Recently, a friend had sent a text to me with a listing of restaurants to try in the Austin neighborhood of Chicago. The Licking was one of the restaurants on the list. I had no idea that DJ Khalid had opened a spot on the Chicago landscape, as The Licking is one of his restaurants. Not bad and a nice addition to Austin since it's not the usual fish hut, rib joint, or chicken shack. I arrived early enough to have the restaurant to myself. For an appetizer, I ordered the chicken roll that came with a sweet chili sauce. High marks. They didn't try to go gourmet or spectacular, just sent rolls to the table that tasted delicious. For my main meal, I ordered fried red snapper with collards and sweet potatoes. I appreciate the red snapper being meaty and having only a light crust. I used some more of the sweet chili sauce or dipping, which was a good option. The greens were flavorful and without any salt meat, ham hock, or smoked turkey. Often restaurants serve bland greens if they don't use hock or turkey. That was not the case here. The sweet potatoes were a nice add-on that they didn't mess up. Having eaten too much, I had a slice of caramel cake for takeaway. It was from someone who baked the desserts of premises. I can't ding the restaurant for the cake needing to be warmed up to moisten it, but I will pass on it next time around. The woman working the front of the house was cool. Made good recommendations and also spoke at length about some other good restaurants in the Austin area. Like many restaurants I've gone to lately, I will have to go back later to try a few other items on the menu. read more

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Well I came in looking for a job but they were not hiring so I ask if I could charge my phone they allowed it I am a shy type of person so I didn't have much to say I think she seen me put my phone down and played the amazing spider me lol thanks the music was good too Idm abt thr food cause I didn't have cash read more

The Licking Chicago - Amazing spidermen - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I don't know if this can really be considered seafood rice. There was 1 overcooked crab claw on top of the rice and 3 shrimp in the rice. The rice itself is tasty, but it's definitely lacking on the seafood. read more

The Licking Chicago - Seafood Rice - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Now this was yummy! I'm a south side girl, hey I try to stay far away from the Westside, but THESE WINGS were unforgettable!! I love a naked wing dipped in plenty of sauce! This was a hit! Although the restaurant reminds me of a fancy sharks w/the chandelier lol. This was some yummy and fresh chicken! read more

The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I've been to 2 of the Miami locations several times so I'm familiar with their food. The location here is new to Chicago and I've heard bad things. But I always check places out for myself! We arrived to a full parking lot on Tuesday at about 2pm. So we used Madison street parking instead of the tight lots. There are 2 sides to the facility, take out & dine in. Take out is in the front & dine in is in the back. When we walked in we were advised there's a 15min wait. Once seated we had a really nice waitress, unfortunately, I can't remember her name. We ordered baked & fried chicken dinners. Got green beans, yams, & mac. They don't have greens everyday of the week! Which is unfortunate because they never have them in Miami either! *** ROLLS EYES*** These must be some bomb ass greens! Geesh THE FOOD IS PREPARED TO ORDER THIS IS NOT A FAST FOOD MCDONALD'S RESTAURANT!!!! GET THAT THRU YOUR HEAD PPL! THIS AIN'T MAC ARTHUR'S! GO DOWN THERE IF YOU'RE HURRIED. It took about 20/25 mins for our food to come out. Everything was fresh/good! I'll definitely be back for the seafood next time. read more

The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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The food is bomb, but service is not so great. Only one person working so can't blame her for the slowness. Definitely need more employees read more

The Licking Chicago - a menu on a table - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Never does it take 20min + to get change back , never got our drinks (they charged us our drinks when she said she was going to take it off never did ) , food was stale (fries) , pasta was like it was sitting around . Ended up going home with a stomachache something was wrong with the pasta . As a server I wouldn't have left a tip from how awful was the service . Cashed us out and never came back . Horrible horrible avoid at all cost and go to the one in Florida !!! Close this location down read more

The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I came to the licking to try something new, the location isnt somewhere I expected but the waiters and waitresses were nice. I tried the chicken wings and waffles, the chicken had a weird taste and the waffles were good. Later on when I got home I threw up and had a headache. read more

