Arzan Cafe

Cute little love story this was the first brunch date my husband and I had. We came here because this was my first time trying Central Asian cuisine and my husband is Central Asian. The food was amazing and delicious. The staff was very professional and gave great hospitality. I do have dietary restrictions and the waitress was very patient and kind with going over the menu with me making sure I didn’t pick an item I couldn’t eat. As a tea lover I had to try the tea which I would give a 10/10. This was overall a great experience I recommend others to try this location

I just had kurdak and lagman at a Kyrgyz restaurant here in Chicago — and as a Turkish foodie, all I can say is: wow, just wow! I’m beyond impressed. The taste, the tenderness, the authenticity — everything was perfect. Having access to such delicious traditional food right near the heart of Chicago is truly priceless. A big thank you to the owner for bringing these amazing dishes to the city. I’ll definitely be inviting my friends to come support this wonderful local business and experience the flavors for themselves!

We made a short notice order for catering from Arzan, and they didn’t disappoint our expectations! Despite the short notice, they were very responsive in taking the order, accommodating our needs and letting us know that we are in good hands! We asked them to deliver the food straight at 5pm, taking some leeway for ourselves in case the delivery is delayed, but the courier called at 4.55pm saying that he wanted to make sure that we have the food at 5pm straight 🥹❤️ The food was enjoyed by around 30 people and everybody just loved the Central Asian food prepared by Arzan Cafe! Arzan Cafe has our highest recommendation and we thank them for their service 🫶🏻

The fruit tea is a must try! So delicious I ordered the chicken and beef kabob skewers. Comes with rice, fries and side of veggies The chicken and beef was so juicy and tender They close pretty late compared to most local restaurants. Although parking kinda such its Definitely a place to enjoy some great food

Arzan Café is a gem for Central Asian cuisine, offering rich flavors in a beautifully decorated space. We tried the Samsa, Boso Lagman, and Lamb Kuurdak, and every dish was fantastic - the lamb was tender and flavorful, the potatoes perfectly crispy, and the noodles sooo well seasoned and chewy. The amazing flavors made this spot an instant favorite for us. A must-visit for anyone craving hearty Central Asian food!

I really enjoyed and highly recommend the lagman here. The lagman's flavor is strong with plenty of noodles and a hearty soup; perfect on a cold day.

I have never eaten at a halal restaurant. Have to say I highly enjoyed it. The food was hands done one of the best places I have been to. You could Taste how fresh the food was and the flavors in every bite. The serve was also the best I have seen at any place. I will suggest the central Asian bread, honey cake, fruit tea, and stir fried vegetables with hand pulled noodles!

my friend from kyrgystan brought me here for dinner and i'm so thankful i've found this restaurant once u enter the restaurant, the vibe is change feels like you are in the local restaurant in the mid of central asia our server was excellent, thanks girly with glasses and long braided hair 🫶🏻 accommodate anything we need the food was absolutely sooo good the lamb was so tender and doesn't have the "lamb" smell which is how you know that they know how to cook / prepare it properly guys! if you reading this u need to try the medovik cake! thank me later 😗✌🏻 ***came here for the 2nd time to try more dishes i haven't try from the menu safe to say i fell in love with the cuisine (´⌣`ʃƪ)

Can't wait to go back to try the fish, the dumplings and the samsa. This is a very warm, family friendly place where you can experience an amazing range of Central Asian cuisine. In a strip mall on Kimball in Albany Park. I went with a friend on a Monday evening and it was cozy with families and groups of friends enjoying a meal out. We ordered black tea which came with honey, lemon slices and mint leaves, then started with the wee pillows of dough, they come in a basket with a mild cheese sauce to dip them in. They are called Boorsok. My friend got shawarma with beef, lamb and chicken, which was familiar and brand new at the same time. Really tender meat, intense flavors. We could not get enough of that. I would have included a picture, but we dove in too fast for that. The beef with hand pulled noodles had such a surprising, wonderful texture and flavor. It is served with strips of fresh, crisp cucumber, which adds crunch and brightness to the depth and warmth of the noodles, beef and veggies. I recommend coming here with a big group, everyone orders something different. The portions are really generous so that way you can try a bit of everything. Or just come back five times over the next month or two, which is my current plan. No matter what: get a piece of the honey cake. Life changing. I don't say that lightly. No picture of that because again, we couldn't be bothered to wait before we started eating it. Service is friendly and quite fast for the amount of food they bring you and the depth of flavors on each plate. I can't wait to come back here!

