Best food I've ever tasted by far! Extremely affordable fine-dining restaurant with flavors from all over. Thank you for the exceptional service and most delicious meals I've had. This is a definite regular on my list of restaurants! read more

Adorable atmosphere with great painted wallsand great hospitality and beautiful Turkish lanterns everywhere. Owner / host is wonderful and pays great attention to detail. Impeccable service in a great location looking at the river with very authentic and plentiful perfect food! read more

FIVE STAR PRICES WITHOUT THE FIVE SERVICE Always excited to see and support new restaurants in St. Charles, especially those that bring ethic diversity. This is a great setting. They've done a nice job with making it a unique feel and the river as always awesome. I found the food to be a tasty reflection of food from the region with good portions. That said, The service was very, very average. The server was very nice, but not very well trained or experienced. The customer experience was very rushed and the sequencing of the food service was wrong. For a new place, there was no introduction, no description of the Eden experience. No recommendations of specials or things to try. Even when asked. I found the staff to be sloppily dressed. Dress up a little bit. They could transform something average in to something great. Focus on creating more of a five star service and presentation with the staff. Capitalize and expand on the experience. Slow it down. Let people relax, learn about the place and enjoy the experience, then you may be able to command the prices?!? The setting is great, the location sucks. We supported the last three restaurants only to see them all go under. Lots of competition in the area, being off the beaten path is tough. Need to let your presence known. Better Signage to draw patrons. Being tucked away is nice but has it's draw backs. We will try it again. Hope this helps... Wish you the best of luck!!! Sincerely, M... read more

Started out with slow service and the falafels didn't wow me but once they got my steak/kabob right it was amazing. They also ran out of rice that night. I sent my steak back and they cooked me another (perfectly) plus took it off the bill and gave our table of 8 15% off on top of that. Talk about bending over backwards for your customers. Very Nice!!! They also had a band that night that was out of this world and made us all feel like we were a continent away in India somewhere :) We will definitely be going back. read more

Super tasty food in a gorgeous setting. Loved the handmade chandeliers! Loved the Branzini fish cooked to perfection. read more

The absolute best Mediterranean food you can have. I promise it's worth every dime. I would definitely recommend this place. Do yourself a favor and check this place out. read more

Ambiance fantastic, particularly when live music is playing. Outdoor seating by river available. Food is tasty, service is lackluster. Waited far too long for drinks , however to be fair second round was comped. Still unsure who are server was, I think it was the hostess? Steak with combination plate was all gristle, awful. The rest of the food was good. Baklava was just ok and ridiculously overpriced for the incredibly small size. I'll give a second try but definitely with my girlfriends and not the hubby. We went in our anniversary and the jazz trio saved the night. read more

Wow, my friend and I found this place by accident tonight and what a wonderful menu and lovely atmosphere, the service was impeccable, everyone so attentive! What a healthy menu, my meal was flavor filled and honestly everything I saw come out of kitchen looked better than the last! There is nothing like this in the area! What a complete treasure of a find and there was live music to add to the wonderful experience! I will definitely make this my go to spot! read more

Wow! An exceptional night out!! Wonderful food, enchanting live music, and attentive wait staff. We will be back!

Had a reservation for 7 and sat down, waited 30 minutes for waters that did not come out, even had to go get our own menus. I would highly recommend to stay away from this place. Service is atrocious. read more

I have eaten at Eden on the River 4 times and have had great food, soft jazz music and excellent service. This last time Nov 3 everything was totally unacceptable. Music was loud, no lighting at the table, food was old, service was passable....She did what she could do to make it better. Apparently this restaurant has a new owner and will be making improvement . I hope read more

