Mataam Al Mataam

I think this resaurant closed, and then reopened. It’s Iraqi food, I had chicken skewers and the BF had chicken schwarma. They were both good. We had humus for appetizer, it was great. My BF had arabic coffee, which was super strong espresso with cardamon flavoring.

Mataam al Mataam has closed! It is no more. I know this won’t matter to some, and will actually please others. But I’m quite sad about this. Might have to cut myself a little bit. Tsk.
Four stars for holding out as long as they did. Chicago just got a tiny bit snoozier.

The name in Arabic means «Restaurant, the Restaurant!» — and I always find that incredibly amusing.
The people who own it are Iraqi, and sometimes they have Masgoof, a grilled fish specialty. However, I’m going to agree with some of the other reviewers on here, and say that the food is a bit lackluster, and sometimes shoddily presented. Iceberg lettuce is the ‘western’ salad of the Middle East. Not to crack on the ME, I love the area, and they have much better salads on their own rather than trying to emulate a «western» style salad.
It gets an extra star for being open 24 hours, I believe it’s till open 24 hours. .. I was there awhile ago, and just thought of reviewing it now.
There’s always crowds of Arab men in here, talking loudly, probably smoking and watching the GIANT TV that is prominently displayed and probably blaring Al Jazeera. It’s a fun little bit of the Middle East right here in Chicago — and quite authentic. There are scores of places like this back «in country». ;-)

I wish it was closer then it would get that 5^th star. However, I enjoyed the one time I was there and will most likely go back. I need to in order to fully give this place a proper review. Right now I like this place and will force my friends to go when I want KABOBS.
If you decide to get the sandwich here… make sure you ask for it on a pita.
Man. I want KABOBS now…

Just go for the turkish coffee, lentil soup, and 24 hours. Hummus is ok, anything else… nah. Falafel is microwaved or something. Fun creepy vibe tho. Discreet as hell ;)

Dunno what the name means; we call it «the Man restaurant».
It’s got a masculine kind of vibe, in a good way — simple décor with a big TV playing news, pretty and vivacious waitresses, delicious roasting /​grilling meat smells, and the same atmosphere pretty much all day and night. It’s a great place to unwind, never crowded, quiet-​ish, slightly low light, …nice.
The menu is solid and reliable, the meat portions are bigger than most, the kibbe is tasty as can be. The porpotion of salad garnishes they give with the meat entrees are on the small-​ish side, but if you order a salad item, those portions are fair to generous. The grilled meat goes directly onto the rice and the whole thing travels really well for carry-​out. Mmmm. So savory. Big portions make for tasty left-​overs too.
Excellent value for a dollar kind of place. Not fancy, but just right.