I ordered from this restaurant a few times and the food has always been on point. I enjoy eating Mediterranean food from time to time and this place has one of the best. read more

Great food! Highly recommend the chicken shawarma with extra garlic sauce and a side of falafels. I have had the kefta and lamb kabobs and tabbouleh but the chicken is the best. The food is consistently well cooked, been a few dozen times. read more

THIS SO GOOD so it looks like nothing but THE FOOD IS BOMB authentic healthy and fresh customer service is meh but the food makes up for it I recommend Baba GanoujChicken Kabob PlateHummos lentil soup veggie soup etc basically everything! FALAFEL IS THE BEST I HAVE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE go get it now read more

Best shawarma in the area for sure. It's really a hidden gem in the back of a jewelry shop but this is the book you must not judge by it's cover. Recommend any day. read more

The food at this small establishment is very very good. I have never been disappointed seeing how I'm new to Lebanese foods. My Friday's are booked, I have a date with oasis cafe. The Chicken shawarma is very flavorful and is more food than I need. I ventured out and tried the Moroccan Couscous with chicken and I am hooked. I wish the Oasis Cafe was in my neighborhood so I could eat here everyday. Great food served quickly. read more

Gigantuous quantities for cheap (especially considering its in the Loop!). Came on a Saturday with a college friend and we both ordered Combination platters ($8.99) with chicken and their lamb/was it called kisha? meat. Topped with 3 generous falafel balls, a heaping side of hummus sprinkled with paprika, and a mound of yellow rice with huge slabs of meat, with salad and pita on the side, this dish definitely could be shared with two people. The falafels are some of the best I've ever had. They were perfectly fried, crispy...and reminded me of fried cornbread with their hidden sweetness and texture. Their meats were a little on the dry side, but the rice underneath made up for it...plump and soft (not the dry kind of rice that I've had at other mediterranean places). Top your pita bread with hummus, some rice, and a little bit of salad and you are set - the crunchiness and lightness of the cucumbers and tomatoes will give way to the earthy tones of hummus and heaviness of the meat-flavored rice. Yum! 4 stars because they didn't provide any yogurt sauce (not even when I asked), with it I'm sure it would've been one of the better mediterranean places I've been to (compatible to MedDeli back at UNC!). Also 4 stars because they really need a better sign...i could hardly find this place since that whole section of Wabash is filled with jewelry stores (I also felt bad walking the long trek past the eager jewelry salespeople up front all the way to the back for a $10 meal). Talk about a tease, feelsalittlebadman I'll need to come on the weekdays to try their specials! read more

Oasis Cafe - Their combination plate-a mountain of food - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Seriously though, what did the ownership of this restaurant need to do to for the city of Chicago to approve of walking through a jewelry store to get to this restaurant? Its so odd that it must be noted. The restaurant will usually have a small A-frame sign outside that indicates the entrance. You have to get to this location, before you can order food- that;s why this paragraph is necessary. The food is good, look for the daily special as that seems like a huge bang for your buck. read more

I have been frequenting this place since 2009 at least once a month. They have been very consistent since then. I think they have the best falfel in the loop provided they are freshly made. Their best item is the lentil soup in my opinion. The kefta kebab sandwich is fantastic. The chicken kabab plate is a great value. The daily special is usually amazing... I encourage you to try the Maroccan chicken if you want to experience what home cooked meal feels like in the middle East. Obviously there is theater and wow factor when you stroll into a jewelry store to get there. So it is always a plasant surprise when I bring a friend along for the first time. Now.... I took a star because I thought the chicken shawarma is not good and there have been a few occasions in the last 10 years when I felt the chicken kebab is under cooked (3/300 visits). I highly recommend this place. It is well managed... Good food, good value, fast service, friendly staff. What is not too like. read more

Its so weird that this place is located at the back of a jewelery store!!! If they didnt have the "Oasis Cafe" sign out front, we would have been scratching our heads trying to figure out where the place was located! The food was definitely good. I'm not a kabob fan, but we had the lamb kabob and it was extremely tender, moist, and flavorful. Not your typical kabob because it was not on a stick and not dry. Their hummus is extremely fresh. The lentil soup tasted great too. Prices here are very affordable. Lots of seating upstairs and downstairs. The place is air conditioned too. AWESOME!!!! Oh, and they take credit cards! Yipee! read more

