star because they only take cash – it’s 2015, people! But then again, I’m not going to admonish an 85-​year-​old for being set in his ways. Especially when he still lives on a quiet street and hasn’t abandoned a neighborhood in which most of the Italians have moved away.
I happened to chat for a few minutes with Joann on the way out. Very personable, even at the end of the evening. It was like being in someone’s kitchen, rather than a restaurant from which she was looking forward to getting home.

Tufano’s is an amazing Chicago find. Just a short trip from the downtown area, it is easy to get to by bus or cab. There is valet parking for $ 5 if you drive there. If anyone has ever tried to park in downtown Chicago, you know that this is an amazing deal. Normal valet parking costs downtown are about $ 10 – 12, and street parking is. Not. Real. (Residential streets require permits to park. This is not a new concept.)
There is sometimes a wait if you go for dinner on the weekend, but we have always been seated fairly quickly. Service is always great. The staff are friendly and helpful, and we have never been short on water, drinks, and bread.
The menu is written on chalkboards throughout the restaurant, but you don’t really need it– just ask the server or read some of the reviews!
Mussels with red sauce– The best thing ever! Forget the mussels, it’s all about that sauce. Just spoon up that delicious, garlicky goodness, soak your bread into it, and enter heaven. (Once, they were out of mussels and we nearly cried. We asked for just the sauce and they kindly, wonderfully obliged our odd request. Bless you, Tufano’s!)
Other things that were good: pasta with vodka sauce, chicken/​veal parmesan, chicken/​veal picante, spaghetti with olive oil and garlic, tortellini alfredo. The marinara sauce is a bit on the sweet side for me, but I bet kids would like that.

Just a great old school Chicago Italian place. Wonderful food. Great staff. The place has been there forever.
There are knuckleheads here giving the place one star and complaining about parking and the menu on a chalkboard. The restaurant is in a RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOOD. They have VALET PARKING. Tufano’s has ALWAYS been there. The lack of parking is nothing new.
Is looking at the chalkboard so damned difficult? Do you really need a menu? Are people incapable of asking the wait staff questions?
If you really need a parking lot and a menu, go to an Olive Garden in a mall.

I never knew this place was so close to UIC! Being a student there we decided to go as a group to see what’s it about. The menu is a chalkboard and a bit pricey for my taste. I just opted for the lemon chicken while my friends got some pasta dish. The lemon chicken was delicious! I think it was a half chicken, which was more than enough for me. The lemons were all around and I could add them to my chicken for my liking. The chicken was tender and I liked the potatoes that came on the side as well. Overall, I would go back just for that dish — as the pasta my friends got didn’t look too appealing.

Meh, this place was just ok. I appreciate the charm. There is no sign for this place and it is pretty difficult to locate. Definitely trying to be a «local gem.» However, the food wasn’t all that great; just ok. The sausage and peppers were awesome as our appetizer, but my entrée, the linguini and clams with white sauce, was too salty. I’m aware clams are salty by nature, but this was a bit overwhelming. I had to order extra Peroni beer to help me deal with it.
Further, the service leaves you with something to be desired. They make you pay $ 5 for valet parking, or else you’ll get a $ 70 parking ticket in the neighborhood’s permited streets. Our server was absent throughout most of our meal. When I asked for a menu, she rolled her eyes and told me to look at the chalkboard. I didn’t bring my glasses, so it was a pain in the ass for me to read across the room. Once we had ordered, getting the waitress’s attention for more beer, extra olive oil, and the bill was nearly impossible. When we stood up and waved to get her attention, surprise surprise: another eye roll! Sorry I’m making you do your job…
The place shuts down at 10:30 p.m. Unilocal says 11 p.m. They might want to update their Unilocal listing, because we began being shooed out and had no clue as to why. Lots of people often consult Unilocal for these sorts of matters… I will most likely not return, as there are plenty of better Italian options in the enormous city of Chicago.

I stopped in to get the Tufano special salad for carry out so I could eat it in class.
For $ 5 you can’t get a better salad. It is huge and packed full of artichoke hearts, grilled red peppers, salami, lettuce, and more.
I generally don’t feel very full if I eat a salad as my main meal unless it has a lot of meat in it but this salad did the trick.
It is not a vegetarian salad since they throw a few cold cuts at the bottom but I’m sure you can order it without them and it would definitely still be filling.