Chicago Woodfire Pizza Co; Gurnee Mills, IL

Chicago Woodfire Pizza Co is a modern pizza establishment in Gurnee, attached to the Gurnee Mills Mall, off of Route 132 and Hunt Club Rd. They are the 2017 Winner of the Daily Herald Reader’s Choice Awards for, Best New Restaurant, Best Pizza, Best Comfort Food. From my experience they deserve these awards and more.

We arrived right after they first opened on a Tuesday afternoon. When you enter the restaurant a friendly host will greet you. The dining room and bar are an open concept that is bright and cheerful. At one point the manager, Joshua, stopped by our table. He was very sociable and stopped by our table many times during our visit.

Our wait staff were two very hospitable waitresses, one who was mentoring a new waitress. They immediately took our drink orders and asked about an appetizer. We kindly responded that we would need some time to look at the menu and they quickly left to get our drinks and let us view the menu. My two grandsons were with us, and they had a very extensive children’s menu. When she brought back our drinks we ordered Nachos as our appetizer and our entrée.

The nachos were to die for! The perfect amount of cheese, meat, and toppings.

While eating our appetizer we were able to talk, eat, and the children played, while the staff stopped by a few times to see if everything was to our liking. I will have to admit the children were quite loud and had a few tiffs, but the staff was quite nice and accommodating to us. We never felt like we were not welcome, even with the loud children. It was a nice surprise that they did not rush us through our appetizer, as most places bring your entree while still eating your appetizer.

On a side note – While waiting for our food I had a slight reaction to something in the Margarita (I have slight allergy to some alcohol depending on how it is aged. They quickly replaced the drink with a glass of wine at no charge. They were very accommodating to me.

The food arrived and it was just as amazing as the nachos! We ordered a sausage and pepperoni pizza, and two kids meal spaghetti dinners. The food was as marvelous as their atmosphere and staff. Their sauce is truly refreshing with all the right Italian flavors. The pizza crust was perfect for a wood-fired pizza and there was a well-balanced amount of sauce, cheese and meat on the entire pizza. The children’s spaghetti was a very generous portion and the meatballs were large. The sauce and meatballs were perfectly spiced with a wonderful Italian flavor.

In all the meal was perfect! To make it even better their children’s meals are free on Tuesdays! The price was a little higher than some might like to pay for a lunch, but it is well worth the price. We brought home most of the pizza, lots of nachos, and a container of spaghetti and meatballs. I love their take home boxes too! If you have children and they want the same meal, I suggest ordering one and having them share.

All in all Chicago Woodfire Pizza Co is a divine restaurant in Gurnee Mills Mall.

http://chicagowoodfirepizza.com/#Home