Sarah Grueneberg — the Top Chef season-nine runner-up who won the 2017 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Great Lakes — opened Monteverde in the West Loop in November 2015 after years running the kitchen at Spiaggia. The conceit is built into the room: an elevated pastificio behind the bar, where the team rolls, cuts, and hangs fresh pasta in view of the counter, a vintage mirror angled to catch the handwork. Grueneberg calls her cooking cucina tipica — Italian regional tradition routed through her own travels. Look for the cacio whey pepe, which swaps whey for water, and the Ragù alla Napoletana. Chicago Magazine named it the city's best restaurant in 2024. Come for the pasta theater and a kitchen that has earned its decade of acclaim.