Bonci

Bonci Restaurant Review:

About the restaurant: Gabriele Bonci’s decision to open the only Bonci outside Rome in Chicago is a compliment to the local food scene. This narrow, counter-service restaurant is a pizza-porium of flavors. Customers grab a number, wait for it to be called, then point to the many ingredient-loaded options on offer, which are then warmed in an oven upon request. Expect many a West Loop resident or professional (or both) to swarm around lunchtime or for dinner to go. While there is some bench seating along the left wall and front window, most diners opt to grab and go.

Likes: Variety, friendly service.
Dislikes: First-timers might be confused by the ordering system.

Food & Drinks: A bank of pizzas sits in a display case, some for the traditionalists (sausage and mushrooms, rossa), others for those who crave richer, offbeat flavors (octopus, porchetta, salmon). The good news: The menu isn’t static. Each pizza bears a proprietary wheat flour recipe and is cut Roman-style --- with scissors, and guests are charged by the weight of their order.