Taylor Street in UV doesn't feel like Chicago. My husband, a former student resident in Ann Arbor, reminded me it's a "college strip". I suppose that's true enough. And Couscous doesn't feel like a restaurant. If a ballet studio and a Cicero basement had a love child, it would look like Couscous. The wood paneling with scenes from Amish country, wicker ceiling fan, a wall covered in dusty floor to ceiling mirrors (I always wondered what I looked like stuffing my face with falafel), drop ceilings and glowing signs behind the "bar" are all ingredients to fuel hesitation at the door. Not to mention when we walked in at 8 p.m. on a Friday night, there were only four other patrons dining and all of the other tables, save the one we selected, had yet to be cleaned. We ignored all the signs to bolt. And I'm not full of remorse. Listen, the falafel was good. They got the basic things right. The rice was strange, flavored with nutmeg and cardamom, but we were hungry and ate it. Hubs hates hummus and wolfed down four (microwaved) warm pitas full of the lemony, garlicky yums. His buds are changing. It's a beautiful thing. Though he still doesn't fancy chewing on fat, which he had to a couple times with the beef kabob. But this place is far better suited for carry-out. Then you can save the encounters with the "owner" who was hawking a loogie in the back, the waitress who has seen better days as she drags her orthopedic feet around the tiled floor. It was hard to really enjoy tahini when all the while I was sure we were hosted by folks who were "playing restaurant" like I did when I was a kid. Couscous and I are both desperate; me for a good Middle Eastern restaurant in the 'hood and the former, for Gordon Ramsay.
(2)
Krsna V.
Great food at a great price. I often go here because it is close to UIC west campus and one of the better choices for eating on Taylor street. I have pretty much ordered everything here and they all are good. Special recommendation to the sandwiches. The only complaint I have is the wait. Service is slow but, that's what happens when you go a family run restaurant. Definitely recommended.
(4)
Hanbit Y.
I admit it. I AM sad that they spent too much money at IKEA and changed the decor... but, It is still my favorite place to get some Middle Eastern. TOO GOOD.
(5)
Bill W.
The food was quite good: hummos, baba ganoush (sp?), falafel... all better than average. The service was rather poor given we were one of three tables, but nothing spectacularly bad happened. Also, it would be pretty easy to eat there in a group for cheap if you ordered lots of smaller plates.
(4)
Ed J.
I love Cous Cous, here are my favorites: Beef Breek, Hummus, Falafel (THE BEST!) Fried cauliflower and potatoes, Jerusalem salad, Lamb or falafel shawarma, Dolma, Kallaya, Stuffed Lamb... And let me remind you...these appetizers are usually $2.50 a piece like the breek, small plate hummus...like $2.50-3.50...so its cheap and good for me. The sandwich sometimes just fills me up and its like $4.50 for Lamb and beef and its stuffed with a lot of meat and veggies. The old man is usually the only one that's there cooking and he's super nice, but expect to wait a little bit coz he's the only one cooking and he cooks to order. Bottomline, CousCous is a great deal =)
(4)
Anne S.
We had a girls dinner here last night, and when we walked in we immediately said it's a good thing we didn't have a big group. The restaurant is a small space with several 4 person tables, and one 6 person table. But it was a friendly place, so I didn't mind it being small. We were starving so we immediately ordered the appetizer combo, and foul modomas (sp?) which none of us had every had before. They were delicious. The hummus was excellent, and the falafels were amazing. There was only one waitress, and she wasn't around quite as much as I would have liked. She was very patient with us, since it took us forever to decide on entrees. However it was hard to flag her down to order dinner, or to get more pita bread, and we never got water refills. (I should have asked for a pitcher of water on the table)! We all got dinners, and I easily could have gotten a sandwich and been happy with a lot less food. I ordered the lamb couscous, and I am excited to have leftovers for lunch today. It was delicious, and the lamb was nicely cooked. The place is BYOB, and when our friend arrived with a bottle of wine, the waitress immediately brought out wine glasses. Oh, and there is no corkage fee! If we go back, I would order more appetizers, and either split an entree with someone, or order a sandwich. It would still be plenty of food, but save some money!
(4)
Andy P.
This used to be one of my favorite places to go with my gf. The very first time we went it was amazing and hit the spot. I ordered the lamb shank special and it was pretty good. The actual lamb shank itself was big and cooked just right. The meat fell right off the bone. They also had some big chunky cuts of vegetables that I thought went pretty well with the lamb and rice. The next half dozen or so times I've been there the lamb shank has been a hit or miss. Every time I order it, it looks different which is somewhat surprising because it's the same cook every time. The cuts of the vegies are different everytime and how the lamb is cooked is always different. Sometimes it's fall of the bone tender, very moist and juicy and other times its just plain dry. It's a hit or miss. The consistency with the place is just so off. Also, if you listen closely you can distinctly hear the microwave being used a lot for a lot of the orders. That in itself wouldn't warrant a rating of one though. This is why I rate it a one. The last time I went there, there had been a remodeling and me and the gf were eager to revisit. We were told that they were out of lamb shank. I decided to try something new and went with the stuffed cabbage. My order came out and it didn't look that bad. I'm not saying it looked good either but it looked edible. I took one bite and wanted to get up and give the cook a piece of my mind. I thought better of it and took another bite to see if it was just that one bite. It was everything, there was this distinct spoiled taste. It was very sour and acidic, I knew right away that it had gone bad. This is the only time in my life that I've committed the cardinal sin of sending back an order. I've eaten a lot of bad food in my life, from finding hairs in my food, to wrong orders, or just straight up undercooked meat but I've never sent food back ever in my life. This was the only time. The cook came out and tried to tell me that it was lemon juice. Who are you trying to kid here? If the stuffed cabbage is bad, just tell the customers that you're out of it. Don't go ahead and serve it. This was such a huge turn off. Was pretty sad to be honest. This used to be one of my favorite spots to eat with the gf. Haven't been back since.
(1)
Naren A.
I was a regular here when I was at UIC. Very yummy food at awesome prices, the sandwiches are a steal at $3.50, I am a cauliflower and potato sandwich regular, this one is awesome, the cauliflowers and potatoes are made soo well, spiced really well, topped with fresh cucumber and tomatoes with tahini, simply awesome, the falafel sandwitch is also very good. Another regular of mine here is a small baba ganouj or a small hummus, at 3 bucks its soooper tasty and sooper satisfying. I regularly do a sandwich and a small baba ganouj or the lentil soup.. The lentil soup is also good here, very nice on a cold chicago winter day. Its a family run place, the husband cooks and the wife serves....
(4)
Sarah F.
Couscous serves falafel sandwich that is much tastier than its $3.50 price tag would lead one to believe. In fact, everything on the menu is very cheap, and I haven't ordered anything I haven't liked. I suggest getting carryout rather than waiting for the consistently slow service, unless you have the luxury of taking two hour lunches.
(4)
KM M.
Slow, slow, slow service. That coupled with the incredibly loud thuds from upstairs (maybe an apartment up there) and the really sticky floor, did not make for a relaxing or enjoyable dinner. The food was okay, although I ordered a Chicken Shawerma sandwich with no tomatoes and instead got no cucumbers and tons of tomatoes that I ended up having to pick out. Redeeming features include good hummus, pretty good shawerma and no corkage BYOB. Be forewarned though, they did not have a wine cooler for our white wine.
(2)
peter l.
Went for lunch and tried the buffet. The food was just decent. The owner was okay as well. We were the only ones inside. We were enjoying the Lebanese music and dancing on the TV's and the owner explained how popular this artist was . 5 minutes later he abruptly changed to some newscast in a foreign language, so much for ambiance or consideration. Worst part was the sign that said "included with buffet" under a tray of Baclava. I was charged for the mediocre baclava and asked why. The owner lifted the tray and flipped over part that said "not" over "included with buffet". Felt like a comedy skit. He said he was sorry but apparently wasn't sorry enough to remove the charge from my bill. I would've never taken a piece if I knew it was extra. A real shame. I knew I should've gone to potbelly's for lunch.
(2)
Ted P.
The food here was mediocre at best. The hummus was underwhelming, served with microwaved pita that had seen better days... the breek was interesting and it probably stands out as the only thing I'd order again, if I even go back. For the main course, we both had sandwiches, both of which had way way way too much sauce on them and both of which had meat that just seemed a little past its prime. Top it all off with slow/less than attentive service and a dirty decor, sprinkled with fruit flies and this is not a place we'll be headed back to any time soon...
(2)
Brittany H.
Food? standard, classic, hard to mess it up really. Service? off-the-charts terrible. Went there once, and never again. In fact, when I walk by it brings back awful memories of the time I actually gave this place business. It wasn't even late, like 6 or 7pm and the place was dead. There were no tables in there except ours and the people working there literally acted like we didn't exist. They were doing some kind of construction, it was ear-piercing, so loud that we were screaming at each other while trying to have a conversation. As if that wasn't bad enough, towards the end of our meal, the server started mopping the entire place. Not just the kitchen or back area, but the place where all the tables were, where we were. So while we're trying to finish our food, the restaurant fills up with this horrifying bleach scent, so bad that I could literally taste it. You'd think having such a great location these people would care at least a tiny bit about service. To me, they think because we're students we're stupid, young, we don't tip well and therefore do not deserve good service. Well, Couscous, you do not deserve my business.
(1)
Shana A.
AMAZING, AMAZING, AMAZING. This is one of my favorite restaurants in this neighborhhod. Even though I dont live there anymore I find myself constantly going back because the food is so amazing and the staff/owner isso kind! I've tried many things on their menu and everything is wonderful and resonably priced! The place is clean and the food is ready quickly. My only issue is it isnt on my side of town anymore.
(5)
Annette L.
I can't speak for eating at the restaurant, but their carry-out was great. My husband went and picked up the food and he said parking was kind of sucky around there, and he was gone for a little long, so I can only assume he was circling the block or waiting inside for the food. Once it got home, we were happy campers. I've started to refer to the tahini as crack sauce, and one of the falafel was nicely soaked in it by the time the food got home. Mmmm. I got the shawerma sandwich, hubby got the shawerma platter with rice and we split a falafel. We were both full and very happy, and the price was decent.
(4)
Gail T.
falafel-great! lentil rice with deep-fried onions--amazing! hummus-sooo yummy baba ganouj-it's ok saffron cauliflower-a little pricey for amount, but so delicious jereusalem salad-pretty basic recipe, hard to mess up this vegetarian-friendly place is amazing. half a dozen falafel--2.95. what a deal. i LOVE this place. and the service too. owned by a family with a daughter. sometimes on busy nights, the little girl comes and excitedly puts silverware on the table. check out my pictures of the falafel and hummus. oh and the father is really nice about giving you more and more pita. YUM.
(5)
Jamie D.
So my best friend and I stopped by Couscous for dinner earlier today. Boy was it deserted (save for the waitress and cook sitting at a table in front, talking to one another). Maybe it's because it was a Monday night, but an empty restaurant, especially at dinner time, is never a good sign. I had been at Couscous with another friend before though, and remembered large portions, so we walked inside the small but clean establishment (it seats maybe 50 people). The waitress and cook stopped talking to each other when they saw us walking in. I began saying "a table for two.." but immediately realized that it wouldn't matter. So, we just took a seat nearby the windows. At that point, the waitress promptly stood up and gave us two menus along with two glasses of water as we settled in. We took a bit long to order since it was my friend's first time there, and she rarely eats Mediterranean food. After a while, we decided to split a lamb kabob dinner. There were a few people who made phone orders and stopped in for take-out as we waited for our food, but none dined in. Among those who stopped in was an obviously drunken man who apparently was outraged that he wasn't waited on immediately. He complained that he couldn't see the menu because he forgot his glasses. The waitress explained to him that the lamb shank was the special of the night and there was baklava for dessert. He left frustrated when the waitress told him the price (which wasn't THAT unreasonable). Ah, it was an amusing sight, but anyway, onto the food. After about 15 min of waiting, our kabobs came out on a pile of rice, with a heavily charred wedge of onion that I did not dare to eat, a quarter of a red bell pepper, and a small tomato on the plate, all charred; I must admit, the pepper and tomato were flavorful, but they weren't as charred as the onion. Our dinner also came with a bowl of cucumber, shredded lettuce, red onion and tomato salad on the side. The rice was mildly flavorful, but the lamb was very dry, chewy and very charred. The portion was quite large for one person (just right for her and I to split), which was a plus, but it was mostly rice. After dinner, I went up for the check and saw a bunch of tin boxes of baklava. Tempted, I asked for the prices. 1.50 each, 6 something for a small box of 7 pieces, and 9 something for the bigger box. I settled for the smaller box. My best friend and I shared a few with coffee at Starbucks across the street. These were probably the highlight of our meal. They were nutty, flaky and just a tad sweet--my kind of dessert. Overall, the service was okay (well, I've had worse, but it could DEFINITELY be better at Couscous), but the food was nothing to rave about. The baklava was good and not overly sweet. The price is good for the portions, but I've had better Mediterranean food on the north side of Chicago. I might return for their baklava if I'm craving it, and *might* try their veggie dishes just because it's one of the few Mediterranean restaurants in my hood, but probably not for their meat dishes.
(2)
Leigh R.
Well, the two stars is a push and I only put two because the hummus is pretty amazing! Went on a Wed night with a friend and the place was empty yet the table next to us wasn't cleared. The service was pretty bad considering we were the only ones in there. The inside was kinda trashy, they only served soft-drinks. She gave us the menues and asked if we were ready to order...um noooo we're not ready to order. Food: Just okay - the veggie kabobs were blah and the falafal's were mediocre at best. The stuffed-grape-leaves were just okay. The portions were HUGE though and very affordable. Still in search for some damn good falafal's in Chi-town!! Help me out yelpers!
The food was pretty good, but the restaurant was freezing and the brunette older woman wasn't very nice or attentive. Cheap food, but I won't be convincing my co-workers to return any time soon. I do love the hilarious wood paneling with prints of pheasants and chipmonks.
(3)
Danielle A.
Sad to report, but my experience with Couscous was not good at all. First, we ordered take out - meaning we went into the restaurant, and pointed out exactly what we wanted from the menu in person. We did not stay to enjoy the ambiance because the dining room was sweltering. I cannot imagine how hot the kitchen must have been. (Please note that this did not contribute to the low rating). When we picked up the order 15 minutes later (from a very friendly lady) it was absolutely our mistake to not check the order but we did not (thus two stars rather than one as recognition that this was our stupid oversight). When we did open the containers there were several problems. First, missing falafel for which we paid. Second, a giant chunk of meat in my vegetable kabobs (RED flag). Third, our bulgar dish was made with rice, despite the fact that the woman taking our order clarified that we wanted bulgar and NOT rice. So, each of the components of the order was incorrect. When I called to report the missing falafel and incorrect dishes and meat on vegetarian plates, the woman kindly told us that it would be replaced and took the address (about one block and a half away from the restaurant). One minute later she called back to say that they could not deliver because they would not be able to find parking again when they returned to the restaurant. While I understand that this is a small operation, and although they said we could come by and pick up the food, it seems they could have (should have) extended the commercial gesture of walking the five minutes to deliver the corrected dishes. As for us making the walk, with a sleeping baby and a bad taste from the experience thus far, we opted out. And now I am feeling very sick from the small amount of food I did taste from the rice dish (without the hunk of meat). I will try Couscous again, and have been wanting to try it for two years, but this initial experience was very poor. Hopefully I will eventually be able to report back with a better review.
(2)
Andrew S.
The service was so bad it was funny. My friend and I arrive bottle of wine in hand (it's BYOB) and sit. And wait. After about ten minutes the server appears and asks if we'd like anything to drink. The bottle of wine is sitting on the table. I say we'd like some water and some glasses and a cork screw. The waitress disappears for about ten minutes and then reappears with said items. She asks if we're ready to order, we respond yes and she disappears again. Not it a rude manner though. Just as if, I dunno, she didn't get it? She returns we order falafel for appetizer. Lamb Magrab Cous Cous and the Lamb Shawerma dinner. We wait about ten minutes and out comes 6 of the most wonderful falafel I've ever heard (which includes all over Israel). So crusty on the outside, yet moist and NOT greasy on the inside. Of course after taking two bites of the falafel out comes our entrees. They were excellent and all food was eaten and enjoyed. Then we sat. And waited. Then we watched the sea. The sea was calm. I sat in the boat. (A la "The Old Man in the Sea)
(4)
Connie P.
We were there for a late weekday lunch. Great Algerian food - and we love the price. It's a family run place. The service could be a little slow but always hospitable. The highlights of our meal was the fried cauliflower appetizer and the falafel. We will return for dinner to take advantage of their BYO no corkage.
(4)
Hauwei L.
Went for the first time this week with a friend and found that Couscous features tasty food, reasonable prices, and mediocre service. The place was sparsely decorated, with simple chairs and paper over the rectangular tables. We enjoyed the tajeen with spinach and chicken appetizer, it was very nicely flavored and a welcome change from the usual hummos or baba ghanoush. The lamb couscous was excellent: large chunks of tender meat and an assortment of vegetables over a bed of couscous. The chicken shwerma entree was good, but not great. Loved the rice, but found the chicken itself to be a little dry for our taste. We were impressed by the food, the large portion sizes (we had plenty of leftovers), the prices, and menu, which was had some items you don't find at the usual Middle Eastern restaurant. We were less happy with the servers, who were not very attentive and difficult to get a hold of even though it was not busy at all. Overall though, I would definitely come here again.
(4)
kiley w.
Came here over the summer. Decent home cooked meals, but nothing over the top.
(2)
P M.
Best and least expensive falafel I have ever had. Waitress seemed new and not sure of herself but so what! Great value!
(5)
Chris R.
Food is very good, especially Dolma and Falafal. But service is almost non existant and there is something about the wood panneling that screams out "grandma's basement". BYOB with no cork charges is a plus. Not a real destination spot but since I live in the neighborhood i will be back. If you find yourself in Little Italy and want to branch out from Italian food, it's worth a look.
(3)
Gretchen V.
