This place has 4 things that I look for in a good restaurant... 1 great service, 2 delicious food, 3 A pleasant atmosphere, and finally 4 getting what you pay for, over all I thought this place was great I highly recommend it and I will be returning.
Food quality is not what it used to be... servers are rude and if you go there on busy nights be ready for long wait times (45-60mnts) to get a table and then half an hour to get your food... servers are not friendly and will rush you out even before you finish your food. And they will never come to check on you
Great place to eat healthy and delicious food. We tried a wide assortment of dishes and enjoy all of them. The service is kind and efficient and the ambiance is interesting. Will Return.
I constantly stop buying some food in this spot. I loved the swift service and well cooked food. Highly recommended.
Hubby and I drive over two hours to eat here. Yes the food is that good!
Excellent food and atmosphere! All the employees are dressed in Middle Eastern clothing and it is a real cultural experience!
I have been to Middle Eastern joints all over the Chicagoland area and this place by far has the best shawarma. I had a pot of sage tea which made me feel so great even though I was completely stuffed.
Bar none the best Middle Eastern food in the south Suburbs!! Great Vibes, excellent service and delicious succulent food! Combination plate is always my go to or their seafood platter, absolutely mouth watering!
Large portions, excellent quality of meat, authentic atmosphere, excellent service. Will definitely return here again!
Located in Bridgeview just outside of Chicago there is a small restaurant that on the outside looks like an old fast food joint but as soon as you step inside you are taken to the other side of the world. Welcome to Al Bawadi Grill. Once you are inside the restaurant you can already hear the soft music and see the waiters attire that really makes you believe you have somehow been transported right into Palestine. When looking at their menu you are able to tell that it is very authentic without having to look too far. Most of what their dishes entail are meats and rice. Knowing that where you are is authentic without even have to smell or taste the food is a huge thing, especially for restaurants that claim to be. Before arriving my party had taken a look at their website to find the menu which was very simply put together. We decided to order one of their meat platters so that everyone could try as much as possible and discover as much as we could about their flavors. They brought pita bread and some different humus and pickled vegetables as free appetizers. The pita bread was definitely a sweet bread meant to be paired with everything else that was brought out. Hopefully, everyone that you are eating with is hungry because once the main course was brought out it was definitely as much food if not more than it was advertised to be. It had three of each of the skewers shown as well as four small lamb chops, four pieces of quail and a little bit of chicken and beef shawerma. All of this was being served over a massive bed of their two different kinds of rice their biryani and their saffron rice. Because we were not fully aware of how much food there was going to be we also ordered two of their filet mignon plates. The overall experience was good with the servers coming not too often as they had given us two water pitchers, however, they still came around more often than I would personally like as I believe that if the customer were to need something extra they should ask other than for refills of water. Our waitress, in particular, checked in on us about three or four times over the course of our meal. With this being my first personal experience with any middle eastern food let alone Palestinian food I am not fully qualified to critique the individual flavors and what spices they used so my main focus will be on the end result of the meats and rice themselves. If you were someone who prefers their meat well done or if you were to bring a younger child with you it would be wise to stick with their chicken or their kufta kabobs because those come out completely cooked. These meats paired better with their biryani rice as the rice had a little more flavor added into it with a light tangy spice and a clear note of lemon. If that were not to be the case then I would highly recommend the filet mignon and the shish kabobs. They are cooked less when looked comparatively to some of their other dishes but contain a stronger punch because they have been marinated. With the strong marination that has been infused into the meat, the saffron rice adds a nice sublimity to the meat when they are paired together. On its own, the saffron rice may seem like it is bland but it has been made specifically for these kinds of meats on their menu. Overall their lamb chops and quail were very thin cuts and seemed to turn out dry or overcooked. The restaurant is a wonderful place to go if you are with a couple of friends and it has more a family-style feel to everything. I would definitely recommend this restaurant if you wanted to try or even eat this kind of cuisine.
Service really declined overtime at this place. I changed my review from 5 stars to 1 star. Went here today and the service was extremely slow even though there was barely anyone in the restaurant. Waited over an hour for our food and eventually just ended up leaving because it still didn t come. Even our drinks and appetizers took over 30 minutes. To add insult to injury, they tried to sneak in an 18% tip onto our bill. We ended up having them remove the tip from our bill. I used to be a loyal customer to this place but now I will never return.