The server was nice but the service was ridiculously slow. Even after we were served, the server was only concerned with other parties rather than checking up on us. Waited roughly 15 minutes before the server noticed us. Waited roughly 20 minutes to get a refill which ended up being taken care of by the bus boy. I asked for the manager numerous times before being helped and the manager gave me EXPIRED coupons to come back in the future then proceeded to comp my diet cokes of $6 instead... Food was rather bland and bread is apparently not complimentary to the table. Owner was very polite and pleasant to speak to and seemed very down to earth. The owner offered dessert to go which was a nice gesture. Baklava was yummy! All in all, food was mediocre, service was deeply disappointing, and I will not be retuenin read more

Went there to NYE party and it was the worst ever! Service was horrible! DJ was bad! Too crowded there were too many people over the actual capacity of the restaurant. Too small dance floor. We didn't get our food till 11:30 although dinner was supposed to be served at 9:30. No drinks included although we paid $100 per person. Baby sitting was horrible! They made kids lay on the ground and watch cartoons on a single laptop. Over all worst experience I would never go there again. Left to had dinner somewhere else because typically we didn't get any decent food there! read more

First time at this place and the food was excellent like previous reviews have indicated. I had Fattoush, a combo plate and Pomegranate Dates. WOW is all I can say! Great service, great food and ambience is perfect. read more

Really wanted to like this place. Hummus, Kefta, Chicken Kabob, and Tabouli were all outstanding. Food was pricy compared to portion, quality, atmosphere, and service. Definitely not worth 2x price of our neighborhood ME spot. Was also disappointing menu prices were higher than online. We had a Groupon, but server said Groupon users were excluded from happy hour appetizers, although our entrees alone satisfied the Groupon value. This restriction was not in the Groupon terms. Groupon terms did mention the 18% tip, which showed-up on our bill as 20%. This dampened our experience with what we hoped would be an enjoyable night out. We were the only customers at 5:30, so the market doesn't seem enthusiastic about this place. read more

Was there for NYE and it was so horrible. Service, food, Dj everything was soo bad. The restaurant was over booked that you couldn't move in your own seat comfortably, you can't move in the restaurant. Even the dance floor was too crowded that we could only dance standing. DJ was the worst! Songs were randomly picked, music would stop suddenly. Ambience is bad. Service is the worst. Food was not organized. The appetizers came without bread, we asked for bread 4 times until we got some and we were already too Hungry and furious. Some salads came with the dessert at the end. The main course was served after 2 hours of waiting and in a table for 20 people we were served food enough for 6 or 7 people and we paid $100 per person. This was the first time I visited this restaurant and I expected a lot being one of the few middle eastern restaurant with a band, but after the NYE me and the group we were with are not coming back! As an overall I felt the management got greedy and they reacted by being so stingy in everything. Thanks for ruining New Years Eve for us! read more

Great authentic food. Everything I ate was delicious. Great staff and eclectic music. The owner Omar was friendly and sociable, and on top of that he plays with the bands to give the entertainment an above and beyexperience. A great night out. Will continue to come. read more

Unforgivably bad service - table next to us waited 2 hours for food and finally left. We gave it an hour and gave up. Inexcusable that no effort was made by Manager to apologize or make it right. Never trying this place again! read more

We went last night for dinner with my dad and mother in law. I love the way they have redone the interior...it's really lovely! We were immediately greeted by the owner Omar who is simply delightful. I regret that they don't have blue cheese stuffed olives for my standard dirty martini however I did try a delicious martini with St. Germain and cucumber. It was tasty. We also got a great bottle of wine for dinner and Carrie the bartender was so helpful in selecting a wine which my dad loved. Our servers Madi and Brooke were charming and very attentive. We ordered three appetizers: the dolmades, the mezza sampler and the spicy potatoes. I thought all were delicious and I appreciated the warm pita bread which came with the sample platter. (There's few things worse than cold pita!) For our entrees my dad chose the salmon which he proclaimed was some of the finest salmon he has ever had. My mother in law got the New York strip which was cooked appropriately and she liked. My husband ordered the Damascus kefta kebob and he loved it. I ordered the lamb shank and the seasoning was perfection...lovely cardamom and bay leaf and fall off the bone tender. We even got to try the baklava and another dessert...the name escapes me...but it was amazing. Thank you Omar, Carrie, Madi and Brooke for a lovely evening! We will be back! read more