It was a Thursday night. I was craving middle eastern cuisine. I didn't want to go far and I didn't want to spend a lot of money. After doing a search on Yelp for places near my neighborhood, I found this place. I have to admit, my husband and I were a little skiddish on it at first. We ordered there, waited for about 10 minutes while the older gentleman who took our order cooked our food, and we were on our way. Our first thought was that it was a ton of food for very little amount of money; the second thought was that we hoped the quality matched up to the quantity. Neither of us are quantity over quality type of people. We got home, filled our plates, and were both pleasantly surprised with the flavor of the food. We ordered wayyyyy too much, but we wanted to try a bunch of stuff since it was our first time and figured we'd have leftovers for lunch the next day. We ordered the shawarma and the chicken shawarma sandwiches, hummus, falafel, feta salad, and baklava. We got it all for $26.00. That is pretty amazing, folks. Especially in Chicago. My favorites were the chicken shawarma - it was seasoned almost like chicken would be at an Indian restaurant and was super flavorful - and the feta salad. As one other Yelper commented, the feta salad is HUGE, has lots of fresh vegetables and feta, and it's only $5.75. If this place were close to my office, I would get that for lunch every day. The hummus and falafel were also very tasty and were a good value. My husband loved the shawarma and literally cleaned his plate. The baklava was good - not great - but I'm hard to please given that Greektown is 2 blocks away from my house. Don't come here for the atmosphere - as others have commented, it's just a little hole-in-the-wall type of place. But you gotta love restaurants where the man who takes your order also cooks your food. Cous Cous has earned it's way into our regular carry-out rotation.
(4)
Courtney M.
YUM YUM YUM!!! I cant say enough good things about this place. They are extremely friendly and attentive and their food is sooooooo good... Love their hummus!
(5)
Elizabeth R.
I love this quaint Mediterranean restaurant! The food is always great (just had falafel, grape leaves, Jerusalem salad, and feta salad). It's never packed and the food is freshly made. Also, very reasonably priced with apps $3-6 and entrees $8-13.
(5)
Steph F.
couscous has the best falafels in the world! THE WORLD! everything i've tried is delicious. you can shut your eyes, point to the menu, and it will ALWAYS be that good. their portions are GInormous without the price tag. when i was working at UIC, i was able to walk there (10 minutes each way), sit down, and eat (which i do slowly) during my lunch hour. quick, cheap, and absolutely delicious. great service, & even greater peeps that work there. the are personable and sweet and remember you when you come back. they catered an office lunch for us. i let the guy decide the menu (including vegetarian options) and he blew us away. for $100, we got enough food (huge trays of hummus, pitas, falafel, tanjeen kaftaji, chicken tika, jerusalem salad, yogurt salad ... there was more) to feed an office of 15. that day we only ate a THIRD of the food, which was awesome because we didn't have to bring lunch for the rest of the week. and believe you me, we could eat their food for every meal.
(5)
Steven T.
Yummy food! Greatly flavored meats and veggies. I like the distinct flavor of their falafel (my bf says they taste strangely like donuts, however). Hummus is smooth and sufficiently moist. Pitas are bready and soft (not tough like most other places; just different). Dolma were a bit too tangy flavored than I've had before. Some student org's at UIC west campus cater food from here occasionally. Finally went in tonight to sit down and eat. Total bill was $24 after tax/before tip for Veggie Combo Platter (huge variety of hummus, salad, grilled veggies, dolma, rice, falafel), Meat Combo Platter, and 1 hot tea. Wasn't busy in the dining room. Cozy, laidback environment. (Definitely feels homey).
(4)
Jennifer S.
Good things: Friday night at 8:30 and plenty of tables for our party of 3 to choose from. We test drove a few tables, before settling closer to the kitchen. I love that carrot juice and homemade-lemonade are on the menu, but I was sad that they were out of the carrot juice that night. Combo plate appetizer was perfect. Their hummus is flavorful and smooth. And their pita was warm and soft. The couscous with vegetables looked delicious. I ate the Tajeen with Spinach and Chicken. I'd never had tajeen before, but I liked this. I'm glad I tried something new. Next time I might sub out the rice for something else. It was tasty, but I'm personally not too keen on eating a mountain of rice. Maybe they can give me more hummos? Huge portions! Leftovers were enough for another meal. Cheap! Three huge entrees and salads and an appetizer with tax for less than $40. Super friendly waitress. She suggested the tajeen, because it had JUST COME OUT OF THE OVEN!!! I would recommend asking what's really good that day. A great place to people-watch. Fun crowd. Not so good things: Parking. It is always a pain to park over here and now that the meters are atrocious, I recommend finding other means. (I will ride my bike next time.) Salad was good, but they bought us two salads with creamy dill dressing and one drier salad with some kind of red seasoning and tons of raw onion. Either they were pairing our salads with the entrees we ordered, or we were supposed to tell them what kind of dressing we wanter. I really really really recommend the creamy dill salad instead of the oniony one.
(4)
Nina F.
True the service was slow but the food was worth the 15 min wait! Chicken Tikka was yummy. Staff was friendly. Restaurant clean. Food Fresh! I recommend you try it for yourself
(4)
Jenna D.
My boyfriend chose this restaurant out of all the choices in Chicago for his birthday last year. When we came in to meet his whole family there, they wore the look on their faces (which I imagine many wear on their first trip here) which can only be interpreted as, "skeptical." It wasn't until they tasted the food that they understood why their youngest son had brought them here. Eating here is always like eating in a friend's home. The owner, Joad, and his wife know us by name and will make anything we request. The menu is more a suggestion than anything and the prices are always more than reasonable for the freshness of the ingredients (the tomatoes are always amazing) and size of the portions. The homemade (and more importantly freshly made) falafels are not to be missed. When you go to Couscous, you will not be pleased if you are looking for outstanding service and atmosphere. But if you are looking for great food and kindhearted owners, you really can't beat it.
(5)
Tony G.
This is a fine(read: good, decent, not white napkins and sommeliers) Mediterranean restaurant among the bars and Italian Restaurants of Taylor Street. It is definitely very cheap food, especially for dinner. They are also BYOB, though they really don't advertise the fact. The menu seems pretty big, but if you read the descriptions it appears that much of the menu options are just slight variations on maybe 10-12 meals. You can order by number, but be aware that the descriptions of the food are not necessarily accurate - your meal may include some things not listed and also may exclude some things that are listed. Service was just ok, but it had the feel of being self-service, even though it wasn't. All that said, I will be back, as it was pretty decent food for very cheap.
(4)
Jean Z.
Great flavorful food. Whatever you order - Eat in or Take out. This hummos is the best I've had in years. Shawerma is fabulous and the shish taouk is perfectly marinated! Ive been here several times in the past 2 weeks, maybe just a fettish for now. Printing new to-go menus, maybe I'll grab one today and post the very cost-effective menu!
(5)
Janet T.
Really though--I mean the other night I was looking for good middle eastern convenient enough to me (I'm in the West Loop) for take out and I hopped onto Yelp for some friendly advice, thinking "can't go wrong with a Yelp review." WRONG. So I got takeout from Couscous--it was timely--20 minutes like they said. I got a Veggie combo platter and a chicken shwarma sandwich. First off--they forgot the Baba Ganoush--which is fine b/c the Hummos wasn't great, the Falafel bland...I make a much better roasted cauliflower and the other veggies were blah. The chicken schwarma was fine, but not great! Again it was slathered in a hummos that was more tahini than chick pea. Oh, and what part of this place was REALLY inexpensive?? I thought the prices were normal...kind of high if you take into account that nothing tasted good! If you're in the Loop during the day--go to TAZA...much better food and it really is cheap. Otherwise get something at Reza's (great rice!)
(2)
scott a.
It was ok. Just ok. The grape leaves were not very good cold, so he heated them up for us and they were decent. The falafel gets a C. I liked that the one guy there was doing everything, waiting tables, cooking, answering the phones.
(2)
Carrie H.
This is often our Sunday night take out dinner. My boyfriend and I love mediterranean food and for the price you get a lot of food and a wide variety to select from.
(4)
Amy F.
good stuff. The chicken shawerma is my usual. The owner is very friendly, but sometimes he's the only one there so don't go if you're in a hurry. Don't hesitate to hit up the baklava..they have both walnut and pistachio, and if you're really in need of a honey overdose buy one of the boxes of assorted desserts. Be sure to check out the strange wallpaper.
(3)
adam C.
I've been all over the city looking for great middle eastern food. This place has the best, most consistently good food i've had in the genre, anywhere in chicago. Yesterday, I visited the restaurant with my girlfriend. The owner (who is always there, and seems to care about every one of our customers) was working by himself, waiting for his cook and his waitress to come in for the evening rush. He was our cook, and our waiter. During an after-dinner conversation, he found out my girlfriend was trying to find more meatless dishes to try. On the spot, he went to the kitchen, and prepared something that was new on the menu, a full sized dish for her to take home and try. Amazing to get this kind of service, while the food is so incredibly good. Anyone who hasn't eaten here, should.
(5)
Ashley F.
I was checking out other Yelpers' reviews for businesses in my neighborhood and was shocked when I saw that Couscous had an average of about 4 stars! Although I have never eaten here, I do have some insight for you regarding this strange, hole in the wall restaurant. I used to live in the building, two floors directly above Couscous. First of all, the smells our apartment endured were terrible! Strong curry all the time... not appetizing. Second, the staff is rude! The kitchen workers and owner were constantly hanging out at the back door of the building and were always in the way of the exit. Not very friendly either. Lastly and probably most important, the food and kitchen are super dirty! While leaving my apartment, I had several opportunities to peer into the kitchen (they leave the back door open in the summer) and I won't go into details for those of you who love this place, but I can sum it up by telling you that it was definitely not clean, and hence, the main reason I've never tried this place. My advice to you is to head to a different restaurant for Middle Eastern food.
(2)
Rachel H.
I tried Couscous for the first time last night. Tabbouleh was good enough, but not the best I've ever tried. I enjoyed the beef kebab, and everything was good for the price point. If it were more expensive, I would have probably only given three stars. The only real complaints were that the waitress forgot my soup, and that it was somewhat stuffy in there for such a hot day.
(4)
Suz M.
When I moved from Rogers Park (known for its' diverse ethnic food and people) to the Tri-Taylor area I was very sad that I wouldn't be able to eat at my old Mediterranean haunts and that I might not be able to ever find a tasty tabbouleh again. Finding Couscous was lucky and it serves as a good replacement for my Mediterranean jones. I've only eaten at this place twice (everyother time was carry out) and each time the service was pretty slow. Although one of the times I was sitting awkwardly with a person I don't like all that much so maybe it was that... The people who own and work there sometimes seem kind of rude but one of them smiled at a joke I made so they won my heart over. But anyway the hummus is usually tangy and smooth and baba ghanoush (which I never like) is suprisingly delicious. I've had better tabbouleh but I don't like too much parsely in mine. The falafel is crunchy and warm while the pita has always been soft. Their meat dishes are always flavorful and spiced and cooked to almost perfection. I recommend this little hole in the wall but maybe you want to do the take out.
(4)
L G.
This place is not worth your time. We were looking for good meditteranean food in the city but were sorely disappointed. Even though the portion size was big, the actual food was bland. The service is way too slow. There is only the owner and his daughter. I'd recommend going to the burbs and eating pita inn!
(1)
Mark M.
I enjoy this place. The hummus is wonderful, and the baklava is pure heaven. It's a small, family establishment, which I dig, and have I mentioned the baklava? Two things I would improve: 1) get a soda fountain, and 2) the service could stand to be a little faster. All in all, a pleasant experience that won't break the bank. Recommended. :-)
(4)
Joyce T.
I LOVE this restaurant. I usually order the Lamb Couscous and wow, for the price I pay for it, I get a humongous portion that I usually can't finish. Their stuffed lamb/chicken is delicious as well. The vegetables are nicely cooked and chopped up just right so that you don't feel like you're eating baby food but at the same time you don't feel like you're chewing down a forest. The lamb was cooked to perfection and not dry at all. Their homemade sauce (whatever is in there) is flavorful and to die for. I love their Tabouleh salad, although it was a bit sour for my tastes but I absolutely love their hummus. Baba Ghanoujeh (sp?), Jerusalem salad, and kefta kabob. A real treat of a restaurant with a great family atmosphere. It's not the fanciest place out there but it is def a place you can take your family too and have great food as well!
(5)
Kristen D.
This is better than some for middle eastern food, but you really have to be picky with what you choose. Don't try random things here...go with the staples and you'll be happy. A different place for lunch in the area.
(3)
Carl S.
A GREAT middle eastern restaurant, in the heart of Chicago's Little Italy of all places. Hands down the best Falafel in the city! All the dishes are created with distinct creative flavors in a nice relaxing atmosphere. Service can be a little on the slow side sometimes, but what do you want from a one-man-show ;) Thats the price to pay for fame.
(5)
Cat B.
Ordered take out from here last night and I was impressed when I first started eating, but I wonder how much of that was due to the fact that I was starving!! The hummus had a good spice to it, but my boyfriend found it bland. I had a couple of chicken entrees. The shwarma wasn't really shwarma...I think maybe they forgot to marinate the chicken because, to me, it tasted like grilled chicken. The chicken was tasty and not too dry. Very good with the rice and hummus all mixed in. I ordered the Jerusalem salad thinking that it would simply be tomatoes and cucumbers with an oil vinegar dressing, but it came with a creamy dressing. Not a fan. The rice was delicious and the grilled veggies were not oily and cooked well. The pita was lacking as well. I am with Rachel H. that I would have given it 3 stars if it were more expensive. I will order from there again because there are not a lot of restaurants with middle eastern fare in this vicinity. And this vicinity is way too far from my other favorites: Taboun grill and Pita Inn. But I also won't crave it like I do other places.
(4)
Sarah O.
We were repeat customers, but after this past weekend, I doubt we'll be back again. We have ordered out from here many times. They are always out of lamb! Strange for the type of food that it is & the quantity of lamb items on the menu. But, no big deal, we always find something else to order. This time was a little worse. We ordered the hummus with meat, feta salad, stuffed lamb (they were out of the stuffed chicken, how's that for a turn?) and the combo platter. When we got home & unloaded the bags there was no combo platter, but rather some janky little appetizer medley. So I called & said the order was wrong, that we had ordered the dinner combo plate and the man on the phone said "we charged you right for the appetizer combo". I explained that was not what we wanted and he asked me if I still wanted the correct dish. I told him yes and he repeated back to me "So you want me to put in an order for the veggie combo plate?". NO, wait, WHAT?? You mean to tell me you have 3 different dishes on the menu referred to as "combo plate" and the woman on the phone taking the order didn't think to get clarification from the customer WHICH one they wanted? No. Order cancelled. Business cancelled. Give your dishes unique names or make it your responsibility to be clear with the customer about what they are ordering. It is your establishment, you should know the menu, we do not.
(1)
Pilsen C.
Hey...you really cant beat this place for Middle Eastern in this area of Chicago...it's pretty much the only place around for this cuisine, but that's okay. Their hummous is excellent, and is fresh. Their Pita...well...their hummous makes up for it! I usually have falafels, which are usually very well made, not greasy, just the right crispness on the outside, and preserving the integrity of the gritty filling inside. My quasi-vegetarian friend had a friend cauliflower sandwich (which is a stuffed pita with cucumber and tomato filling in yogurt sauce). I had the meat kebab sandwich, which had the aforementioned filling. I also ordered this chicken/cheese/egg appetizer, which turned out to be a casserole, and wont be ordering again. My previous visits used to include an added order of chickpea soup, but for some reason, has gone down in quality. Total bill for all that, including my drink was still under $20. The decor isnt necessarily very middle eastern, but the owner usually puts on a good variety of arab-esque music. When i walked in recently, it sounded like a night club, with what, arabic dance music playing... Overall, Im pleased with the quality and consistency of their food. This place is tucked away on Taylor Street, which is quickly becoming commercialized with chains such a Potbellys and Starbuxxx. I hope that this place continues to thrive in the wake of the Blandification of Chicago.
(4)
Ren H.
The price is right but as for the food, I've definitely had better middle eastern food. And the staff was so inconsiderate, we waited so long after we were obviously finished to get the check and to get our waters refilled.. next time try Maza or Sultan's Market first.
(2)
Albert C.
Conveniently located on Taylor between UIC's East and West campuses, it's a cute little neighborhood restaurant serving up good Middle Eastern food. The falafel are good, as are the shawerma. However, my previous experience (in the early 2000s) was that Reza's provided a slightly better portion:price ratio, which was important for us poor med students.
(3)
Amanda T.
Couscous is a nice little place around the UIC area. Good for carrying out or dining in. The hummus is delicious, and all the dishes I've tried so far are quite tasty.
(4)
Vaishali P.
Great middle eastern, reasonable prices, and good atmosphere. What more can you ask for? Go!
(4)
Kelly H.
we ordered both the hummus and the baba ganoush and they were both delicious. next time i go here, i will probably just graze on those for my meal. the waitress seemed appalled when our table asked for more pita bread though and then promptly charged us $1 or something for it. anyhow, i had the fried cauliflower and potato sandwich, which is basically that, and Jerusalem salad stuffed into a pita. the cauliflower and potatoes were surprisingly delicious, not too heavily fried and had a lot of flavor. however, the Jerusalem salad was more like huge chunks of tomato and cucumber. literally, chunks the size of large grapes. obviously, i don't know what is authentic when it comes to middle eastern food, all i know is what i like based on similar restaurants around the city. so i give it 3.5 stars for their delicious hummus and baba and the deliciously different fried cauliflower and potatoes. minus a star.5 for the Jerusalem salad and slow service.
(3)
Tami R.
Outstanding! Charming space, excellent service and the food was as fresh and delicious as it gets! We had the Vegetable Combination Platter and Lamb Shank. Desserts yummy, too! A great find!
(5)
Lindsay N.
Holy mother of god. This place is so good. I had the Lamb Couscous and my mouth exploded in ecstacy. The prices are reasonable and the owner is such a nice guy! Try this place!
(5)
Nadine G.
So good, and so cheap! I know it doesn't look like much from the outside, and the menu is incredibly misspelled, but the food is really fantastic. Top notch tabbouleh and falafel. Service is a little slow, but the food is made-to-order and well worth the wait!
(4)
Katherine M.
Bets hummous in Chicago. Excellent Maghrebin dishes and the grills cannot be beat. When the special is a stuffed chicken or leg of lamb--GET IT. There are many choices for vegetarians.
(5)
Unknown K.
Perhaps it's the only thing around, but certainly I'd prefer Andersonville places much better. The lamb shank was very tasty, but everything else was ok. It took forever to get our bill. It wouldn't be my first choice to go back to, but if there were nothing else and I was jonzing for hummus and shawerma perhaps.
(2)
Norma C.