Our server was very nice and overall the food is pretty good. Not sure how it is usually, but it took quite a while for our orders to be taken. There was only one server. Luckily my friends and I weren't on a time frame, if we were, our entire day would have been thrown off. It took a long time to get the check as well. The music and TVs were incredibly loud, but when we asked the staff If they'd turn them down they were really sweet and accommodating. All of the sides were delicious. I ordered the chicken wing dinner with plain chicken wings and they were good but really salty. Overall, food was really good. Service was almost perfect. Just took way too long for us to be helped and I think that affected the experience a bit. read more

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Let me start by saying that I think it's very important to have black owned businesses in our community. We should be able to employ our own. It is equally important that if you are in the restaurant business, you have good food and professional employees. The employees here are cool. Not bad, but nothing spectacular. They aren't gonna like, smile at you or welcome you to the establishment or anything. The food though leaves something to be desired. The greens taste like somebody just dumped a bunch of salt in it. In fact, most of the veggies taste that way. Yams are mid. The alfredo is really good but very spicy. The shrimp and fish are ok but you only get 6 shrimp with a shrimp dinner and anyone from the westside knows that's at least 6 shrimp shy of a full plate! It's starting to look pretty dirty and grimy. You can tell they don't do any deep cleaning, sweeping, mopping, etc and the doors, glass and all are pretty grimy too. Ion think I'm going back. read more

At first I was skeptical reading the reviews .. but the food was actually decent I wouldn't pay $50 again but it would be more worth $25... The Mac and cheese wasn't good read more

The Licking Chicago - Outside - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

If you're looking for the worse service and longest wait, this is the place, but the food was amazing... the employees were cool, but very frustrated. I get it, it's new, was pop'n and very very busy. We went here and waited for over an hour to get seated, then it was over an hour to get our appetizer... they looked out and gave us free lemon pepper wings (fire), with our chicken rolls (fire). Then about 30-ish mins later we got our food. While all that was happening, the table across from us had been waiting for who knows how long. All I know is that they were in there before my bf and I. They got the check before they got their food. The music helped and kept us chill! With all that being said, Enjoy... everything we ate was on point and fire, definitely worth the wait if you had to drive to get there. We didn't get a chance to get a pic of our meal. read more

The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Really rude staff. They acted clueless to my DoorDash order, like they didn't know how the computer worked or have any knowledge of online orders. I realized after a bit it was an act as they were playing dumb, because they didn't want to do anything. The staff was more focused on getting back to the back room to play on their phones. There were three young staff members, and only one of them looked up from their phone the entire time to help me and other customers. One item I ordered was the Conch appetizer, and at the restaurant, the girl at the counter said that they do not have that menu item. Even though, it is listed on the paper carry out menu and clearly listed on the light up menu behind the counter! I couldn't believe they didn't have this item, as it seems to be THEE main thing that customers gave positive feedback for. The restaurant would not issue me a refund for this, saying they didn't know how to. I left about 10-12 mins later with my shrimp meal. Here's the review on the Food itself: * Macaroni & cheese- this is the Stouffer's Mac & Cheese that you make from the frozen trays. If you've never had it, I'm sorry your childhood was deprived, bc it is pretty good. But, I expect better and different from a restaurant especially when they're charging so much. * Veggie Fried Rice- again this is a prepared food. I can't quite identify it, if it's from a Zatarain's or possibly Rice a Ronni, but I have def had it before and it's NOT "made" in the restaurant. It is also NOT fried rice in any sense, and as far as vegetables from 'Vegetable Fried Rice', these are the little green and red specs that come from the boxed rice * Fried Shrimp- this is the only saving grace of the whole restaurant experience and entire food order. The shrimp were GIANT and fresh. I could tell these weren't frozen shrimp. The breading on them was perfect, and the shrimp were juicy and crisp. They weren't chewy and didn't have a weird texture; they were good! If it weren't for the shrimp, my mood would have risen to the level of anger instead of just extreme frustration with The Licking. * Mystery Drink- Tho pricey, I actually did like the mystery drink! It tasted like a popsicle. I think they take lemonade and put a squirt or two of slushie flavoring into it. I would recommend it, but kind of on the fence if I'd get it another time because they're $4.29 (plus tax) a piece! Being in a food desert tho, honestly it's one of the better options in the area. * Overall- size of the box was small, and even after eating everything bc I was so hungry at the time, I still had hunger pains in my stomach. Disappointing! And I'm. Or a very big person either. I'm sure a 200 lb man would be 200 times more disappointed. Rarely do I have such bad experiences at places. Again, I was surprised just how rude the staff was, ignoring me for several minutes and then immediately talking with an attitude once I was finally approached. It was if I was the biggest annoyance to them, like rolling eyes why are you bothering me at work! Be careful with what prices you pay- see my Tip that details this. Differs bw diff apps and paper menu, up to $12 different. Combined with the disappointing food, and over $20 I spent, don't waste your time & money Yelpers!! read more

