The Clifton restaurant in Plainfield blends sophistication with ‘a little bit of everything’

A new Plainfield restaurant combines the elegance and refinement of city dining with the connectivity and hospitality of the suburbs.

The Clifton also pays homage to the former Giambotta Pizza, which previously occupied its space.

Co-owners Dan Tacone and Ben Devee opened The Clifton on July 9 at 24136 W. Lockport St. in downtown Plainfield, across the street from Next Whiskey Bar, which Tacone and Devee also own and operate.

We’re influenced by cuisine all across the country – really, all across the world.”

—  Dan Tacone, co-owner of The Clifton in Plainfield

The Clifton’s menu “reflects small plates, fresh salads, wood-fired pizzas, thoughtful mains, skillful cocktails, beer and an array of wines,” according to its Facebook page.

“We’re influenced by cuisine all across the country – really, all across the world,” Tacone said.

The former Giambotta Pizza also inspired The Clifton’s menu. Giambotta Pizza was known for its wood-fired pizza, and it’s closing in 2022 “left a void,” Tacone said.

“So, the first thing we did was purchase a wood-fired oven from Italy,” Tacone said. “That’s the centerpiece of our kitchen. We do other items fired up: steaks, chops, fish.”

Tacone said The Clifton tries to “touch as many food items as possible” with the different woods.

“Cherry, apple, hickory – all those woods impart different flavors into the oven,” Tacone said. “We didn’t want to do just pizzas out of the oven.”

Tacone said the menu is “very approachable.” If patrons want steak and potatoes, wood-fired tuna, Ahi tuna, food with Asian flavor, lighter meals, heartier meals, comfort food, kid-friendly meals, “we absolutely have that,” he said.

The Ahi tuna bowl – Togarashi seared tuna, sushi rice, shaved radish, avocado, sweet spicy mayo, crispy wonton, mango relish, nori, toasted sesame – has “more of an Asian flavor,” Tacone said.

And the wood-fired snapper – with its shakshuka tomatoes, herbed salad, pickled onions and lemon – is “fantastic,” Tacone said.

“We really have a little bit of everything,” Tacone said. “[Chef] Michael Ginger developed that menu in coordination with Ben and myself.”

So far, The Clifton’s top three menu items are its Pizza Margherita, Wagyu meatballs and steak tacos, Tacone said. Just one menu item isn’t doing well.

“The buffalo cauliflower pizza,” Tacone said. “For whatever reason, it’s not moving.”

The drink menu received the same careful curation.

“We’re as attached to our drinks as we are our food,” Tacone said. “All of our cocktails and beer and wine are very carefully selected by our team.”

The plan is to review the menu next week in terms of cooler-temperature options, Tacone said.

“Maybe some of the lighter dishes will give way to more comfort-type of dishes, more robust for fall and winter,” Tacone said.

‘We wanted to build with our community’

The Clifton was looking for the right location and “nibbled on some other communities,” Tacone said. Learning that the Giambotta Pizza building was for sale was “a blessing in many ways,” including the convenient location and familiarity with Plainfield and its leadership, he said.

“We both spent over a decade in Chicago in city living,” Tacone said. “And we became accustomed to the unique and modern dining option the city of Chicago has to offer. It’s such a great food and drink city.”

When people move from large cities to smaller towns, they still “want those modern, trendy, kind of pushing-the-envelope type of restaurants that aren’t really typical in the suburbs,” he said.

“But with that, in reference to community and hospitality, we wanted to keep the small-town feel. We wanted to build with our community,” Tacone said. “That’s something you don’t necessarily get in a big city.”

Tacone said he and Devee have been in the restaurant business for 14 years. They opened Next Mex in Lemont in 2010, and they also own Next Whiskey Bar in Lisle, he said. Jessica Cherkas is the director of operations for all four restaurants, Tacone said.

“I was always very passionate about the restaurant industry,” Tacone said.

Tacone said he started as a restaurant host at age 16, moved to serving and bartending and then managing restaurants, and even attended a culinary school.

“Ben and his father had a small torque tooling business where Ben was able to learn the back end and ins and outs of operating a business,” Tacone said.

Ironically, as devastating as the COVID-19 pandemic was to the restaurant industry, Tacone said the pandemic brought a benefit, too.

“It taught us how resilient we actually are,” Tacone said. “We always think – when we have a hurdle in front of us – ‘Hey, we got through COVID. We can get through anything.’ ”

IF YOU GO

WHAT: The Clifton

WHEN: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Thursday, and 11 a.m. to midnight, Friday and Saturday

WHERE: 24136 Lockport St., Plainfield

ETC.: Food and drink menu posted online. Online ordering available.

INFORMATION: Call 779-240-3122 or visit thecliftonrestaurant.com.