Great food, though staff is mediocre. I'm sorry for Ashley B.'s experience having lived in the same building, but truly you can't yelp about a place if you haven't experienced the service and food. The food is delicious. Sure the staff is rude, but I'm not so sure it's not a cultural difference. They don't speak English as a first language. Whenever I go, the owner seems very accommodating and bows his head a lot to show he understands what I'm saying. It's endearing. It smells like curry because it's a middle eastern restaurant. Who would rent an apartment upstairs from a restaurant? As a bartender at a restaurant, I understand that during operating hours, kitchens get dirty. I assure you, Couscous has passed health inspection. So, for Couscous, yes it's a dive, yes it smells like curry, but it's not a beauty pageant. I order food and take it to go all the time. The Feta Salad is HUGE and dressing is delicious and under $6. The hummus is smooth and creamy and has a little kick of powder chilli and paprika that adds flavor. The lentil soup is made fresh daily. I live near the place so I frequent the place often. It's great for parties as well. The large hummus makes a great dip and the falafels a good appetizer. I highly recommend.
(5)
Karen C.
such good food, such bad service! prepare to be offended at how bad the wait staff will treat you. that said, i am addicted to the veggie combo platter. whatever they do to the cauliflower is insane. the baba ganoush (sp?) is my favorite too.
(4)
Doug p.
My sandwich was pretty good but it seems they only have one waiter and he moves extremely slow which is annoying
(4)
Jennifer V.
Delicious middle eastern food! My favorite is the Arrayes (a pita sandwich with slices of lamb). Their appetizers are also great, especially the hummus, babaganoosh, and falafel. I highly recommend calling in your order and picking it up. I think there is only one cook and service is kind of slow.
(5)
Timmy M.
As a person who has had Naf Naf, this is clearly a downgrade. Its very tough to compete with a restaurant like Naf Naf, but the food here just didn't taste good. I got the chicken schwarma and some hummus with falafel. The falafel/hummus was fine, but the schwarma just lacked the favor and consistency that I've had at other Mediterranean restaurants. And it does not help that this place is a bit more expensive than many other Mediterranean fast causal restaurants.
(2)
Sara W.
I really enjoyed the food here, great place to stop for lunch, close to UIC west campus. It's a nice little spot that has Zabiha meat, and the portion sizes are great. Would recommend!
(4)
Chandani C.
This place was a random find while walking around in the area. My friends ordered the chicken shwarma wrap which they enjoyed however it was very messy to eat since it was falling apart. I ordered the spicy chicken kabobs which were delicious and a good amount of spicy. The rice it was served with was extremelyyyy dry. The dish could have been much better if it was served with a sauce. The place is run by an elderly man (who I assume owns the place) and he is the sweetest. He makes you feel at home at the restaurant.
(3)
Jacob G.
The food at Couscous is alright.
(3)
Brandon B.
I have had takeout a few time from here as a resident in training and it was always quite filling and satisfyingly different from the usual pizza messes we got or the in-house Au Bon Pain. I finally stopped by the actual restaurant with a colleague who was visiting. We were the only ones there so it was nice and quiet for a discussion. The food was so cheap and filling, basic but satisfying. The style of service is different that typical "American expectations:" minimal verbiage (I'm not sure anyone actually said a word to us the whole time!), not really well air conditioned on a hot day, a few flies at the window, relatively slow service; but these things are fine for a business/casual lunch.
(3)
Adri S.
This place is great! Cheap prices and the food is descent. The service is a little slow but there are only 2 people who work there and one of them is a cook who I assume is the owner. I had the vegetarian platter and it was delicious. If you are in the area- check it out!
(4)
Michael C.
Friend and I were craving some Mediterranean food in the medical district and decided on Couscous. Our dinner time was around 5PM on a Tuesday and were the only customers, though a man who I believe is the owner was busy peeling some vegetables at a corner table. My friend frequents this location and knew exactly what he wanted to order before our menus were delivered to us. They had a special leg of lamb as well as meat and rice stuffed eggplants. Normally I never order specials, but I was intrigued and the food sounded tasty. Both dishes were huge and meant to be shared. The leg of lamb was gigantic, almost displacing a ton of the tomato broth it came plated with when our server arrived. Flavor-wise it lacked salt, but the meat was fall off the bone tender. Our second dish, the eggplant, looked like two big logs on a plate, in again, a pretty similar broth. Within the eggplant was a meaty rice mixture that was a nice complement to the lamb. After eating all this, I had a crazy craving for some falafel and ordered a plate that came with vegetables, pita, and fried, sliced potatoes. This dish was the real winner of the night. The falafel was crispy and spiced well, and the potatoes were addictive. Overall it was a solid meal, and I found it funny that my favorite dish was the least expensive and had the most flavor. I think next time I come here, I'll enjoy the classics.
(4)
Katya S.
Went here for dinner with two friends on a Friday night and the place was empty (unlike everything else around it) which should have been a hint. We got baba ganoush as an appetizer which was fine, but my lentil entree was VERY dry and the owner didn't tell me that they had run out of onions, so it was not a complete dish. My friends had stuffed lamb amd the sampler meat platter which were okay, served with a ton of rice. Prices are reasonable ($8-13) but you can get much tastier food at one of the many other places on Taylor.
(3)
Alicia E.
The food was decent; my only issue was that I ordered a Chicken Shawarma and they gave me Steak. (It was still okay.)
(3)
Raj S.
Food - we did carry-out chicken kabob plates - the food was lacking flavor - chicken was not seasoned and the rice was not very good. I would not recommend trying those particular menu items. We didn't eat at the restaurant but the service appeared to be lacking... Price is pretty reasonable but there are so many better options on Taylor St that I would go to.
(2)
Azra H.
What a mistake coming here. I was at Rush University for a medical appointment and wanted a quick vegetarian bite to eat so, after reading decent reviews, gave it a shot. I got my food to go and when I opened it up found my tajeen kaftaji (TK) was the most oily thing I'd seen in months. The rice was average and yet basically all I could eat because the TK was so damn salty I couldn't taste any of it. Seriously I felt I was doing a great disservice health wise to myself. It was like poison by salt, of which I got a month's worth in one sitting. I ate only the rice and Jerusalem salad, which was actually decent. So I am left hungry and threw the rest out because I felt I was putting horrible quality food full of salt and oil into myself. Ugh. I do NOT recommend this dish.
(1)
Erika A.
Had the falafel pita it was amazing!!!!! And only 3.50 !! Bf got the kabob pita and he was also very happy!!!! The owner/ server was polite and fast!! Food was delicious and felt homade! Clearly made to order!! Can't do 5 stars because they use fake like juice for their sauces which is very easy to taste and I actually saw him make the yogurt with artificial bottles lime.
(4)
Alex R.
I really wish I could find something positive to say about Couscous other than that we had a nice server. Unfortunately, I can't. The biggest culprit in our disappointing visit to Couscous was the surprisingly dry meat. For a restaurant that should treat the tenderness of its meat with the utmost care, Couscous really fell short of our expectations. When I say "dry," I mean that no amount of dipping the meat in sauce could salvage the dish. Aside from the meat, I was disappointed by the flavorless soup that I got with my shwarma plate. The falafel was also unremarkable. There was also a mildly off putting smell coming from the vent we were seated next to. Needless to say, that didn't make our dinner any better.
(2)
Craig D.
While I love this style of food, the quality I experienced here was somewhat disappointing. I only returned once as I was with a friend who really wanted to try the place. Otherwise, I don't return even though it's very convenient to work. A couple other reviewers noted how pleasant the owner(?)/manager/server was. I agree. He was a very nice fellow. One hates to write a less-than-stellar review for such a pleasant man but if you want the truth about the food, it's only "ok".
(2)
Jennifer F.
I love this casual Mediterranean spot. I've never tried a dish I didn't like here but my favorite is the chicken and hummus plate served with pita. I crave it all the time! The prices are also reasonable so there is no strain on my wallet.
(5)
Sarah S.
Well, I used to like this place but last time I went there I ordered Lentil soup, it had rice in it!! I try not to think anything bad... but it was so weird :/
(3)
nancy b.
The best Middle Eastern food I have EVER had! Freshly prepared with the best ingredients. We enjoyed succulent perfectly baked chicken dish, lamb falling off the bone. A strict vegetarian was dining with our group and had plenty of dishes-- we all had the veggies-- couscous, homemade hot pita, eggplant, and more!! also a special cabbage pizza with garlic and ginger we all loved! and BYOB.
(5)
Shatski S.
Love this place. I am a regular customer here. Tried pretty much everything. My favourite is fauol and Jerusalem salad. Jawed who is running this place is a good cook and nice person to chat. Try sandwiches, lamb shank and his mint tea.
(5)
A K.
I was in Chicago for a couple of days, so I went to explore the medical district. Walking around in 15° weather had me about to turn into a Popsicle, so I stopped into Couscous to thaw out and grab a bite to eat. I ordered a chicken shawarma sandwich, lentil soup, and tea. The tea and lentil soup were exactly what I needed to warm up and they tasted great! The sandwich was a decent size and had tender cuts of chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, and onion topped off with lots of tahini sauce. The sandwich was really good, but fell apart due to the amount of tahini on it, so I had to eat it with a fork. The server (I think he may also be the owner) was nice and very attentive. The prices are super affordable...my whole meal was less than $10.
(4)
Karthik Vasishta R.
I've been here a couple of times now. This place is a good choice if you are craving for some middle eastern food. It is mainly run by one gentleman, with minimal help; so expect some delay if the place is slightly crowded. Also worth noting is that, this is one of the very few restaurants, I found, which has more than 2 or 3 options for vegetarian dishes. I have to agree with some reviewers that, not all dishes are very good. I only mention this, because I didn't particularly like what my friend was having, when I was there, the first time around.
(4)
Aaron Jae M.
Grabbed a shwarma sandwich for take out and it was delicious. I wish it was filled up a little more since there top of the pita as empty and I wish the lamb and beef was cut a little smaller so I didn't have to split the pieces with my teeth after each bite. Would definitely come back and try the falafel or maybe the lunch buffet.
(4)
Heather L.
Mediterranean meals have been a staple for us lately, and we always come back to Couscous. The flavors here are genuine and the ingredients are fresh. Plus, the lunch buffet at Couscous makes the restaurant six stars in my book. As I made my way up to the buffet station for the first time, I realized there were neither steam trays nor Sterno lighters. On the table tucked away in the back, there were only family-sized 9" x 13" baking trays and pasta pots filled with delicious, authentic food you would expect to find in Marrakesh or Istanbul. Cooked in small batches and with a lot of heart, the word "buffet" does not do this meal justice - places like Balsan or Nia or Maggianos can call this "family style dining" - except we are talking about $8.95/pp and lunch. 3.5 Stars? Seriously, one of the most underrated restaurants by Yelpers.
(5)
Saimithra M.
Honestly, this place is either a hit or miss. Fortunately for me, it was a big hit. I've been here a few times, and each time I loved the food. The falafel sandwiches are delicious and filling. The last time I went, I tried an entree called "Kallaya." The meat was well cooked, and I loved it! Unfortunately, my friend ordered "Hummos And Chicken Shawerma" and the hummos was way too sour. That was surprising, because I have had their hummos before and it did not taste sour when I had it. Our server was very sweet and offered another dish for free in order to make up for the sourness of the hummos. I would recommend that people go here at least once,and make sure to order the right thing! If it's a hit, you wil definitely come back again.
(4)
Carmen M.
I hate writing negative reviews of small family businesses but the takeout order I got from here recently was memorably awful. It's too bad because I love this kind of food and the location is great. And the restaurant itself is cute. I've been there 2 times before this and the service is always incredibly slow but I can live with that if the food is good which it is not. Take out is also very slow. You walk in and no one acknowledges you and the exchange is awkward. They take credit cards for over $8 I think. I ordered a lentil soup and tabbouleh salad to go. These things should be easy to do well! I waited 15-20 minutes for these 2 items. Then the owner comes out and hands me a super wet bag warning me to hold it from the bottom so it won't break. I figured it maybe just had some water on it and then realized halfway back to work that it was leaking oil all over my hands, coat and shoes. Once I opened it up, it became clear why. The tabbouleh was almost an olive oil soup. Seriously, there must have been at least a cup of olive oil in this small tabbouleh salad. I ate the non-soupy parts which were fine but it was so gross having gotten oil everywhere and the rest of it was non-edible. The lentil soup was odd. Mostly broth and few lentils. Kind of soapy/frothy on the top. Didn't taste right. It was all really gross. I will say that they were setting up a lunch buffet when I got there that looked okay and apparently includes different items each day. But even if you get the lunch buffet it will not be a fast dining experience- just trying to get their attention to order/pay takes a long time. If your'e craving falafel go to Jubrano's- they're faster and friendlier (though only take cash). For lentil soup and other stuff you'll need to leave the neighborhood.
(2)
Susan H.
My husband loved the Breek. Everything was super fresh. The Turkish coffee was also amazing.
(5)
Tony M.
The stuffed cabbage special was very good, and so was the lamb/beef shawarma sandwich. The waiter/cook (owner?) was very nice. The decor is weirdly modern and upscale for what otherwise seems like a storefront restaurant. There was an arabic language musical comedy on the TV. My friend and I had a pleasant, low-key dinner.
(4)
Tony C.
The first time I tried Couscous the food was average, at best. The second time, today, it was bad. I had chicken shawarma, and it was dry with too much spice, the hummus wasn't good, and the pita was stale. I ate half and threw the rest away, and grabbed a sandwich from another restaurant. I love Middle Eastern food, and this place is close to work, so I was hoping it'd be a winner. It bums me out to write bad reviews for small businesses. I'll maybe try them again in a year or so, in hopes that things change.
(1)
Kevin C.
Most of the pita sandwiches are under $5 and are delicious! I've gotten the shewarma and the lamb shank sandwiches and they were both excellent. They had fresh tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, a generous portion of meat, and tahini sauce to top it off. In terms of quality of food and price, this is the best deal I've had in Chicago.
(5)
Hoss M.
Please go out of business and save the public from your shit food and lies. The name of your restaurant was served to me in big clumps. And you lie about the source of your dolmas.
(1)
Daniel K.
Very erratic quality and taste to their food. Once in a while they hit the nail on the head and you go back hoping for the same. Our (truly) last time there, the Jerusalem Salad had a sour taste and both my wife and I felt the skin on the roof of our mouths feel burned. Won't be going back.
(2)
Wesley S.
Very, very bad. I ordered a falafel sandwich. It was served on cracker-stale pita bread with chunks of falafel that were room temperature. The sandwich was prepared to order and took 10 minutes to prepare so the falafel was obviously fried the night before and reheated, although not to as high a temperature as the restaurant owner had intended. While I was waiting for my order, by way of making small talk, I asked the two attendants what ethnicity was the cuisine, i.e. Syrian, Lebanese, whatever. They responded, listlessly, "Mediterranean". They had neither enthusiasm nor interest in the restaurant. The owner is not serving fresh food; for that reason he does not have the respect or loyalty of his staff. Patronize this business at your own risk.
(1)
Jaci Y.
It wasn't good middle eastern food. I didn't like the falafel and I felt their hummus tasted too sour. Not my cup of tea. I was hoping it would be better.
(1)
Y H.
Had the buffet here. It's reasonably priced for a buffet. Some of the items were really good and some were mediocre. Overall the food was a little on the oily side for me, so I haven't been back because of that. It's worth trying if you haven't been before.
(3)
Marina A.
I decided to eat something from "Couscous" during la "festa Italiana". I ordered a chicken cabob with rice. I was waiting patiently at least 20 minutes until it got ready. The price seemed reasonable $7. I sat with my husband to enjoy my meal and after two minutes the owner came and in a rude way he told me that I had to pay additionally $5 because that was a dinner plate and not the lunch one. I heard him saying exactly the same to the company who was sitting behind me. When I finished my food(which was not something spectacular) I went to the register and I complained telling to the employee that this was not right. Or at least they should have changed the price from $7 to $12 so that the clients wouldn't be surprised. Very disappointing experience. I will definitely not go back.
(1)
Anup D.
Its a great place, good food, served hot! Nice salads that are fresh and taste great
(4)
C B.
The couscous literally makes me life so happy! I just did a dance after tasting it..for the second time this week. I lived in Senegal and there is a dish they make once a year that is so delicious people fight over it and his couscous reminds me of that but perhaps even better. It is a North African dish typically and it..I mean, I cant even tell you how well balanced it is. The vegetables are plenty, done to the right point. The meat as well and the sauce..oh the sauce: it is complex and delicious. I like to get it on the side so I can ration it and so the leftovers are at their peak- you don't want to reheat couscous with sauce already on it but rather reheat them separately. I also really enjoy the falafel sandwich- for under 4 bucks you get a pita full of freshly fried and tasty falafel and jerusalem salad. The fattoush is also pretty good here. The owner who is always there, Jamen, is a very kind man though doesn't run his business in the way you might hope for if you prefer rehearsed service. It is a bit more subtle and probably culturally on point and the food is too, so overall it is a win! Call ahead if you are getting something that takes longer to prepare (salad and sandwiches are faster) if you are in a hurry. You must try the couscous!!
(5)
Gina S.
The hubby and I recently discovered that a lunch date is far cheaper than a dinner date. Enter Couscous and their $15 experience. We arrived just after two larger parties were beginning their service. It seemed there was only one person waiting on tables in the dining area and about two cooks in the kitchen. The wait for service was almost 15 minutes due to the larger party taking up the wait staffs time, then another 10 for our waters and our order to be taken. This could have been fairly annoying if we were looking for a quick in-out lunch. We started with a combo platter. A healthy serving of hummus and baba ghanooj, two falafel balls and a bowl of pita bread. I can't complain for just $4.50 it was a hearty appetizer and the falafel was some of the best I've had. The hubby went with the Chicken Shawerma; chicken served in a pita bread with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, topped with tahini sauce. I ordered the Shish Taouk; marinated chicken served in pita bread. They both looked exactly the same so beats me what the difference was. It was okay. I was a little disappointed that the restaurants decor was so modernized. It had an Americanized cafe feel to it rather than a ethnic Mediterranean vibe. Nothing really memorable here.
(2)
Kristen L.