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The food is delicious and you get generous helpings I had the grilled Shrimp and I got 6 large shrimp with collard greens so tender I may never pick, wash and cook collards again and the baked Mac and Cheese is awesome My next order was fried chicken wings and the same sides I ate too much and still enjoyed the extra side of candied yams I highly recommend this restaurant Maybe the next time I will remember to take a picture before I eat read more

DJ Khalid come and check on your name sake. I know it's not named after you but it's your restaurant. Franchised or not! Why would there be one menu for all locations when all locations DO NOT serve the same food? Please change that! OWNER, please do better. Why have people to continue to ask for stuff you know you don't serve? Ask Khalid if you can adjust the menu to fit your target area. Needless to say, I'm disappointed! Also the vegetable rice should be called rice with diced green peppers. Why? Because that's LITERALLY the only vegetable in the rice. Which for me is terrible because bell peppers and my digestive system aren't cool at all. I picked around it as much as possible. I'm paying for it now though. No one's fault but mine. I was hungry lol Plus side, the rice did have a good flavor. It's 90+ degrees and there's no a/c in the place! Thank God that I was the only person in the dining area because the worker put the fan directly on me. I'm not going to talk about how I got there and had to go around looking for a worker because one person worked the dining area and the fast food side, and she was on the fast food side. The music was blasting and no one could hear me yelling "hello". read more

I would say it's more like 3.5 stars. There's two different parts to this spot. On the left side entrance is the to go orders and the right side entrance is for dining in. My expectations were a bit higher than they should of been because this is DJ Khaled restaurant and he seems like he would know food. At this location theirs no alcohol being served yet. We went with the mystery drink and it's pretty much a mixture of different types of really sweet koolaid. The yams were a disappointment and tasted like they were straight from the can. The highlights would be the Mac and cheese and the shrimp Alfredo. I thought the shrimp tasted very well seasoned. I don't live close by so probably won't be making the trek back anytime soon, but I can see this as being a go to spot if I lived in the area. read more

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Ok..so, when you visit there are 2 different areas for the restaurant. Take-out: On the main street Dine-In: Follow the inside wall of the strip mall to door (Suite A). A bit confusing but there is a sit down area. There are 9 sitting areas. 7 booths - which seat up to 4 2 booths - which seat 2 For visitors and tourists running low on battery power. Each booth has charging stations EXCEPT the 2-seater booths (possibly they will get temporary charging stations at those). FOOD: Okay...I was craving chicken wings and shrimp. They have a chicken wing and fries meal ($9) and I ordered a side of shrimp ($4). My friend ordered the baked chicken dinner ($12??). He enjoyed the meal, it was too much for him to finish. Me on the other hand, the chicken wings were over cooked so.. they were tiny. The shrimp was perfectly seasoned and fried, I wanted more than 5...greedy me. The fries..eh..they were ok. In fairness, I wasn't hungry for french fries..cole slaw would have been better...not so heavy...but its not a side option they have. We took the bus out to this location...which was an experience. This place is located in a poor neighborhood and they have a security guard watching this tiny strip mall. Not very many cars can fit in the lot!! Be forewarned if you drive to this location. We went on a Saturday and traffic was busy hardly any parking because of the church around the corner. Best to call in your order for To - Go. The mystery drink was very sweet (like I enjoy it). Not a great drink for a diabetic or child...they will be hyped up all day. I'm glad we walked after our meal. Transportation: Public transportation is only a block away. Very convenient. Restrooms: Clean Staff: Polite, professional, courteous and they understand you have to wait a while and they try their best to accommodate. We waited 10 mins for our food. So the wait is Not long. (kudos). Our staff person checked on us several times to make sure we had everything. The big bosses were in the house, they introduced themselves and took our suggestions. A welcome restaurant to that area. I hope other working class/mom & pop entrepreneurs will move into the area and have higher class establishments move in (great lighting, security, nice decor, clean, professional staff, etc.). DJ Khaled and his investors did good with this. It's showing what you can do even if you don't put in tons of money but HIRE RIGHT. Hire folks who want to LEVEL UP, BRING UP OTHERS and at the end of the day KNOW THEY BROUGHT a light to the tunnel.. it's looking brighter in that area. read more

