Ok, ok, ok - Jess don't mess because the best don't mess around when it comes to cooking great family style Chinese food...Sorry Jess, I should have bumped this review up to 5 stars long time ago because it is very well deserved...our favorites are: - the egg rolls (could use just a little more peanut buttah) - the crab Rangoon has sooo much cream chese) - the shrimp egg foo yung (fluffy and the gravy is served on the side) - French cubed steak with tomatoes - think Salpicao and this is 5 stars - the Yushan eggplant with minced pork (this is outstanding!!), it's a Chef's specialty dish - make sure to ask for chop sticks and chili oil - fyi, it is BYOB, so don't forget They have 1,000 items, just check out their menu. Excellent and friendly service, come on down and there's plenty of street parking. :) read more

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The beef cubes in tomato sauce was delicious! I will order all the time! The Thai ice tea was also really good and a good size! It was sweet and creamy. I added boba and it was chewy and sweet as well. The thai ice coffee is made stroong but was pretty good. my husband said it was too sweet. the Vegetable Lo Mein was not bad but the vegetables used seemed really old. the noodles were good but I pretty much took out all the vegetables except for the broccoli. Would recommend getting the lo mein with a different topping. We got takeout. The only complaint I have would be how the drinks were packaged. They put straws in the drinks and put plastic wrap to cover the tops (I assume to stop it from spilling) but I would've preferred putting the straws in myself. They also put the drinks in a brown, paper bag but filled it with ice (to keep the drinks cold I assume, which they were). The ice was melting and I didn't know there was ice in there with the drinks so there was a puddle on my floor and I spilled the melted ice water on myself when I lifted the bag. It wasn't a huge deal but thought I would mention in case anyone plans to buy drinks for takeout. read more

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Long time customer and really disappointed. I ordered the Pad Thai with chicken, veggie egg rolls and crab rangoon. I didn't enjoy any of these. The veggie egg rolls were ok, seemed much fresher in the past, seems like they've changed over the years. The crab Rangoon was all cream cheese, no crab! The Pad Thai was oily and had too much sauce. The sauce seemed grainy and didn't tasted from the past. Minutes after eating one egg roll, a crab rangoon and a few bites into the Pad Thai, I began to get an upset stomach and a funky aftertaste! I added a pic of what's left of the Pad Thai, which I'm gonna toss out. My family and I have been ordering from here for a few years and I'm really dissatisfied with the food. read more

Jess Cafe - Pad Thai Chicken - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I've passed this location many times in the past and would keep saying to myself that I showed give it a try and I finally did. The menu is pretty big but it has a little bit of everything to satisfy your craving. When I walked in with my husband, it was a little busy due to dinner rush inside and for to go but when we got sat down we had wonderful service. We had the kung pao with fried rice and pad see ew with chicken. The servings were pretty big that we had leftovers for the next day. The potstickers were alright and would try a different appetizer for our next time but this is a location we will return! read more

One star ordered from uber eats, pad thai with shrimp and kung pao shrimp let me say I get soo disgusted when restaurants DO NOT clean or devein shrimp, the shrimp was rubbery and smushy, obviously not Deveined. Gross!!! The noodles were stuck together and tasted so gummy, all of it went in the trash!!!! We also ordered a veggie fried rice. The rice was so stale and bland. From this order experience I kid you not almost made me hate shrimp for good. Only good thing were the egg rolls. read more

Highly recommend! This is easily my favorite Chinese restaurant on this side of town. Every time I come, I get the chicken chow mein, and my family usually gets the sweet & sour chicken and shrimp fried rice. Everything is always fresh and delicious. But the BIG standout for me is the fresh mango smoothie -- seriously one of the best! Amazing food, great service, and consistently a good experience. Definitely check this place out! read more

Jess Cafe - Fresh 113. Mango Smoothie - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We got takeout here for a family gathering. The foods are all actually pretty good. Not phenomenal but like pretty decent. One dish that stood out to us was the salt and pepper tofu, the crunchy outer layer is extra chick, thicker than anywhere else I've had this dish. The extra crunch was actually pretty good. It's an interesting fusion place with Southeast and East Asian flavors. read more

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Nice neighborhood restaurant. The atmosphere is casual and comfortable. The service was quick and friendly. The menu contains a large variety of items. I had hot and sour soup and Yu-Xiang eggplant. Both were excellent. My sister had spicy beef soup which was also excellent. The portions are huge, and the prices are very reasonable. read more

I've had two recent meals that were solid and reliable. I WILL order from here again.

