Galit — Restaurant in Lake View Township

Update: After writing this review, management did issue a full refund.

For years, Galit had been my top recommended "special occasion" meal in the city. It's creative but still approachable, always fresh but maintains enduring favorites on the menu, and elevated without being stuffy. Unfortunately, like many other restaurants post-COVID, the price has climbed precipitously (to over $100 per person!) while service has taken a nose dive. I no longer can recommend them.

On my reservation, I indicated my common food allergy (legumes -- like peanuts, chickpeas, and lentils), which the restaurant had handled adeptly on my five previous visits. The first red flag was when that note wasn't passed to the server. When I informed him, he dashed to the kitchen and returned with a marked up menu that was totally wrong (e.g., didn’t indicate tamarind as an allergen, but did mark everything with tree nuts… which I’m NOT allergic to). When I asked for clarification, the server doubled down and started arguing with me. “Well, this is what the allergy matrix in the kitchen said.” When I kept pressing for details, he got so flustered that he sent for the manager and ignored me -- but not my dining companion! -- for the rest of the meal. To have staff uninformed about allergies is not only dangerous to guests but a huge liability.

As many other reviewers note, the hummus course is a staple at Galit. Since I can't partake, the kitchen had sent doubles of all of the salatim plus extra pita on every previous visit. This time, the kitchen eliminated one of the salatim (also containing legumes) from our second course and only brought one extra dip for the table as a substitute for the missing salad. Wait, at $105 per person I'm supposed to just miss out on an entire course? Frustratedly, I flagged down the server -- who then fetched the manager -- and got this remedied. By this point, though, I was already feeling humiliated and unwelcome.

Drinks were also an issue. My dining partner got the wine pairing ($75 extra for five dinky pours) and the servers dashed away with two of the glasses before he was even done. Also, after my first cocktail (which I finished after the 2nd course) they never bothered to ask if I wanted another one -- maybe because my server was pointedly ignoring my existence.

The bill rolled in with zero discount plus a 20% gratuity already added in.

No word from management until I privately wrote about my experience on Resy. The remediation? A $50 gift card to return to Galit. I responded back to the manager asking if the gift card was also valid for their new a la carte spot, Cafe Yaya -- I'm just not keen to drop over $100 per person again soon and risk getting really ill -- and gently suggested a refund in the moment was the more appropriate response the next time this happened with a guest. The general manager cancelled the Galit gift certificate, issued a Cafe Yaya one via email, and never acknowledged the other feedback.

I'm beyond disappointed with my latest experience of what was once my favorite Chicago restaurant, and hope it's not representative of how they operate nowadays. This encounter not only betrays a lack of hospitality but also a dangerous dismissal of real dietary concerns that could endanger patrons. In a city full of incredible food, I can't endorse this...

Hummus & Pita Forever singing my praises about this pita. I don’t think this bread could’ve been any more perfect. It was soft, warm, and inviting—with the perfect amount of crunch and lightness. It was so expertly cooked I had to stop myself from eating too much (and I def did). The hummus was very smooth and well-spiced and definitely lived up to the “too much olive oil” description. I didn’t mind at first, but I was glad I didn’t get the hummus with brisket because I don’t think I would’ve been able to finish. Bread - 9/10 Hummus - 7.4 / 10 Overall - 8.2 / 10 Salatin I liked the ezme but it wasn’t anything surprising and I am not a huge tomato fan and I enjoyed this, so it would probably be good for other people. the watermelon was… confusing?? I did not really understand why it was there. tasted mid and I wish it was the peaches from the menu instead. The labneh I liked but it was also a bit too much esp on top of the already well-oiled hummus and it was also drowning in oil so it wasn’t my favorite and the pickles were by far my top pick out of this part of the course. They were acidic and textured and broke off from the oil of the hummus and labneh and every time I felt sick I just ate one and I felt a bit better. Soured perfectly too and it was so crunchy I loved it. Ezme - 6.5/10 Watermelon - 5.6/10 Labneh - 4.5/10 Pickles - 7.3/10 Overall - 5.9/10 Mezzes We got to pick two dishes out of the list, and so we chose the Lamb coquettes (not the girl aesthetic) and Foie gras toast. Lamb was recommended by our waiter and we saw 5 different photos (like this one) praising the foie gras so we decided to try it out. foie gras was more disappointing. It was whipped and probably mixed with butter or something because that’s what the texture was like. The challah bread was way too oily and made me feel a bit sick after one bite. The rhubarb jam was a good idea, but I felt that with the already pooling oil from other components it only made it that much denser—I wish it tasted more of rhubarb than strawberry. Confused by the Tahina and leaves on top too. The coquettes redeemed the mezzes for me. They were warm, crunchy but not oily, and the sauce did a great job of enhancing the dish’s presence overall. Foie gras - 4/10 Coquettes - 7.4/10 Overall - 5.7/10 Entrees My mom ordered Striped bass and I got Maqluba (crispy rice). It’s now important to note that I did not know the portions of the dishes beforehand, otherwise, I wouldn’t have gotten the rice at all. Bass - 8.3/10 Rice - 7.8/10 Overall - 8.0/10 Dessert The custard was light and not-too-sweet and the blackberry complimented it perfectly, the flowers were a nice touch and the cookies were crunchy but soft—I suspect they were almond-flour based—and it was beautifully plated. I had doubts about this restaurant but the dessert itself rescued it in my eyes. Malabi - 9.4/10 Overall - 9.4/10

The meal overall (every round’s overall scores added...

Excellent food and fabulous service! Had heard about this spot but didn't know what to expect, left pleased with the experience. We arrived early for a late night dinner reservation and had drinks at the bar while we waited for our table. We enjoyed our Za'atar martini, Month of Sundays, and the Saz Arak.

We had the Tehina and the Brisket hummus to start and both were great - loved the sumac in the tehina and the brisket was great. Oh my goodness, their pita though! Heavenly!! They were so good, our table asked for more even though we knew we had to save room for the rest of our meal.The standout from the Salatin were the pickles and the labneh for me, though one of my friends liked the watermelon more than the pickles since they don't like pickles!

For Mezze, we ordered the carrots (must get), foie gras, and the Iraqi kubbeh halab. The carrots were my favorite, but the foie gras was the most memorable dish of the night for sure. If you are a foie gras fan, do not expect your typical foie gras!! This version is much sweeter, and has a whipped texture. I didn't love it, but I did like it and it was such a cool take on foie gras that even as I am writing this review two weeks later, I can still taste and imagine my first bite of it!

To wrap up the main portion of our meal, we got the lobster, the turkey shawarma, and the striped bass. All exellent, but my favorite of the three was the bass! We were pretty stuffed by the time these came out, but after a delicious bite you can't help but keep eating.

For dessert, we had the malabi and the mahleb cheesecake. My fellow diners were stuffed but if you are someone who also always has room for dessert, this is your time to shine. I absolutely ADORED the malabi. I had never heard of it before, but essentially it is like a pudding type dish. The flavors are strong, and I really loved that it's not so sweet that it makes you feel like you're going to have a cavity after a bite. I also really enjoyed the cheesecake, and I usually am a huge cheesecake fan, so was pleased that the cheesecake was great as well. But clearly, the malabi was more memorable for me.

Considering that Galit is a Michelin rated restaurant, I felt like my money was well spent. And to be honest, I thought this was quite an inexpensive meal considering the quality of food and drinks, the service and the atmosphere. I've been to other restaurants where I have paid more but felt that the price tag didn't match what I got. This is well worth a visit and your money. Plus you get a cookie to-go, so you can continue your Galit experience at...