If you want to explore one of the most underrepresented regional cuisines in Chicago's Indian…read moredining scene, Magic Pepper is a place worth discovering. Magic Pepper is a new restaurant in Niles, and while the menu is broad--featuring North Indian dishes, Indo-Chinese items, and even a small kids menu with American staples--the heart of the kitchen is clearly Kerala cuisine from the southern part of India. That's what makes this place special. You can absolutely order familiar Indian dishes here. But the real reason to visit is the Kerala food, which is extremely hard to find done this well anywhere in the Chicago area. The restaurant itself is comfortable and straightforward. Think of the format of a casual sit-down chain restaurant--plenty of seating, relaxed vibe--but operated as a local family-run spot. Everything is clean, friendly, and welcoming, but it's not trying to be a trendy or overly polished dining room. It feels authentic in the best way: a solid neighborhood restaurant focused on good food rather than presentation. Service & Experience * Friendly, welcoming staff * Food is cooked fresh and brought out as it's ready * Expect dishes to arrive at slightly different times, especially with larger orders * Lots of takeout activity--clearly a popular local spot Sharing dishes actually works well here since the table tends to fill up quickly with all the accompaniments. Food We started with a familiar classic: * Samosa - solid and well executed, though this is more of a North Indian staple. Where things really shine is the South Indian and Kerala specialties. * Ghee Roast Dosa - outstanding. Thin, crispy, flaky, and served with all the traditional accompaniments like chutneys and sambar. * Pidiyum & Chicken Curry - a very traditional Kerala dish that's rare to find in Chicago. Comforting, rich, and deeply flavorful. * Malabar Parotta - a highlight. Flaky, layered, almost lacy bread that's incredible when paired with curry. This is something you rarely see outside Kerala-focused restaurants. * Kerala Chicken Curry - perfect with the parotta; deeply spiced without being overwhelming. We also tried some other menu sections: * Street-Style Indo-Chinese Fried Rice - flavorful and well balanced. * Hyderabadi Dum Biryani - served in a small kettle and executed beautifully. The basmati rice was perfectly separated and aromatic with spices. Dessert: * Gulab Jamun - warm, sweet, and a classic way to finish. Drinks One surprise was the cocktail menu. Even though there wasn't a dedicated bartender working constantly, the drinks were very good. * Indian Mojito * Indian Sunset Both had creative flavor twists using Indian ingredients and fresh juices. They took a little time to come out, but they were worth it. Verdict Magic Pepper isn't trying to be a flashy destination restaurant. It's a relaxed neighborhood spot focused on cooking authentic regional food--and that's exactly why it works. What makes it special is the Kerala cuisine, which is extremely difficult to find in the Chicago area at this level. If you're adventurous with food or want to explore beyond the usual butter chicken and tikka masala lineup, this place is absolutely worth seeking out. Come with an open mind, order some Kerala specialties, and share dishes. Five stars for bringing something genuinely unique to the Chicago area's Indian dining scene.

Other than food, you need to improve on everything. ZERO organizational skills, we waited in line…read morefor 15 mins, no one even came to ask or tell us we will take X number of minutes to even attend to new guests. After that once we got seated, they never even came to get our order and once they did, they didn't even care to bring our food. Fun part we ordered everything at once and we literally got only three out of six items that we ordered. Overall, we entered at 1:45 PM and got out at 4 o'clock. Frustrated the biggest issue I felt was the button idli that we asked for kids we never got it. Their service was so terrible that the guy was taking our order was expressionless didn't even care when we decided to walk out. I was so mad that I didn't want to even pay the bill for the stuff we ate, but we still paid and left. The table which came after us they even got some of their food but we didn't. They are so much potential with their food the management sucks

The Clove is a phenomenal Indian restaurant in Glenview. The menu is expansive with many…read moretraditional Indian and Nepali dishes. The chicken momo and lollipops are great shareable appetizers. The momo dish came with a wonderful sauce, and the chicken lollipops were very tender. For entrees, the goat curry was delicious and aromatic. The chili cheese naan was a nice addition to the meal as well. Moreover, the interior of the restaurant was welcoming, and the staff were very friendly. This is definitely a spot I will come back to visit again and try more dishes.

Only reviewing the buffet aspect:…read more The buffet fell off a cliff. Watery and less flavorful across the board. I have stopped going unfortunately. :(

Yummy food and the service was excellent. I would definitely recommend it. We had a large group and…read morethey handled everything that we needed.

