Cucina Paradiso is one of few restaurants that are worth a trip to the 'burbs. And by the time you finally arrive in Oak Park, you'll have worked up a serious appetite for the restaurant's extensive menu of regional Italian dishes. Paradiso's dining room is dressed to impress with its floor-length red drapes and vintage art prints adorning its exposed-brick interior. Plush banquettes and white linen-topped tables make room for canoodling lovers, business professionals and hungry families.

Start things off with some chicken pistachio skewers, served with red pepper balsamic or go for the classic caprese with fresh mozzarella, beef steak tomatoes, basil and extra virgin olive oil, $5 each. For dinner, try the restaurant's specialty pear pizza with caramelized red onions, gorgonzola and balsamic or get your daily dose of protein with the meatball marinara and provolone flatbread, $11 each. Pastas range from $11 to $15 and include rigatoni Bolognese (read: spiraly noodles with a ton of meat), whole wheat pasta with veggies and spinach ricotta gnocchi prepared in a mushroom sauce.

Cuicna Paradiso also offers a bevy of specials throughout the week, so you can impress a date without breaking the bank. Mondays boast half-price bottles of wine, while Tuesedays and Wednesdays promote the bar with $3 appetizers and $5 signature martinis, respectively.

Centerstage Reviewer: Stacy Warden