We've had a little experience with Uyghur cuisine closer to home, so we came in knowing a little bit about our favorites and what we hadn't tried yet elsewhere. We went with a plov (a standard that we had previously passed over) and oromo. To round things out we added an avocado salad and tandoor samsa. Pot of green tea is just $2 (stays hot) and is served in wonderful bowls. With their bakery next door, having dessert here is a bonus with a selection in a case that you can peruse up close. We went with a slice of poppyseed milk cake that was great with our tea (still hot) at the end of our meal. Nicer chairs and tables (still in good shape) than expected for strip mall dining and service was great on getting everything we needed at the table without us asking first. Clientele seemed mostly central Asian with families mixed in with others without children.

This is the worst restaurant to order food from, especially for Kyrgyz cuisine. Not only did they send us an incomplete order--missing fries and with a ridiculously small portion of meat--but the meat itself was just scraps, tiny leftover pieces from the edges of the skewers. There wasn't even a single proper piece of meat that could be considered a normal serving. On top of that, the employee who answered the phone was incredibly rude. When we called to express our dissatisfaction, she hung up on us and then refused to answer our calls. She never apologized even once. When we sent her a photo of our order, she replied, "From the photo, I only see that the fries are missing. Everything else looks fine." No apology, nothing. When we told her that the meat portion was way too small, she insisted it was supposed to be 120-130 grams. We then weighed it and sent her proof that it was only 40 grams. After seeing this, her only response was, "I don't know how that happened." Again, no apology. Then she had the audacity to blame the Dasher, claiming he must have eaten the missing meat on the way. This is complete nonsense and a blatant lie because the DoorDash driver took a photo of the bag when he picked it up at the restaurant, and it arrived in the exact same condition. The knot was still tightly sealed--we couldn't even untie it and had to rip the bag open. I strongly do not recommend this restaurant. They refused to refund our money. At the very end, the employee messaged saying she would "try to process a refund through the app." I said, "Okay, go ahead." But then she just disappeared--no refund, no response. I had to contact DoorDash support myself to get my money back. If I could give this place zero stars, I would. I've ordered from them many times before. There were occasional mistakes, but in the past, the employees were polite, apologetic, and accommodating. They always tried to fix any issues, even offering to include missing items in future orders free of charge. But this time, the rudeness of the employee and the dishonesty of the staff were unacceptable. The restaurant needs better management, and their cooks should be fired immediately.

1st time eating in as I work nearby. My work friends took me for a birthday lunch. Food was delicious. I had the soup with the beef dumplings. Very flavorful and was pure comfort food. My friends had chicken shwarma and lentil soup. All loved their dishes. We split the honey cake for dessert and that was delicious as well. Since we were at work and had a limited time, the menu was also very helpful and had prep times included! Also the server and staff were super friendly and helpful when deciding what to order. They even ran back to put a candle in my cake when they found out it was my birthday and sang happy bday. We already have a plan to return!

Ordered the beef soup with vegetables.Beef was very tender and great service. Will come back again soon !

I have never eaten at a halal restaurant. Have to say I highly enjoyed it. The food was hands done one of the best places I have been to. You could Taste how fresh the food was and the flavors in every bite. The server was also the best I have seen at any place. I will suggest the central Asian bread, honey cake, fruit tea, and stir fried vegetables with hand pulled noodles!

You think of Central Asian food, what do you have in mind? Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan right. Perhaps portions of Mongolia? Was super excited to try out their food since I've made my itinerary to explore the Silk Road next year and only read about the food, culture, country, etc. Found this place by accident. Lollapalooza had begun and I was returning from the airport after dropping off a friend so my trusty GPS took me from the back roads when I noticed this. Looked it up and said yeah, gotta try. I wanted to order a plov (the traditional Central Asian dish), beef samsa and the lentil soup. Sadly, they were still making a fresh batch of the plov which would have taken 45 min and were out of the beef samsa so instead they recommended I try gan-fan. I also got the chicken samsa instead along with the lentil soup. The lentil soup we weren't able to try as we ended up giving it to someone more needy. I did however try with some friends the Gan-fan and Chicken Samsa. The samsa was really really good. The bread it was in was so soft and the chicken seasoned so well. We all know chicken is one meat hard to put flavor into. These folks did a great job. It was juicy, warm and hmmmm hmmmm hmmmm. The gan-fan was really good too. Flavored with light spices and/or herbs. Not too heavy. Would be an excellent dish to have fresh on a cold night. My only complaint would be the actual beef pieces. I think they could easily double that from the price point. There were perhaps 6 'tiny' pieces of beef in the entire dish. The proportion of the rice provided to the quantity of the gan-fan provided seemed off but I will not duch anything on this because I have never tried gan-fan before. There are many cultures where the rice being a carb is mixed with the main dish and meant to be eaten almost like a soup. Perhaps that is the case here? Not sure. I did get into a brief conversation with one of the servers and learned that the food here depicts Krygyzstani cuisine. I asked this because from my research months ago, while plov is a popular dish in Central Asia, each country (and each region of the countries) prepare it differently. One suggestion I would have for the folks; they need someone to audit their listings online, pricing online and the pricing on the app they use. It was actually cheaper to order with them directly (nearly 20% cheaper) I can't wait to try the plov now. Never tried it.