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Horrible horrible horrible! I hate I have to give it any stars! The TOP WORSE customer service! The only time we see the server is when she's bringing the food out. It's as if she's in the back avoiding taking care of the customers. The server kept asking us to repeat ourselves due to "her having a lot to do" The food is very mediocre and not hot. I would never recommend the licking... read more

While the food is good, the wait is RIDICULOUS!!! We haven't been back in a long time because it took close to 3 hours to get our food. We ordered ahead Went grocery shopping(came back it still wasn't ready) Bring the groceries up(came back and it still wasn't ready) Put gas in our car(came back and it still wasn't ready) You just have to have time read more

So I ordered a chicken fettuccine Alfredo and it's nothing like the original. It's spicy and it taste like Cajun style and they don't tell you that either. On top of that you have to wait really long. It's not good at all. I was expecting fettuccine Alfredo. If it's any different than that, then it shouldn't be named chicken fettuccine Alfredo because this is not how it's made. read more

The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Didn't realize the location had a dining area until I asked. The waitress was super friendly but it was a empty house and now that I've dining in, I understand why. The food was trash. Lobster tails was trash and everything was super expensive. First and only time. I would put one star but the waitress was dope. read more

It is not worth the hype or wait. The service is trash. Someone waited for an hour, was told food was not ready. They said cancel the order and two minutes later the food popped out. Not worth $20. The mystery drink is lemonade mixed with food coloring & it Taste like food coloring. I believe this location is going down hill. I would never eat here again , I wouldn't even feed this to my dog. So I guess I'll just drive to atl for roc south. Because this is not that. Would not recommend even if you were homeless. First impressions are everything and yeah it's not it for me. read more

The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

This spot is Busy! Too busy to keep up with orders, which now includes the restaurant. 2-3 hour wait to be told the food wasn't ready. Staff wore masks but not always covering their noses or mouths. Rudely told to not wait inside after being there for an hour. Yelled out that they also wouldn't take customers orders if people wouldn't leave to get down to 7 people in the store front. Said they wouldn't call when the order was done, then when I called they hung up. Spoke to manager who could not say where the food was. No food, no Bueno! read more

I am late writing this review. My friends and I came here last month on a Sunday. It is located on a busy street. The restaurant has two separate doors one for carry out and one for dining in. When we walked in the dining in door there is a hostess stand that states wait to be seated. The places wasn't super packed so I was hoping it wouldn't take long to get the food. A host walked up and asked how many. It was 5 of us so she sat us in a big booth. She stated they aren't handing out menu's due to covid and menus can be pulled up by scanning a barcode on the back of this one menu. I thought it was really cool. First let me say the menu has so many options from seafood to chickens wings and sides. I decided on the lemon pepper wing dinner with greens and yams. I also ordered the famous mystery drink. My best friend got fish, greens, yams, and fried broccoli. Everyone else got some type of seafood. The chicken wings were pretty tiny. I normally prefer big but the wings tasted really good. I love lemon pepper and the sauce was not too bitter. The greens were amazing and it was smoked turkey in it! That is a plus plus for me since I don't eat pork. Now the yams were not a favorite. They were average and didn't taste sweet at all. I tried my friends mac and cheese and I should've ordered that instead. The mystery drink was delicious as well it tasted like different kool aid flavors mixed together. It was right up my alley! The staff was really nice especially our waitress. We made sure to leave her a big tip she was quick and didn't make any mistakes. The next time I am in Chicago I will be coming here. Side note: The parking lot is very small. read more