We had a reservation for 7pm for a group of 10. We were seated right away, but that was the fastest part of the night. Our drink order, appetizers and meal orders were taken 7:30. The drinks came out at 7:45 (some even came out wrong). It is 8:46 and we still haven't gotten our meals. TWO HOURS!!!! What?! We have watched people come and go, but still nothing. We won't be back! UPDATE: We never ate! Just walked out without our food. read more

100% best Mediterranean food I have had in a long time and the location was fun. The interior was so trendy. Highly recommended!!

Very unique food and entertainment for this area. A very good and fun Mediterranean/ middle eastern restaurant. Rick was our server and took great care of us. The food was good, especially the lamb shank and seafood. Falafel unfortunately were very dry and over cooked. Everything else we ate and drank was very delicious. Loved the flamenco music and dancing during dinner. Made the dinner into a show. Everyone loved the night and will definitely be returning. read more

I was super excited to try this place. I have few complaints. When we go to dinner my mom ordered a ginger ale with no ice. Our server brought her root beer with ice; my told her that was incorrect so she took it back and brought back root beer with NO ice. Still incorrect; finally she fixed it. Then, my dad ordered the falafel sandwich and they brought out the chicken sandwich, we clearly told the lady we are vegetarians! Then, I asked for hot sauce and she angrily said to me IT WILL BE EXTRA! So rude! And then, I ordered coffee and it was cold! We asked them to remake it she literally Heated it in the microwave for 10 secs and brought it back out.. and it was so cold. And on top of it I think our server was just rude and making obnoxious comments throughout the night. I like the place because they play live music and it's super cute! BUT SERVICE IS HORRIBLE! Also, no one was in the restaurant except us and three other people on a Friday night.... I wonder why. Don't even bother coming here.. literally just came back and updated my review from 2 stars to 1 star. read more

Food might be good, but I don't know because the hours on their own freaking website are incorrect. Don't say you open at 11:30 if you're not going to be open. read more

Wow! I was surprised! We live in St. Charles and can not believe we have not had a meal at this restaurant yet! Not sure when it opened...maybe within the last year, but the new owner, Omar, has done a great job! We did not know him before having our dinner there last night, but he visits every table to make sure you are satisfied. How many restaurant owners do that any more? I had the chicken kabob and my husband had the steak kabob. I think it may be one of the tastiest meals we have ever eaten! Our waitress, Casey, was amazing! Omar must train his staff well because the bartender who greeted and seated us, the busboy who took our dirty dishes off the table and Casey (our waitress) were all so friendly and efficient! We sat outside along the Fox River Riverwalk. No mosquitos either! Obviously, I highly recommend Eden on the River! read more

The food is excellent! Wow! Finding a restaurant with a unique vibe, delicious dishes with fresh ingredients and excellent service is exciting. We will be back again and again. read more