Great place for a couple of bitches to have a quick lunch and bask in each other's fabulousness. Not all that super duper special, but the food is good, fresh and quick. Love that is in such a random place, back of a jewelry store - that is fun. I'm going to have to go back to really judge this place. I had the Kofte, which I am always a fan of, and it was pretty good. Solid place for lunch, definitely. read more

Woohoo! It's really as good as it gets. The fact that you walk in a jewelry store to get there makes me love it anyway. Period. Even if the food was average, I would still find it very amusing. Now for the important part. The food is made with care and fresh ingredients. We went in right around noon and the cashier girl is polite, cheerful and a little bit no nonsense. She is already helping the next person as she is ending your transaction. Talk about moving the line right along. Which is very helpful, because at one point today, I counted thirty people in line. She moved them in and out very quickly. Seating is very limited, so if getting your lunch to go is an option, that might be a better way. Food comes up very quickly. They do not waste any time at Oasis Cafe. We ordered a veggie plate and a meat combo plate. Plenty of hummus, baba gahnoush, bread, tabouli, grape leaves and a little salad. The hummus is really smooth and full of flavor and the baba gahnoush is smokideliciousness. We also ordered two lentil soups, the lentil soup is pureed smooth, rich and creamy, it did not taste diet by any means. Oasis isn't just a band. read more

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After seeing this place located in the back of a jewelry shop I knew I had to try it. The chicken shawarma lunch special is a pretty good deal but nothing really fantastic. The chicken, hummus, and falafel were all fine but a bit bland. For the price I'd expect a bit more honestly. read more

This is GREAT Middle Eastern food! The portions are huge and the price is very fair. A lunch from here could probably be shared by two people. But I didn't share. Delicious. Huge portion. Low price. This place is awesome! read more

Absolutely love this place. Whenever i get a lunchtime break and the weather is good i take a walk here. the staff is super friendly, tons of selections, food always fresh and very flavorful. Lots of vegetarian options. read more

Oasis Cafe - Vegetarian plate - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Food: 4 Decor: 2 Service: 3 I came here with a friend for lunch around noon Friday, right before checking into Lollapalooza. The place is hidden inside a jewelry store, and it took us some backtracking before we were able to find it. I opted for the chicken shawarma plate, and my friend opted for the Moroccan couscous with chicken. The chicken shawarma was prepared nicely, and the portions were very generous. My Jewish friend kept raving about how the food was super authentic and just like her mother's cooking. Both dishes were $7, and I was absolutely stuffed afterwards. read more

Amazing food. Always fresh. Good service. Great prices. Perfect lunchtime spot if you are in the loop. read more

Oasis Cafe - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Had lunch at Oasis today. It was basically the same as many of the falafel places in the loop. The seating area and all aren't as nice as one of the small chain type places that have popped up over the past few years. It's a hidden place in the middle of the Diamond Mall. The tables/chairs and all aren't that great. The service is super-fast - I think they basically have everything ready-to-go and they just quickly throw it together and serve it. It was basically like pay and pick-up - with ZERO wait-time. Food-wise, I liked my falafel sandwich and the hummus side was also good. Those two things ran me $10, which is the norm in the area. Nothing really stood out to me... it was all decent. I would go back to Oasis if I was in the area and wanted falafel. read more

Hidden gem behind the jewelry store, pun intended. Baklava, Chicken and Kefta Kabob are great. Very tasty and great value for money.

Unsurprisingly, the jewelry store stretch of Wabash is (still) under construction with scaffolding, temporary barricades, and construction vehicles everywhere obscuring the already subtle entrance to Oasis Cafe. Try looking for a sign or sample menu in the windows as you get closer to the correct door. Walk down the long aisle, past the glass displays, to a two-level seating area with plenty of larger tables for a group lunch. Despite the distance from my office in the south end of the Loop, I think Oasis Cafe is the better of the Middle Eastern non-chain lunch joints. Compared to Falafel Island, its portions are still big enough for two meals albeit a little smaller and therefore, cheaper. The meat was tender and well-seasoned, the hummus was fresh and delicious, and the falafel was crunchy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. They also offer a daily special to keep things interesting and my friend has praised their lentil soup. My only critique is that the Shish Kabob combo promised baba ganoush but I was given hummus instead - the hummus was great, but I wanted baba ganoush! read more

Oasis Cafe - Shish kabob platter to go, hearty pita not shown, baba ganoush omitted :( - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

