Donerka Shawarma & Cafe

Absolutely amazing place! My wife and I have visited 5 times already, and every single time we leave impressed and happy. The food is delicious, fresh and full of flavor, with a great variety of options. Service is fast, friendly and welcoming. Huge respect to the owners, chefs and the whole team. You guys are doing an incredible job. I truly hope your business grows and expands all across America — this is the kind of food and atmosphere people want to come back to again and again. Thank you for everything! You are the best of the best.

The food was really delicious first time trying this place, went there for for the beef sandwich but they were out of it by 8 pm. The chicken sandwich was good too and didn’t expect it really. A little bit pricey for a sandwich though. Worth a try. The dining area needs improvement and better planning.

Very good doner kebab. I recommend it! I will definitely try it again! Just a small suggestion: add a little more fries and sauce. If I hadn't ordered extra sauce, I would have considered it dry.

Totally legit shawarma! Love the flavors and particularly like the one with pickled carrots. Just adds a nice crunch to it. Try some of the hot peppers on the side, adds another layer of crunch and heat.

The food is really good and quick!!! Everybody is super nice and it’s always nice to come some where and feel welcome!!! Every time in the area always stop by, specially on long trips GA-WI last stop we do ❤️❤️❤️

I love coming to this place — not only because the döner is incredibly delicious, but also because it reminds me of my hometown, Almaty. Every time I’m here, it feels like a small piece of home. (Эхх сағындым Алматымды❤️)

Best shawarma in Chicago 😍. Love this place for its tasty food. Meat and everything always fresh, guys do their best to maintain its quality. I always come back here. Also they have very tasty desserts, especially Macarons👍🏻. Great service, tasty food 10/10

Delicious shawarma and fast service! The meat is juicy, the sauces are flavorful, and the portions are generous. Don’t skip their desserts — the macarons are surprisingly good and a perfect sweet finish. Definitely one of the best spots for shawarma in Chicago!

This is supposed to be a fast food Central Asian restaurant (Kazakhstan). The interior isn't too large, but there are a few tables outside. You can order at the counter or using the kiosk. We ordered the Bishkek Chicken sandwich w/ fries & drink, Kyiv Beef sandwich, and two macarons. The bread they use seems to be a standard tortilla wrap, nothing unique. The chicken sandwich was excellent; plenty of flavor. The beef sandwich was pretty good, too, and had a nice selection of veggies stuffed inside. The fries were a letdown; they seemed just slightly undercooked. The macarons here are huge, cute, and delicious. Happy overall, but this place is expensive for a fast food restaurant. It cost $52 for two sandwiches and two macarons. The tax percentage was high (10.25%), and there was a random fee applied of $1.03.

Best doners wraps in Chicago land! Love this place. Come at least once a week. Always fresh food. Also they serve nice desserts.

Love the doner wraps we had! I got the Bishkek style, it's warm, melted mozzarella and beef shawarma. Like hubby's Kiev style too! Tons of carrots and different favor. Substantial and super full! Burger is a bit shy comparing to the wraps though. I would avoid it at all cost because there are countable amount (with one hand) of shawarma in the $10 burger, and the top bun was slightly over toasted due to the panini press. Small seating inside with some outdoor seatings. It seems to be very popular despite it's only been open for a couple weeks

The donerka Almat-ata was delicious, but if the doner was bigger it wouldn't be bad ))

Overall, an average meal. The biggest improvement needs to come from the bread/wraps. You can tell they are store bought; even when warmed, they are rough and take away from the meal. Homemade wraps would really elevate each dish to a new level! The fries and meat were excellent though!

Wonderful new Kazak--style doner kebab joint - only issue was a lack of German-style doner, the Berlin doner version is the best and is not available here. At least not yet. Quick, friendly service and every language from English to eastern Europe to middle Asia is spoken - you will feel welcome.

Bishkek style mixed shawarma is my favourite. It is cheesy and juicy inside, crispy outside. The tractor refresher is very delicious. It has different flavours and my favourite is berry flavour. Pistachio roll is our favourite dessert - raspberry and cream cheese are so good together in it. The macaron honestly wasn't the best. I can tell it has lots of sugar instead of almond flour - so it is very chewy to teeth which should not be so with real macaron made with proper portions of ingredients. Another good thing I like about this place is that it is clean inside. Definitely recommended!

Visited Donerka for the first time today, and we were genuinely impressed! Opted for the Almaty style beef wrap, and the meat's quality was absolutely spot-on. The garlic sauce was a delightful surprise, bursting with deliciousness. As someone who tried a lot of shawarma in Chicagoland, I can say this is in my top 3 now! Everything exuded a sense of freshness, and the place itself was so clean. Whether you choose to perch on the bar stools by the window or select a table inside or outside for dine-in, the place is great for a quick meal. We're thrilled to have discovered this gem and looking forward to sampling their other shawarma options. The folks working there are just lovely!

I really recommend this place this is very delicious. Service also good guys always smiling, and answering all your questions!

Chef's kiss. Run here. Don't walk. Open until 10 pm. The food is the best quality and value out there. The service was crazy quick. The ambiance is modern and welcoming. I was there for take out but I sat down to eat bc the place is clean and inviting. The homemade macarons are huuuuge. The Whoopie pies will make you forget that the world is on fire. Run here. Why aren't there more of these. I need them in Chicago and other suburbs. This works with my carnivore heavy diet. The bread is thin and soft. The spices are on point. The meats are literally succulent.

Doner wrap was real swell. Fries were alright. A little expensive. Wish there were slightly more options... and a soda fountain.

Hey everyone, I hate to leave a bad review. I believe in small businesses and entrepreneurship. But, this place was just awful. Save your money and spend it next door at at A Thousand Tales. Here's why I'm leaving a bad review-- the food was not fresh. We ordered mixed grill plates and the bread, fries, salad and meat were not fresh at all. The meat was dry, the rice was flavorless, the salad was old, and the fries were stale. Additionally, we TOLD the restaurant staff that the food was not good. We told them then that food wasn't fresh. They didn't do anything to try to fix the issue. They didn't offer a refund or offer to place another order. This business will not survive with poor customer service and lackluster food. Edit 3/15/24: Thank you for responding to my review. I would like a refund. We spent $40 on food we left behind because we didn't like it at all. I enjoyed the tea but we feel that you should show your earnestness to correct this situation by issuing a refund.

Good food and nice staff. The seating arrangement is a bit crowded but the variety of food is worth it.

Excellent food! Very tasty and kind staff! We had the Almaty and the Istanbul. Full of meat and seasoning without being too spicy!

So-so. The dönr was not warm; so not very satisfying. For $14, I'd rather spend my money elsewhere where I know the quality will be better. Might try this place again; but chances aren't high.

It was good, but would be much better with mayo instead of the garlic sauce on the wrap. The garlic sauce was too powerful. I'd go back and try the Istanbul wrap I think it's called, which has mayo, ketchup and hot sauce. The chicken and beef were good.

We were thrilled to finally try a good kebab sandwich. We had Istanbul and Bishkek. Good ratio of meat to vegetables. Good meat quality. Sandwich was little cold, but considering the vegetables and sauce it is probably hard to keep it warm. Overall very satisfied and we will definitely be back.

Really great balance of meat, ingredients and sauce. Very very tasty! Highly recommend

De-li-ci-oooo-us food, super friendly service, clean dinning room. I'll be stopping by again!