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LakeForestLeader.com DINING OUT<br />
the lake forest leader | October 12, 2017 | 21<br />
Merlo’s celebrates five years in Highland Park<br />
Italian restaurant<br />
finds success<br />
in serving same<br />
menu<br />
Megan Bernard<br />
Contributing Editor<br />
Consistency is key at<br />
Merlo’s Italian Restaurant.<br />
For the past five years,<br />
the Highland Park joint<br />
has been serving up the<br />
same dishes from its original<br />
menu — and, there’s<br />
nothing wrong with that,<br />
owner John Merlo said,<br />
because customers know<br />
what they like and what to<br />
expect.<br />
“Our core menu has<br />
stayed almost 100 percent<br />
the same,” said Merlo,<br />
who owns the restaurant<br />
with his wife, Laura, and<br />
lives in nearby Glencoe.<br />
“We have developed our<br />
good staples, Chicagostyle<br />
Italian food, so they<br />
know what they are getting<br />
when they come.”<br />
The familiarity at Merlo’s<br />
doesn’t stop at the<br />
menu, either.<br />
The Merlo family has<br />
been “pleasantly surprised,”<br />
Merlo said, to see<br />
so many of the same people<br />
coming that they saw<br />
the first days they opened<br />
at 581 Roger Williams<br />
Ave.<br />
No matter what time of<br />
year it is, though, diners<br />
can always choose from<br />
the same classic Chicago-<br />
Italian dishes, like “chicken<br />
parms and Milanese,”<br />
Merlo said. The Italian fare<br />
also extends to seafood,<br />
brick oven pizzas, salads,<br />
piccata, marsala, steak and,<br />
of course, pasta.<br />
If customers do have a<br />
taste for something outside<br />
of the regular menu,<br />
there’s a specials board,<br />
which is changed twice a<br />
week.<br />
Merlo’s Italian Restaurant is celebrating its fifth year in<br />
business in Highland Park. Its signature dish, Nanna’s<br />
Gravy ($18), has slow-roasted pot roast, red wine and<br />
crushed tomatoes with rigatoni. Xavier Ward/22nd<br />
Century Media<br />
22nd Century Media<br />
editors got a taste of Merlo’s<br />
staple dishes when we<br />
visited the restaurant last<br />
week.<br />
We started our meal<br />
with the fried calamari and<br />
zucchini half-and-half appetizer<br />
($16). The flash<br />
fried baby calamari was<br />
paired with a spicy marinara<br />
dipping sauce and the<br />
zucchini had lemon aioli.<br />
Next up was the double<br />
pepperoni pizza ($14) —<br />
John Merlo’s favorite —<br />
and the prosciutto and arugula<br />
pizza ($14). Both the<br />
brick oven pies where thin<br />
and crispy, and weren’t<br />
overloaded with cheese.<br />
Nanna’s Gravy ($18),<br />
a house speciality, also<br />
graced our plates. The dish<br />
includes slow-roasted pot<br />
roast, red wine and crushed<br />
tomatoes tossed with rigatoni.<br />
The meat was tender<br />
and provided a savory,<br />
melt-in-your-mouth taste<br />
that’s definitely worth the<br />
slow cook time.<br />
To complete our meal,<br />
three entrees came out, including<br />
Merlo’s half brick<br />
chicken ($18), eggplant<br />
Parmesan ($18) and veal<br />
Milanese ($25).<br />
The crispy boneless<br />
brick chicken comes in<br />
both half and full sizes<br />
Merlo’s Italian<br />
Restaurant<br />
581 Roger Williams<br />
Ave., Highland Park<br />
(847) 266-0600<br />
www.merlosrestaurant.<br />
com<br />
Every day open at 4 p.m.<br />
with rosemary potatoes.<br />
The meat was lightly seasoned<br />
and the potatoes<br />
were roasted and largely<br />
wedged.<br />
Merlo’s eggplant Parmesan<br />
was sliced thin. The<br />
Parmesan was baked with<br />
a generous layer of mozzarella<br />
and sat in sweet marinara<br />
sauce. The Parmesan<br />
also comes in chicken and<br />
veal.<br />
The veal Milanese was<br />
quite a large dish to end<br />
with, but there were no<br />
complaints there. The veal<br />
was lightly breaded, baked<br />
and sautéed with peppers.<br />
The Milanese also comes<br />
in chicken and eggplant.<br />
Afterward, we threw in<br />
our napkins, fully understanding<br />
why Merlo’s has<br />
so many “regulars” — the<br />
menu itself proves it. Try<br />
it for yourself whether<br />
you’re in the area for Ravinia<br />
or looking for a new<br />
regular spot.<br />
Saturday<br />
Oct. 21<br />
Meditate-A-Thon<br />
World Peace through Inner Peace<br />
Come when you can and stay as long as you would like. Please bring<br />
a mat or blanket to lie on and a floor cushion if you would prefer to<br />
use that instead of a chair. No meditation experience is needed.<br />
Claudia Lubin<br />
Guided Visualization for Inner Peace<br />
9:30AM<br />
Marian McNair<br />
Sound Healing with Crystal Bowls<br />
10:30AM<br />
Therese Evans<br />
Connecting with Angels<br />
11:30AM<br />
Michelle Fiore<br />
Gong Meditation<br />
12:30PM<br />
Mark Anthony Lord<br />
Spiritual Meditation for Peace<br />
2:00PM<br />
The Bhakti Caravan<br />
Kirtan: Joyful Chanting<br />
3:00PM<br />
Savitia Jachim<br />
Oneness Blessing Meditation<br />
4:00PM<br />
InfinityFoundation.org | 847-831-8828<br />
Register or Request a Free<br />
Course Guide. CEUs Available.
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