This place is unreal. I come here every Wednesday religiously for their Wednesday special - Napole Stuffed Chicken Breast. The quality of the food is always consistent: the chicken is juicy and tender, the stuffed spinach, cucumber and tomato give a nice fresh balance to the taste. You can have a choice of rice, salad, lettuce or a mixed of those. The people work there are friendly, helpful and efficient. All of the above makes it the best Wednesday lunch spot in the city! Did I mention they also have the best falafel in the whole universe? My boyfriend will always order extra falafels with his stuffed chicken. read more

Oasis Cafe - Wednesday special - Napole stuffed chicken breast - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Wow, stilll can't get over the weird location. So of course when I heard about this place I had to check it out. Good thing they had a sign in front of the building, otherwise I wouldn't been walking around confused longer. The place is pretty hot, since it's kinda located in an alcove. I ordered the chicken schwarma plate over hummus. Bad idea; I dont' like the hummus touching the chicken. I personally don't think they go too well together. The chicken was pretty good as was the hummus. The best thing in my eyes was the hot sauce. Y'know that red hot sauce all the Middle Eastern places serve? This place had the best by far. Better than Pita Express and Tazas. It was a rich red color, and very thick comparatively. Had a nice deep, full flavor. With a drink, the meal came out to 9 bucks. A little pricey ~$1-2 more than the average place, I would say. They have free pieces of crisped/burnt pita ends chililng on the counter. Considering how much hummus they give you, not a bad idea to grab a few pretty tasty. For all you water drinkers, they have small cups next to the pop machine. *gaaaah* I almost said 'soda,' gotta stop hanging out with east coast people. In summary: Ambience: very weird and interesting Food: Good, but not stellar; hot sauce stands out Value: a little pricey Overall: cool place to check out...I mean c'mon...the location! read more

Oasis Cafe - Hilarious - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Totally out of the way middle eastern joint. Very easy to miss if you don't know what you are looking for. The food is pretty good and the portions are large, but with all of the middle eastern choices in the loop now, I'm not sure i would make this a regular spot. The chicken Kabobs were very tasty, and they gave you a large portion of them. The fallafel were also some of the more authentic ones I have had in the loop, but its not worth a 10 block walk when i can hit Naf Naf Grill in 2 blocks. Go check it out, enjoy the odd sensation of walking through a jewelry store and ending up at a hole in the wall. Check it off your list, then try something new. And try not to get sucked into buying any cheap ass jewelery in the store. It all looks like fugazi. "Fugget abou'it!" read more

Best Baba Ganouj in the loop! Seriously I'm in love, it's perfect with its tender morsels of smoky eggplant chunks interspersed between creaminess. The eggplant pieces fall apart in your mouth and the overall sauce is perfectly balanced with sumac spice, lemon and garlic. I would order it by the bucket to take home if they offered. We ordered a veggie plate, cup of soup of the day and falafel sandwich. Which ended up being more than necessary for two people because the portion sizes were generous. The falafel was certainly fresh and had a great crispy exterior and moist interior. Overall, the quality was extremely high. Our only disappointment was the pita isn't fresh (as in made throughout the day). The soup of the day, some kind of vegetable, rice and garbanzo bean concoction, was very "homey" and simple in a delicious way. Very good if you are looking for some healthy, home style comfort food. The interior of the restaurant is purely functional but plentiful. The situation within the jewelry store is.... interesting.... Awkward at first but the you can people watc read more

Oasis Cafe - Vegetable plate - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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No longer in the jewelers building Oasis moved into a small food court. I'd recommend getting in and getting out, the food court place is depressing. Last time i ate Oasis food was like 6 years ago! These people have been around forever man, WTF?! The falafel is probably the best in the loop. Perfectly moist if lacking a bit of flavor. The falafel sandwich is hefty and chock fulla falafel. No need for hummus to moisten things up, the falafel stand on their own. ETA: Awesome Veggie combo! read more

Oasis Cafe - In the food court - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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This is a great little out of the way place for lunch. I had the special that had some chicken and veggies mixed on a filo pastry. it was very good. the Falafel is very crispy and good. The homous is good a bit on the soft side. Well worth the money. read more

Come for the food, not the ambiance. Solid Middle Eastern / Mediterranean food with the usual suspects: falafel, shawarma, hummus, etc....but they also have some unique daily specials. Tucked away in the back of a jewelry store, you're probably not expecting much as far as atmosphere goes....but Oasis Cafe can really use a make over. The place is pretty grimy and the carpet upstairs is just plain disgusting. All that being said, the food is absolutely delicious! The staff is friendly and super quick, too. read more

