Shibam Restaurant

First time trying Yemeni food. It was similar to middle eastern food with basmati rice with spices including cardamom. The rice was excessively spicy and we had to bring it home to add much more white plain basmati rice. The bread was good and came out warm and huge for my baba ganoush. The baba ganoush $6 was good and had lots of olive oil plus some olives and spices. The lamb dish was $23 with not so much lamb and the meat was quite fatty ...and it had a huge pile of spicy rice which was most of the food. Nice and friendly and respectful staff. Just wish the rice weren't so spicy and the lamb so fatty. They don't serve tap water cold or hot. They charge $1 each for bottled water bottles.

Tasty plates here. Foul, Hummus, Baba ghanoush came with amazingly fresh pita / naan type bread. Bubbly, chewy & warm. We ordered Mandi Chicken and a lamb plate. Generous rice portion & very well marinated / seasoned meats. Service was friendly but took some time. Busy cooking many orders. Ambiance was calm, dine in not too busy on this cold winter weeknight. They had many to go orders out the door. I'll look forward to a return on my way in/out of ORD.

Wow... great people and great food. Once you order the food it does take awhile which is actually a good sign since each dish does take awhile and it's cooked fresh. The meat dishes were fresh and delicious. The service was outstanding and the server that helped us always had a smile on his face and was very hospitable. The ambiance was good, but place is a bit dated, but don't let that fool you. When we're back in Chicago, we will definitely come back.

We went there a little after 5 pm today noting the Ramadan hours after a long bus ride, having read the favorable reviews on Yelp. No one was there. We heard voices in the kitchen. No one came out to greet us. We looked at the menus and left as the atmosphere was not inviting. You lost two customers who routinely enjoy Middle Eastern food

First off, this place needs to do something about the gutter smell coming from the bathroom area. Very offputting aroma. I've tried every dish here, since they first opened. New management over the last few years has not kept up with the taste of the food. This time I got the zurbian lamb and it was ok. Nothing to write home about. Not spicy like it used to be. I wouldn't go out of my way to go here but check them out if you're in the area.

This is the best food I've ever tried. I've eaten at a lot of 5 star restaurants, nothing compares to this. The lamb here is literally the best thing that I have ever tasted, easily!

*SCAM ALERT *SCAM SLERT *SCAM ALERT I will never eat here ever again after got scammed out of money. I was charged 40% gratuity and 4% cc fee. When I walked in I saw the sign on the door which says 4% service charge even the sign is incorrect. it's not service charge it's credit card fee. I was ok with that until my family and I don't eating and got hit with total of 44% over the bill. It was 6 of us. 3 adults, 6, 3, & 1 year old. Service was bad, bread was old, restaurant smelled really bad lady behind the counter was loud, screaming at cooks and customers the whole time. How they can scam people out of their money. It's hard as it is and they have guts to charge customers 44% over the bill. Credit card fee is the cost of running a business and who are you to decide what to charge customer for gratuity and not even mention it until they done dining. Also, they scamming by charging 4% credit card fee where clover don't charge anywhere close to 4%. They charging almost double the fee than what they pay to clover. Unbelievable.No one is ever OK paying 44% + over the bill.

Since my kitchen is out of commission while being completely renovated, I have been taking advantage of takeout and delivery. Tried Shibam after looking through their menu and noticing some curry dishes. This along with a side of basmati rice were outstanding. The food came fast and was full of flavor.The curry chicken and rice reminded me of a cross between Afghan and Lebanese. From what I remembered years ago, the restaurant serves Yemen cuisine. Nevertheless, I would certainly order again.After an experience I had several years ago, I never returned for a sit-down so that I could blog the experience. Perhaps when things ease up with the pandemic, I will go for a proper sit-down. If not, there is a strong chance that I will order again for delivery.

I keep coming here expecting it to taste like I ate about 6 years. But over the years the food has just gotten worse and the quality has went down I get food from here every few months. There's only one good thing on the menu and that has been inconsistent too ( The lamb mandi). The chicken is dry and at time's flavorless. The fahsa is not good and the mutabaq was soggy last few time since got it.

Excellent food, loved the Greek fish ( perfect seasoned and spicy made to order) and lamb Mandi. Made with fresh ingredients and that's what made the food so good and delicious! This review is for Devon and McCormick location. The lady was very nice and patient. She was doing everything from taking orders to cooking and accepting payments! Thanks for the excellent service and delicious meal.