Barcello's

Ratings Guide:
Half handshake, half chest-bump hug – 5 stars
Chest bump – 4 stars
Fist bump – 3 stars
High five – 2 stars
Handshake – 1 star
Manly ass slap – ½ star
Fone and fone – 0 stars


Restaurant: Barcello’s
Location: 1647 N. Milwaukee

Most restaurants try to put together a lineup of all-stars. A menu of home run hitters. A Dream Team. But too often the menu ends up being like the most recent Olympic basketball teams or the Yankees – big names that produce disappointing losses. They lose sight that sometimes the best teams have a winning lineup that includes MVPs and role players, all contributing to the success of the team. Look at this year’s World Series champs. They had Pujols, Rolen, and Carpenter, but also needed the help of role players like Wilson, Weaver, and Molina. And to fill out the roster they had guys like Eckstein, Edmonds, and Wainwright. A little bit of everything in that lineup, and in the end it produced a winner.

That’s the way I feel about Barcello’s. Its menu filled with a little bit of everything – some dishes go deep, and others just set the table for the big hitters.

The appetizer menu actually has a lot to choose from. You can get meats, cheeses, meats wrapped in cheeses, melted cheeses, soups, salads, and some other stuff. I’ve had the prosciutto (it’s OK. Nothing special.), the mixed salami, capicola, and bresaola (good selection), the prosciutto wrapped in mozzarella (now we’re getting somewhere. Except there are only about 5 bite-size pieces, when there should be about 50. I’d even be willing to compromise and accept 10. In fact, all the appetizer plates are pretty small. Don’t they know this is the U.S.A.? Don’t they know we’re all fat here? It’s like they thought the meat and cheese were enough to satisfy us fat Americans. Well guess what, it wasn’t. 5 more pieces would have helped.), and the baked cheese. I think Geoff described it best – “It tastes like a Giordano’s stuffed pizza.” And with an endorsement like that how could you go wrong? Really a great dish. It’s just melted cheese with some tomato sauce. Take a forkful, slather it on some bread, and you’re golden. And there’s plenty to go around (unless you’re eating with me, then you’re going to need a second order). I’ve never had the soup or salads, but I’ve seen them ordered. It’s quite a treat. My buddy Brian got the Cesare (which is apparently Italian for Caesar) and it came out looking like a giant green squid. Just huge hearts of Romaine, not cut up or tossed or anything. Brian was overwhelmed having to cut it himself. I found it funny. Not sure why. But it did look good.


Lots of different entrees to choose from. You’ve got pastas, risottos, chicken, steak, thin crust pizzas, calzone, and trattoria-style pizzas.

Before I get into that, let me give you a quick back-story. Barcello’s has been around for a while, but it’s recently got some new ownership. As part of that new ownership the dining area was completely changed along with the menu. However, the thin crust pizza and calzone were kept from the original Barcello’s. In case you wanted to know.

So, I’ve had the lasagna, calzone, lobster ravioli (which was a special), vodka penne, chicken risotto, open-faced ravioli, and I think that’s everything. While it’s possible I could have ordered and ate all of this myself, some I ordered and some I just sampled off other people’s plates. Here’s the scouting report, and where they would bat in the lineup.


CF - Baked mozzarella (great leadoff hitter. Gonna get on base every time and set the table for the rest of the team.)

2B – Vodka penne (solid dish and contact hitter. May not be a hit every time, but will put the ball in play.)

RF – Chicken risotto (really good dish. I struggled with putting the lobster ravioli in this spot so your best hitter gets an AB in the first inning of every game, but since the baked mozzarella has like an .800 OBP, I feel OK with dropping the lobster down and moving the risotto up.)

1B – Lobster ravioli (easily the best dish I’ve gotten there. Too bad it was a special that night, so you probably won’t have it as a choice when/if you go.)

3B – Open-face ravioli thing (just a plate of potatoes vaguely wrapped in a huge piece of ravioli. They were basically a really good mashed potato dish. Probably better as a side item then a full entrée.)

LF – Lasagna (good lasagna, but nothing special, and the bottom was a little over-cooked)

SS - Mozzarella stuffed with prosciutto (great defensive shortstop. A must have on the team and turns two better than most in the league, but lacks the offense pop to move up any higher in the lineup.)

C – Calzone (it was huge, which I liked, and included lots of hot, melted cheese, which I also liked, but it was mostly ricotta, which I don’t like)

DH – Sooooooooo Taguchi. Cause that’s what I thought about Barcello’s.


And it’s a BYO to boot. Fist bump.


Got a question? Send it to born2fork@yahoo.com.