Amazing food and excellent service!!! Try their pulled noodles. Can't go wrong with. The place is extra clean and the decor is fantastic.

Great middle asian food, atmosphere and service. Definitely recommend this place! Manty are perfect here :)

If you are in the mood for homemade genuine Kyrgyz cuisine, Arzan Cafe is an excellent choice. The staff are exceptionally friendly and caring. The atmosphere is amicable and comfortable. In fact, I absentmindedly left my phone at the table when I went to bathroom. The restaurant was full with people. Yet ten minutes later my phone was still on the table and the food was waiting for me. This was amazing!

Arzan has became one of my favorites places to eat shawarma. It is very authentic and full of flavor. I prefer the chicken one. Don't hesitate about ordering fries, one of the best I have tried, they are crunchy and soft inside. I highly recommend to try the pancakes. They are very different and unique, better if you order a pot of tea to accompany it. We always have received a really good service. The staff is friendly and helpful. I enjoy to see the paintings of Kyrgyzstan, makes the place look nice and authentic.

Amazing food, service and good ambiance. 100% halal food in Chicago is always a great find. We tried lagman and boso lagman which were both really good!

Soooo insanely good. Uyghur food is a great mix of Russian, Mongolian, Chinese, middle eastern influences. We had the hand pulled noodle, dumplings and plov. It's simple and delicious. Will absolutely be back

Came here during Flavors of Albany Park. It was the first stop on our map and it set the precedent for how our night was going to go. First off, their set up was smart, no one was waiting and there were many samples. Their chicken wrap was 10/10 my favorite with their sauce that was light, savory, and delicious. I've only ever seen the marketplace but next time will definitely get the chicken wrap again. Also to mention, the people there were incredibly nice and genuinely seemed happy that people were enjoying their food. It was a great start to our tour but overall delicious.

Nice central Asian cuisine! Loved the authentic food and nomadic vibe of the place! Service is very good, and quality of the restaurant is perfect! A level!

The food is so amazing! The kind of food that makes your soul happy. Service was great. Everyone was kind! There was a slight wait since the dinner rush was super busy, but the food was absolutely delicious. Will be back insha'Allah!

The food is really delicious - highly recommended. I really like the variety of their cuisine and the service of the staff.

I'm not gonna order from this place any more huge disappointment. They lied about the food order and charge me extra. There is no way I'm getting it next time from here. I ask for lamb soup they give me beef with huge fat. I ask the honey cake what is the cream They said buttercream it was sour cream

Excellent Central Asian food, great menu of food and drinks. Gets crowded depending on the time but the service has been great as the owners genuinely care about hospitality. They also have kid-friendly menu items. Great place for an authentic Central Asian ambiance.

I ordered lagman from this cafe. The food was very tasty and fresh. The meat, as indicated on the menu, was halal, which was very important to me. I recommend this establishment to anyone who would like to try a Central Asian dish.

Tried to support this new local business but an $8 Greek salad shouldn't be filled 1/3 up, and the rest an empty container. Support local...but please treat customers with a little dignity. Ingredients: cucumber, tomatoes, onion, feta cheese, black olives. Takeaway order $50 plus $5 tip. Welcome to the neighborhood.

Awesome food. Cool place and people are very nice. This is my go to Restaurant on a weekly basis. Fish soup is tremendously the best soup I've ever had. Their Shawarma sandwiches are also very delicious not to mention a nice pot of hot tea given to you for a very inexpensive price. There are so many different selections.but you cannot go wrong with the fish soup. I literally order it 2 to 4 times a week by carry out.

Good food for good price, delicious tandoori samosa. Clean and humble service. Shawarma a bit dry, parking is a problem.

Awesome food! Great service. Loved the Lagman and the chicken shawarma wrap . Will def come back.

Little place with a great service! Food was amazing! My friend had to wait longer for grilled mix