[Editor’s note: Acre received a revamp shortly after this review; Bar Ombra now occupies the northern half of the space.]
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A respectable selection of craft beers and wines are pushed behind the original curvilinear wooden bar on the dim, gloomy tavern side, while the dining room has been done up in sunset-toned American Gothic, its walls appointed with obsolete farm implements, one of which, I was entertained to hear, is called a “diggler.”
Chef Carlos Ysaguirre, who also commands the kitchen next door at Anteprima, has separate menus for the bar and the dining room, each one changing practically daily and each one actually available on the other side. Anteprima remains on its tour-bus route around the regions of Italy; but Acre’s influences seem to be all over the place, and not exactly typical of the farm-to-table conceit. Sometimes it works, sometimes not, but what’s clear is that the chef is still playing around with things.
Acre 5308 N. Clark 773-334-7600acrerestaurant.com