Jess is the best for chinese or thai food! Been coming here for years! I definitely would recommend

First time ordering here! All food had no taste ordered egg rolls and they were rotten. The smell from these things was so bad! 54.00 worth of food went into the garbage! What a disappointment! read more

The food was not good whatsoever. I ordered the Pad Thai with chicken, shrimp, and steak with sweet and sour ON THE SIDE but I wasn't expecting my meal to be drenched in sweet and sour. I was very disappointed with the food and only picked out the meat which was a really weird texture. Maybe it's just what I got but I would not recommend their Pad Thai whatsoever. Not edible. My friend got the veggie lo mein and was also horribly disappointed. We are Asian food connoisseurs and this did not meet our standards whatsoever. I would actually recommend Panda Express over this place. I'd also like to add they don't have anywhere for people to sit while they're waiting for their food? Just weird to be honest. I had to wait for fifteen to twenty minutes and there was no where to sit because the front of the restaurant was so crowded. Just be aware. read more

As a long time customer, the food quality has been going down over the years. Many of the dishes used to be good but now they taste bland. Also, the portions have gone down drastically. We used to order the same 3 dishes, and there would end up being leftovers, now there's barely enough. I'm disappointed at the quality and portions, considering the price. read more

We've always eaten here, but recently the portions have been a lot less. The food is good but for the price I would expect the same portions. read more

Asian restaurants are a dime a dozen in Chicago, but finding a good one is difficult, I decided to give this Pan-Asian Restaraunt a try as it had good reviews so I ordered for pick up. The majority of my order was from their lunch menu, which included an appetizer, soup, and rice. However, there was charge for each added item, which was off putting... most lunch specials include appetizer, soup, and rice without the extra charge. The order was ready at the time specified, which was appreciated. As for the ambiance, its smell reminded me of china town Restaurants. Overall , the taste of food was mediocre with plentiful portions,but I remain optimistic that one day I'll find a good Asian restaraunt located on the Northwest side of Chicago... read more

Tried Jess Cafe last night. Overall the food was decent and the prices were average. If I could complain about anything it would be the lack of or non existent condiments they didn't include. I've been eating Chinese for 30 plus years and I can't seem to remember the last time a Chinese restaurant didn't throw in soy sauce, hot mustard, sweet-and-sour, and even a set of chopsticks. Worth the try but ask for the extras. read more

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Great lunch specials! Big big selection of noodle and rice dinners! It's a good place for hot n sour soup!

I have ordered here in the past, it was all good, and then the quality started to decline. Tried again today.. when I order $100 worth of food I expect everything to turn out the way it should, so for everything to have an issue is a problem. The 2 different chickens were meant to be spicy and I confirmed twice (they were not even close to a hint of spicy).. there are side bits that are not even pieces of chicken incorporated to make it seem like you have ordered a lot but you haven't .. the chicken fried rice was not fully cooked, barely any chicken, barely any egg,.. the passion fruit smoothie was mixed with mango when I did not ask for the mix. The crab ragoons flavor was off. Quality needs to be improved. This used to be so convenient. I am thoroughly disappointed. read more

Been here several times. Never for lunch The. Lunch menu are smaller portions than you would receive as if you would be dining in with that said, still an abundance of food with great taste, and definitely shareable. They have frozen drinks with tapioca, as you would find in other Asian restaurants. prices are fair. Definitely with trying if you're in the area. read more

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Jess Cafe is probably one of my favorite Asian restaurants. The food is great, the waiters are super nice and friendly, and I love the music they play. I definitely recommend Jess Cafe! read more

12/25/23 - Christmas Night. We went to my brother in laws house for dinner. I called into Jess Cafe & ordered salt & spicy smelt & fish fillet w/black bean, green & red peppers for pick up @ 4pm. I called back almost immediately and asked if I could change the pick up to 5pm. They said it wasn't a problem. So fast forward to 3:53 pm Simeon from Jess Cafe calls and tells me our order is ready. This is a problem because whenever I order fried foods like the salt & spicy smelt I want it cooked fresh & hot out of the fryer. They asked me if this was ok because my pick up time was @ 5pm or should they redo the order so it was fresh, hot & crispy when I pick it up. I said I would rather get something closer to 5 pm because as you know fried foods lose that crunchy texture if left to sit. I'm very anal about fried foods and I always request something fresh out of the fryer. I am willing to wait to get the order hot & crispy. When I arrived @ 5 pm the restaurant was packed w/diners & people waiting to pick up their orders. My smelt & fish fillet w/black beans were already packaged & waiting for pickup. They assured me that they would remake the order to my preference. Well guess what they didn't the the salt & spicy smelt fish wasn't even warm. I can tell by the temperature & texture of the smelt that it had been sitting for awhile but what was I going to do go back & ask for them to recook my order while e wine at the house was waiting? I have been to Jess Cafe before and generally they produce a pretty good quality food. I'M VERY DISSATISFIED & DISAPPOINTED BY THIS ORDER OF SALT & SPICY SMELT AS THE SMELT HAD BEEN SITTING FOR AWHILE. I know they're busy but this isn't right read more

