A new Restaurant named 'Byblos'

Jessewolfe1 wrote:Has anyone tried / have any info on a new Greek Restaurant named 'Byblos' - it is on Peterson west of Western ave (right next to Katsu)??

Thanks,

Yes, and it kinda blows. After eating za’atar pita recently from Sanabel Bakery, I was excited to order the za’atar-seasoned French fries served with tahini dipping sauce. Pie Dude ordered an appetizer of cucumbers in yogurt sauce, and we both ordered the same entrée, hummus shwarma. When our waiter looked confused, repeated the name of the entrée, and asked whether we wanted chicken or beef (when the menu clearly stated “marinated beef & lamb”), we should have known we were in for trouble. Throughout the evening, our waiter did not understand much of what we said, marked by hesitant, one-word answers and a constant confused look, and he apparently didn’t know the menu very well, either. The fries were just fries. They were not seasoned with za’atar or anything else besides salt. The bottom layer was flabby and greasy, as though they were thrown in the fryer before it was turned on. There was no tahini sauce, and when we asked about it, he just said “no” with a confused look and no other explanation. A tiny cup of tahini would have cost about 4 cents, so it should have been provided regardless. Why would I order plain fries in an ethnic restaurant? The cukes in yogurt were tasty and tangy though, and very refreshing. In regard to the entrées, we got a pile of yellow rice in place of the hummus. Clearly, the waiter misunderstood again and thought we’d ordered Shwarma, not Hummus Shwarma. I didn’t mind that so much; the names are similar and the order may have been misheard (although the waiter did repeat the order), so we just gave up and dug in. After tasting the dish, however, we realized we made a poor choice. The meat was dry (Dude had chicken, I had beef) but was made better by drizzling some yogurt sauce from the cukes over it. The rice settled in odd clumps as though it was left over from yesterday’s service, and it had an odd, vaguely soapy aftertaste. I'm shocked to see that they've been open since November; that makes me want to give them a second chance even less.

Byblos
2639 W. Peterson Ave.
Chicago, 60659
773-989-0500
Fax (773) 989-0502

Hummus, shwarma, and tahini in a Greek restaurant

My instincts tell me its either Lebanese or Assyrian or both.

Hi,

FYI - Pie Lady's initial review was in the Openings and Closings thread. It needed a subject title when it was split, I picked up the Greek from the quoted query. Pie Lady never declared any specific ethnicity. I just removed the reference to Greek in the subject title to avoid any further confusion.

Regards,
Cathy2, as a moderator

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

FYI - Pie Lady's initial review was in the Openings and Closings thread. It needed a subject title when it was split, I picked up the Greek from the quoted query. Pie Lady never declared any specific ethnicity. I just removed the reference to Greek in the subject title to avoid any further confusion.

Regards,
Cathy2, as a moderator

It was "Mediterranean" on the awning. The city of Byblos is in Lebanon.

Thanks for checking the place out, Pie Lady. We live quite close and I've been wondering about the place. Can't say I'm rarin' to try it now, although maybe someone has had something good there...

There's always booze and bellydancers.

Closed; is now Estrada Restaurant & Lounge.

Pie Lady wrote:Closed; is now Estrada Restaurant & Lounge.

Looks like it's a Croatian place serving a few Balkan specialties and a bunch of other things such as "Provansal Chicken." Wish it had krempita on the menu--that might get me to go soon.

http://www.estradachicago.com/menu.html

Pie Lady wrote:Closed; is now Estrada Restaurant & Lounge.

And has been for about a year...I was there for the first meeting for the Peterson Garden and they served us lovely platters of assorted Meditteranean faves--I recall platters of really nice grilled calamari, grilled vegetables, good olives, some dips and much more. I remember being impressed by how good it all was, especially considering it was gratis. I'll have to remember to stop back in this summer and give it another go.