There was a death in my boyfriend's and my relationship today...the death of Couscous. A usual go-to place when we can't decide what to eat, we ate at Couscous about a week and a half ago. I ordered my usual lamb/beef shawerma which comes with tahini sauce, rice and a side salad. My boyfriend was finally able to try the stuffed cabbage now that they had taken it off the menu and I asked if they had it. We also ordered the "combo plate" for our appetizer which comes with hummus, falafel and baba ghenooj. Our combo plate did not come with baba ghenooj, but two giant mounds of hummus and two falafel. When we asked about the baba ghenooj, the waitress kindly told us that they had run out. When my main dish came, there was no rice, but instead, more hummus. When asked, she said again, that they ran out. I also had to ask for the tahini sauce, which wasn't tahini sauce, but instead a salad of cucumbers and tomatoes drowning in some type of tahini sauce mixture. When my boyfriend's dish came out, there were about 7 or 8 small rolls of stuffed cabbage. He was excited to eat it, but as he took his first bite, the only words he muttered were "holy s**t." I, being the optimistic one, took that as a "holy s**t" that's good, but no. That was exactly what a "holy s**t" was. When he asked me to taste it, all I tasted was sourness...and not a good lemon-limey sourness, but more like a they doused-the-dish-in-lemon-juice-to-cover-up-Âspoiled-food sour. My boyfriend immediately called over the waitress and expressed the unpleasant taste of the stuffed cabbage. The waitress simply replied that it was "lemon juice." Disgusted, the bf asked the waitress to take the plate away. Now, I think it's custom for restaurants to offer a different dish if the patron is displeased, but instead, the bf had to ask if they had the lamb shank, which they were out of. 1) If the restaurant has run out of so many different items that they have to switch it out with other items, then TELL THE PATRON FIRST. When the appetizer didn't have the baba ghenooj and she told us AFTER she had brought it out, we overlooked it. BUT, when she did it AGAIN with my main dish, then I found myself becoming quite upset. 2) Do not try to tell the patron that what they are tasting is wrong. She kept insisting that it was sour because of the lemon juice, but there's a distinct taste when something has gone bad. 3) Offer something in place of the dish being returned. I was somewhat appalled when she just took the dish and walked away without asking if there was anything else he wanted or offering a different dish. We've been there quite a few times since the last time I reviewed, and each time, it has slowly gone down hill. This last visit, was just that--the last visit. Granted, the owner was kind enough to offer us free dessert to go and took the stuffed cabbage off our bill, I was genuinely quite sad when I knew that this would be our last and final time. But as my boyfriend said, "there are other Mediterranean restaurants around."
(1)
Syema A.
I love this place. The food is fantastic and I seriously believe its the best Mediterranean I've had. Its cheap for the amount you get too. You won't be disappointed.
(4)
Betsy W.
I ordered the falafal sandwich, and I thought it was delicious. Unfortunately, they must have swiped my credit card twice, because when I looked at my statement I was charged twice the value on my receipt.
(2)
Sarah L.
I love middle eastern food so have tried many around the city. This place falls in the middle for me. The food is pretty good quality, but I've just found others I enjoy more.
(3)
Charles C.
One of our favorite Chicago restaurants. We always order Jerusalem salad and Lamb Shank with Vegetable Couscous. Excellent kebabs, grape leaves, and falafels. We always end the meal with Egyptian coffees sweet. Tip: free parking on Taylor Street on Sundays.
(5)
Stephanie P.
My go to place for Middle Eastern food when I cannot make it to the Nile in Hyde Park or Semiarmis up north. Super affordable menu and tons of vegetarian options. Just had their vegetarian kabob on Thursday. The charred/grilled sweet peppers and eggplant were delish! The hummus is very creamy. I added one extra star for the grape leaves because they are very tasty and can be ordered cold or warm. However, I cannot give Couscous 5 stars because I am partial to the Nile's chicken schwarma. Looking forward to continue supporting this mom and pop shop.
(4)
Nicole P.
I tried Couscous a few days ago with a coworker. I hadn't had a kabob in so long, I'd nearly forgotten how good they are. Lunchtime was pretty quiet with only three or four other single diners in there. Service was pretty fast and friendly. The menu was well organized and easy to understand. I got the vegetable kabob and my coworker got the cauliflower and potatoes sandwich and we split an order of grape leaves. We had no complaints about any of the food with the exception of there having been so much that I had to get a carry-out box to take the excess with me. I would definitely return.
(4)
Joan G.
Don't miss the humus with walnuts--smooth and crunchy with warm pita, how could I ask for more? I'm also a fan of their lentil soup as well as schwarma chicken. As health conscious eaters my husband and I do not eat out often, but when we do Couscous is our destination. Joan
(4)
Liz O.
This place was just OK for me. I love Mediterranean food so I may be a bit more picky with this type of food. I had the chicken shawarma and although it had a decent flavor, it was drenched in tahini sauce and it was a bit messy. The chicken was a tad dry and the bread was nothing to boast about. I was a bit disappointed in the hummus-- it was too runny and the oils sipped out of the Styrofoam. On a positive note, I was super hungry and the sandwich was good enough to satisfy that hunger, the customer service was pretty good and the ambiance was small and intimate. I ordered for take out and the order was ready in less than ten minutes. I plan on giving this place another shot and perhaps trying something different.
(3)
Mike M.
thanks to yelp, kt m. and i found this gem. more affordable than you can shake a stick at AND huge portions that are outta sight. the pakistani owner cooks all of the food and has cool middle eastern dvds ;playing as you eat. he comes out to chat, sits down and watches the flicks with ya. food-wise: i have been eating grape leaves my entire life and these are the BEST. hands down. the hand made hummus will destroy you. kt got the vegetarian couscous extravaganze and it was the size of my face. and awesome. she tells me that the cabbage was the best ever. my psuedo-gyro-beef-lamb-thingy was outtasite. it was like eating a pakistani bacon sandwich with sauce of the gods. for about 4 bucks. no booze, but that don't matter. swing next door to drum and monkey afterward or before for a pop. if you are in chicago or live here, please frequent this place and hook 'em up. they MORE than deserve it.
(5)
Claudia D.
Food OK Price good Sevice VERY slow, not OK Ambience is NADA Close by (walking distance) so additional star Falafal dry Salads OK
(3)
Tera D.
Couscous was good! I wouldn't be rushing back, but I really enjoyed my meal there. I went out on a limb and had the arrayes, which I'd never heard of but ended up loving. It's basically a pita stuffed with ground lamb and an awesome spicy tomatoey sauce. for $4.75 it's a great value and very filling. I also got a side of hummus, which was only ok. It wasn't a very flavorful hummus, and it had a sort of weird egg-y flavor to it. I tried some of my friend's baba ghenooj and liked that a lot more. Both come in a $2.50 small size, so that's nice if you get one of the sandwiches that don't come with sides.
(3)
Meera T.
Pretty good falafel. They're seasoned well, and for $3.50, you can't go wrong. The falafel sandwich is usually a bit dry for me though, so i always ask for extra tahini on the side. I also wish they have a hot sauce with your order. Other than that, the hummus, babaganoush and baklava are also really good. Definitely my go to for a cheap quick dinner
(4)
clare d.
Just a friendly heads up that Couscous is closed for the next few weeks. Call first.
(4)
Ben B.
Great food prepared fresh! The place was recently renovated so it's great to dine in at, but carry out is also fast and delicious. I get the Chicken/Spinah Tajeen with a side of babaganoush, but I've tasted other foods when my friends get them and they all taste fresh and authentic! Great place!
(5)
Cassie S.
I'm having a really difficult time with this review. On the one hand, I had a perfectly nice dining experience (helped immensely by the company). On the other hand, it could have been so much better. We'll start with the good: the appetizers were amazing. The combo plate was perfect for 3 people and everything on it was delicious (hummus, falafel, baba gannoush). The foul modomas (?) - a dip made of fava beans with a lot of garlic - was also delicious and the portion size was huge. Also, BYOB with no corkage is always a good thing! Dinner was ok. I was a little underwhelmed to be honest. I had the lamb couscous and it was under-spiced. Still tasty, just frustrating compared with what I know it could have been! Huge portion though - I'll have lunch for 2 days! Service was abysmal!! There were never more than 3 active tables and we COULD NOT get the waitress' attention!! We weren't ready to order entrees when we ordered our appetizers but because she never came back, we didn't order entrees until after we had finished our apps. It was a long meal!! In sum, I won't be rushing back but if I lived in the neighborhood, I'm sure I'd frequent the place for carry out!
(3)
Deepika T.
To think that I took 3 years to get to this review! Couscous is an excellent little joint - no fuss, hole in the wall. But some of their dishes always hit the spot! I'd highly recommend the potato and cauliflower sandwich (spicy!!), falafels, and the baklavas. If you're counting calories though, this might not work for you. They're liberal with the frying oil in certain dishes, and you'll start thinking about enrolling for that boot camp :)
(3)
Lulu H.
SERVICE: slow and unfriendly. Had to get our own water and sodas. Had table of 8. FOOD: cheap/ affordable TASTE: hummus was good, everything else was SUPER salty! My experience here was HORRIBLE. There was only 2 other couples besides our table of 8 and service was incredibly frustrating and slow. Some of our friends arrived late and we ask for another table to add to our glass table and she asked "Are they gonna eat?"... UM..DUHH!! anyways, she never gave us the table. We also asked for 2 soda cans and she either forgot or we are suppose to walk up and get our own? We served our own water and drinks the whole night. Had to get our own extra napkins as well. SERVICE SUCKS HERE!! the lady spent a Lot of time wiping down tables that were already clean and when she's not cleaning, she will disappear into the back and forget that she has customers...this place was ridiculous. We ordered 3 hummus dishes and she brought out one basket with 5 slices of pita bread. REALLY?!?? we had 8 pple! We asked for more and she asked "Of what?"...we asked for more bread and she goes to explain that it is all it comes with. We then explain to her that we would like to get more bread because we ordered a lot of hummus and she just stands there and says "I'll see what I can do". In the end, we got charged for a bunch of things labeled "FOOD" on our receipt. The receipt listed everything we ordered as "food" so we couldn't tell if things were added by mistake. The food was salty, it was affordable but I think I would rather pay more for better service and good food. The hummus was delicious but I didn't find anything else we ordered spectacular. In the end, the service ruined our experience there. The owners were slow, rude and disappeared way too often. For a group of 8, we didn't expect such service since they didn't have anyone else in their restaurant but we were ignored just like everyone else.
(1)
C H.
It appears that CousCous is open again.
(5)
Samantha G.
This is hands down one of my favorite Middle Eastern restaurants. The quality of the food is comparable to Rezza's (if not better) and definitely cheaper. The owner prepares all of the food himself and it is delicious! The service there is slow but that is only due to the fact that the owner and one other person run the entire place...so cut them some slack and have patience. Bon appetite!
(5)
Robin d.
I went for dinner here for the first time tonight and I was very happy with both the meal and the price. They could have given me half the portion size at the same price and I would still have been pleased. I had a vegetarian tajine and it was very enjoyable, nicely flavored, and came with a very good salad. I also had a glass of their fresh squeezed grape juice and it was fabulous. I saw that one reviewer wasn't impressed with the decor. I quite like the renovated look. It's modern and bright without being cold or seeming unfriendly. With food this good and these prices this restaurant has made my list of favorites in the city.
(5)
Joe T.
Yuck! Maybe I'm spoiled by all the good Arabic food we get here in Detroit, but I had the worst Mideast Cuisine ever here. I understand that it's a casual place, but good Lord the lentil soup tasted watered down and gross. Sprinkling lemon didn't help. I even poured a little oil into it and added salt and that barely helped! Gross. All of our dishes came out with burnt, overcooked, dry meat and watery creamy hummus that tasted like it was diluted with mayo. The presentation of the food was horrible, it was just on some big saucer. The only remotely tasty item on the table was the COMPLIMENTARY pita breads. Now that's just sad. How could the food have been dry and burnt if we were the only patrons in the establishment? My buddy ordered a chicken dish and out came a red meat dish. How does that happen when we are the only 4 customers in the restaurant? And the real kicker is that our waiter was also the manager and the cook, and yet he still messed up an order. I asked for garlic dip with the pitas. All out. LOL. It was sad that I paid for this experience. I went to Starbucks across the street and got a caramel mocha Frappucino just to wash this crap down. So basically bad food and mediocre service. I suggest going elsewhere for Mideast food in Chicago. Perhaps towards an area where there are actually more Mideast foreigners residing. In the meantime I'm off to Dearborn to hit some of that good ish that even gets a Christian brotha yellin' out, "Allah hu Akbar!"
(1)
Hannah N.
ordered chicken tika for dinner and 45 minutes later got served chicken shewarma. when i pointed out that i ordered tika and not shewarma, the cook/server stared me down for a while and then handed me a bottle of sriracha as he told me "you use that and now it's the same as tika." Well played sir, well played.
(1)
David G.
The epitome of average to mediocre Mediterranean food. I won't say the food was bad because it had a lot of pleasant flavors and spice often not present in this type of cuisine. However, barely any of the food seemed to be fresh and worse yet, had likely been sitting for hours. Some of the items for my vegetarian combo plate actually were taken off the buffet from lunch and this was dinner. The service was typical for middle easterners. Anyone who has been in a restaurant in the middle east knows you are not going to get any service. The owner/manager was sitting at another table talking to a friend and the waitress was nowhere to be found to give refills on water. I may go back because it is cheap but I would not recommend it.
(2)
Cassie S.
Oh, it may be slow. The gentleman cooking everything might also be taking your order. But this is the best hummus you can find in Chicago. I haven't had anything half so good since a business trip to Kuwait. And it has a certain charm to it as a one-man show, I think. Also fantastic: the vegetarian platter. It's huge--you might want to share. It's got so many different little delicious, incredibly well-made things in it, that you might not want to share it after all, though. The food does tend to be pretty salty, but in a delicious and authentic way.
(5)
Sandy R.
Couscous. Definition: Salty, Overspiced, Terrible Service. My best friend took me out for lunch on my birthday, and we decided to go to Taylor Street. Because we both attend UIC, it was the closest place to go to that had good food. I was all of a sudden in the mood for Middle Eastern upon seeing this place, and we were both ecstatic about the meal. Immediately after walking in, we both stood at the door and waited about a full five minutes before sitting down because the waitress was MIA. The both of us are servers at different restaurants, so we usually take the initiative to help out the server when they are not around. This was lunch time on a Friday, and there were only about 5 other people in the restaurant besides us. We looked over the menu and it took us no time to decide what we would get (which is rare-- we usually take forever to order). We also waited a really long time for the waitress to take our order, we closed our menus to let her know, but she was busy cleaning the empty tables instead (and took forever). We flagged her down, and she took our order. She gave us two small glasses of water, and we requested lemon (which did not come out until our appetizer, baba ganouj--which was really good, had arrived). She informed us that one of our orders only had a half-order left, and asked if it was ok to replace it with something else. I forget what it was called, but it was a quiche- like dish with a load of rice and a salad. We asked her if we could have something else in place of that and she gave us an attitude and denied us, instead of saying something like "I'll see what I can do". The food came out and I had a vegetarian dish consisting of fried potato strips and falafel. Everything was sprinkled with a ton of seasoning, which made the dish extra salty. The falafel was overcooked and really tough, probably due to the excess binding ingredient they used for it. The fried potatoes were also extra soggy, and over seasoned as well. My friend's dish was wonderful, and I enjoyed his dish with him. Our water was running very low in those small glasses it was given to us in, and instead of consistently asking for more water, I requested a pitcher. The waitress immediately seemed puzzled, which confused me, since I saw a pitcher of water on the table behind us upon coming in. She asked me again..."a pitcher of water?" and I replied "Yes". After we were finished, we asked for a box and the check, which took a really long time for us to get. For some reason, she needed someone else to ring up the check for her, which was fine, but there was no apology, or anything. My experience here was not good. The food was good, but considering the long amount of time I have to wait before getting it, I probably wouldn't come here if I had a limited lunch break (not blaming the cooks--they had nothing to do with the wait). I understand that things do happen in the food industry that the servers cannot be responsible for, but considering the circumstances, I was quite convinced that she was either a new waitress or had trouble with social interactions. Attitude fix, please.
(2)
Vanessa C.
As soon as you walk into Couscous your mouth waters, the smell is intoxicating. There was a week where I had Couscous three times in one week. It was heavenly, the food is magnificent, as well as the service. The hummus with beef and lamb shawerma is my weakness. The combo comes at a price that you can't find anywhere else, not with the same quality at least. The dolmas are a perfect appetizer, they are savory and lemony. Absolutely love couscous and the people who work there.
I only speak for what I experienced. I tried their lamb kabob and kufta kabob. Both failed. The lamb was so chunky that it could elicit suffocation. The meat wasn't thoroughly cooked, and it got stuck between the teeth easily. The kufta kabob I ordered was lukewarm right when it's served. The sour dressing tasted so extreme that it almost covered up all the other flavors. The meat patty was tasteless. The pita bread broke easily. What can they not screw up? They don't like credit cards, by the way.
(1)
Scotty J.
The interior of the restaurant looks clean and somewhat modern. I went for an early dinner on a Monday night so there weren't too many other customers. More people did arrive as I was leaving though. The service was very friendly. I was happy to see a vegetarian section on the menu. I ordered a falafel sandwich with lentil soup as my way to gauge the cuisine. The food was ready exceptionally quick. I enjoyed the falafel, it wasn't as crunchy as I'm used but was still tasty. The hummus was my favorite part. The lentil soup was also tasty but I would still chose Sultan's or Middle East Bakery's lentil soup over this one. If you're in the UIC area I'd recommend this establishment. I will definitely be returning to try some of the other dishes.
(4)
Eden S.
One man. One cook. I am usually pretty bias when it comes to a shawarma sandwich. For $5 bucks, I am one happy camper. It is never really packed but it seems that people order out a lot. Give it a try. The jasmine rice is out of this world. :)
(4)
Jung C.
I love this place! Their falafel sandwiches are the best! The sauce they put in their sandwiches is amazing, I always wonder how they make it because the sauce closes the deal on these sandwiches. Yes, the place tends to be pretty empty, but this restaurant thrives from carry out orders from neighboring schools it seems. The service is okay, how much more do you expect? I like it better than in-your-face overly friendly service. They get you what you want and leave you to enjoy your meal. Great food, good service, cheap prices!
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Accepts Bitcoin : No Good For : Lunch, Dinner Parking : Street Bike Parking : Yes Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Outdoor Seating : No Wi-Fi : No Has TV : Yes Dogs Allowed : No Waiter Service : Yes Caters : Yes
Emily D.
Taylor Street in UV doesn't feel like Chicago. My husband, a former student resident in Ann Arbor, reminded me it's a "college strip". I suppose that's true enough. And Couscous doesn't feel like a restaurant. If a ballet studio and a Cicero basement had a love child, it would look like Couscous. The wood paneling with scenes from Amish country, wicker ceiling fan, a wall covered in dusty floor to ceiling mirrors (I always wondered what I looked like stuffing my face with falafel), drop ceilings and glowing signs behind the "bar" are all ingredients to fuel hesitation at the door. Not to mention when we walked in at 8 p.m. on a Friday night, there were only four other patrons dining and all of the other tables, save the one we selected, had yet to be cleaned. We ignored all the signs to bolt. And I'm not full of remorse. Listen, the falafel was good. They got the basic things right. The rice was strange, flavored with nutmeg and cardamom, but we were hungry and ate it. Hubs hates hummus and wolfed down four (microwaved) warm pitas full of the lemony, garlicky yums. His buds are changing. It's a beautiful thing. Though he still doesn't fancy chewing on fat, which he had to a couple times with the beef kabob. But this place is far better suited for carry-out. Then you can save the encounters with the "owner" who was hawking a loogie in the back, the waitress who has seen better days as she drags her orthopedic feet around the tiled floor. It was hard to really enjoy tahini when all the while I was sure we were hosted by folks who were "playing restaurant" like I did when I was a kid. Couscous and I are both desperate; me for a good Middle Eastern restaurant in the 'hood and the former, for Gordon Ramsay.