I don't EVER leave reviews, but I so badly wanted to love this place.. being in the suburbs we don't have any nice middle eastern restaurants, especially ones that serve hookah. I will be fair and say I can't review the food- seeing as though we didn't order anything. I had family in from out of town, and when I saw a post on FB about outdoor entertainment and hookah I was thrilled. I made a reservation online and got a confirmation email (I'll come back to this later) and everything was fine. When we got there at 10PM Friday night we were seated right away, and the band was playing really nice music. The reason we decided to not order food was because of all the bugs hovering (I understand it was humid out, and we were near the water) but nothing was done to try to combat the bugs.. possibly some Tiki Torches (the little lanterns on the table weren't doing anything) or turning off the huge flood lights above our heads may have helped. Anyways, regardless we decided we would order hookah and have something to drink. There was no tea on the menu, but we asked the waitress to boil some black tea and put mint in it for us (She brought out what looked like green tea, with mint leaves on the side) no biggie- we still attempted to drink it.. before the bugs flew in our cups, of course. So the tea was a bust. We ordered two hookahs- I consider myself a hookah expert- and this may have been the WORST hookah I have ever had. Clearly they don't keep the flavors limited to certain hookahs- I ordered Blue Mist, but it tasted like lemon mint anyways, I decided to suck it up and keep it anyways.. but within 5 minutes my head was burnt and it tasted terrible. This is when we decided to return the hookahs and find somewhere else to go. We walked inside, with every intention to pay for our tea (which we didn't drink) and head out. Two things happened.. 1) Our bill was $75.00, we thought we were charged for the hookah.. the waitress told us that was a third party and it wasn't added to our bill.. okay so $75.00 for 4 cups of hot water? Apparently there was a $15 cover charge that we were NEVER informed of- not online on their FB post, not when I made a reservation online, not when I called to confirm the reservation, and not when we got to the restaurant. 2) So as we are trying to understand why our bill was so expense, the owner asked why we were leaving, to which my out of town guest tells him its nothing against the restaurant, but we're from out of town and not used to all these bugs or this weather. Your restaurant is beautiful but if I could give you a suggestion you should have mint tea on your menu, its such a staple in middle eastern culture. Not sure what she said wrong, but he totally freaked out on us.. telling her that he doesn't cater to Arab, and no one can tell him what to serve or put on his menu. We proceeded to tell him it was just a suggestion, and while he doesn't cater to Arab there were 10 tables outside filled with Arab. He then said I don't know if you think you're better than us because you're from out of town, but those are all my friends out there and I'm an American and I cater to Americans (he continued to argue and raise his voice to a group of 5 women) so we just walked out the door. As beautiful as the venue was, and all the potential it has.. he definitely lost our business and our friends and families business as well.. that was no way to treat your first time customers who are simply giving you a word of advice .. some people just can't get past their Ego's.. its sad. read more

Consistently great food. Nothing bad to say. I'm new to St. Charles and this is my new favorite restaurant.

Picture this. Its a warm and sunny day. The Mediterranean Sea glistens in the sunlight and a salty mist blows in the breeze. If you listen closely, you can hear merchants barter in the sandy streets. You reach for a warm pita and pair it with creamy, fresh homemade hummus and slowly indulge in each bite. The savory snack is followed by a juicy plate of chicken kabobs accompanied by crispy roasted vegetables. Where are you? The shores of Lebanon? No, you're at Eden on the River, the hottest Mediterranean Restaurant in the Chicagoland area. An incredible atmosphere with local recipes, a friendly staff, and a prime location on the Fox River, this was truly a 5 star experience. read more

Sitting outside on three deck overlooking the river. Awesome place to enjoy this day. As usual food was great and tried a martini which was very good. Love this place and will maker out a regular stop this summer to sit outside. read more

My wife and I have been to many restaurants. Our experience at Eden on the River was not good. First, our waitress couldn't remember all the offerings. Second, we had to ask for water and a bread basket of pitas. The lamb shank we ordered was good, but service was terrible. All in all we will not return to this restaurant. When competition is very intense, a new restaurant needs to be at their very best in good help, very knowledgeable and attentive. Help....knowledge....and attentiveness not good. We give this restaurant a D+. Peter D read more

Always a good place to eat. Food is excellent and service always good. Very consistent with their food and flavor, also the owner is almost always there and is friendly. read more

I will never go back! I am from out of town and was here to have a good time with my family when we left purely because we were bothered by the bugs outside and the terrible hookah. As we were leaving, the owner was very rude and upset that we were leaving and did not apologize to us for our experience that night. He was very rude did not know how to talk or be accommodating and told us to leave. Places like this do not deserve your time and money. read more

Love the food and décor! Great restaurant to go to with the family.

