A two-story Italian steakhouse from celebrity chef Fabio Viviani is under construction at 1808 Waukegan Road in Glenview, taking over the storefront long occupied by Pizano's Pizza & Pasta. The restaurant, called LAGO, will be the second location of a concept that first opened in Lake Zurich, and it's expected to seat roughly 205 guests once it's finished.
According to Chicago Food Magazine, the building will house a lounge and bar area, a private-event boardroom, and open-air dining, blending classic Italian cooking with premium steaks, fresh seafood and house-made pasta. Fabio Viviani, founder and CEO of Fabio Viviani Hospitality, is partnering on the Glenview project with entrepreneur and real estate developer Romeo Kapudija, as well as Bill Stavrou, owner of Valley Lodge Tavern. Construction on the site is currently underway, the outlet reports.
As for when diners can actually walk in the door, the timeline is murky. Patch reports the restaurant is expected to open in mid-October, while Chicago Food Magazine has said Fabio Viviani Hospitality is planning for a November 2026 opening. According to WhatNow, the opening is reportedly planned for November 2026, though no single date has been confirmed across all accounts.
Village Board Clears the Way for Construction
Village officials have already signed off on key pieces of the project. Glenview's Village Board approved a separate final site plan and preliminary appearance for LAGO at 1808 Waukegan Road, and per citizenportal.ai, that site plan was approved unanimously on March 19. At a later meeting on August 18, trustees unanimously advanced, on first consideration, an ordinance that would raise the village's number of Class A liquor licenses from 59 to 60 to accommodate LAGO, Patch reports, though the board has not finalized specific financial assistance for the project.
The new restaurant sits just north of downtown Glenview and the Metra station, near the intersection of Chestnut Avenue and across from Clove Italian and Nepali Cuisine, per WhatNow. The site had been home to Pizano's Pizza & Pasta since 2008, according to Patch's earlier reporting on that closure. LAGO is reportedly hiring for various positions and, per WhatNow, plans to share more details about the Glenview restaurant in the near future.
What's on the Menu at the Original Lago
The Glenview location is expected to mirror much of what's served at the original LAGO in Lake Zurich, located at 350 N. Rand Road, with some new additions, WhatNow reports. That restaurant serves Italian entrees, steaks, wine and cocktails daily, including wild-caught Alaskan king salmon and broiled twin lobster tails, according to the same report. Chicago Food Magazine notes LAGO opened in Lake Zurich in 2024 as a modern Italian steakhouse, giving Viviani's team a template to expand from.
The Glenview build-out is one piece of a broader expansion for Fabio Viviani Hospitality, which Chicago Food Magazine reports currently operates and develops more than 40 restaurant concepts across the country, including Prime & Provisions, Bar Siena, Giostra and Siena Tavern, per WhatNow. Viviani also has concepts running in California, Florida, Nevada and Ohio, and is reportedly planning to introduce Bocado Tapas and Retoro in downtown Barrington, according to WhatNow.