I ordered takeout July 20th and I vividly remembered my order amount because it was a repeating…read morenumber $48.48. I just noticed on my credit card statement that they added a 10 dollar tip without me authorizing it. I don't tip on takeout. That's completely unethical behavior and I will never go back. Beware when ordering from here because this behavior is not acceptable!

We saw they have a chicken Tikka pizza so that was the primary reason we visited the restaurant. We…read morefound out it's only for online order and not on their regular menu but they were super nice to make it for us for dine in. The pizza has a lot of cheese. Some cilantro and fresh onions would've added a nice element. It's even better if you dip it in their makhani sauce. The everest biryani comes with chicken, shrimp, and lamb. The biryani is worth trying especially with their house raita.

I've known this restaurant 20+ years. Food is amazing!! So many dishes to choose from, they are…read morevery tasty and flavorful.

Great food !! Everything we tried was outstanding (as good as I can rate Indian food - but my…read morefriend was from India and also liked it!) A little pricy but so good ! The service was ok-to-good and the ambiance was very good.

You know it's great when the starch(veggie rice) is good. It has a subtle taste of curry meats, but…read moreflavorful and vegetarian of course. Next, dip that nan in the chicken makhani and it's amazing - that's just the sauce mind you! The lamb kebab is good. It's too heavily seasoned, I can't tell that it's lamb anymore. Don't get me wrong- you can taste the quality but it might as well have been beef(I know they don't do beef). Chicken Makhani or butter chicken is excellent of course. It's sweet rich dense buttery sauce but still a clean taste - simply amazing! Highly recommended.

Food and ambiance were great! To be honest I didn't expect the food to be so fresh.. They have an…read moreopen kitchen and make your food in front of you. The only thing which I didn't like was their server. He made such an irritated face as if he was very unhappy about his job.. But I will go back soon.

Frontier chicken roll was pretty solid and the chicken was fresh. I wish there were more veggies in…read morethe wrap and a tad bit less oil. I also thought it was missing a sauce element. The staff were all very friendly and the chai was amazing

06/23/26 - Al Badia Tandoori (ABT) on Dempster where Giordano's use to be. ABT has been here about…read more4 months. My wife spotted the restaurant so we decided to check it out. They have some great lunch specials from 11am - 3pm. One is a Vegetarian Mix Platter for $10.99 the other is Meat Mix Platter for $11.99; both are great deals Being carnivores we all went for the Mix Meat Platter. This came w/a mix of yellow rice, salad, chicken Kabob, Beef Kufta, beef shawarma, pita bread & hummus w/garbanzo & a falafel ball. The food was pretty good & the portion was very generous. This was enough for my lunch & dinner later. The ladies that served us were very good.

Ordered the Mix Meat lunch special (11.99) and it was delicious. Came with kefta, chicken kebab,…read moreand beef shawarma, on rice. 1 falafel and a side salad. It was very filling. My wife ordered butter chicken (21.99) which came with rice and added a paratha. We shared a side of falafel as well. Everything was delicious to be frank. I know averaging $25 per person (total bill was $50) is hard to justify for lunch sometimes but the flavor and quality was certainly there and we know this type of food takes time to make. It's unfortunate to read the poor reviews on service. I do hope the owners recognize that and train staff better. Our service was super nice and attentive, but everyone should have that experience. My only other critique is the menu does lack description for people not familiar with the food. Even American restaurants describe their menu items sometimes. It would be that much more inviting to have that and a nice gesture to the broad MG community.

Yummy and reasonable... A very no frills establishment but…read morethe food was very tasty parking is readily available so makes the experience even better With this economy, Im happy to support these non chain restaurants that offer quality meals

The food was disappointing. The menu and the prices were good big portions …read more I had the lentil soup fell flat. I Tried the combination special for lunch. The Kefta was good. The beef Shawarma and the chicken Shawarma were very dry. The rice was very good. The onions were nice. They weren't hot. They must soak them in water. My boyfriend had the burger special. the burger was really good. It was Char grilled the french fries were excellent. I would literally come back and just order french fries. They were that good . The service was lacking you order at the counter and then you go pick it up, which is fine, but I just felt kind of slighted, and the service was an equal. There are some policeman that were there ahead of us, and I noticed how she catered to them and brought the food to them and with us she just kind of ignored us and wasn't that great Service goes a long way and I usually definitely go for the food, but it doesn't hurt to have good customer service. The picture of the burger didn't represent what we had . I wanted another bite of the burger . Half a A sandwich left and no more meat. There was a wait and soup was tepid and the food was tepid . The red sauce was hot n sweet was good though the white sauce didn't taste fresh .