Mona Tong
Overall Thoughts: A homey, spacious restaurant with super friendly service, beautiful decorations, and a solid selection of flavorful, traditional dishes. The prices are reasonable for the large and filling portions. This is a family-owned restaurant I’d always be happy to eat at and support!
Food I tried:
- Yassa Fish with Djolof Rice (4.5/5): The fish was great-- quite boney and salty, but very tender and flavorful. The soft sautéed veggies on top added a nice kick of flavor and texture. The djolof was wonderfully crispy and wasn’t spicy but very well-seasoned otherwise.
- Yassa Chicken with Fried Plantains (4/5): The chicken was pretty crispy and juicy, and again, the soft sautéed veggies on top added a nice contrasting flavor and texture. The plantains were flavorful and well-fried.
- Maffe with Plantain Fufu (4.5/5): The maffe was good and heavy, with distinct yet somewhat subtle peanut butter flavors. The lamb was very tender, but I wish it came with more— there were only a couple pieces in there. The fufu had a soft, fluffy texture, and was a good pair to this dish for scooping up the maffe sauce. The fufu itself didn’t have much flavor, but it soaked up the flavor of other things pretty well.
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Price (relative to peers): 4.2/5
Food: 4.4/5
Ambience: 4.8/5
Service: 5/5
Overall Value: 4.5/5
Leo Kupperman
Omg the flavors and meat here are awesome. Loved the lamb and chicken, such good grilled meats and the rice is also very flavorful. Definitely the best west African I’ve had, and up there with best African period. Prices are quite reasonable. The Bissap is also very good, don’t skip out on it. Service and vibe are fine but nothing special, you come here for the food.
Alicia Wallace
The food was so good!!! We loved this place. It could be considered a hole-in-the-wall, with its casual ambience and decor but the food was knock out!
As someone who works in Africa with artisans, It was fun to meet people from Senegal and Benin as well. Service was great.
I highly recommend the shrimp, curry and fufu. Oh! And the ginger juice was worth going back just for that!
FactualitiesFam
I've been eating here for over 20 years ,this is actually the 1st time I've eaten at this location since they moved from 79th. As always a sight for sore eyes and taste for the taste buds. Much love and continued success 🙌🏾 ❤️ 💛..... until we meet again....
Erica Rickey
The food is incredibly flavorful and fresh. Great service. Highly recommend the Saturday special dish, Tieb Djen, one of the best things I’ve eaten in a long time! Red snapper served with veggies over rice and with a hearty, smoky sauce - 10/10 will eat again!
Jocelyn Costea
I cant help but recommend this place to everyone I know. I am in love with their Fatayas. Very friendly environment when me and my friends visited. We listened to the recommendations of our server and we were not disappointed! The food was so flavorful and fresh
Jay Sun
Gonna say that the tilapia was the best fish I’ve ever eaten in the whole of my life. The owners are friendly and so kind. Left feeling full in a metaphorical and physical sense!!
Haz
Wonderful authentic food, all the dishes I've had have been excellent. Portion sizes are great. Staff are helpful and friendly. I highly recommend if you want to try something a little different and highly delicious.
Dj Powell
Absolutely delicious. Authentic west African food. The flavors were on point. I grabbed the salmon pattys (a MUST GET) the Yassa chicken (like jerk chicken but different with sautéed onions) and the Yassa Tilapia (that one was just okay. Might’ve been better with red snapper as the flavor didn’t penetrate the tilapia well) the jollof rice was bomb too. Can’t wait to return. Also got the ginger drink which was spicy but refreshing.
Arnold Karr
My first experience of Senegalese cuisine was exceptional. The food and service were all one could ask for. We had mafee with fufu and djoloff rice.
Colin B
Fantastic food, and really good lunch deal. The drinks were refreshing, and the server was excited to explain the history behind each. Decoration is classic inside and you will leave with a full and happy stomach. They were bustling with takeout orders, too.
TheresA Seng
Wonderful food and great hospitality 😁 I enjoyed the delicious meal and kindness of the people working at the store. Dine in and have a lunch or dinner special 😋😋😋 SO GOOD!!!
አዜብ ሢን
The flavor of the food was excellent. You can't find food that tastes so good like this place any other restaurants in town. They give you a good portion of food and the price is good. The service does take longer, I can see why it takes longer, they cook everything from scratch.
Ryan Fidell
Great west African (Senegalese) food. Lamb, fish, chicken, stews… it’s all very flavorful and delish. Must get “gravy”, which is different from American gravy and is like browned onions. I recommend while fish!!