(2)Krsna V.
Great food at a great price. I often go here because it is close to UIC west campus and one of the better choices for eating on Taylor street. I have pretty much ordered everything here and they all are good. Special recommendation to the sandwiches. The only complaint I have is the wait. Service is slow but, that's what happens when you go a family run restaurant. Definitely recommended.
(4)Hanbit Y.
I admit it. I AM sad that they spent too much money at IKEA and changed the decor... but, It is still my favorite place to get some Middle Eastern. TOO GOOD.
(5)Bill W.
The food was quite good: hummos, baba ganoush (sp?), falafel... all better than average. The service was rather poor given we were one of three tables, but nothing spectacularly bad happened. Also, it would be pretty easy to eat there in a group for cheap if you ordered lots of smaller plates.
(4)Ed J.
I love Cous Cous, here are my favorites: Beef Breek, Hummus, Falafel (THE BEST!) Fried cauliflower and potatoes, Jerusalem salad, Lamb or falafel shawarma, Dolma, Kallaya, Stuffed Lamb... And let me remind you...these appetizers are usually $2.50 a piece like the breek, small plate hummus...like $2.50-3.50...so its cheap and good for me. The sandwich sometimes just fills me up and its like $4.50 for Lamb and beef and its stuffed with a lot of meat and veggies. The old man is usually the only one that's there cooking and he's super nice, but expect to wait a little bit coz he's the only one cooking and he cooks to order. Bottomline, CousCous is a great deal =)
(4)Anne S.
We had a girls dinner here last night, and when we walked in we immediately said it's a good thing we didn't have a big group. The restaurant is a small space with several 4 person tables, and one 6 person table. But it was a friendly place, so I didn't mind it being small. We were starving so we immediately ordered the appetizer combo, and foul modomas (sp?) which none of us had every had before. They were delicious. The hummus was excellent, and the falafels were amazing. There was only one waitress, and she wasn't around quite as much as I would have liked. She was very patient with us, since it took us forever to decide on entrees. However it was hard to flag her down to order dinner, or to get more pita bread, and we never got water refills. (I should have asked for a pitcher of water on the table)! We all got dinners, and I easily could have gotten a sandwich and been happy with a lot less food. I ordered the lamb couscous, and I am excited to have leftovers for lunch today. It was delicious, and the lamb was nicely cooked. The place is BYOB, and when our friend arrived with a bottle of wine, the waitress immediately brought out wine glasses. Oh, and there is no corkage fee! If we go back, I would order more appetizers, and either split an entree with someone, or order a sandwich. It would still be plenty of food, but save some money!
(4)Andy P.
This used to be one of my favorite places to go with my gf. The very first time we went it was amazing and hit the spot. I ordered the lamb shank special and it was pretty good. The actual lamb shank itself was big and cooked just right. The meat fell right off the bone. They also had some big chunky cuts of vegetables that I thought went pretty well with the lamb and rice. The next half dozen or so times I've been there the lamb shank has been a hit or miss. Every time I order it, it looks different which is somewhat surprising because it's the same cook every time. The cuts of the vegies are different everytime and how the lamb is cooked is always different. Sometimes it's fall of the bone tender, very moist and juicy and other times its just plain dry. It's a hit or miss. The consistency with the place is just so off. Also, if you listen closely you can distinctly hear the microwave being used a lot for a lot of the orders. That in itself wouldn't warrant a rating of one though. This is why I rate it a one. The last time I went there, there had been a remodeling and me and the gf were eager to revisit. We were told that they were out of lamb shank. I decided to try something new and went with the stuffed cabbage. My order came out and it didn't look that bad. I'm not saying it looked good either but it looked edible. I took one bite and wanted to get up and give the cook a piece of my mind. I thought better of it and took another bite to see if it was just that one bite. It was everything, there was this distinct spoiled taste. It was very sour and acidic, I knew right away that it had gone bad. This is the only time in my life that I've committed the cardinal sin of sending back an order. I've eaten a lot of bad food in my life, from finding hairs in my food, to wrong orders, or just straight up undercooked meat but I've never sent food back ever in my life. This was the only time. The cook came out and tried to tell me that it was lemon juice. Who are you trying to kid here? If the stuffed cabbage is bad, just tell the customers that you're out of it. Don't go ahead and serve it. This was such a huge turn off. Was pretty sad to be honest. This used to be one of my favorite spots to eat with the gf. Haven't been back since.
(1)Naren A.
I was a regular here when I was at UIC. Very yummy food at awesome prices, the sandwiches are a steal at $3.50, I am a cauliflower and potato sandwich regular, this one is awesome, the cauliflowers and potatoes are made soo well, spiced really well, topped with fresh cucumber and tomatoes with tahini, simply awesome, the falafel sandwitch is also very good. Another regular of mine here is a small baba ganouj or a small hummus, at 3 bucks its soooper tasty and sooper satisfying. I regularly do a sandwich and a small baba ganouj or the lentil soup.. The lentil soup is also good here, very nice on a cold chicago winter day. Its a family run place, the husband cooks and the wife serves....
(4)Sarah F.
Couscous serves falafel sandwich that is much tastier than its $3.50 price tag would lead one to believe. In fact, everything on the menu is very cheap, and I haven't ordered anything I haven't liked. I suggest getting carryout rather than waiting for the consistently slow service, unless you have the luxury of taking two hour lunches.
(4)KM M.
Slow, slow, slow service. That coupled with the incredibly loud thuds from upstairs (maybe an apartment up there) and the really sticky floor, did not make for a relaxing or enjoyable dinner. The food was okay, although I ordered a Chicken Shawerma sandwich with no tomatoes and instead got no cucumbers and tons of tomatoes that I ended up having to pick out. Redeeming features include good hummus, pretty good shawerma and no corkage BYOB. Be forewarned though, they did not have a wine cooler for our white wine.
(2)peter l.
Went for lunch and tried the buffet. The food was just decent. The owner was okay as well. We were the only ones inside. We were enjoying the Lebanese music and dancing on the TV's and the owner explained how popular this artist was . 5 minutes later he abruptly changed to some newscast in a foreign language, so much for ambiance or consideration. Worst part was the sign that said "included with buffet" under a tray of Baclava. I was charged for the mediocre baclava and asked why. The owner lifted the tray and flipped over part that said "not" over "included with buffet". Felt like a comedy skit. He said he was sorry but apparently wasn't sorry enough to remove the charge from my bill. I would've never taken a piece if I knew it was extra. A real shame. I knew I should've gone to potbelly's for lunch.
(2)Ted P.
The food here was mediocre at best. The hummus was underwhelming, served with microwaved pita that had seen better days... the breek was interesting and it probably stands out as the only thing I'd order again, if I even go back. For the main course, we both had sandwiches, both of which had way way way too much sauce on them and both of which had meat that just seemed a little past its prime. Top it all off with slow/less than attentive service and a dirty decor, sprinkled with fruit flies and this is not a place we'll be headed back to any time soon...
(2)Brittany H.
Food? standard, classic, hard to mess it up really. Service? off-the-charts terrible. Went there once, and never again. In fact, when I walk by it brings back awful memories of the time I actually gave this place business. It wasn't even late, like 6 or 7pm and the place was dead. There were no tables in there except ours and the people working there literally acted like we didn't exist. They were doing some kind of construction, it was ear-piercing, so loud that we were screaming at each other while trying to have a conversation. As if that wasn't bad enough, towards the end of our meal, the server started mopping the entire place. Not just the kitchen or back area, but the place where all the tables were, where we were. So while we're trying to finish our food, the restaurant fills up with this horrifying bleach scent, so bad that I could literally taste it. You'd think having such a great location these people would care at least a tiny bit about service. To me, they think because we're students we're stupid, young, we don't tip well and therefore do not deserve good service. Well, Couscous, you do not deserve my business.
(1)Shana A.
AMAZING, AMAZING, AMAZING. This is one of my favorite restaurants in this neighborhhod. Even though I dont live there anymore I find myself constantly going back because the food is so amazing and the staff/owner isso kind! I've tried many things on their menu and everything is wonderful and resonably priced! The place is clean and the food is ready quickly. My only issue is it isnt on my side of town anymore.
(5)Annette L.
I can't speak for eating at the restaurant, but their carry-out was great. My husband went and picked up the food and he said parking was kind of sucky around there, and he was gone for a little long, so I can only assume he was circling the block or waiting inside for the food. Once it got home, we were happy campers. I've started to refer to the tahini as crack sauce, and one of the falafel was nicely soaked in it by the time the food got home. Mmmm. I got the shawerma sandwich, hubby got the shawerma platter with rice and we split a falafel. We were both full and very happy, and the price was decent.
(4)Gail T.
falafel-great! lentil rice with deep-fried onions--amazing! hummus-sooo yummy baba ganouj-it's ok saffron cauliflower-a little pricey for amount, but so delicious jereusalem salad-pretty basic recipe, hard to mess up this vegetarian-friendly place is amazing. half a dozen falafel--2.95. what a deal. i LOVE this place. and the service too. owned by a family with a daughter. sometimes on busy nights, the little girl comes and excitedly puts silverware on the table. check out my pictures of the falafel and hummus. oh and the father is really nice about giving you more and more pita. YUM.
(5)Jamie D.
So my best friend and I stopped by Couscous for dinner earlier today. Boy was it deserted (save for the waitress and cook sitting at a table in front, talking to one another). Maybe it's because it was a Monday night, but an empty restaurant, especially at dinner time, is never a good sign. I had been at Couscous with another friend before though, and remembered large portions, so we walked inside the small but clean establishment (it seats maybe 50 people). The waitress and cook stopped talking to each other when they saw us walking in. I began saying "a table for two.." but immediately realized that it wouldn't matter. So, we just took a seat nearby the windows. At that point, the waitress promptly stood up and gave us two menus along with two glasses of water as we settled in. We took a bit long to order since it was my friend's first time there, and she rarely eats Mediterranean food. After a while, we decided to split a lamb kabob dinner. There were a few people who made phone orders and stopped in for take-out as we waited for our food, but none dined in. Among those who stopped in was an obviously drunken man who apparently was outraged that he wasn't waited on immediately. He complained that he couldn't see the menu because he forgot his glasses. The waitress explained to him that the lamb shank was the special of the night and there was baklava for dessert. He left frustrated when the waitress told him the price (which wasn't THAT unreasonable). Ah, it was an amusing sight, but anyway, onto the food. After about 15 min of waiting, our kabobs came out on a pile of rice, with a heavily charred wedge of onion that I did not dare to eat, a quarter of a red bell pepper, and a small tomato on the plate, all charred; I must admit, the pepper and tomato were flavorful, but they weren't as charred as the onion. Our dinner also came with a bowl of cucumber, shredded lettuce, red onion and tomato salad on the side. The rice was mildly flavorful, but the lamb was very dry, chewy and very charred. The portion was quite large for one person (just right for her and I to split), which was a plus, but it was mostly rice. After dinner, I went up for the check and saw a bunch of tin boxes of baklava. Tempted, I asked for the prices. 1.50 each, 6 something for a small box of 7 pieces, and 9 something for the bigger box. I settled for the smaller box. My best friend and I shared a few with coffee at Starbucks across the street. These were probably the highlight of our meal. They were nutty, flaky and just a tad sweet--my kind of dessert. Overall, the service was okay (well, I've had worse, but it could DEFINITELY be better at Couscous), but the food was nothing to rave about. The baklava was good and not overly sweet. The price is good for the portions, but I've had better Mediterranean food on the north side of Chicago. I might return for their baklava if I'm craving it, and *might* try their veggie dishes just because it's one of the few Mediterranean restaurants in my hood, but probably not for their meat dishes.
(2)Leigh R.
Well, the two stars is a push and I only put two because the hummus is pretty amazing! Went on a Wed night with a friend and the place was empty yet the table next to us wasn't cleared. The service was pretty bad considering we were the only ones in there. The inside was kinda trashy, they only served soft-drinks. She gave us the menues and asked if we were ready to order...um noooo we're not ready to order. Food: Just okay - the veggie kabobs were blah and the falafal's were mediocre at best. The stuffed-grape-leaves were just okay. The portions were HUGE though and very affordable. Still in search for some damn good falafal's in Chi-town!! Help me out yelpers!
(2)Marc K.
Couscous has consistently been one of my top picks on Taylor Street, next to Thai Bowl. The owners always seem happy to serve you, even if they're sometimes a little slow at doing it ;-) One great thing about Couscous is the abundance of vegetarian options. The falafel is definitely good (as good as Sultan's? Questionable.), and you can get a full pita sandwich for $3.50 + tax. if you're sitting down for a meal with a friend, you should definitely start out with an extra order of 6 falafels. The hummus and baba ghenooj are yummy, and the foul modammas is pretty tasty once you've acquired the distinctive flavor of the fava beans. The vegetarian entrées are where it's at. The are several combos and platters to choose from, as well as mujadearah which is lentils cooked with either rice or bulgur served with crispy fried onion strips. The mujadearah itself is a bit dry, but luckily comes with some nice juicy jerusalem salad (is that a weird thing to say?). The fried cauliflower they have here is usually pretty good, but this seems inconsistent. There are so many dishes to choose from - I'd recommend going with a friend and sharing a few. And then split a baklava for dessert. Mmm....
(4)Lady R.
The food was pretty good, but the restaurant was freezing and the brunette older woman wasn't very nice or attentive. Cheap food, but I won't be convincing my co-workers to return any time soon. I do love the hilarious wood paneling with prints of pheasants and chipmonks.
(3)Danielle A.
Sad to report, but my experience with Couscous was not good at all. First, we ordered take out - meaning we went into the restaurant, and pointed out exactly what we wanted from the menu in person. We did not stay to enjoy the ambiance because the dining room was sweltering. I cannot imagine how hot the kitchen must have been. (Please note that this did not contribute to the low rating). When we picked up the order 15 minutes later (from a very friendly lady) it was absolutely our mistake to not check the order but we did not (thus two stars rather than one as recognition that this was our stupid oversight). When we did open the containers there were several problems. First, missing falafel for which we paid. Second, a giant chunk of meat in my vegetable kabobs (RED flag). Third, our bulgar dish was made with rice, despite the fact that the woman taking our order clarified that we wanted bulgar and NOT rice. So, each of the components of the order was incorrect. When I called to report the missing falafel and incorrect dishes and meat on vegetarian plates, the woman kindly told us that it would be replaced and took the address (about one block and a half away from the restaurant). One minute later she called back to say that they could not deliver because they would not be able to find parking again when they returned to the restaurant. While I understand that this is a small operation, and although they said we could come by and pick up the food, it seems they could have (should have) extended the commercial gesture of walking the five minutes to deliver the corrected dishes. As for us making the walk, with a sleeping baby and a bad taste from the experience thus far, we opted out. And now I am feeling very sick from the small amount of food I did taste from the rice dish (without the hunk of meat). I will try Couscous again, and have been wanting to try it for two years, but this initial experience was very poor. Hopefully I will eventually be able to report back with a better review.
(2)Andrew S.
The service was so bad it was funny. My friend and I arrive bottle of wine in hand (it's BYOB) and sit. And wait. After about ten minutes the server appears and asks if we'd like anything to drink. The bottle of wine is sitting on the table. I say we'd like some water and some glasses and a cork screw. The waitress disappears for about ten minutes and then reappears with said items. She asks if we're ready to order, we respond yes and she disappears again. Not it a rude manner though. Just as if, I dunno, she didn't get it? She returns we order falafel for appetizer. Lamb Magrab Cous Cous and the Lamb Shawerma dinner. We wait about ten minutes and out comes 6 of the most wonderful falafel I've ever heard (which includes all over Israel). So crusty on the outside, yet moist and NOT greasy on the inside. Of course after taking two bites of the falafel out comes our entrees. They were excellent and all food was eaten and enjoyed. Then we sat. And waited. Then we watched the sea. The sea was calm. I sat in the boat. (A la "The Old Man in the Sea)
(4)Connie P.
We were there for a late weekday lunch. Great Algerian food - and we love the price. It's a family run place. The service could be a little slow but always hospitable. The highlights of our meal was the fried cauliflower appetizer and the falafel. We will return for dinner to take advantage of their BYO no corkage.
(4)Hauwei L.
Went for the first time this week with a friend and found that Couscous features tasty food, reasonable prices, and mediocre service. The place was sparsely decorated, with simple chairs and paper over the rectangular tables. We enjoyed the tajeen with spinach and chicken appetizer, it was very nicely flavored and a welcome change from the usual hummos or baba ghanoush. The lamb couscous was excellent: large chunks of tender meat and an assortment of vegetables over a bed of couscous. The chicken shwerma entree was good, but not great. Loved the rice, but found the chicken itself to be a little dry for our taste. We were impressed by the food, the large portion sizes (we had plenty of leftovers), the prices, and menu, which was had some items you don't find at the usual Middle Eastern restaurant. We were less happy with the servers, who were not very attentive and difficult to get a hold of even though it was not busy at all. Overall though, I would definitely come here again.
(4)kiley w.
Came here over the summer. Decent home cooked meals, but nothing over the top.
(2)P M.
Best and least expensive falafel I have ever had. Waitress seemed new and not sure of herself but so what! Great value!
(5)Chris R.
Food is very good, especially Dolma and Falafal. But service is almost non existant and there is something about the wood panneling that screams out "grandma's basement". BYOB with no cork charges is a plus. Not a real destination spot but since I live in the neighborhood i will be back. If you find yourself in Little Italy and want to branch out from Italian food, it's worth a look.
(3)Gretchen V.