I was so looking forward to this as a new place to eat in the Fox Valley. First, they charged $54 for a bottle of Meiomi which retails for about $18. That is 3X market price which is not even in line with industry standards. There is a wine store right next door. I asked about a corkage fee and was told it was $20 which is insanely high for St. Charles, I asked to talk to the owner Omar and expressed my concern about the high corkage fee and his high wine cost and he was unphased. Note to Omar....... your restaurant resides in St. Charles, not Chicago. I then ordered a gyro quesadilla as an appetizer and it came with packaged gyro meat. Come on a Mediterranian restaurant, and you have packaged gyro meat? It was awful!! I for one will never return to this restaurant. Don't waste your time or money. There are many great restaurants in St. Charles to patronize and enjoy great food and service. Severely disappointed. read more

A great addition to St. Charles dining! The combination plate was a great choice to try a bit of everything. The meat was cooked to perfection, they were accommodating to food allergies, and the service was top notch. read more

I love this restaurant. The food is exceptional and the ambiance is nice. There is live music on many nights that adds to the experience. I had never tried Mediterranean food before coming here, now it's one of my favorites. read more

A hidden gem! True authentic Mediterranean dishes. Definitely worth trying...and coming back again. The ambience is amazing and the staff super friendly. read more

What a gem! Authentic cuisine, impeccable service and location,location, location; Nestled away in a quiet corner by the river. The highlight for me was the staff. Our server Dymahdi was as excited as a kid at Christmas about the menu which made ordering a cinch! You simply must try this place!! read more

Pros -Atmosphere: The inside of the restaurant was really nice- excellent lighting, and overall really nice, contemporary yet warm feel inside. -Parking/location: There is a decent amount of parking in front and back of the restaurant, as well as a parking deck across the street. It's a nice location on the Fox River, which will be beautiful during warmer months. Neutral -Food: Middle eastern food is one of my favorite cuisines and they do a nice job of it here. My biggest issue isn't the food itself, but the price. We ordered the falafel as an appetizer and it was very good. I ordered the chicken shawarma with basmati rice and it was delicious and a good value at $8.99. However, my husband ordered the steak kabob with basmati rice and grilled vegetables and while it was good, it wasn't a very large portion and it wasn't worth the $21.99 price. -Cocktails: I ordered a manhattan and my husband ordered a Heineken. The cocktail was fine- nothing special but not bad by any means. It was on the small side and was $9. Cons -Service: The primary reason for the low rating was the disappointing service we experienced. Upon arriving, we were taken to our reserved table which was located two feet inside the door behind the hostess stand- literally the back of my chair was less than a foot away from the podium- a very awkward location. After waiting nearly 20 minutes without a server stopping by our table to greet us, take our drink order etc, the hostess walked by and asked if we'd been helped yet. She apologized when we said no and said the bar tender probably didn't see us (there was a group of patrons at the bar blocking his view). She also offered to move us up a few tables which we appreciated, but wondered why they didn't seat us there in the first place. The bar tender came over and took our drink and appetizer order. We told him we just needed just another minute or two to decide on our entree orders and he said he'd be back. The bartender never came back to take our order (our appetizer was brought out by a different server, which is totally fine). Finally a different bartender walked by after we had finished our appetizer (a good 30-40 minutes after the first bartender said he'd be right back to take our order) and asked if he could take our app plates. We asked if we could place our order and he took that from us without really apologizing for the long wait. Both bartenders checked on us once or twice more after that but overall, they were way understaffed and too busy serving the other tables and patrons at the bar who all seemed to be the priority. Overall: While the food was good and the atmosphere was really nice, I've had just as good of Lebanese food (or better even) at a much lower price at fast food type places in the area. You are definitely paying for the atmosphere more than the food itself. The service was very, very frustrating as we felt like an afterthought to the staff. I completely understand they were very busy but there's no excuse to leave patrons (especially ones who made a reservation) waiting so long to order. Even though they would apologize, the service never improved. I really, really wanted to love this place but the service was just unacceptable. I'm not sure if it's because my husband and I look younger than we are and they didn't take us seriously or what the reason was, but we clearly felt they were paying much more attention to the rest of the patrons. read more