Saputo's Italian Restaurant

Saputo's role in Springfield's political culture is unique among American capital city restaurants. Because Illinois state government convenes seasonally and brings hundreds of legislators, lobbyists, and political staff to Springfield during sessions, the city has developed a distinctive political dining culture that revolves around a small set of long-standing restaurants. Saputo's is the most established. Deals get cut at the bar. Lobbyists buy state senators dinner in the back booths. Newspaper political reporters eavesdrop from the next table over.

The restaurant's role is so well-established that it appears in countless memoirs of Illinois political life. Former Governor Jim Edgar wrote affectionately of his Saputo's nights. State Senator Barack Obama was a semi-regular during his 1997-2004 Springfield years, and family friends still remember the booth where he typically sat. Saputo's hosted Obama's local Springfield supporters during the 2008 presidential campaign launch, and the restaurant's role in that history is quietly memorialized by photographs in the entry hallway.

The political tradition doesn't mean Saputo's is unfriendly to ordinary travelers. Tourists are welcomed warmly and seated by the same staff who handle the politicians. The atmosphere is convivial and accessible rather than exclusive. But the political background gives the restaurant a layer of significance beyond just the excellent food — eating at Saputo's is participating, even as an observer, in the long-running pageant of Illinois state politics.

Saputo's red sauce — the foundation of nearly every pasta dish on the menu — is made daily from a recipe that has not changed since Maria Saputo first prepared it in 1948. The sauce simmers slowly with San Marzano tomatoes, garlic, fresh basil, and a small amount of red wine. It is neither sweet nor sharp; it has the gentle complexity that only long, patient cooking can produce. The kitchen makes about 20 gallons of red sauce daily, and it's used in everything from spaghetti and meatballs to lasagna to chicken parmigiana.

The signature pasta dish is the spaghetti with meatballs, an unfussy plate of perfectly cooked spaghetti, generously sauced, with two enormous meatballs (each about the size of a baseball) on top. The meatballs are a Saputo family recipe combining ground beef, ground pork, breadcrumbs, parmesan, eggs, and herbs, formed by hand and braised in the red sauce for hours. The result is tender enough to cut with a fork. The spaghetti meatball plate at $19 is one of the great Italian-American value meals in Springfield.

Beyond the pasta, Saputo's excels at veal — the veal piccata in lemon-caper-white wine sauce and the veal Marsala with mushrooms are both classics done at the highest level. The Italian beef sandwich, served only at lunch, is a thinly sliced roast beef on Italian bread dipped in the cooking jus with sweet peppers or hot giardiniera — a Chicago classic that Saputo's prepares as well as any restaurant downstate. Pizza is also available, with the thin-crust variety being the most popular.

Reservations are essential, particularly on weekends and during Illinois state government legislative sessions (typically January through May). The restaurant is closed Sundays and Mondays — common for Springfield restaurants, but a frequent surprise for travelers. Tuesday through Thursday hours are 4:30pm to 9pm, and Friday and Saturday hours extend to 10pm. There is no lunch service except during certain legislative sessions when limited lunch is offered for state government workers.

The restaurant occupies a converted residential building on East Monroe Street, six blocks east of the Old State Capitol and ten blocks east of the current Illinois State Capitol. Free parking is available on the street and in a small adjacent lot. The dining room seats about 100 across the main room and several smaller private rooms. Ask for a booth in the main dining room for the most atmospheric seating — the back rooms are reserved primarily for private parties and lobbyist meetings.

Expect dinner for two with wine to run $80 to $120 — reasonable for the quality and quantity of food. Dress is described as "smart casual" — most diners wear collared shirts and nicer clothing, but jeans are acceptable. The atmosphere is comfortably classic without being stuffy. Service is professional, attentive, and warm; many of the waitstaff have worked at Saputo's for decades and know the menu's history and the regular customers personally.