It was a Thursday night. I was craving middle eastern cuisine. I didn't want to go far and I didn't want to spend a lot of money. After doing a search on Yelp for places near my neighborhood, I found this place. I have to admit, my husband and I were a little skiddish on it at first. We ordered there, waited for about 10 minutes while the older gentleman who took our order cooked our food, and we were on our way. Our first thought was that it was a ton of food for very little amount of money; the second thought was that we hoped the quality matched up to the quantity. Neither of us are quantity over quality type of people. We got home, filled our plates, and were both pleasantly surprised with the flavor of the food. We ordered wayyyyy too much, but we wanted to try a bunch of stuff since it was our first time and figured we'd have leftovers for lunch the next day. We ordered the shawarma and the chicken shawarma sandwiches, hummus, falafel, feta salad, and baklava. We got it all for $26.00. That is pretty amazing, folks. Especially in Chicago. My favorites were the chicken shawarma - it was seasoned almost like chicken would be at an Indian restaurant and was super flavorful - and the feta salad. As one other Yelper commented, the feta salad is HUGE, has lots of fresh vegetables and feta, and it's only $5.75. If this place were close to my office, I would get that for lunch every day. The hummus and falafel were also very tasty and were a good value. My husband loved the shawarma and literally cleaned his plate. The baklava was good - not great - but I'm hard to please given that Greektown is 2 blocks away from my house. Don't come here for the atmosphere - as others have commented, it's just a little hole-in-the-wall type of place. But you gotta love restaurants where the man who takes your order also cooks your food. Cous Cous has earned it's way into our regular carry-out rotation.
(4)Courtney M.
YUM YUM YUM!!! I cant say enough good things about this place. They are extremely friendly and attentive and their food is sooooooo good... Love their hummus!
(5)Elizabeth R.
I love this quaint Mediterranean restaurant! The food is always great (just had falafel, grape leaves, Jerusalem salad, and feta salad). It's never packed and the food is freshly made. Also, very reasonably priced with apps $3-6 and entrees $8-13.
(5)Steph F.
couscous has the best falafels in the world! THE WORLD! everything i've tried is delicious. you can shut your eyes, point to the menu, and it will ALWAYS be that good. their portions are GInormous without the price tag. when i was working at UIC, i was able to walk there (10 minutes each way), sit down, and eat (which i do slowly) during my lunch hour. quick, cheap, and absolutely delicious. great service, & even greater peeps that work there. the are personable and sweet and remember you when you come back. they catered an office lunch for us. i let the guy decide the menu (including vegetarian options) and he blew us away. for $100, we got enough food (huge trays of hummus, pitas, falafel, tanjeen kaftaji, chicken tika, jerusalem salad, yogurt salad ... there was more) to feed an office of 15. that day we only ate a THIRD of the food, which was awesome because we didn't have to bring lunch for the rest of the week. and believe you me, we could eat their food for every meal.
(5)Steven T.
Yummy food! Greatly flavored meats and veggies. I like the distinct flavor of their falafel (my bf says they taste strangely like donuts, however). Hummus is smooth and sufficiently moist. Pitas are bready and soft (not tough like most other places; just different). Dolma were a bit too tangy flavored than I've had before. Some student org's at UIC west campus cater food from here occasionally. Finally went in tonight to sit down and eat. Total bill was $24 after tax/before tip for Veggie Combo Platter (huge variety of hummus, salad, grilled veggies, dolma, rice, falafel), Meat Combo Platter, and 1 hot tea. Wasn't busy in the dining room. Cozy, laidback environment. (Definitely feels homey).
(4)Jennifer S.
Good things: Friday night at 8:30 and plenty of tables for our party of 3 to choose from. We test drove a few tables, before settling closer to the kitchen. I love that carrot juice and homemade-lemonade are on the menu, but I was sad that they were out of the carrot juice that night. Combo plate appetizer was perfect. Their hummus is flavorful and smooth. And their pita was warm and soft. The couscous with vegetables looked delicious. I ate the Tajeen with Spinach and Chicken. I'd never had tajeen before, but I liked this. I'm glad I tried something new. Next time I might sub out the rice for something else. It was tasty, but I'm personally not too keen on eating a mountain of rice. Maybe they can give me more hummos? Huge portions! Leftovers were enough for another meal. Cheap! Three huge entrees and salads and an appetizer with tax for less than $40. Super friendly waitress. She suggested the tajeen, because it had JUST COME OUT OF THE OVEN!!! I would recommend asking what's really good that day. A great place to people-watch. Fun crowd. Not so good things: Parking. It is always a pain to park over here and now that the meters are atrocious, I recommend finding other means. (I will ride my bike next time.) Salad was good, but they bought us two salads with creamy dill dressing and one drier salad with some kind of red seasoning and tons of raw onion. Either they were pairing our salads with the entrees we ordered, or we were supposed to tell them what kind of dressing we wanter. I really really really recommend the creamy dill salad instead of the oniony one.
(4)Nina F.
True the service was slow but the food was worth the 15 min wait! Chicken Tikka was yummy. Staff was friendly. Restaurant clean. Food Fresh! I recommend you try it for yourself
(4)Jenna D.
My boyfriend chose this restaurant out of all the choices in Chicago for his birthday last year. When we came in to meet his whole family there, they wore the look on their faces (which I imagine many wear on their first trip here) which can only be interpreted as, "skeptical." It wasn't until they tasted the food that they understood why their youngest son had brought them here. Eating here is always like eating in a friend's home. The owner, Joad, and his wife know us by name and will make anything we request. The menu is more a suggestion than anything and the prices are always more than reasonable for the freshness of the ingredients (the tomatoes are always amazing) and size of the portions. The homemade (and more importantly freshly made) falafels are not to be missed. When you go to Couscous, you will not be pleased if you are looking for outstanding service and atmosphere. But if you are looking for great food and kindhearted owners, you really can't beat it.
(5)Tony G.
This is a fine(read: good, decent, not white napkins and sommeliers) Mediterranean restaurant among the bars and Italian Restaurants of Taylor Street. It is definitely very cheap food, especially for dinner. They are also BYOB, though they really don't advertise the fact. The menu seems pretty big, but if you read the descriptions it appears that much of the menu options are just slight variations on maybe 10-12 meals. You can order by number, but be aware that the descriptions of the food are not necessarily accurate - your meal may include some things not listed and also may exclude some things that are listed. Service was just ok, but it had the feel of being self-service, even though it wasn't. All that said, I will be back, as it was pretty decent food for very cheap.
(4)Jean Z.
Great flavorful food. Whatever you order - Eat in or Take out. This hummos is the best I've had in years. Shawerma is fabulous and the shish taouk is perfectly marinated! Ive been here several times in the past 2 weeks, maybe just a fettish for now. Printing new to-go menus, maybe I'll grab one today and post the very cost-effective menu!
(5)Janet T.
Really though--I mean the other night I was looking for good middle eastern convenient enough to me (I'm in the West Loop) for take out and I hopped onto Yelp for some friendly advice, thinking "can't go wrong with a Yelp review." WRONG. So I got takeout from Couscous--it was timely--20 minutes like they said. I got a Veggie combo platter and a chicken shwarma sandwich. First off--they forgot the Baba Ganoush--which is fine b/c the Hummos wasn't great, the Falafel bland...I make a much better roasted cauliflower and the other veggies were blah. The chicken schwarma was fine, but not great! Again it was slathered in a hummos that was more tahini than chick pea. Oh, and what part of this place was REALLY inexpensive?? I thought the prices were normal...kind of high if you take into account that nothing tasted good! If you're in the Loop during the day--go to TAZA...much better food and it really is cheap. Otherwise get something at Reza's (great rice!)
(2)scott a.
It was ok. Just ok. The grape leaves were not very good cold, so he heated them up for us and they were decent. The falafel gets a C. I liked that the one guy there was doing everything, waiting tables, cooking, answering the phones.
(2)Carrie H.
This is often our Sunday night take out dinner. My boyfriend and I love mediterranean food and for the price you get a lot of food and a wide variety to select from.
(4)Amy F.
good stuff. The chicken shawerma is my usual. The owner is very friendly, but sometimes he's the only one there so don't go if you're in a hurry. Don't hesitate to hit up the baklava..they have both walnut and pistachio, and if you're really in need of a honey overdose buy one of the boxes of assorted desserts. Be sure to check out the strange wallpaper.
(3)adam C.
I've been all over the city looking for great middle eastern food. This place has the best, most consistently good food i've had in the genre, anywhere in chicago. Yesterday, I visited the restaurant with my girlfriend. The owner (who is always there, and seems to care about every one of our customers) was working by himself, waiting for his cook and his waitress to come in for the evening rush. He was our cook, and our waiter. During an after-dinner conversation, he found out my girlfriend was trying to find more meatless dishes to try. On the spot, he went to the kitchen, and prepared something that was new on the menu, a full sized dish for her to take home and try. Amazing to get this kind of service, while the food is so incredibly good. Anyone who hasn't eaten here, should.
(5)Ashley F.
I was checking out other Yelpers' reviews for businesses in my neighborhood and was shocked when I saw that Couscous had an average of about 4 stars! Although I have never eaten here, I do have some insight for you regarding this strange, hole in the wall restaurant. I used to live in the building, two floors directly above Couscous. First of all, the smells our apartment endured were terrible! Strong curry all the time... not appetizing. Second, the staff is rude! The kitchen workers and owner were constantly hanging out at the back door of the building and were always in the way of the exit. Not very friendly either. Lastly and probably most important, the food and kitchen are super dirty! While leaving my apartment, I had several opportunities to peer into the kitchen (they leave the back door open in the summer) and I won't go into details for those of you who love this place, but I can sum it up by telling you that it was definitely not clean, and hence, the main reason I've never tried this place. My advice to you is to head to a different restaurant for Middle Eastern food.
(2)Rachel H.
I tried Couscous for the first time last night. Tabbouleh was good enough, but not the best I've ever tried. I enjoyed the beef kebab, and everything was good for the price point. If it were more expensive, I would have probably only given three stars. The only real complaints were that the waitress forgot my soup, and that it was somewhat stuffy in there for such a hot day.
(4)Suz M.
When I moved from Rogers Park (known for its' diverse ethnic food and people) to the Tri-Taylor area I was very sad that I wouldn't be able to eat at my old Mediterranean haunts and that I might not be able to ever find a tasty tabbouleh again. Finding Couscous was lucky and it serves as a good replacement for my Mediterranean jones. I've only eaten at this place twice (everyother time was carry out) and each time the service was pretty slow. Although one of the times I was sitting awkwardly with a person I don't like all that much so maybe it was that... The people who own and work there sometimes seem kind of rude but one of them smiled at a joke I made so they won my heart over. But anyway the hummus is usually tangy and smooth and baba ghanoush (which I never like) is suprisingly delicious. I've had better tabbouleh but I don't like too much parsely in mine. The falafel is crunchy and warm while the pita has always been soft. Their meat dishes are always flavorful and spiced and cooked to almost perfection. I recommend this little hole in the wall but maybe you want to do the take out.
(4)L G.
This place is not worth your time. We were looking for good meditteranean food in the city but were sorely disappointed. Even though the portion size was big, the actual food was bland. The service is way too slow. There is only the owner and his daughter. I'd recommend going to the burbs and eating pita inn!
(1)Mark M.
I enjoy this place. The hummus is wonderful, and the baklava is pure heaven. It's a small, family establishment, which I dig, and have I mentioned the baklava? Two things I would improve: 1) get a soda fountain, and 2) the service could stand to be a little faster. All in all, a pleasant experience that won't break the bank. Recommended. :-)
(4)Joyce T.
I LOVE this restaurant. I usually order the Lamb Couscous and wow, for the price I pay for it, I get a humongous portion that I usually can't finish. Their stuffed lamb/chicken is delicious as well. The vegetables are nicely cooked and chopped up just right so that you don't feel like you're eating baby food but at the same time you don't feel like you're chewing down a forest. The lamb was cooked to perfection and not dry at all. Their homemade sauce (whatever is in there) is flavorful and to die for. I love their Tabouleh salad, although it was a bit sour for my tastes but I absolutely love their hummus. Baba Ghanoujeh (sp?), Jerusalem salad, and kefta kabob. A real treat of a restaurant with a great family atmosphere. It's not the fanciest place out there but it is def a place you can take your family too and have great food as well!
(5)Kristen D.
This is better than some for middle eastern food, but you really have to be picky with what you choose. Don't try random things here...go with the staples and you'll be happy. A different place for lunch in the area.
(3)Carl S.
A GREAT middle eastern restaurant, in the heart of Chicago's Little Italy of all places. Hands down the best Falafel in the city! All the dishes are created with distinct creative flavors in a nice relaxing atmosphere. Service can be a little on the slow side sometimes, but what do you want from a one-man-show ;) Thats the price to pay for fame.
(5)Cat B.
Ordered take out from here last night and I was impressed when I first started eating, but I wonder how much of that was due to the fact that I was starving!! The hummus had a good spice to it, but my boyfriend found it bland. I had a couple of chicken entrees. The shwarma wasn't really shwarma...I think maybe they forgot to marinate the chicken because, to me, it tasted like grilled chicken. The chicken was tasty and not too dry. Very good with the rice and hummus all mixed in. I ordered the Jerusalem salad thinking that it would simply be tomatoes and cucumbers with an oil vinegar dressing, but it came with a creamy dressing. Not a fan. The rice was delicious and the grilled veggies were not oily and cooked well. The pita was lacking as well. I am with Rachel H. that I would have given it 3 stars if it were more expensive. I will order from there again because there are not a lot of restaurants with middle eastern fare in this vicinity. And this vicinity is way too far from my other favorites: Taboun grill and Pita Inn. But I also won't crave it like I do other places.
(4)Sarah O.
We were repeat customers, but after this past weekend, I doubt we'll be back again. We have ordered out from here many times. They are always out of lamb! Strange for the type of food that it is & the quantity of lamb items on the menu. But, no big deal, we always find something else to order. This time was a little worse. We ordered the hummus with meat, feta salad, stuffed lamb (they were out of the stuffed chicken, how's that for a turn?) and the combo platter. When we got home & unloaded the bags there was no combo platter, but rather some janky little appetizer medley. So I called & said the order was wrong, that we had ordered the dinner combo plate and the man on the phone said "we charged you right for the appetizer combo". I explained that was not what we wanted and he asked me if I still wanted the correct dish. I told him yes and he repeated back to me "So you want me to put in an order for the veggie combo plate?". NO, wait, WHAT?? You mean to tell me you have 3 different dishes on the menu referred to as "combo plate" and the woman on the phone taking the order didn't think to get clarification from the customer WHICH one they wanted? No. Order cancelled. Business cancelled. Give your dishes unique names or make it your responsibility to be clear with the customer about what they are ordering. It is your establishment, you should know the menu, we do not.
(1)Pilsen C.
Hey...you really cant beat this place for Middle Eastern in this area of Chicago...it's pretty much the only place around for this cuisine, but that's okay. Their hummous is excellent, and is fresh. Their Pita...well...their hummous makes up for it! I usually have falafels, which are usually very well made, not greasy, just the right crispness on the outside, and preserving the integrity of the gritty filling inside. My quasi-vegetarian friend had a friend cauliflower sandwich (which is a stuffed pita with cucumber and tomato filling in yogurt sauce). I had the meat kebab sandwich, which had the aforementioned filling. I also ordered this chicken/cheese/egg appetizer, which turned out to be a casserole, and wont be ordering again. My previous visits used to include an added order of chickpea soup, but for some reason, has gone down in quality. Total bill for all that, including my drink was still under $20. The decor isnt necessarily very middle eastern, but the owner usually puts on a good variety of arab-esque music. When i walked in recently, it sounded like a night club, with what, arabic dance music playing... Overall, Im pleased with the quality and consistency of their food. This place is tucked away on Taylor Street, which is quickly becoming commercialized with chains such a Potbellys and Starbuxxx. I hope that this place continues to thrive in the wake of the Blandification of Chicago.
(4)Ren H.
The price is right but as for the food, I've definitely had better middle eastern food. And the staff was so inconsiderate, we waited so long after we were obviously finished to get the check and to get our waters refilled.. next time try Maza or Sultan's Market first.
(2)Albert C.
Conveniently located on Taylor between UIC's East and West campuses, it's a cute little neighborhood restaurant serving up good Middle Eastern food. The falafel are good, as are the shawerma. However, my previous experience (in the early 2000s) was that Reza's provided a slightly better portion:price ratio, which was important for us poor med students.
(3)Amanda T.
Couscous is a nice little place around the UIC area. Good for carrying out or dining in. The hummus is delicious, and all the dishes I've tried so far are quite tasty.
(4)Vaishali P.
Great middle eastern, reasonable prices, and good atmosphere. What more can you ask for? Go!
(4)Kelly H.
we ordered both the hummus and the baba ganoush and they were both delicious. next time i go here, i will probably just graze on those for my meal. the waitress seemed appalled when our table asked for more pita bread though and then promptly charged us $1 or something for it. anyhow, i had the fried cauliflower and potato sandwich, which is basically that, and Jerusalem salad stuffed into a pita. the cauliflower and potatoes were surprisingly delicious, not too heavily fried and had a lot of flavor. however, the Jerusalem salad was more like huge chunks of tomato and cucumber. literally, chunks the size of large grapes. obviously, i don't know what is authentic when it comes to middle eastern food, all i know is what i like based on similar restaurants around the city. so i give it 3.5 stars for their delicious hummus and baba and the deliciously different fried cauliflower and potatoes. minus a star.5 for the Jerusalem salad and slow service.
(3)Tami R.
Outstanding! Charming space, excellent service and the food was as fresh and delicious as it gets! We had the Vegetable Combination Platter and Lamb Shank. Desserts yummy, too! A great find!
(5)Lindsay N.
Holy mother of god. This place is so good. I had the Lamb Couscous and my mouth exploded in ecstacy. The prices are reasonable and the owner is such a nice guy! Try this place!
(5)Nadine G.
So good, and so cheap! I know it doesn't look like much from the outside, and the menu is incredibly misspelled, but the food is really fantastic. Top notch tabbouleh and falafel. Service is a little slow, but the food is made-to-order and well worth the wait!
(4)Katherine M.
Bets hummous in Chicago. Excellent Maghrebin dishes and the grills cannot be beat. When the special is a stuffed chicken or leg of lamb--GET IT. There are many choices for vegetarians.
(5)Unknown K.
Perhaps it's the only thing around, but certainly I'd prefer Andersonville places much better. The lamb shank was very tasty, but everything else was ok. It took forever to get our bill. It wouldn't be my first choice to go back to, but if there were nothing else and I was jonzing for hummus and shawerma perhaps.
(2)Norma C.
