Best Italian Lunch Buffet near O’Hare
Are you yearning for a quiet, refined and authentic Italian lunch buffet which will not blow your budget? I have found just the place. Pescatore Palace Restaurant and Banquets is tucked away in an industrial area of Schiller Park on River Road (between Irving Park and Belmont Avenues) just minutes away from Rosemont’s Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, Rosemont Theatre and O’Hare Airport.
From the moment you walk up the stairs into this haven, you are surrounded by the sensual tastes and sounds of SouthCentral Italy. The main dining room has a quiet sophistication which welcomes you with calming shades of blue and reminders of the ocean. You find fishing nets hung from the walls filled with crab and starfish. You admire the various paintings depicting dreamy seaside scenes under a border of hand-painted grapevines. You hear Andrea Bocelli’s melodic voice seranade you as you are seated by one of the courteous male waiters. If you are lucky, you may even be seated in the bright Bocelli room which is enveloped in afternoon sun from it’s wall of floor-to-ceiling windows. Yes, Andrea himself has visited here on a few occasions to enjoy the outstanding and authentic food.
Master Chef, Vito Barbanente, will probably greet you himself as he ensures the buffet table is amply stocked with his day’s delicious entress. Vito brings to his restaurant his culinary passion, hard work and dedication from his native Bari, Italy seaside town. His fish dishes are the freshest and most flavorful available. His mouthwatering soups fill your senses with warmth and his chicken, beef and vegetable dishes offer a subtle medley of spices and seasonings.
The lunch buffet is offered from 11am until 2pm Monday through Friday at a price of $9.99 per person. It includes both a hot and a cold buffet. Pizza and bruschetta is always available as well as fruit salad and delicious desserts.
Pescatore Palace offers an extensive and rich wine list and a full menu for those who would like to sample one of Chef Vito’s personalized creations. The coffee is always fresh-brewed and full-bodied and the service is impeccable.
The lunchtime crowd is mostly comprised of businessmen from the neighboring light-manufacturing establishments. The buffet selections change every day and include fish, pasta, potatoes, vegetables, caprese and assorted salads and rich desserts. What keeps me coming back every week is the personal service I receive and the unparalleled food I find in this quiet getaway.
If you too are yearning to eat your lunch in smoke-free, pleasant place where you can have a quiet conversation with your friend and where you know the food will always be fresh and good, I highly recommend Pescatore Palace to you. By the way, ‘Pescatore’ means ‘Fisherman’ in Italian. And, if the finest fish is what you seek, Chef Vito will please your every wish.