The Licking Chicago - Famous Mystery Drink - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I couldn't even try the food!!!!! Was in the area and decided to stop in and check them out. I seen a group of 4 exit without anything and decided to ask why they were leaving. They replied they're out of a lot of stuff and unprofessional. We proceeded into the restaurant and began looking over the menu. Another couple enters the restaurant and we let them know it's our first time so they can go ahead. As I'm looking over the menu and conversing with my wife I can see that the lady is rolling her eyes and head as the customer turns away. I kept it cool and started to order and asked a few clarifying questions about price and actual availability. Then she started with me rolling her eyes and shifting her body before she walks away without saying anything. At this point my wife has left the restaurant. I waited for her to come back just to check her energy and get some clarity cause I'm still hungry. She proceeds to say that my wife raised her voice, well ma'am you stated that you could not hear us so we simply spoke up. Then she says it's just when certain customers raise their voice it irritates me. (My wife is white) and she never raised her voice simply said the question louder so that she could hear us. They have a tv going and music playing. I decided to asked for someone else to assist me and she said that there isn't anyone there but her and the cook. I asked for the owners information no help there either. So if you are the owner of this establishment please get orphan Annie away from the front assisting customers. Excuse any errors I'm mad and hungry!! read more

The Licking Chicago - Terrible customer service - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I ordered the baked chicken white meat. Definitly was good and cooked well. It was a bit spicy though. It took 10 minutes to make the food which is good for this place. Strawberry Lemonade was made to perfection. read more

The Licking Chicago - The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Worst restaurant EVER! Just waited two hours for NO FOOD! I asked for a refund after 30 minutes of waiting. Waited another 30 mins and asked again because the food obviously still was not done! They told all the delivery drivers that their food had already been picked up without even checking or looking into it all at! They were taking food from previous orders (because people left after waiting 2-3 hours) giving it to people still waiting! They were substituting people's food w/o notifying them, then telling them we didn't have what you ordered so we replaced it with that! An employee was even cursing out a frustrated customer because he had been waiting hours as well! The cook told me he has his kids working in the back with him and its his fault the food is taking so long because he is taking his time! Apparently, the management in that restaurant is just as poor as the customer service. Not one employee cares. I told one employee the food is wrong and this isn't what I ordered, she said "I don't have nothin to do with what you ordered. Let me go back where I came from!" This is thee most disrespectful disgusting poorest customer service I have ever encountered!!! The fact that they don't understand or care why all of their customers are frustrated and hungry is just sad!!! I wish I could give negative 100 stars!! read more

To go : I ordered the shrimp quesadilla and a chicken quesadilla with the mystery drink. Staff was okay. Pros: hot fresh food. Staff stands by there products, my friend like her chicken quesadilla, it had a good portion of chicken. Decor was cute. Cons: There probably were like 2 shrimp chopped up in the quesadilla, all of which were on one half. Fries were decent. Mystery drink was good but like a mix between kool aid and a snowball. Also the menu or waitress should advise what comes in the quesadilla..never had broccoli in a quesadilla before. I'm going to give it another try and order something else in the future though. read more

The Licking Chicago - Chicken quesadilla - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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we ordered the wing dinner and the conch dinner. each came with two sides, so we went with collard greens, candied yams, macaroni & cheese and pigeon peas w/ rice. everything - every single bite - was delicious. the collards (with smoked turkey) were almost as good as my own. and the mac & cheese and yams were the best i've ever had at a restaurant. i haven't even mentioned the wings or conch yet! the wings are served whole (as they should be) and crispy. perfectly fried in CLEAN oil. and the housemade licking sauce is somewhere between barbecue and hot sauce. the conch tasted fresh and delicious. perfectly batter fried and not a single piece was too chewy. really a nice surprise! served with a mild, but tangy remoulade-style dipping sauce. you will wait 20-30 minutes for your order at lunch or dinner time. but the staff is friendly and efficient and food comes up hot and delicious. overflow parking right next door. we will definitely be regulars. read more

The Licking Chicago - wing dinner with candied yams and pigeon peas w/ rice. delicious! - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Shit the place is damn Good. Being from New Orleans, it's tough to find good restaurants here that meets your flavor pallet. Wish I could buy food every week from here! Btw, I never dined into the restaurant. I got my food Togo. read more

Went to this place wanting to experience an out of the hood experience and got exactly that ...a Hood Experience. The only thing that was appealing was the the black and red exterior of the take out entrance. My friend ordered the lemon pepper chicken with French fries (11.99)- the pic alone gives you an idea. The chicken was greasy poorly seasoned-the fries were dry and hard. I ordered the red velvet waffles and chicken(13.99) and lemonade ($4x2)my waffles tasted like carpet dry and full of red dye. The total was $41 and some change there's an upsell on condiments and they charge you five dollars to dine in per person. This place is a rip off. This place is gouging the community there's no expectation of quality here in this area and they know it that's why there's no refunds or customer satisfaction by cooking fresh food. This is a poor reflection of DJ Khalids Brand . I wish the pic had a scratch and taste effect before any one spent their money in his place. read more