Great food, though staff is mediocre. I'm sorry for Ashley B.'s experience having lived in the same building, but truly you can't yelp about a place if you haven't experienced the service and food. The food is delicious. Sure the staff is rude, but I'm not so sure it's not a cultural difference. They don't speak English as a first language. Whenever I go, the owner seems very accommodating and bows his head a lot to show he understands what I'm saying. It's endearing. It smells like curry because it's a middle eastern restaurant. Who would rent an apartment upstairs from a restaurant? As a bartender at a restaurant, I understand that during operating hours, kitchens get dirty. I assure you, Couscous has passed health inspection. So, for Couscous, yes it's a dive, yes it smells like curry, but it's not a beauty pageant. I order food and take it to go all the time. The Feta Salad is HUGE and dressing is delicious and under $6. The hummus is smooth and creamy and has a little kick of powder chilli and paprika that adds flavor. The lentil soup is made fresh daily. I live near the place so I frequent the place often. It's great for parties as well. The large hummus makes a great dip and the falafels a good appetizer. I highly recommend.
(5)Karen C.
such good food, such bad service! prepare to be offended at how bad the wait staff will treat you. that said, i am addicted to the veggie combo platter. whatever they do to the cauliflower is insane. the baba ganoush (sp?) is my favorite too.
(4)Doug p.
My sandwich was pretty good but it seems they only have one waiter and he moves extremely slow which is annoying
(4)Jennifer V.
Delicious middle eastern food! My favorite is the Arrayes (a pita sandwich with slices of lamb). Their appetizers are also great, especially the hummus, babaganoosh, and falafel. I highly recommend calling in your order and picking it up. I think there is only one cook and service is kind of slow.
(5)Timmy M.
As a person who has had Naf Naf, this is clearly a downgrade. Its very tough to compete with a restaurant like Naf Naf, but the food here just didn't taste good. I got the chicken schwarma and some hummus with falafel. The falafel/hummus was fine, but the schwarma just lacked the favor and consistency that I've had at other Mediterranean restaurants. And it does not help that this place is a bit more expensive than many other Mediterranean fast causal restaurants.
(2)Sara W.
I really enjoyed the food here, great place to stop for lunch, close to UIC west campus. It's a nice little spot that has Zabiha meat, and the portion sizes are great. Would recommend!
(4)Chandani C.
This place was a random find while walking around in the area. My friends ordered the chicken shwarma wrap which they enjoyed however it was very messy to eat since it was falling apart. I ordered the spicy chicken kabobs which were delicious and a good amount of spicy. The rice it was served with was extremelyyyy dry. The dish could have been much better if it was served with a sauce. The place is run by an elderly man (who I assume owns the place) and he is the sweetest. He makes you feel at home at the restaurant.
(3)Jacob G.
The food at Couscous is alright.
(3)Brandon B.
I have had takeout a few time from here as a resident in training and it was always quite filling and satisfyingly different from the usual pizza messes we got or the in-house Au Bon Pain. I finally stopped by the actual restaurant with a colleague who was visiting. We were the only ones there so it was nice and quiet for a discussion. The food was so cheap and filling, basic but satisfying. The style of service is different that typical "American expectations:" minimal verbiage (I'm not sure anyone actually said a word to us the whole time!), not really well air conditioned on a hot day, a few flies at the window, relatively slow service; but these things are fine for a business/casual lunch.
(3)Adri S.
This place is great! Cheap prices and the food is descent. The service is a little slow but there are only 2 people who work there and one of them is a cook who I assume is the owner. I had the vegetarian platter and it was delicious. If you are in the area- check it out!
(4)Michael C.
Friend and I were craving some Mediterranean food in the medical district and decided on Couscous. Our dinner time was around 5PM on a Tuesday and were the only customers, though a man who I believe is the owner was busy peeling some vegetables at a corner table. My friend frequents this location and knew exactly what he wanted to order before our menus were delivered to us. They had a special leg of lamb as well as meat and rice stuffed eggplants. Normally I never order specials, but I was intrigued and the food sounded tasty. Both dishes were huge and meant to be shared. The leg of lamb was gigantic, almost displacing a ton of the tomato broth it came plated with when our server arrived. Flavor-wise it lacked salt, but the meat was fall off the bone tender. Our second dish, the eggplant, looked like two big logs on a plate, in again, a pretty similar broth. Within the eggplant was a meaty rice mixture that was a nice complement to the lamb. After eating all this, I had a crazy craving for some falafel and ordered a plate that came with vegetables, pita, and fried, sliced potatoes. This dish was the real winner of the night. The falafel was crispy and spiced well, and the potatoes were addictive. Overall it was a solid meal, and I found it funny that my favorite dish was the least expensive and had the most flavor. I think next time I come here, I'll enjoy the classics.
(4)Katya S.
Went here for dinner with two friends on a Friday night and the place was empty (unlike everything else around it) which should have been a hint. We got baba ganoush as an appetizer which was fine, but my lentil entree was VERY dry and the owner didn't tell me that they had run out of onions, so it was not a complete dish. My friends had stuffed lamb amd the sampler meat platter which were okay, served with a ton of rice. Prices are reasonable ($8-13) but you can get much tastier food at one of the many other places on Taylor.
(3)Alicia E.
The food was decent; my only issue was that I ordered a Chicken Shawarma and they gave me Steak. (It was still okay.)
(3)Raj S.
Food - we did carry-out chicken kabob plates - the food was lacking flavor - chicken was not seasoned and the rice was not very good. I would not recommend trying those particular menu items. We didn't eat at the restaurant but the service appeared to be lacking... Price is pretty reasonable but there are so many better options on Taylor St that I would go to.
(2)Azra H.
What a mistake coming here. I was at Rush University for a medical appointment and wanted a quick vegetarian bite to eat so, after reading decent reviews, gave it a shot. I got my food to go and when I opened it up found my tajeen kaftaji (TK) was the most oily thing I'd seen in months. The rice was average and yet basically all I could eat because the TK was so damn salty I couldn't taste any of it. Seriously I felt I was doing a great disservice health wise to myself. It was like poison by salt, of which I got a month's worth in one sitting. I ate only the rice and Jerusalem salad, which was actually decent. So I am left hungry and threw the rest out because I felt I was putting horrible quality food full of salt and oil into myself. Ugh. I do NOT recommend this dish.
(1)Erika A.
Had the falafel pita it was amazing!!!!! And only 3.50 !! Bf got the kabob pita and he was also very happy!!!! The owner/ server was polite and fast!! Food was delicious and felt homade! Clearly made to order!! Can't do 5 stars because they use fake like juice for their sauces which is very easy to taste and I actually saw him make the yogurt with artificial bottles lime.
(4)Alex R.
I really wish I could find something positive to say about Couscous other than that we had a nice server. Unfortunately, I can't. The biggest culprit in our disappointing visit to Couscous was the surprisingly dry meat. For a restaurant that should treat the tenderness of its meat with the utmost care, Couscous really fell short of our expectations. When I say "dry," I mean that no amount of dipping the meat in sauce could salvage the dish. Aside from the meat, I was disappointed by the flavorless soup that I got with my shwarma plate. The falafel was also unremarkable. There was also a mildly off putting smell coming from the vent we were seated next to. Needless to say, that didn't make our dinner any better.
(2)Craig D.
While I love this style of food, the quality I experienced here was somewhat disappointing. I only returned once as I was with a friend who really wanted to try the place. Otherwise, I don't return even though it's very convenient to work. A couple other reviewers noted how pleasant the owner(?)/manager/server was. I agree. He was a very nice fellow. One hates to write a less-than-stellar review for such a pleasant man but if you want the truth about the food, it's only "ok".
(2)Jennifer F.
I love this casual Mediterranean spot. I've never tried a dish I didn't like here but my favorite is the chicken and hummus plate served with pita. I crave it all the time! The prices are also reasonable so there is no strain on my wallet.
(5)Sarah S.
Well, I used to like this place but last time I went there I ordered Lentil soup, it had rice in it!! I try not to think anything bad... but it was so weird :/
(3)nancy b.
The best Middle Eastern food I have EVER had! Freshly prepared with the best ingredients. We enjoyed succulent perfectly baked chicken dish, lamb falling off the bone. A strict vegetarian was dining with our group and had plenty of dishes-- we all had the veggies-- couscous, homemade hot pita, eggplant, and more!! also a special cabbage pizza with garlic and ginger we all loved! and BYOB.
(5)Shatski S.
Love this place. I am a regular customer here. Tried pretty much everything. My favourite is fauol and Jerusalem salad. Jawed who is running this place is a good cook and nice person to chat. Try sandwiches, lamb shank and his mint tea.
(5)A K.
I was in Chicago for a couple of days, so I went to explore the medical district. Walking around in 15° weather had me about to turn into a Popsicle, so I stopped into Couscous to thaw out and grab a bite to eat. I ordered a chicken shawarma sandwich, lentil soup, and tea. The tea and lentil soup were exactly what I needed to warm up and they tasted great! The sandwich was a decent size and had tender cuts of chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, and onion topped off with lots of tahini sauce. The sandwich was really good, but fell apart due to the amount of tahini on it, so I had to eat it with a fork. The server (I think he may also be the owner) was nice and very attentive. The prices are super affordable...my whole meal was less than $10.
(4)Karthik Vasishta R.
I've been here a couple of times now. This place is a good choice if you are craving for some middle eastern food. It is mainly run by one gentleman, with minimal help; so expect some delay if the place is slightly crowded. Also worth noting is that, this is one of the very few restaurants, I found, which has more than 2 or 3 options for vegetarian dishes. I have to agree with some reviewers that, not all dishes are very good. I only mention this, because I didn't particularly like what my friend was having, when I was there, the first time around.
(4)Aaron Jae M.
Grabbed a shwarma sandwich for take out and it was delicious. I wish it was filled up a little more since there top of the pita as empty and I wish the lamb and beef was cut a little smaller so I didn't have to split the pieces with my teeth after each bite. Would definitely come back and try the falafel or maybe the lunch buffet.
(4)Heather L.
Mediterranean meals have been a staple for us lately, and we always come back to Couscous. The flavors here are genuine and the ingredients are fresh. Plus, the lunch buffet at Couscous makes the restaurant six stars in my book. As I made my way up to the buffet station for the first time, I realized there were neither steam trays nor Sterno lighters. On the table tucked away in the back, there were only family-sized 9" x 13" baking trays and pasta pots filled with delicious, authentic food you would expect to find in Marrakesh or Istanbul. Cooked in small batches and with a lot of heart, the word "buffet" does not do this meal justice - places like Balsan or Nia or Maggianos can call this "family style dining" - except we are talking about $8.95/pp and lunch. 3.5 Stars? Seriously, one of the most underrated restaurants by Yelpers.
(5)Saimithra M.
Honestly, this place is either a hit or miss. Fortunately for me, it was a big hit. I've been here a few times, and each time I loved the food. The falafel sandwiches are delicious and filling. The last time I went, I tried an entree called "Kallaya." The meat was well cooked, and I loved it! Unfortunately, my friend ordered "Hummos And Chicken Shawerma" and the hummos was way too sour. That was surprising, because I have had their hummos before and it did not taste sour when I had it. Our server was very sweet and offered another dish for free in order to make up for the sourness of the hummos. I would recommend that people go here at least once,and make sure to order the right thing! If it's a hit, you wil definitely come back again.
(4)Carmen M.
I hate writing negative reviews of small family businesses but the takeout order I got from here recently was memorably awful. It's too bad because I love this kind of food and the location is great. And the restaurant itself is cute. I've been there 2 times before this and the service is always incredibly slow but I can live with that if the food is good which it is not. Take out is also very slow. You walk in and no one acknowledges you and the exchange is awkward. They take credit cards for over $8 I think. I ordered a lentil soup and tabbouleh salad to go. These things should be easy to do well! I waited 15-20 minutes for these 2 items. Then the owner comes out and hands me a super wet bag warning me to hold it from the bottom so it won't break. I figured it maybe just had some water on it and then realized halfway back to work that it was leaking oil all over my hands, coat and shoes. Once I opened it up, it became clear why. The tabbouleh was almost an olive oil soup. Seriously, there must have been at least a cup of olive oil in this small tabbouleh salad. I ate the non-soupy parts which were fine but it was so gross having gotten oil everywhere and the rest of it was non-edible. The lentil soup was odd. Mostly broth and few lentils. Kind of soapy/frothy on the top. Didn't taste right. It was all really gross. I will say that they were setting up a lunch buffet when I got there that looked okay and apparently includes different items each day. But even if you get the lunch buffet it will not be a fast dining experience- just trying to get their attention to order/pay takes a long time. If your'e craving falafel go to Jubrano's- they're faster and friendlier (though only take cash). For lentil soup and other stuff you'll need to leave the neighborhood.
(2)Susan H.
My husband loved the Breek. Everything was super fresh. The Turkish coffee was also amazing.
(5)Tony M.
The stuffed cabbage special was very good, and so was the lamb/beef shawarma sandwich. The waiter/cook (owner?) was very nice. The decor is weirdly modern and upscale for what otherwise seems like a storefront restaurant. There was an arabic language musical comedy on the TV. My friend and I had a pleasant, low-key dinner.
(4)Tony C.
The first time I tried Couscous the food was average, at best. The second time, today, it was bad. I had chicken shawarma, and it was dry with too much spice, the hummus wasn't good, and the pita was stale. I ate half and threw the rest away, and grabbed a sandwich from another restaurant. I love Middle Eastern food, and this place is close to work, so I was hoping it'd be a winner. It bums me out to write bad reviews for small businesses. I'll maybe try them again in a year or so, in hopes that things change.
(1)Kevin C.
Most of the pita sandwiches are under $5 and are delicious! I've gotten the shewarma and the lamb shank sandwiches and they were both excellent. They had fresh tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, a generous portion of meat, and tahini sauce to top it off. In terms of quality of food and price, this is the best deal I've had in Chicago.
(5)Hoss M.
Please go out of business and save the public from your shit food and lies. The name of your restaurant was served to me in big clumps. And you lie about the source of your dolmas.
(1)Daniel K.
Very erratic quality and taste to their food. Once in a while they hit the nail on the head and you go back hoping for the same. Our (truly) last time there, the Jerusalem Salad had a sour taste and both my wife and I felt the skin on the roof of our mouths feel burned. Won't be going back.
(2)Wesley S.
Very, very bad. I ordered a falafel sandwich. It was served on cracker-stale pita bread with chunks of falafel that were room temperature. The sandwich was prepared to order and took 10 minutes to prepare so the falafel was obviously fried the night before and reheated, although not to as high a temperature as the restaurant owner had intended. While I was waiting for my order, by way of making small talk, I asked the two attendants what ethnicity was the cuisine, i.e. Syrian, Lebanese, whatever. They responded, listlessly, "Mediterranean". They had neither enthusiasm nor interest in the restaurant. The owner is not serving fresh food; for that reason he does not have the respect or loyalty of his staff. Patronize this business at your own risk.
(1)Jaci Y.
It wasn't good middle eastern food. I didn't like the falafel and I felt their hummus tasted too sour. Not my cup of tea. I was hoping it would be better.
(1)Y H.
Had the buffet here. It's reasonably priced for a buffet. Some of the items were really good and some were mediocre. Overall the food was a little on the oily side for me, so I haven't been back because of that. It's worth trying if you haven't been before.
(3)Marina A.
I decided to eat something from "Couscous" during la "festa Italiana". I ordered a chicken cabob with rice. I was waiting patiently at least 20 minutes until it got ready. The price seemed reasonable $7. I sat with my husband to enjoy my meal and after two minutes the owner came and in a rude way he told me that I had to pay additionally $5 because that was a dinner plate and not the lunch one. I heard him saying exactly the same to the company who was sitting behind me. When I finished my food(which was not something spectacular) I went to the register and I complained telling to the employee that this was not right. Or at least they should have changed the price from $7 to $12 so that the clients wouldn't be surprised. Very disappointing experience. I will definitely not go back.
(1)Anup D.
Its a great place, good food, served hot! Nice salads that are fresh and taste great
(4)C B.
The couscous literally makes me life so happy! I just did a dance after tasting it..for the second time this week. I lived in Senegal and there is a dish they make once a year that is so delicious people fight over it and his couscous reminds me of that but perhaps even better. It is a North African dish typically and it..I mean, I cant even tell you how well balanced it is. The vegetables are plenty, done to the right point. The meat as well and the sauce..oh the sauce: it is complex and delicious. I like to get it on the side so I can ration it and so the leftovers are at their peak- you don't want to reheat couscous with sauce already on it but rather reheat them separately. I also really enjoy the falafel sandwich- for under 4 bucks you get a pita full of freshly fried and tasty falafel and jerusalem salad. The fattoush is also pretty good here. The owner who is always there, Jamen, is a very kind man though doesn't run his business in the way you might hope for if you prefer rehearsed service. It is a bit more subtle and probably culturally on point and the food is too, so overall it is a win! Call ahead if you are getting something that takes longer to prepare (salad and sandwiches are faster) if you are in a hurry. You must try the couscous!!
(5)Gina S.
The hubby and I recently discovered that a lunch date is far cheaper than a dinner date. Enter Couscous and their $15 experience. We arrived just after two larger parties were beginning their service. It seemed there was only one person waiting on tables in the dining area and about two cooks in the kitchen. The wait for service was almost 15 minutes due to the larger party taking up the wait staffs time, then another 10 for our waters and our order to be taken. This could have been fairly annoying if we were looking for a quick in-out lunch. We started with a combo platter. A healthy serving of hummus and baba ghanooj, two falafel balls and a bowl of pita bread. I can't complain for just $4.50 it was a hearty appetizer and the falafel was some of the best I've had. The hubby went with the Chicken Shawerma; chicken served in a pita bread with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, topped with tahini sauce. I ordered the Shish Taouk; marinated chicken served in pita bread. They both looked exactly the same so beats me what the difference was. It was okay. I was a little disappointed that the restaurants decor was so modernized. It had an Americanized cafe feel to it rather than a ethnic Mediterranean vibe. Nothing really memorable here.
(2)Kristen L.
