Torchio Pasta Bar occupies a storefront on N. Wells Street in a building dating to the early 1900s, with 100-year-old exposed brick and a copper bar built around an 1880s over-mantel that owner Janice Varley found at Architectural Artifacts in Ravenswood. The restaurant is run by chef/owner Bill Varley, a former engineer and executive who spent roughly a decade developing the concept with Janice after years of making fresh pasta at home and taking hands-on cooking classes with Italian nonnas during travels through Italy.
The menu carries some of what came out of those trips, including Giovanna's Bolognese, adapted from a class in the home of Giovanna Cardinali in Bologna, and a tiramisu recipe learned at Podere LaMarronaia in San Gimignano. Bill's sister Jolene, a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education with time spent baking at Sarabeth's and in Gourmet magazine's executive dining room, works with Janice on a dessert menu built around regional Italian sweets. The restaurant's name nods to the torchio, a vintage hand-crank pasta press that inspired Bill.
Regulars describe the room and the welcome as consistent draws, and it's become a spot people book for celebrations and special occasions. Word on the pasta itself is more split, with some visits landing dishes exactly right and others describing inconsistency in execution.
The menu carries some of what came out of those trips, including Giovanna's Bolognese, adapted from a class in the home of Giovanna Cardinali in Bologna, and a tiramisu recipe learned at Podere LaMarronaia in San Gimignano. Bill's sister Jolene, a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education with time spent baking at Sarabeth's and in Gourmet magazine's executive dining room, works with Janice on a dessert menu built around regional Italian sweets. The restaurant's name nods to the torchio, a vintage hand-crank pasta press that inspired Bill.
Regulars describe the room and the welcome as consistent draws, and it's become a spot people book for celebrations and special occasions. Word on the pasta itself is more split, with some visits landing dishes exactly right and others describing inconsistency in execution.