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Fire everything I mean everything love the pasta lord And the egg rolls the drinks are good too read more

I have only ordered the chicken Alfredo but I really like it because it's kind of Cajun style. It's not your regular Italian style Alfredo they actually put onions, green bell peppers and red bell peppers and a season very well. I really enjoyed it and that's what I keep ordering. It's my go to for a Cajun style chicken Alfredo and it's seasoned very well. read more

The Licking Chicago - This is their chicken Alfredo it is seasoned very well, it has green and red bell peppers as well as onions. - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The food here was amazing they give you very big portions, considering that I'm from the Caribbean and I know good Caribbean food when I taste it well this place was the closest to it that I've ever been to, the soul food was good the greens was off the chain the lobster alfredo was scrumptious and the cracked conch they killed it that's how good it was the atmosphere there was a very nice did they were trying to bring in a little Florida in there the colors. But overall the waitress was super nice, the food took some time but it was worth the wait you know when you go to a place and they take long time to bring you your food and it wasn't like we waited an hour we waited about 20 to 25 minutes the most but it was well worth it, I suggest anybody that's ever in that area to try it out because the food is amazing. read more

The Licking Chicago - The lobster alfredo Famous Mystery Drink Lobster Alfredo Lobster Alfredo Lobster Alfredo - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

First: to dine in you must go all the way to the back on the left. Enter through blacked out doors. There's no sign or anything to indicate the location of the Dining room. It was hard to find because everything was blacked out. Looked abandoned. Second: music was pretty dope if you like hip hop and ambience pretty basic (diner like) and small (about 8 tables) but clean. Third: the hostess was also the waitress. No problems here. Service was impeccable. She was nice, attentive and patient while we waited for another couple to arrive. We never had to look for her when we needed anything she was always right there. Fourth: the food I got the baked chicken dinner my friend did as well. Portion was super small one lil piece of chicken. The flavor was good but my friend said her chicken was dry. For the side I got fries which were pretty good, hard to mess up fries, nothing special. I also got Mac and cheese. I wanted to change the name to cheese and Mac because it was entirely too cheesy. Not creamy cheesy but clumps of cheese. There was more cheese than pasta. Disgusting (to me). I got the mystery drink with lite ice; I got lite ice because I noticed empty, full (to the top with ice) glasses on the tables of others and there's no free refills. So you're practically paying for a glass of sonic ice. The drink was super good but very sugary. Overall it was just decent. Won't be back to sit down... it wasn't worth it. It's just a restaurant. The Menu was cool but filled with advertisements, that threw off the whole flow of the menu. Looked very tacky to me. Food wasn't to die for. Also I was a little annoyed that I had to eat with plastic utensils. She said because nothing was clean, but I don't see how when the place only had 3 tables occupied. But okay. read more

TERRIBLE! Nevermind the 1 star they deserve negative stars for all the people lying saying 5 stars! I was the only one in the take out area ..Go in for carry out I'm telling him no I don't want to dine in because I hate the area..the cashier basically begged me to dine in! I literally just came to get greens and cornbread because my daughter has been wanting it for awhile! I dine in after he wouldn't let me order(too busy trying to convince me i should dine in,still not sure why) ..took a while to get order placed then we order..food was just ok ..chicken tasted like nothing ...I get the bill and the prices on menu and what they charge me was different and an automatic gratuity charge was added to my bill. The waiter said she wasn't aware she said they told her I ordered upfront..yet she still gave us menus so that was weird .. so I went in knowing what I wanted and it was less than $20 mind you I was the only one in there with my 2 daughters! We ate one meal and 2 sides and paid $50. I guessed they needed it more than me because i think it's standing on its last leg anyway! I don't and will never recommend and wish they'd shut down already! Don't waste your time or money! Huge warning! read more

