Cellar 26,

13860 W Rockland Rd, Lake Bluff, IL 60044, United States

"Let’s talk about Lake County’s best Italian hidden gem! My husband and I have been here at least 10 times if not more and we have brought friends who have become regulars too. If you love the throw back speakeasy style, this is for you! Warm, quaint, vintage is my description of the space and it is enhanced at Christmas time. It pays homage to the 20s in so many ways with the decor. The food is wonderful. This weekend they featured braciole with homemade gnocchi. That should be a regular special. Outstanding. The drinks are creative and works of art. The staff is welcoming and ease you into a relaxing experience. We were made to feel like family early on by how we are treated. Chris and Demi have been performing there regularly - piano player extraordinaire and AMAZING vocalist - they add to the night with throw back standards. If you are looking for a great experience get that secret phrase for entrance by making a reservation. You will love it!"

"One of the worst experiences I’ve had! Other than ambience this place offers nothing. The staff was rude, abrasive, condescending, and overall unpleasant. Food was subpar at best, had a large party some of the food orders were not placed, some of the food came out cold staff checked the temp of food by touching it with their hands then serving it back to us, our waitresses rude spilled drink on me and another person and didn’t Apologize just had attitude about the situation. Truly a terrible experience, and the food was basic at best."

"Great concept, too bad the execution is poor. My partner and I had dinner here tonight. We ordered the prix fixe 5 course dinner menu at $70 per person, or as in our case, $115 per person with beverage pairings. For the first course, you can order a cocktail from the menu, or you can consult with a mixologist who will ask what you like and make you a cocktail based on your preference. We both opted to let the mixologist choose for us. Results were good, though I expected that he would come check in with us to see how we liked his choices. Before you suggest that maybe he was too busy, there were 2 mixologists for approximately 14 customers. The first course was a tiny portion of very tasty chicken and rice soup (first course is chef’s choice). The soup came out before the cocktails, so it was kind of a weird pairing. For the remaining courses, you choose from several dishes. We both ordered the meatball for our second course, and really liked it. Third course is pasta. He got lasagna and I got pappardelle with rabbit sauce. Both were delicious. The fourth course is where it fell apart. We both ordered the filet medallion, medium for him and medium rare for me. Mine was raw; like literally lightly browned on the outside and the middle was cold and uncooked. His was also underdone. We called our server over. She offered to get us something else. We asked if they could just cook our steaks the way we ordered them, and she said, “well this is what they sent down for medium rare, so …”. We looked at the other choices from the prix fixe menu and decided to go for the chicken parmigiana. She went to consult with her manager. They ended up giving us a full size chicken parmigiana each (instead of the smaller portion usually included with the 5 course dinner) and upgrading our dessert. Our server was very nice and apologetic. We were surprised that no manager ever came over to check in or apologize. That usually happens when a customer has a problem with the quality of their meal. The wine service was rather disjointed and didn’t keep pace with the food service. Again, there were fewer than 20 customers in the place the whole time we were there. The Italian dishes we had were quite good, but based on this experience, this will be our first and last time dining here. The quality doesn’t match the price."

"A very nice evening! Drinks are absolutely delicious! Food was quite tasty and fresh! Ambiance is fantastic… 20’s music in background… not too loud, could hear everything from across the table no issues… switched between recordings and live performances seamlessly to the point almost didn’t notice! Dark, quaint, period decor. Definitely a unique, interesting and enjoyable experience. Definitely a place for an intimate meal or a place to go with a few friends or small group if you want to lounge/dine rather than shout! I don’t give 5 starts easily. This place is a treat! Take your guests, spouse, date!!!"

"Would give 10 stars if I could! Dee, Michael and staff THANK YOU! Loved the charm, mood, our dinner was amazing and craft cocktails- over the top!! Our waitress Steph was pretty awesome too! Highly recommend having 5 course preset meal!"