Jibek Jolu — Restaurant in Jefferson Township

The word "flavor" barely scratches the surface of how amazing their food is. Each dish is unique and seemingly more tasty than the last.

Their food comes from Central Asia. As an ignorant American sauntering in during my first visit I imagined the food to be like a spin on Chinese or something like that. That is totally wrong. The food is actually more similar to what my Grandma from Poland used to make. Lots of dumplings, potato, and huge meat dishes. However, it is very unique and you just won't understand until you try it.

It is easy to tell that their food is all homemade and prepared fresh. If you're looking microwaved, prepackaged frozen meals you'll have to move on. Nothing but food made in house. Their kitchen is pretty easy to see into and you'll quickly notice many chefs cooking.

I highly recommend the pelmeni and manty. These are steamed dumplings filled with some of the most flavorful meat I've ever had. Every time I go there I've also had the Jibek Jolu special which is like a cucumber and meat stir fry but has such a unique flavor unlike traditional Chinese stir fry dishes.

Many friends and coworkers have tried this place because of my recommendation and absolutely love it! Several of them were reluctant to try these things due to the strange names and descriptions. They were all won over by the flavor.

The place feels cozy inside and the staff is super friendly. They are also byob which is a cool way to save money on your dinner.

Many of their dishes are designed to be shared so you can try many things. To feel full expect to spend around $25 per person for your visit. This is also a great place to get take out....

If I could give more stars to this review I would. If you want a quick review, go to this place, you will not be disappointed. FOr those who want a longer review... keep reading. This place is a beloved staple in my life for the past 5 or so years. Not only have I had wonderful dinners with small groups but I have also had the pleasure of using their location to host larger 25 person events. This past month I called up my former contacts at JJ and asked if I could host a surprise "going away" party for my sister and they said of course. They helped me create a menu and for what is a very modest price, we were able to reserve the entire place for the night. Rano, who runs the show, is an incredible host. She worked with me prior to tweak the menu just how we wanted it. At the actual party, we were. helped in anyway we needed. This place does not give customer service... this place has hospitality. We needed an extra table? we got an extra table. We needed certain glasses, we got certain glasses. You want to hook up your phone to the speaker? Done. No request was met with a no. In today's age of customer service, this place shines bright and unique. The food is amazing. And there was so much of it, that everyone got to take home a goody bag filled with enough leftovers to get you through to Tuesday. I have never had a bad experience with the food here. I will be returning here hopefully for many years to come. Thank you Rano and Dina for helping me host parties now multiple times. You and your staff are wonderful and I understand why your restaurant has expanded to multiple other locations in the Chicao land area. All...

In my Google, I usually save spots based on their cuisine. Given the sheer lack of Kyrgyzstani food in Chicago, this spot is stored under “Unique - unable to categorize” and I mention all this to describe what kind of spot this is.

The decor is homey, cozy + service is impeccable. Maybe I showed up too late but I was one of the only people there. The chef actually stayed up past their time just to accommodate us. When I asked for a dish extra spicy, he delivered - he also proceeded to sign check if it hit the spot - it did.

Overall great service, friendly attitude. Now for the food

Delicious. Homemade bread was outstanding. Garlic shrimp reminded me of a Spanish tapas style shrimp and it was delicious. Borscht which was a first time for me was OUTSTANDING. The flavors and the seasoning on this was impeccable. I forget what the noodle (Boso Lagman) I had was called but was a great taste- kinda reminded me of indo Chinese noodles with beef and schezwhan. Got a side of Plov rice which was incredibly flavorful- so herby.

We tried the honey cake at the end which was a great close to dinner.

Highly recommend this spot if you are looking for something unique or even just a...