The Licking Chicago - Wrong priced menu items! Small portions of food! - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Let's be honest ..If it wasn't for dj khaled stamping his name on this establishment this place wouldn't be as hyped. It's a great strategic move to open a restaurant chain smack dab in the middle of the hood, I'll give it that much. Now to the experience ... We were hesitant coming on a Friday or Saturday night because we knew the wait times would be through the roofs and the parking lot looked extremely small.. and might I add rather shady with a mix of block boys on every end and then luxurious cars pulling up to stunt. So we decided to come 30 min early to opening on a Sunday morning. Parking was a breeze. Unbelievably...we still had to wait for a table. There were two families ahead of us who were one step ahead of us and came I guess an hour early dressed up in their best church clothes. Wait was less than 10 minutes and we were seated. Our waitress looked like she was already overwhelmed,we got a "welcome to the Licking, let me know when you guys are ready to order." as she' hands us the menus And she immediately takes off to the back. It took what felt like 15 min just for her to come out from the back and ask if we would like anything to drink at least while we decide. We opted in trying the Mystery Drinks. It was a good choice because it was delicious,not overbearingly sweet and had a slight tropical taste to it. My friend ordered the chicken Alfredo and I ordered the chicken & red velvet waffles. Food took about 20 minutes to come out but we could tell it was made fresh.We were honestly taken back a bit by the PORTIONS when it came out. What you receive is a little bit of food on over sized plates and if it's not a dinner you have to pay for sides separately.To me it felt a little bit like a rip off. Nice presentation yes but they could at least put more than 13 fries in cup for example if you are paying 5 dollars for it. You want people to feel full damn near stuffed when they leave for the amount they pay, not be ready to grab a pizza three hours later because the food was decent but not very filling and small portioned. My friend told me to take a bite of his chicken Alfredo and it was Bomb (great thick and creamy sauce) my plate however was just subpar. The red velvet waffles were a bit dry inside and hard to touch,not soft w/a bit of crunch as I would of preferred it to be for texture. The chicken wings made up for it but overall I probably wouldn't be back unless to try their Alfredo pastas or to try their Lobster dinner. read more

The Licking Chicago - Southern Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Food was great and on time for the game lol so if u look For a nice place on a Sunday read more

Food is horrible. I ordered today Sunday Uber delivery. The chicken Quesadillas was dried out taste old, Fries definitely not fresh. Please do not sale junk to customers. I will be calling main corporate office. read more

Upon arrival (approx 1:30pm on a Saturday) 1st concern: The dedicated parking lot is a death trap. Parking lots generally have an entry & an exit, as well as enough space to actually drive in. This parking lot has neither. Once we entered we were promptly seated & Bobby (our server) came to get us started. Due to the association I wanted to try the recommendations but for a pescatarian diet. I decided on the vegetarian stir fry with added shrimp (up charge incurred) a fried Conch appetizer; my son elected the fried shrimp dinner with fries & corn; he ordered the shrimp & fish dinner (grilled) with greens & mac with cheese. We all ordered the mystery drinks as well. 2nd concern: It was hot & humid outside so I wanted some water just to cool me down. The Licking does not offer water. You would have to pay for a bottle of water specially labeled for The Licking. I did not like this idea & I completely disagree with this practice. Do better. Onward! 3rd concern: Our food was seriously delayed. I understand the desire to serve hot fresh food but you are still held to certain expectations. I have utterly NO COMPLAINTS about the food or the selections. Everything was perfectly seasoned, fried & grilled to perfection. The fish & shrimp were all very juicy. They had never tried conch before & both of my guys were pleased. All of my vegetables were crisp & the sauce was the perfect splash of flavor. The corn was a little sweet for my personal preference it came off to me as canned corn simmered with sugar. Of course....my guys loved every kernel so hey....each his own. The mystery drink was a pitcher of hood juice (kool aid) but it's great kool aid! We definitely ordered some to go! 4th concern: Bobby (server) was a great guy & he took great care of us but I think the mandatory gratuity was a bit much. Our bill was 120.00 which included approximately 19.00 in gratuity. He was going to get tipped either way it went; but you forcing almost 20% to serve 2 adults & 1 child, I don't know it just didn't sit well with me. I would only order takeout from this restaurant in the future & I would need to discover if they accept call in orders to do that. I'm thinking that although Khaled was right & this was a much needed venture on the west side of Chicago but c'mon my dude....act like you put in some thought to the restaurant! You need a sizeable kitchen that can provide quality meals to both your take out & dine in customers in a timely fashion. You also need to consider the comfort & safety of your patrons. read more

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