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Noodle dishes kids will devour
Move beyond spaghetti and meatballs
Bucatini carbonara at Avec
(615 W Randolph St, 312-377-2002; $15)
Thick, slurpable bucatini is tossed with a perfect mix of egg, Parmesan and guanciale (just a fancy word for unsmoked, delicious bacon bits, if your kids ask). But we have a feeling not too many little mouths will be open for questions. They’ll be too busy shovelingthis upgrade down the hatch.
Tagliatelle and meatballs at The Florentine
(151 W Adams St, 312-660-8866; half portion $15)
They’ll never look at Chef Boyardee (or maybe even grandma’s Sunday supper) the same way again. Thick-cut, housemade tagliatelle sits with petite meatballs that are just waiting to soak up velvety tomato sauce. A dollop of sweet ricotta dissolves into the sauce to make it extra creamy.
Bun Thit Nuong at Le Colonial
(937 N Rush St, 312-255-0088; $19)
Got an adventurous eater? Break with tradition and opt for this Asian noodle-and-meat dish: Vietnamese-style barbecue pork with sliced angel-hair pasta that’s tossed in a subtle lime-garlic sauce and topped with kid-pleasing crushed peanuts. They’ll be triple glad you double-dog-dared them to dig in.