Jess Cafe - Fish fillet w/black bean, red & green peppers - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I forgot to take a photo but I branched out and got the yushan eggplant with minched pork and IT WAS THE BEST !!! entire family was happy. read more

After last night 4/13/26, I am soooo upset!!! I found a piece of metal wire in my pad thai chicken order. I got so lucky that I did not swallow it or bite into it. Plus the chicken was raw still and had to cook it better at home. If you guys are in a rush and told me kitchen is closing at 8:30pm to be there very soon. I understand that ordered at 8:10pm and everyone wants to go home. Maybe don't have people order at a certain time to ensure all goes well and such situations don't happen like a hard wire inside people's food and the food not being well cooked. What's going on Jess Cafe?! This is ridiculous!Please be careful with what you use so that it doesn't get into customer's food...this would have ended horribly if I swallowed the metal wire. After a long time customer, I will never come here again after finding the wire in my food. Horrible. I am so upset. I still can't believe I found a metal wire in my food. read more

Jess Cafe - Metal piece in food!!!! - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Long time customer, first time complainer. Tried to go to dinner with my husband on Monday night 1-19-26. We walk in, were seated and I thought it seemed cold. I looked around and noticed that everyone in the restaurant was wearing a coat. We waited for 5 minutes, our waiter came by and brought menus and water, and I asked him if the heat was broken. And he told me yes the heat is broken. I don't know what the temperature was inside, but the carryout business was very busy and there were about 8 or 10 tables with people seated. Again, every single person was wearing a coat. I asked if the heat was going to be fixed right away, and he said no no maybe tomorrow. We left. When I go to Jess Cafe, I'm not looking for fine dining, or white tablecloths. I want dinner. Relatively quickly, inexpensively, and consistent. What I don't want is to freeze my ass off while I'm dining. We figured we'd come back the next night. Tuesday 1-20-26, I called to ask if the heat had been fixed. I was told no not really. So we stayed home for dinner. That's okay. Wednesday 1-21-26, had a meeting to go to, so my husband went out for pizza with a couple of friends. Today, Thursday 1-22-26. Long, long day at work, and it wasn't even time for lunch! My coworkers wanted to order Chinese food for lunch but before I committed I thought I would check with Jess Cafe to see if they had heat, because if they did my husband and I would go there for dinner. So I called. A nice guy answered the phone and I asked if they had heat. And he told me that it wasn't too bad, about 50° to 55°, but most customers were wearing coats and hats inside. So I ordered Chinese lunch with my friends at work and decided to write this review. The food at Jess Cafe is okay. It's not great, it's a little inconsistent, and some things are just not great at all. They also don't offer a lot of the standards that many Cantonese restaurants offer. Their potstickers are weird, they don't have shrimp toast, and they don't have the stuffed crab claws. We really like those. And they're Thai, and Korean food some of its passable but some of it is just gross. And what they charge for a small dish of kimchi you could buy a giant jar for the same price at Costco. It's nonetheless it's pretty good. As I said usually consistent, but here's my big complaint. And this is a message to the owner. A tall, good looking, skinny guy who lately has been running around in an orange down coat. Mr Jess Cafe - I don't care how you spend your money. It's your money. You earn it, you get to spend it however you want. But - if you're going to drive around in a big honking BMW SUV and perk it right in front of your restaurant fix the fucking heat so that your employees and patrons aren't freezing their asses off. You're in the hospitality business offer some hospitality. And park the fucking BMW in back because it's really kind of shitty to perk it right in front for your employees and customers to see whenever you want is freezing their gonads off. That's all I got thanks read more

Went for lunch yesterday and had the Mongolian chicken. Almost back to normal. Egg drop was good as always. Not an egg roll fan. Probably hit em up in the next week or 2 and order something different and see how it goes. Very good lunch and proportional like before the close down. read more

The service was awesome the food was great especially the egg foo young and the wong tongs are a must order.

Food 5/5, docked 1 star due to the tapioca being soggy and the fact that it took a little bit to get our check which wouldn't have been an issue if we hadn't only stopped in for a quick meal. Food was on our table in the blink of an eye. I got wonton soup, egg rolls, thai iced tea, kung pao and a beef dish (can't remember the name, but that was the only ingredient and everything was solid. read more

First of all the almond cookies are so damnnnn good! I also tried the calamari which had the perfect crunch and the vinegar based dipping sauce it comes with has the perfect twang! read more

Food is good and consistent every time I order. The drive I have to make to get their food is Worth it.