Different George
This is certainly one of the best meals I've ever had. I loved every single bite. I got jollof rice and lab. The rice was awesome. As a Ghanaian, I strongly approve. The lamb was perfectly seasoned, it came off the bone with a single pull. The waiter was kind and patient. The vibe and atmosphere feels like a large family party. This place is great.
Barbara Murphy-Dunn
I love the Yassa African Restaurant. The food is great. It's a long wait for food because they cook it fresh which is appreciated. It's a small intimate restaurant. The service is good and friendly. The ambience is of the history of African culture. They do anything to make you happy from the owners to the waiters. So polite!!! I like going on a Saturday evening when the owner have a jazz band playing every second Saturday which makes the long wait for the food worth it. Besides, the jazz is great!!! Makes even better, you can BYOB! Wines, etc. You can bring your wines glasses for your preferences of taste from a glass! I been here a few times and every time I go I'm happy with my visit to Yassa. I found out about this charming place when my hubsband played there and he found out when his friend jazz band played there first. The owner welcomes entertainers. The jazz band are all teachers for various schools organizations plus CPS music teachers. Yassa is so easy going you don't want to go home until you get tired and want to sleep. I love the place! It stays busy! I recommend anybody from out of town or any Chicagoan to check it out. No reservation required. It's located in Bronzeville too. An area that's grown pretty diverse in cultures but mainly top notch black ownership of businesses. An area close to downtown and East of Lake Michigan off Lake Shore Drive South of Downtown CHICAGO. Bronzeville is known for the old Army area back over 50 or more years ago. Then blacks secured the area for their black professionals such as entertainers, doctors, poets, just like the Harlem Rennassaince era. This area fills Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive with large mansions where black professionals owned and lives. It still exists. Try Yassa's out. You won't regret it. The food is DELICIOUS! Thumbs all the way up!!!
Tina Barrett
The food was excellent...just be prepared to wait a bit for you food! But it’s worth it. I had the veggie plate and everything was so tasty. The portions were big as well. It’s small and casual. And beautifully decorated. The wait staff was so nice! They made my group feel very welcome!
Toni Scott
It was my first time there my meal was delicious, could have been hotter.
My daughters meal not so good, she had one of the chicken dishes. The chicken was very dry and slightly burned. Based on my personal experience the service needs improvement, I kinda felt forgotten.
Because I enjoyed the flavorful meal of lamb...rice...cabbage, I will give it another try.
Keyia Rock
I enjoyed myself, food is always delicious, staff is very friendly & nice. I definitely recommend it & try the dibi chicken with rice its great! Grab egg rolls & salmon pattie for appetizers too!
Sheri Andrews
This place is fantastic! The food was very delicious and super flavorful. Hey I even thought the ginger tea was fabulous. Kudos to them for bringing such a place to the city.
Michael Stadnicki
The Food at Yassa Restaurant was Outstanding! Very unique blend of flavors and textures! The owner was so sincere and also kind enough to offer samples of fresh squeezed juices!
Highly recommend checking it out! Yassa Chicken or Lamb!
Patricia Griggs Helm
What a great place! The food and service was excellent! It will be our go to place on our next Chicago trip!
Monica Dixon
Excellent food & staff!! Thank u for serving us even though we came 15 minutes before closing on Saturday night. Absolutely in luv with the Salmon patties. Forever a return customer! �
Tracey Furdge-Sawyer
great location very beautiful décor nice staff and the food was fantastic. I had the lamb, cabbage, and plantains. lamb was well seasoned cabbage was not over cooked (major plus) and the plantains were fork tender and sweet
Antonio Barnes
I truly enjoyed the food, staff and the atmosphere. I will be back to try the rest of the menu very soon!
Shonita Alston
The food was good. I'm a finicky eater and so I was a bit nervous trying African cuisine for the first time. I played it safe and had the chicken with the red rice (I think it's called jallof rice) and it was really good. I learned that Awa, the owner personally cooks all of the meals served. She has been recognized by several big personalities for her talent of preparing delicious dishes. I truly enjoyed meeting her. She truly puts her heart in what she does. Delightful experience. It was a bit difficult to understand the staff, but I understand that comes with the experience. They were pleasant.
Renee Benford
The food was really good..... I had the Talapia dish and my friend had the Lamb.... For my appetizer I enjoyed the salmon pattie..... The only issue I had was My friend an I felt a little rushed out.
Cherise Jackson
The food was amazing , the staff was amazing and I will be back💕💕💕
Crystal L Harris
Can't wait to go back. The lamb stew was amazing called Maffe. I also bought a dinner call chicken Yassa for a friend which was also devoured. The food is very healthy and tasty. The service was nice and cordial as well.
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