Had a sampler plate with flaffal, chicken, rice, hummus, pita and salad. All was really tasty! Reasonable price and good amount of food! Will be go back! read more

Oasis Cafe - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Excellent food.. had heard a lot about this place from friends and coworkers, I now understand why they were all raving about it. Authentic Mediterranean food in the loop - must try! read more

This place gets PACKED during lunch time. But for the price, I'd recommend it. I was really hyped and excited to try this but during the time I went, the flavor lacked a bit. Great lunch spot though! Definitely worth a try. read more

If you want authentic middle eastern food , this is the place ! Everything taste good . My favorite is the chicken shawarma . The only thing I don't like is that special of the day tends to run out really early during the day ! :-( . Other than that this place is really good !!! read more

Oasis Cafe - Shawarma Combo plate !! - Mediterranean Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The baba and falafel here are delicious. The baba was all nice and smokey and creamy, however I think the baba portion was a little too small but also I can devour a quart of baba like 1 minute so maybe thats just me. Also their hot sauce was pretty good but it really varies in texture and spiciness. I wish they made their own pita. I also got the vegetarian koshary and it was a little lacking in like carmelized onion and spice and flavor i guess but was alright. But the portion was very generous. I would definitely come back here though. read more

Like secret spots? Me too. Surprise your loved one with a gift of jewelry and a falafel all in one spot! How cool is that! So unbeknownst to some who may pass by here. You'll first see a jewelry store but explore a little further and you'll find a Mediterranean oasis in the back of the store. I've had the falafel pita and the chicken shawarma both were really good. This spot makes me think of old Wabash when I was a kid going to Carson's and Marshall fields. When Arcadia was around with the neon signage. I love it! read more

I was pleasantly surprised by this place, which is at the back of a jewelry store. I only had their falafel wrap, but it was fresh and super tasty! Their pita was really nice and the wrap included nicely chopped veggies and tahini. read more

This back of the jewelry store restaurant gem has the best falafel in the city. I get the falafel sandwich with everything add hummus, hot sauce and tahini. read more

Best fallaffel so far in the US. Great lentil soup, superb lamb and so on. Owner is Palestinian and brings the best of local foods to Chicago read more

Delicious, quick, and authentic Palestinian food located in a quirky location at the back of a jewelry store. Everything was fresh and flavorful. You can practically taste the love coming directly from Palestine. read more

A little hard to find, but when you find the sign, you'll notice the cafe is in the back/hole in the wall place. They were out of their specials. When me and my partner ordered different meals, different meats, they came out exactly the same. My meal was supposed to come with baba ganouj which is my favorite over hummus, it came with hummus. I didn't feel like dealing with the mixup to extend time, but seemed like they just made up whatever they wanted to give us. This probably set the tone that the food was just alright and not exceptional. read more

This place is the real deal. It might be the least fancy "restaurant" within a 5-block radius (I mean, it's in the back of a random jewelry repair shop under the green line, for crying out loud!), but the falafel and hummus plate is no joke. After learning of this place from the Chicago Tribune's list of best lunch spots in the Loop, I stopped by today for a cheap lunch. At 1pm there was almost no line and plenty of seating. I went with the falafel and hummus plate, which also came with half of a pita and a scoop of what i know as Jerusalem salad (diced cucumbers, tomatoes, and parsley). The falafel was amazing, probably the best that I've ever had in the United States. Crispy, light, and melt in your mouth, with lots of bold herby flavor. Not at all dry or bready. The hummus was creamy, with a little sprinkling of paprika on top. My friend got the combo plate, which came with falafel and what I can only describe as a mini-burrito of shredded chicken wrapped in a paper-thin dough (apologies, I can't remember the name). I tried a bite of the mini-burrito and thought it was excellent, much more moist than I expected based on the appearance. Can't wait to go back! I'm already dreaming of more falafel. read more

Not bad, not good, but did the job. Service was good though. Hummus and falafel were sub par.

Well, this review is more for the vegetarian food (didn't even try the falafels) so not sure how representative of the full menu it is... Had the Greek Salad, which was 80% lettuce and 20% combo of cucumber-tomato-feta. Not really what I was hoping for! My friend had the grapeleaves and didn't enjoy them much either... Maybe it's just more of a meat place and do a much better job there? Not good-tasting for vegetarians though, even though the menu is vegetarian-friendly! read more