Review: Ummo Brings Refined Italian to River North
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes (819 words)
Ummo is not actually a word in Italian. But as an almost-word, ummo works well: pronouncing it takes some heft yet it rolls off the tongue. It’s bulky but elegant and conjures an Italian culture that doesn’t quite exist — but it could exist, and if it exists anywhere it is at the eponymous restaurant in River North.
Ummo the restaurant takes the place of Rockit Bar and Grill on Hubbard Street and is the brainchild of José Sosa, a Mexican-born chef with a particular interest in Italian cuisine. It is the second entry for Somos Hospitality Group, which is also behind Carlos Gyutan’s Tzuco.
The first thing that stands out about Ummo is its design. It is full of bold, dark undertones with warm finishes and accentuated lighting that sets a scene for the meal to come. The attention to detail was also appreciated, from custom “Ummo” plates to a pass that allows for a quick view into the kitchen or a look at the finishing touches of a dish. Ummo is easily one of the best designed restaurants to open since Covid and shows what’s possible when a restaurant’s aesthetic is a seamless compliment to its food.
The food, however, left me more conflicted than I anticipated going in. Dining with a group allowed us to try a handful of items from the well-tailored menu. Our waitress suggested ordering a few items from every category; with six categories, that would have been a lot of food, even for a group of four.
We ordered the focaccia and meatballs as starters, mafaldine cacio e pepe, garganelli, pollo rosso as entrees, and the patata al forno as a shared side. For dessert, we also tried the pomodoro e basilico and arancione & campari. As far as drinks went, we each started with cocktails and transitioned into a bottle of wine.
The starters worked as starters, but even with that in mind, they underwhelmed. The focaccia was served warm and somewhat pre-cut, and came with two excellent spreads (stracciatella and honey, and an herb butter). But the loaf was small; my single portion was just about two bites and left me wanting much, much more. As a shareable between two people perhaps it would have worked, but with four it was stretched a bit too thin.
The meatballs were similar. They were perfectly adequate, and decently sized, but didn’t really go far at our table. And if you wanted to soak up the red sauce with the focaccia, you would be out of luck because the bread was already gone.
The main courses kicked everything up a notch. The cacio e pepe was excellent, with a perfectly al dente noodle that retained some chew and a textbook emulsified sauce. Its peppercorn blend was noted on the menu and added a nice touch of dimension to an otherwise simple dish.
Our other pasta was the garganelli, which came with a braised lamb ragu, mint pesto, and a dollop of ricotta cheese, making for a very colorful dish resembling the Italian flag. Once all the components were inevitably mixed together the mint in the pesto faded out, to my disappointment. The braised lamb held up, though, and rounded out the dish.
Lastly, the pollo rosso was the star of the meal, and nothing else came particularly close. The chicken was served on a bed of polenta with a few slices of maitake mushroom included. It was very nearly perfect and encapsulated that ummo-style Italian culture I mentioned earlier. It was earthy, homey, and pure comfort. If it was the only thing we ordered I still would have been satisfied. The potato was served at the same time and was similar to a twice baked potato with an Italian twist.
Ummo’s desserts also need to be noted. According to Michael Nagrant, at least two of them are ripoffs from other chefs. You can read his take here. Whether the desserts are copycats or not, they were delicious. The pomodoro e basilico was a well-executed trompe-l'oeil: what looked like a tomato was really a semi-sweet compote. The basil sorbet it came with was uniquely complementary and fit the theme well. The arancione and campari, the other dessert we tried, was served in a hollowed out lemon. Inside was Dippin’ Dots-style sorbet with slices of Campari-infused oranges. As a post-meal hit of citrus it worked well. But the dessert menu offers only one more dish but a number of drinks. Compared to the main menu, the desserts could use some research and development.
Ummo offers nice dining in a spot to be seen at. The food is more than passable, and some of the dishes punch well above their weight. The restaurant is young yet refined, and the attention to detail elevates the entire experience. Ummo is a welcomed addition to Chicago’s Italian dining scene, even if it doesn’t quite reach into its upper echelon.
This post has been updated.
Left to right: Meatballs, focaccia, mafaldine cacio e pepe, garganelli, pollo rosso, potato, pomodoro e basilico, arancione & campari
Details
Stars: Two 1/2 (out of four)
Price: $$ 1/2 (out of four)
Style: Italian, Italian-American
Atmosphere: Dark, sleek, smooth, trendy
Location:
Ummo
22 W Hubbard Street
Chicago, IL 60654
Website:
Star guide: one - poor, not worth time or money; two - mediocre, worth a visit on occasion; three - very good yet with issues; four - exceptional quality
Price guide: $ - cheap; $$ - affordable; $$$ - special occasion; $$$$ - rare opportunity