Aba

One of my absolutely favorite restaurants in Chicago that is consistently delicious and perfect to bring out of town visitors! The service is top notch and the ambience is gorgeous. They have a large variety of vegetarian options and rotate the menu often depending on the season!

I love all the food here but some is my favorites are the cauliflower kebab, halloumi, stracciatella, and muhammara eggplant. The complimentary bread is warm and so delicious with all the dips!

They also have delicious cocktails! I got the passion fruit gin and tonic and loved it!

Whether it's a date night or a place to bring a large group, this place is absolutely perfect! Just make sure to make a reservation in advance!

Amazing food. I highly recommend all of the hummus plates and didn't really have any dishes that we were not satisfied with.

Service was a bit slower given a beautiful Thursday evening in the summer. I will come back in the future for happy hour.

Was able to snatch a reservation for lunch a few weeks ahead of time. Immediately coming into the restaurant, the ambiance was eye popping, so beautiful!

The service was quite good, with the only complaint being having to wait a while past our reservation time, but understandable since they were busy.

The best dishes of the meal were definitely the hummus, both the garlic and short rib hummus were extremely delicious; I honestly recommend just ordering a bunch of the hummus since the entrees were good but just not as outstanding.

Get a reservation ahead of time!

Everyone and their mothers were hyping up Aba being the best Mediterranean restaurant when I visited Chicago this time around. Even though it's been open for several years, getting a reservation at a reasonable time is still pretty difficult. I was here with five others last Sunday for dinner. Even though the reservation was made over a month in advance, we were only able to snag the 4:15 PM slot.

Wanted to make the note -- the complementary pita bread was absolutely phenomenal. It was so soft and fluffy and well seasoned. Very yummy and definitely ask for more!

CRISPY SHORT RIB HUMMUS - 18.95
This came with a large pita that I thought was fluffier and tastier than the complementary pita bread. The hummus was super smooth and the beef jus on top gave it more of a "mashed potatoes" appearance. This hummus has got to be the best thing we got the entire dinner. It was so creamy and flavorful, and the shredded and tender beef mixed with sherry was a wonderful combination. I would highly recommend.

MUHAMMARA - 15.95
This dip was slightly spicy due to the roasted pepper and isot chili. The walnuts gave it a nutty and crunchy flavor that was great. The pomegranate molasses made it a bit sweet, so it was sweet and spicy. Delicious dip that all of us enjoyed, we'd definitely recommend.

BRUSSELS SPROUTS - 14.95
Crispy and crunchy without being too oily. These were topped with nuts and some harissa honey which added more to the flavor. They're not too crunchy on its own, but the nuts help. This was good but nothing mind-blowing.

GREEN CHILI SHRIMP - 18.95
Each order comes with 6 jumbo shrimps inside an escargot plate and topped with garlic, parmesan, and breadcrumbs. Pretty good toppings, and the shrimp was juicy. We liked it, but it's a bit pricy for sure.

PORK BELLY - 24.95
Each order comes with two small strips of pork belly and decorated with some nectarine and drizzled in vinaigrette. The nectarine was pretty sweet and enhanced the flavor of the pork. One of our pork belly was super fatty and the other was pretty lean. I ate a bite from the lean pork belly and it was OK. I want to bet that the fatty one was a lot tastier and denser in flavor.

PRIME SHORT RIB KALBI - 33.95
These were charred pretty well and had a sweet flavor, but expensive for one and half pieces of kalbi. I think we each got one small bite and tendon from the bone. Flavor was great, but I don't think it's worth the price point.

The ambiance and interior is beautiful. The bathroom was fancy. Service was also speedy and helpful with recommendations. Aba was definitely the best meal I had during this trip! Their dips are a must and what they're known for. The pork belly and kalbi was good, too, but too expensive for the portion size. This 5/5 review is definitely for the dips.

You must get the hummus here! Came here with three other people for dinner and ordered an assortment of dishes. Everything was pretty good but the hummus was amazing. We ordered two kinds, the smoky garlic and the crispy short rib hummus. Both were really good. I actually kind of wished I had just ordered all the hummus options available and had a hummus tasting. The pita was also some of the best I've had.

We also ordered the crispy potatoes, crispy chicken thigh, the lamb & beef kefta and two other dishes I can no longer remember the names of. Everything was tasty but the hummus was definitely the stand out.

We also got the frozen Greek yogurt for dessert. I personally do not like Greek yogurt but my dining companions enjoyed it

The restaurant was nicely decorated and we sat at a kind of couch/chair combo table. Sitting on the couch, I felt like i sank into the couch a little too much for eating a meal but it was acceptable.

Walked in on a Wednesday evening without a reservation and there was only bar seating available at first-come-first-serve. Highly recommend making a reservation in advance since Aba is popular!

Food was delicious! The beef and lambs kefta were on point, flavorful, and juicy!

The crème brûlée pie was also a delight. Would highly recommend Aba and would definitely come back again!

Wow! Just wow! One of my favorite restaurants in Chicago. From the moment you come off the elevator, you're greeted warmly by the reception staff. You're glided through the beautiful ambiance to you table and immediately offered water and provided menus. The hummus, the mains, and sides are all delicious! The star of the show for me was the short rib hummus and smoky garlic hummus! Everything I tasted was delicious!

Items Tried
- short rib hummus 10/10
- smoky garlic hummus 10/10
- black garlic scampi 6/10
- crispy potatoes 7/10
- steak frites 8/10

The inside of this restaurant is so beautiful! I felt like I was on a tropical vacation not in the middle of the city. We had a bigger party so we made reservations in advance and only waited a few minutes to be sat. Our server was great, he took our orders right away and was consistently checking in on us.

The food is all shareble so it comes out at different times which made it a little confusing towards the end when we had a few things missing and didn't necessarily know who it belonged to, my dish being the very last one served. Even though I waited quite a bit, the food was delicious!

Live and die by the crispy short rib hummus. I dont even like hummus but I find myself waking up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night thinking of that hummus. It is unreal.

Lovely spot with a warm vibe! The natural light indoors is a nice touch. Food is delicious, seems to have Mediterranean influences. Staff are kind and welcoming. Definitely worth a visit!​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

BTW, there is no dress code but everybody except my party was well-dressed.