Overall, Jess is a solid choice. They have delicious tasting vegetable egg rolls and their crab Rangoon are also very large and crispy. Their smoothies with tapioca pearls are tasty. The boba is very soft and chewy. They are a little skimpy even when paying for extra boba (sue me). The menu is just so over the top and extensive. If you aren't sure what to get, you may get the wrong thing. Overall, sticking with their Chinese/Cantonese style food is the way to go. Their Korean side (although their kimchi is very spicy and tasty) and Thai side is a little lacking. If you stick with the basics (orange chicken, walnut shrimp, dumplings, eggrolls, etc) you hardly will go wrong. read more

Jess Cafe - Kimchi Short Ribs with Fried Pan-Egg Over Rice (meat too chewy) - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I'll start by saying that we've been to Jess Cafe many times over the past 8-10 years or so, and it's usually been good. Some of the dishes have been outstanding. The last couple of times have been different. We were there for dinner most recently on July 8. Something seemed off from the minute we walked in the door. There was a heavy fried fish smell in the air, so the ventilation must not have been working properly. The place is usually very crowded, but there were very few customers there. The server rushed to take our order, almost before we had picked up the menus. My husband had a question about one of the curry options, and he was told it had "crispy noodles" and vegetables. When it arrived, it was an unappetizing pile of white noodles in an unappetizing watery green sauce. No texture, no flavor, no vegetables, no attention from the server once the food arrived at our table. Usually my husband eats every bit on his plate, but not this time--he managed to eat only about half of the order. And he's been sick since the day after he ate it. We won't be going back. read more

Very poor service grouchy people cheap doesn't feel the condiments on the table and when you ask for them such as sugar and give me the bare minimum rude read more

Mmmmmmmm. I miss this place. It's really good. Beef pad Thai was a strange color but so delicious!! Even the baby loved it. I should have taken a photo of him but I was digging in and couldn't multitask. Husband got the basil chicken. He is not big on Asian food which is why we don't come here more often. I mean it's only 5-10 minutes from our home. We should come once a week!!! Oh well. I'm gonna start sneaking on my weekday lunches when he's working. We also had to sneak a red bean coconut smoothie. Couldn't let our boy see it cause then we wouldn't get a sip. Hubby likes it. So I said I'd share it although I didn't really want too. Service is great. They'll get super busy but they'll get to you eventually. Anyway, check them out. Food is great and reasonably priced. Less than $40 with tax and tip. I'd rather spend it here than Panera which is where my husband prefers for the fresher / healthier. But honestly, we spent 42 the other day at Panera for 2 cups of soup, 1/2 a salad, 1/2 a sandwich and a cup of macaroni/cheese. Really?! I know. Everything is much more expensive nowadays. Well, we can get healthy options at Jenn's too! They have many options. Veggies and tofu and other yummy options. read more

Jess Cafe - Beef pad Thai and Basil chicken - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We have been looking for a good Asian restaurant for a long time... Jess' Cafe hit the mark!! Loved all the flavors food was wonderfully marinated and tasted GREAT!!! We will be coming back! I never leave reviews... but had to for Jess' Cafe!! Thank you!!! read more

customer Service is good! Time of preparation is good. Food preparation handling is bad. After purchasing my order and eating it at home, few hours later I ended up with stomach problem, bumps inside of my mouth, and had to stay home near the bathroom. I guess employees don't wash hands, or don't wear gloves when hand ready to eat food. I am definitely not coming back. to read more

Ordered on Grubhub I ordered shrimp fried rice crab Rangoon chicken skin and an egg roll. The food was good I have to admit there was a lot of stuffing the crab Rangoon overall it was good. I ordered the chicken skin and they taste like pork rinds never had them before but they are ok . read more

Jess Cafe - Shrimp Fried Rice - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I have been coming to the location for a while, however this particular visit the food portions look like they have lessened but for the same price. Also they have a red solo cup for water. I guess it eliminates the need for dished post COVID but was a little weird to go to a restaurant and see solo cups. The food was ok, would return for the food however, being a little ways from home May not be for a while. Service was a little slow and they brought one entree outta a time with a lag in between. I like to mix the entrees with rice, etc so as I waited the food temperature lessened. The one thing I do recommend is getting their teriyaki beef - they are the only location I know that sells it as a meal not just an appetizer. All in all not to bad, would visit again and recommend if huge fan of teriyaki beef as a meal read more

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Terrible terrible terrible terrible, full of chicken skin , two small pieces of beef and couple pieces of shrimp. read more

Jess Cafe - Chinese Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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The dishes I selected were bland even their most popular one orange chicken. The chicken was tough/overcooked. I had high hopes from a recommendation & how crowded/busy it was at pick up but I won't be back. read more

A really wonderful place. Reasonably priced, always fresh, nice and professional service. Their smoothies are great. Freshly made from real fruits. I have been eating there since 2008! Thank you. read more