Jordyn’s Soul Cafe — Restaurant in West Chicago Township

I’m going to preface my review saying that during our visit for dinner to the restaurant this evening, the host did inform us right away that despite the fact that they have a fully stocked bar in plain sight, they do not yet have their liquor license and so are not serving alcohol yet. They allow customers to byob but then charge 25% fee to drink it in the restaurant.

We came to dine at 6:30 on a Wednesday, the place was not packed. It wasn’t empty at all, but there were open tables. The host said we could not be seated until our entire party (of 3) arrived. Not a fan of that policy when your restaurant is not poppin with a line around the corner. We were taken to a dark corner they said is the waiting area, away from the main entrance so we couldn’t see when our other party member arrived unless we stood facing the door.

We were seated, at the same empty table that was there when we first arrived, and were greeted by our server who was friendly and attentive. He made recommendations for us and checked in on us throughout our time. His service was great.

We started off with the jerk chicken tacos. The jerk chicken was well seasoned and had a nice jerk kick, but not served with any jerk sauce which I tend to prefer. The tacos were topped with shredded cheese, onions, a little cilantro and a sweet and slightly spicy sauce on the side. I wished there was a slaw or some sort of refreshing topping instead to offset the kick of the jerk chicken, but they were ok.

For my meal I ordered the catfish with Mac & cheese and mashed potatoes. The catfish fillets were a good size, props to them on that because many restaurants skim on the fillets. However, the catfish dinner with 2 sides is $32, so for that price for catfish, they should be substantial! That’s very high for catfish and two small sides. Unfortunately, the first fillet I ate was fine, but the second fillet was inedible- way over salted/over seasoned. The Mac was pretty good, very creamy. Better than other soul food Mac that I’ve had. The mashed potatoes were not memorable.

My friend had the lamb chops, she said they were very good. Not cooked medium, but nonetheless good. She had the cabbage and Mac and cheese sides; she did not like the Mac but the cabbage was very good and tender (I tasted it too).

My daughter had the catfish also, hers was also over seasoned so she only picked at it. She got the Mac and greens as her sides. The greens were not seasoned at all but had plenty of turkey in them.

They did not have sprite, and did not have desserts because their person was out sick. Unfortunate.

The prices are high. I’m including pictures of their “planned” drink menu, these are club prices. And the entrees are definitely high for this establishment. There’s nothing elevated about the eating experience that warrants these high prices, so that feels like a misalignment. I will also say the Host needs some work on being welcoming and not paying extra attention only to the male customers who are dining in.

I hoped for more but unfortunately my experience was not overwhelming. Don’t think I’d return given the fact that the food was not amazing, and the prices are very high for an...

I have delayed writing this review, well, because I was so embarrassed for selecting this place for my son's birthday on Sunday, September 14th, 2025. There were 9 of us. They stressed by phone that they preferred we use the booking app, which we did. We are Afro-am family from suburbs just wanted good soul food in a soul atmosphere. I'd been there one time before about 3 years ago. First of all the main dining room is small and rectangular, with seating on both sides of the entrance. There is no entry foyer. You just walk directly in among the diners, and someone from the bar area in back of the room greets you and invites you to step past the seated patrons and come on back to the bar area. Our reservation was for 2pm (a big mistake. It seemed apparent they were missing staff that early in the afternoon). The bar attendant ended up being our server while also attending bar at same time. We will never return here again. The food was too salty. I ordered oxtail, but they didn't have rice and peas. I settled for oxtail, cabbage, and candied sweets. My vegetarian person only selected Mac and cheese and a lemonade. We were sternly told by our server/bartender (who was bartending for all the tables in the room and at the bar) that we must decide whether we wanted our drinks before food served or with our food, and that there were no free refills. This was rude and cast a pall over the group. We were not actually seated for about 20 minutes, but as we waited for our tables I noticed the bussboys using a spray disinfectant to wipe down the tables. I smelled the disinfectant immediately, and have walked out before in other restaurants for use of chemicals. I didn't want to cause a stir and make us all leave. So we were seated after about 20 minutes, and given our menus, water, utensils. We sat then for another 20 minutes before our bartender/server came to take our order. They have a neon sign near the bar, saying each table may sit no longer than 90 minutes...we certainly sat way longer than that, as our service was ultra slow. All buss people arriving late, and all patrons entered through that front door in full view of the diners. It was concerning to realize that just anyone could walk in and rob every seated patron there. When the bill came, I verified that they had added on the gratuity already (customarily done for groups), the server said we add gratuity on any table over 2 people... I gave an additional amount above the gratuity because of the 'attitude'...we are never returning. We had brought our own cake, but didn't want to celebrate or eat it there...what...

I made reservations for 8:30pm on 02/14/24. I received a text, asking me to confirm that I was coming to the restaurant that day I sent back yes and confirmed . Around 7:15pm I received a call from the actual restaurant asking was I coming for my reservation I replied yes I then received a second call asking me to confirm I coming in for the reservation and I replied yes again .I arrived 15min early, Valeted my car. I walked in the establishment no one was at the door to greet you or direct you on where to go. I tapped a waitress on the shoulder and asked where to go for reservations? She told me to talk to the lady at the bar. I went to the bar, asked the woman at the bar where to go. I have a reservation for 8:30pm. It was now 8:34pm, The woman told me to stand at the end of the bar, and someone will help me. I stood at the end of the bar for about 10 minutes and a second woman came and asked what my name was I told the woman my name and my reservation time. The woman replied I will check you in please stand back there and wait for your name to be called. The areas she told me to stand at was full of other people waiting to be seated and waiting for take home orders. There was about 10 people waiting. Not sure how many were waiting to be seated. I asked the young lady next to me did she have a reservation she replied yes, she was waiting to be seated. After waiting for about 10 more minutes my date and I decided to leave we were only in the establishment for about a good 20 minutes the valet man got our cars he said it would be $20 per car but per the website it says that valet is $15 but the man stated that he charges $20 a car because he has a family to feed. I’ve never went to an establishment where they do not care about customers, nor acknowledge the customer coming in. This is not a place I would ever come back to again or recommend this place to anyone. I’m very disappointed in my experience that day since the day was actually Valentine’s Day and most places are booked so I was not able to go to any other restaurant. I was very excited to eat at this place, and And now I’m just very disappointed. I saw some of the plates the waiters were serving the portions are very small at this place, and not worth the money. The inside of the restaurant is actually very small its kind of compact, so everyone looks like they was sitting together. I hope you all take this feedback and do better next time for customers that are trying to find a good place to eat and a...