After seeing the rave reviews and hearing it from my friends, we decided to give it a go and guess what, this place is really good. We have tried quite some middle eastern places and among that this place is top up there. We went on a Sunday, so we called the place to make a reservation and they said they don't do reservation over the phone(You will understand why they won't when you get there given the amount of people wait there to be seated). By the time we got there it was close to 3 PM. The wait time was more than 30 minutes. So plan ahead. We went with a meat meal platter. They first served the appetizers from the platter and then the meal course. The shish and kufta kababs were well cooked. The lamb chops were little under cooked(may be we should have mentioned it to be well done) but it was juicy and well grilled. The quails could have been better. We were 6 and managed to finish off the platter with little bit to pack home. The service was very good and fast for the level of crowd they handle. Please do try the Kenafa. This dessert is scrumptious and its made to order, I would rate it 10/10. Overall a great experience. There were people still waited to be seated on a Sunday evening when we left the place at 5:30 PM, that would say the level of food experience this place holds.
Delicious food. Totally worth the wait. Highly recommended.
Went there for the first time on Sunday. The service was awful, the food wasn t even warm. Had to leave most of it. S pricey restaurant with poor service. There are some far better restaurants than this. For example NANDOS. Cheaper as well as way better experience and service.
Not as good as it used to be. Ordered Chicken shawarma platter and the taste was horrible.
Awesome food and atmosphere. Wait staff recommended food which was very helpful since it was my first time there.
Good food, but prepare your trip in advance this place is packed and a bit of wait time for getting f the food on the table. So, be patient and it is well worth the time.
The best Palestinian traditional mensef on Friday's. Come early or call to see if they will hold a serving after 5pm.
Great food but there should be separate section for families and optional music
Amazing food- their kabab platter and eggplant with tomato is phenomenal!
The BEST Mediterranean place, you will not be disappointed.
I love this place! I don't understand how some people give it bad reviews. I live in downtown Chicago and have tried every single middle eastern place around my area and never liked anything until I tried al bawadi. I sometimes drive 50 minutes to get there. I am middle eastern and their food tastes original and not Americanized. One of the workers there always helps me carry the leftover food plates to my car. Great hospitality and customer service. I don't understand how some people are saying they are rude. My experience was great.
I think one of The Best restaurants in Chicago! Everything is perfect! I wish they had a fresh made juice in their menu! I love this place! It s like 45 minutes ride from downtown but it s totally worth it!!!!
Fresh. I love that. Food not suited to my palate. That's why 4 stars.
Very good food, service and they serve to please. Will go back to enjoy again.
Not only the food was authentic and good but the hospitality and courtesy by the staff was impressive, despite being always busy the wait for a seat and /or food seem very reasonable.
Meat is marinated well & tender. Staff is very accommodating.
Best place to eat Mediterranean food. Love the seafood mixed grill!!
Its completely different experience. Food was freash and nice. Staff/service was good.
The food and service was great and Bayan was very nice and good
This place actually deserves no stars but it doesn t give me an option to put zero stars.
THEY ARE SO CHEAP AND STINGY !!!!!!!
Never go here during Ramadan they re cheap they barely Put anything out that s actually on their menu.
I asked for 2 slices of kanfa (the slices were very small so I thought he would give me two)
I didn t ask for anything else I didn t eat any other sweet and he told me no regardless of me not eating any other sweet I was not allowed to have another small piece of kanfa.
there was only two rounds of sweets for over 200 people.
To be honest the Basha Resturant is way better
They give you way more options
They re NOT CHEAP LIKE THE BAWADI !!!!!
Their manger doesn t make you feel dumb
The manger at the Bawadi that was wearing the red shirt today he made you believe you were getting your food for free
One of the staff memebers who were working the buffet had told me that I was not allowed to have more than 4 pieces of dawali because the manager told him no
Honestly I was so shocked and so were my friends and family.
I had talked good about this place to my friends and family who came from out of state, unfortunately they didn t enjoy it and neither did I. This is the last time I ll be spending my money here.
Good job Bawadi you guys just lost loyal customers
The food is excellent. The chicken shawarma wraps are really tasty. The hummus is excellent would recommend this place to others. This is my second time going here and the consistency of the food is wonderful.