There was a death in my boyfriend's and my relationship today...the death of Couscous. A usual go-to place when we can't decide what to eat, we ate at Couscous about a week and a half ago. I ordered my usual lamb/beef shawerma which comes with tahini sauce, rice and a side salad. My boyfriend was finally able to try the stuffed cabbage now that they had taken it off the menu and I asked if they had it. We also ordered the "combo plate" for our appetizer which comes with hummus, falafel and baba ghenooj. Our combo plate did not come with baba ghenooj, but two giant mounds of hummus and two falafel. When we asked about the baba ghenooj, the waitress kindly told us that they had run out. When my main dish came, there was no rice, but instead, more hummus. When asked, she said again, that they ran out. I also had to ask for the tahini sauce, which wasn't tahini sauce, but instead a salad of cucumbers and tomatoes drowning in some type of tahini sauce mixture. When my boyfriend's dish came out, there were about 7 or 8 small rolls of stuffed cabbage. He was excited to eat it, but as he took his first bite, the only words he muttered were "holy s**t." I, being the optimistic one, took that as a "holy s**t" that's good, but no. That was exactly what a "holy s**t" was. When he asked me to taste it, all I tasted was sourness...and not a good lemon-limey sourness, but more like a they doused-the-dish-in-lemon-juice-to-cover-up-Âspoiled-food sour. My boyfriend immediately called over the waitress and expressed the unpleasant taste of the stuffed cabbage. The waitress simply replied that it was "lemon juice." Disgusted, the bf asked the waitress to take the plate away. Now, I think it's custom for restaurants to offer a different dish if the patron is displeased, but instead, the bf had to ask if they had the lamb shank, which they were out of. 1) If the restaurant has run out of so many different items that they have to switch it out with other items, then TELL THE PATRON FIRST. When the appetizer didn't have the baba ghenooj and she told us AFTER she had brought it out, we overlooked it. BUT, when she did it AGAIN with my main dish, then I found myself becoming quite upset. 2) Do not try to tell the patron that what they are tasting is wrong. She kept insisting that it was sour because of the lemon juice, but there's a distinct taste when something has gone bad. 3) Offer something in place of the dish being returned. I was somewhat appalled when she just took the dish and walked away without asking if there was anything else he wanted or offering a different dish. We've been there quite a few times since the last time I reviewed, and each time, it has slowly gone down hill. This last visit, was just that--the last visit. Granted, the owner was kind enough to offer us free dessert to go and took the stuffed cabbage off our bill, I was genuinely quite sad when I knew that this would be our last and final time. But as my boyfriend said, "there are other Mediterranean restaurants around."
(1)Syema A.
I love this place. The food is fantastic and I seriously believe its the best Mediterranean I've had. Its cheap for the amount you get too. You won't be disappointed.
(4)Betsy W.
I ordered the falafal sandwich, and I thought it was delicious. Unfortunately, they must have swiped my credit card twice, because when I looked at my statement I was charged twice the value on my receipt.
(2)Sarah L.
I love middle eastern food so have tried many around the city. This place falls in the middle for me. The food is pretty good quality, but I've just found others I enjoy more.
(3)Charles C.
One of our favorite Chicago restaurants. We always order Jerusalem salad and Lamb Shank with Vegetable Couscous. Excellent kebabs, grape leaves, and falafels. We always end the meal with Egyptian coffees sweet. Tip: free parking on Taylor Street on Sundays.
(5)Stephanie P.
My go to place for Middle Eastern food when I cannot make it to the Nile in Hyde Park or Semiarmis up north. Super affordable menu and tons of vegetarian options. Just had their vegetarian kabob on Thursday. The charred/grilled sweet peppers and eggplant were delish! The hummus is very creamy. I added one extra star for the grape leaves because they are very tasty and can be ordered cold or warm. However, I cannot give Couscous 5 stars because I am partial to the Nile's chicken schwarma. Looking forward to continue supporting this mom and pop shop.
(4)Nicole P.
I tried Couscous a few days ago with a coworker. I hadn't had a kabob in so long, I'd nearly forgotten how good they are. Lunchtime was pretty quiet with only three or four other single diners in there. Service was pretty fast and friendly. The menu was well organized and easy to understand. I got the vegetable kabob and my coworker got the cauliflower and potatoes sandwich and we split an order of grape leaves. We had no complaints about any of the food with the exception of there having been so much that I had to get a carry-out box to take the excess with me. I would definitely return.
(4)Joan G.
Don't miss the humus with walnuts--smooth and crunchy with warm pita, how could I ask for more? I'm also a fan of their lentil soup as well as schwarma chicken. As health conscious eaters my husband and I do not eat out often, but when we do Couscous is our destination. Joan
(4)Liz O.
This place was just OK for me. I love Mediterranean food so I may be a bit more picky with this type of food. I had the chicken shawarma and although it had a decent flavor, it was drenched in tahini sauce and it was a bit messy. The chicken was a tad dry and the bread was nothing to boast about. I was a bit disappointed in the hummus-- it was too runny and the oils sipped out of the Styrofoam. On a positive note, I was super hungry and the sandwich was good enough to satisfy that hunger, the customer service was pretty good and the ambiance was small and intimate. I ordered for take out and the order was ready in less than ten minutes. I plan on giving this place another shot and perhaps trying something different.
(3)Mike M.
thanks to yelp, kt m. and i found this gem. more affordable than you can shake a stick at AND huge portions that are outta sight. the pakistani owner cooks all of the food and has cool middle eastern dvds ;playing as you eat. he comes out to chat, sits down and watches the flicks with ya. food-wise: i have been eating grape leaves my entire life and these are the BEST. hands down. the hand made hummus will destroy you. kt got the vegetarian couscous extravaganze and it was the size of my face. and awesome. she tells me that the cabbage was the best ever. my psuedo-gyro-beef-lamb-thingy was outtasite. it was like eating a pakistani bacon sandwich with sauce of the gods. for about 4 bucks. no booze, but that don't matter. swing next door to drum and monkey afterward or before for a pop. if you are in chicago or live here, please frequent this place and hook 'em up. they MORE than deserve it.
(5)Claudia D.
Food OK Price good Sevice VERY slow, not OK Ambience is NADA Close by (walking distance) so additional star Falafal dry Salads OK
(3)Tera D.
Couscous was good! I wouldn't be rushing back, but I really enjoyed my meal there. I went out on a limb and had the arrayes, which I'd never heard of but ended up loving. It's basically a pita stuffed with ground lamb and an awesome spicy tomatoey sauce. for $4.75 it's a great value and very filling. I also got a side of hummus, which was only ok. It wasn't a very flavorful hummus, and it had a sort of weird egg-y flavor to it. I tried some of my friend's baba ghenooj and liked that a lot more. Both come in a $2.50 small size, so that's nice if you get one of the sandwiches that don't come with sides.
(3)Meera T.
Pretty good falafel. They're seasoned well, and for $3.50, you can't go wrong. The falafel sandwich is usually a bit dry for me though, so i always ask for extra tahini on the side. I also wish they have a hot sauce with your order. Other than that, the hummus, babaganoush and baklava are also really good. Definitely my go to for a cheap quick dinner
(4)clare d.
Just a friendly heads up that Couscous is closed for the next few weeks. Call first.
(4)Ben B.
Great food prepared fresh! The place was recently renovated so it's great to dine in at, but carry out is also fast and delicious. I get the Chicken/Spinah Tajeen with a side of babaganoush, but I've tasted other foods when my friends get them and they all taste fresh and authentic! Great place!
(5)Cassie S.
I'm having a really difficult time with this review. On the one hand, I had a perfectly nice dining experience (helped immensely by the company). On the other hand, it could have been so much better. We'll start with the good: the appetizers were amazing. The combo plate was perfect for 3 people and everything on it was delicious (hummus, falafel, baba gannoush). The foul modomas (?) - a dip made of fava beans with a lot of garlic - was also delicious and the portion size was huge. Also, BYOB with no corkage is always a good thing! Dinner was ok. I was a little underwhelmed to be honest. I had the lamb couscous and it was under-spiced. Still tasty, just frustrating compared with what I know it could have been! Huge portion though - I'll have lunch for 2 days! Service was abysmal!! There were never more than 3 active tables and we COULD NOT get the waitress' attention!! We weren't ready to order entrees when we ordered our appetizers but because she never came back, we didn't order entrees until after we had finished our apps. It was a long meal!! In sum, I won't be rushing back but if I lived in the neighborhood, I'm sure I'd frequent the place for carry out!
(3)Deepika T.
To think that I took 3 years to get to this review! Couscous is an excellent little joint - no fuss, hole in the wall. But some of their dishes always hit the spot! I'd highly recommend the potato and cauliflower sandwich (spicy!!), falafels, and the baklavas. If you're counting calories though, this might not work for you. They're liberal with the frying oil in certain dishes, and you'll start thinking about enrolling for that boot camp :)
(3)Lulu H.
SERVICE: slow and unfriendly. Had to get our own water and sodas. Had table of 8. FOOD: cheap/ affordable TASTE: hummus was good, everything else was SUPER salty! My experience here was HORRIBLE. There was only 2 other couples besides our table of 8 and service was incredibly frustrating and slow. Some of our friends arrived late and we ask for another table to add to our glass table and she asked "Are they gonna eat?"... UM..DUHH!! anyways, she never gave us the table. We also asked for 2 soda cans and she either forgot or we are suppose to walk up and get our own? We served our own water and drinks the whole night. Had to get our own extra napkins as well. SERVICE SUCKS HERE!! the lady spent a Lot of time wiping down tables that were already clean and when she's not cleaning, she will disappear into the back and forget that she has customers...this place was ridiculous. We ordered 3 hummus dishes and she brought out one basket with 5 slices of pita bread. REALLY?!?? we had 8 pple! We asked for more and she asked "Of what?"...we asked for more bread and she goes to explain that it is all it comes with. We then explain to her that we would like to get more bread because we ordered a lot of hummus and she just stands there and says "I'll see what I can do". In the end, we got charged for a bunch of things labeled "FOOD" on our receipt. The receipt listed everything we ordered as "food" so we couldn't tell if things were added by mistake. The food was salty, it was affordable but I think I would rather pay more for better service and good food. The hummus was delicious but I didn't find anything else we ordered spectacular. In the end, the service ruined our experience there. The owners were slow, rude and disappeared way too often. For a group of 8, we didn't expect such service since they didn't have anyone else in their restaurant but we were ignored just like everyone else.
(1)C H.
It appears that CousCous is open again.
(5)Samantha G.
This is hands down one of my favorite Middle Eastern restaurants. The quality of the food is comparable to Rezza's (if not better) and definitely cheaper. The owner prepares all of the food himself and it is delicious! The service there is slow but that is only due to the fact that the owner and one other person run the entire place...so cut them some slack and have patience. Bon appetite!
(5)Robin d.
I went for dinner here for the first time tonight and I was very happy with both the meal and the price. They could have given me half the portion size at the same price and I would still have been pleased. I had a vegetarian tajine and it was very enjoyable, nicely flavored, and came with a very good salad. I also had a glass of their fresh squeezed grape juice and it was fabulous. I saw that one reviewer wasn't impressed with the decor. I quite like the renovated look. It's modern and bright without being cold or seeming unfriendly. With food this good and these prices this restaurant has made my list of favorites in the city.
(5)Joe T.
Yuck! Maybe I'm spoiled by all the good Arabic food we get here in Detroit, but I had the worst Mideast Cuisine ever here. I understand that it's a casual place, but good Lord the lentil soup tasted watered down and gross. Sprinkling lemon didn't help. I even poured a little oil into it and added salt and that barely helped! Gross. All of our dishes came out with burnt, overcooked, dry meat and watery creamy hummus that tasted like it was diluted with mayo. The presentation of the food was horrible, it was just on some big saucer. The only remotely tasty item on the table was the COMPLIMENTARY pita breads. Now that's just sad. How could the food have been dry and burnt if we were the only patrons in the establishment? My buddy ordered a chicken dish and out came a red meat dish. How does that happen when we are the only 4 customers in the restaurant? And the real kicker is that our waiter was also the manager and the cook, and yet he still messed up an order. I asked for garlic dip with the pitas. All out. LOL. It was sad that I paid for this experience. I went to Starbucks across the street and got a caramel mocha Frappucino just to wash this crap down. So basically bad food and mediocre service. I suggest going elsewhere for Mideast food in Chicago. Perhaps towards an area where there are actually more Mideast foreigners residing. In the meantime I'm off to Dearborn to hit some of that good ish that even gets a Christian brotha yellin' out, "Allah hu Akbar!"
(1)Hannah N.
ordered chicken tika for dinner and 45 minutes later got served chicken shewarma. when i pointed out that i ordered tika and not shewarma, the cook/server stared me down for a while and then handed me a bottle of sriracha as he told me "you use that and now it's the same as tika." Well played sir, well played.
(1)David G.
The epitome of average to mediocre Mediterranean food. I won't say the food was bad because it had a lot of pleasant flavors and spice often not present in this type of cuisine. However, barely any of the food seemed to be fresh and worse yet, had likely been sitting for hours. Some of the items for my vegetarian combo plate actually were taken off the buffet from lunch and this was dinner. The service was typical for middle easterners. Anyone who has been in a restaurant in the middle east knows you are not going to get any service. The owner/manager was sitting at another table talking to a friend and the waitress was nowhere to be found to give refills on water. I may go back because it is cheap but I would not recommend it.
(2)Cassie S.
Oh, it may be slow. The gentleman cooking everything might also be taking your order. But this is the best hummus you can find in Chicago. I haven't had anything half so good since a business trip to Kuwait. And it has a certain charm to it as a one-man show, I think. Also fantastic: the vegetarian platter. It's huge--you might want to share. It's got so many different little delicious, incredibly well-made things in it, that you might not want to share it after all, though. The food does tend to be pretty salty, but in a delicious and authentic way.
(5)Sandy R.
Couscous. Definition: Salty, Overspiced, Terrible Service. My best friend took me out for lunch on my birthday, and we decided to go to Taylor Street. Because we both attend UIC, it was the closest place to go to that had good food. I was all of a sudden in the mood for Middle Eastern upon seeing this place, and we were both ecstatic about the meal. Immediately after walking in, we both stood at the door and waited about a full five minutes before sitting down because the waitress was MIA. The both of us are servers at different restaurants, so we usually take the initiative to help out the server when they are not around. This was lunch time on a Friday, and there were only about 5 other people in the restaurant besides us. We looked over the menu and it took us no time to decide what we would get (which is rare-- we usually take forever to order). We also waited a really long time for the waitress to take our order, we closed our menus to let her know, but she was busy cleaning the empty tables instead (and took forever). We flagged her down, and she took our order. She gave us two small glasses of water, and we requested lemon (which did not come out until our appetizer, baba ganouj--which was really good, had arrived). She informed us that one of our orders only had a half-order left, and asked if it was ok to replace it with something else. I forget what it was called, but it was a quiche- like dish with a load of rice and a salad. We asked her if we could have something else in place of that and she gave us an attitude and denied us, instead of saying something like "I'll see what I can do". The food came out and I had a vegetarian dish consisting of fried potato strips and falafel. Everything was sprinkled with a ton of seasoning, which made the dish extra salty. The falafel was overcooked and really tough, probably due to the excess binding ingredient they used for it. The fried potatoes were also extra soggy, and over seasoned as well. My friend's dish was wonderful, and I enjoyed his dish with him. Our water was running very low in those small glasses it was given to us in, and instead of consistently asking for more water, I requested a pitcher. The waitress immediately seemed puzzled, which confused me, since I saw a pitcher of water on the table behind us upon coming in. She asked me again..."a pitcher of water?" and I replied "Yes". After we were finished, we asked for a box and the check, which took a really long time for us to get. For some reason, she needed someone else to ring up the check for her, which was fine, but there was no apology, or anything. My experience here was not good. The food was good, but considering the long amount of time I have to wait before getting it, I probably wouldn't come here if I had a limited lunch break (not blaming the cooks--they had nothing to do with the wait). I understand that things do happen in the food industry that the servers cannot be responsible for, but considering the circumstances, I was quite convinced that she was either a new waitress or had trouble with social interactions. Attitude fix, please.
(2)Vanessa C.
As soon as you walk into Couscous your mouth waters, the smell is intoxicating. There was a week where I had Couscous three times in one week. It was heavenly, the food is magnificent, as well as the service. The hummus with beef and lamb shawerma is my weakness. The combo comes at a price that you can't find anywhere else, not with the same quality at least. The dolmas are a perfect appetizer, they are savory and lemony. Absolutely love couscous and the people who work there.
(5)Angie M.
I was going to throw out a 4 star review by default for Couscous, but honestly? It's really more of a 3 star joint. Let's break it down. * No ambiance... at all. The restaurant is bare bones at best with about 10 tables covered in cheap, checkered tablecloths, a mirror encompassing an entire wall and really, no décor. And kinda dingy. Not dirty, but certainly not bright and cheerful. * Service is non-existent. We had one older dude come take our order and deliver food our food and that was it. We weren't checked on and we weren't offered any beverages except for the tiny glass of non-iced water sitting in front of us. My friend and I were hanging out at our table, clearly finished eating, and never received a check. Is the food free today? We didn't realize we had to ask for it at the register until we saw the only two other patrons in the joint do it first. * The food, however, was pretty tasty. My lentil soup was exceptionally thick and hearty (if slightly colder than I prefer) and my chicken schwarma served on a bed of hummus was flavored well and satisfying. I did sample a bite of my dining buddy's falafel sandwich and while it was pretty good (seriously, it's hard to find horrible falafel); it certainly wasn't as good as some other falafel sandwiches I've tried. * Price is on-point, too. Our bill was under $20 and we both ordered soup and an entrée. Hmmmm... maybe University Village isn't the best neighborhood for falafel.
(3)Dex Y.
I only speak for what I experienced. I tried their lamb kabob and kufta kabob. Both failed. The lamb was so chunky that it could elicit suffocation. The meat wasn't thoroughly cooked, and it got stuck between the teeth easily. The kufta kabob I ordered was lukewarm right when it's served. The sour dressing tasted so extreme that it almost covered up all the other flavors. The meat patty was tasteless. The pita bread broke easily. What can they not screw up? They don't like credit cards, by the way.
(1)Scotty J.
The interior of the restaurant looks clean and somewhat modern. I went for an early dinner on a Monday night so there weren't too many other customers. More people did arrive as I was leaving though. The service was very friendly. I was happy to see a vegetarian section on the menu. I ordered a falafel sandwich with lentil soup as my way to gauge the cuisine. The food was ready exceptionally quick. I enjoyed the falafel, it wasn't as crunchy as I'm used but was still tasty. The hummus was my favorite part. The lentil soup was also tasty but I would still chose Sultan's or Middle East Bakery's lentil soup over this one. If you're in the UIC area I'd recommend this establishment. I will definitely be returning to try some of the other dishes.
(4)Eden S.
One man. One cook. I am usually pretty bias when it comes to a shawarma sandwich. For $5 bucks, I am one happy camper. It is never really packed but it seems that people order out a lot. Give it a try. The jasmine rice is out of this world. :)
(4)Jung C.
I love this place! Their falafel sandwiches are the best! The sauce they put in their sandwiches is amazing, I always wonder how they make it because the sauce closes the deal on these sandwiches. Yes, the place tends to be pretty empty, but this restaurant thrives from carry out orders from neighboring schools it seems. The service is okay, how much more do you expect? I like it better than in-your-face overly friendly service. They get you what you want and leave you to enjoy your meal. Great food, good service, cheap prices!
(5)