I put this restaurant in my to do list for my vacation in Chicago.
Nobody else mentioned this, but weird old men walk around doing tasks like serving complimentary coffee, and opening doors, but there is a catch: They carry these western style holders (you know, like the ones from any Clint Eastwood spaghetti western), and they carry what I assume to be real pistols! I mean, those holsters do not secure the pistol in any way, and anyone could just grab it! Other than that, the foods alright. They have an awesome selection of drinks as well.
Amazing food and great service. I also really enjoyed the atmosphere. 10/10 would recommend
Excellent food and service ... need more lights to enjoy the atmosphere better.
Not great for vegetarians, especially at Ramadan buffets. Ended up paying almost $30 for the buffet but the only vegetarian option was pasta with white sauce. I am not a fan of the food at all but that's based on my flavor preference. The food always looks fresh and of good quality. My friends enjoy it but not for me.
Authentic Arabic food, perhaps one of the best in Chicago and the Midwest. Expansive menu and you will need several trips to try everything. Desserts are fantastic as well. recommend getting a reservation if you're coming here on Friday night or during the weekend. Service may feel a little bit slow, but the restaurant's atmosphere is quite laid-back and meant for you to take your time to eat and chat.
Horrible experience came for the buffet got lied to. party of eight they ran out of kebabs and were unwilling to provide us any more food so we ended up leaving hungry. they further insulted us by including tip in the bill for which not once did we even get asked for refills on our water. stay clear don t hear the hype dirty plates dirty place dirty management and all of this during the holy month of Ramadan. If you want pasta and store bought frozen fish all you can eat this is your spot. Shame on these stingy greedy owners for ripping people off of their hard earned money.
First off, amazing platters. If you're looking for a traditional middle eastern cuisine, you've found the right place. I love how everything is so traditional in the restaurant; even the servers wear traditional clothing. Nice atmosphere, and great place overall, especially for large groups
They better work on their kunafeh. It's far away from what a real kunafeh is. Very oillys and the cheese is tasteless. Can look on the intrinte for better recipes.
Very tasty food. The wait could take about 30 mins dinner time. Nice rice and mix grill. I heard the saman is usually good, but what I experienced. The baklava and turkish coffee are indescribable.
The food was excellent. The service was good. There is a long wait as this place is very popular.
Boombastic!!!!! Food was oh so good. The ambience is awesome! Servers are wearing these traditional middle eastern outfits. I wasn't so sure how good the food is going to be since I have tried a lot of good Mediterranean food, but this was really good food! Delicious! Must try!
Nice restaurant for casual Mediterranean. Friendly staff! During weekends sometimes wait time is longer so please reserve early.
Amazing food and service. Loved everything except toshka which was full of cheese
Went to eat dinner 3 days ago food was very bad over charged stay away
One of the best , great service and great food , everyone in that restaurant was Amazing.
Favorite new and must order item is KUNAFA. It s a delicious dessert they make to order while you watch. I m not a dessert person because I usually get full with my meal but this is a dessert that you will enjoy and then take home and enjoy later. Overall satisfied with all menu items.
The price has gone up but the quality and quantity won t disappoint! The ambiance is wonderful and the staff is always friendly and patient.
Among the best middle Eastern food joints in the chicagoland area. We frequently crave this place and love coming here. I love the environment too!
Awesome food, good service, you might need to wait on busy nights, that's how good it is!!
Bad service, bad food and expensive and they add 18% service on your bill obligatory. Never back to them again.
Not my favorite place. I've had better food, service is good.
This place has good food and unique traditional interior.
pathetic service, food takes long to cook, staff always got an attitude, they don't check on tables after food is served. never refill drinks/water unless you literally stand up and go ask the people in the kitchen what you want directly!
Simply amazing chicken shawerma wrap and homemade garlic sauce! I haven't eaten in or tried alot of things, but their chicken kofta and falafel wraps are pretty good too. And this is not the kind of place I would usually get fries, but if you do they're really good! Reasonable prices and friendly staff (at least takeout staff), I'm looking forward to coming here with a group of friends!
I had never had Mediterranean food but after my experience, that day, I'm sold on it!
The best costumer service as well!!
albawadigrill.com
