Zebda - Algerian deli

I had a great sandwich from Zebda today - a huge pile of lamb broquettes, roasted eggplant, roasted red peppers, and mixed greens/mint on flatbread. The flatbread was firm and chewy and spread with a wonderful mint/garlic oil mixture. Very tasty and a value at ~$4.

I also picked up a homemade yogurt with a fruit topping. The yogurt is medium bodied, right between Greek-style and store-bought.) The fruit topping was smooth, gelatinous, and tasted of citrus and something perfumy like rosewater?

I'll be back to try other sandwiches, salads, and the tangine.

Zebda
4344 N Elston Ave
Chicago, IL
773-545-7000

wendy-

Thanks. And please keep posting your finds. Zebda sounds like it's right up the LTH alley! I hope to check it out the next time I'm on Elston.

this thread needs pics!

I read in TOC that this place is owned by Kate Garcia of Mundial in Pilsen, which I used to love.... I got to get to Zebda sounds pretty good.

Ghazi wrote:this thread needs pics!

Fair enough. I went back to try the merguez sandwich, but it wasn't on the menu - damn.



Because it was so hot, I decided on the trio of deli salads:

(clockwise)
couscous with dates, sultans, almonds, red onions
balsamic salad with roasted eggplant, roasted peppers, and a paneer-like cheese
mediterranean (green) bean salad with tomatos, carmelized onions

The couscous was my favorite with the sweet fruits playing nicely off the slightly pungent onions.

Before I left, I picked up this wrap of sort containing small diced fish, peppers, onions in light curry seasoning. Delicious.


BTW: The lamb flatbread sandwich would make for a better photo ... it'll have to wait for my next visit.

Last night I picked up 3 different "side" salads (huge), including the Zebda cous cous salad, potato salad and pasta salad. All deeee--lish. Also a couple of flatbreads--nice and chewy and naan-like--and perfect cookies. Everything was delightful and i was drooling over every single item on the menu. And down right cheap. GO.

Well, I've been a long-time lurker on this site. Finally took the leap.

I drove by Zebda yesterday (live just down the street), then saw this post. Since I'm off work today, I thought I'd try it out. It was GREAT! I had the flatbread, the green bean salad and a chicken/olive/curry/onion puff pastry with confectioner's sugar and cinnamon sprinkled on top. All fresh and delicious!

The owner was there. She said the menu is changing daily and they will begin to make everything there, including the pastries.

Worth the trip! Can't wait to go back.

Mary

Welcome to LTHForum, agilejacks and katabissell! I look forward to your further comments here and in other threads.

I was out and about running some errands early this morning (trying to beat the rain.) After picking up some jumbo shrimp at Fish Guy, I decided to pop in here to pick-up a carry-out menu. Spoke with Kate - they still don't have their "official" menus back from the printer but are expecting them some time next week and will begin delivery service shortly thereafter. She gave me a menu sheet like the one pictured above and I noticed there are some new beverage offerings listed:

Modern Flavored Lemonades (with Honey) $2.50 each
- Watermelon Ginger
- Cucumber Mint
- Strawberry Lemon

Yogurt Smoothies $3.50 each
- Banana/Strawberry/Blueberry (with Honey Cardamom)
- Banana/Mocha/Chocolate Chip
- Blueberry/Peach/Apple
- Peach/Almond/Orange Blossom
- Strawberry/White Chocolate

I plan to stop in next week for a falafel and cucumber sandwich and a cucumber mint lemonade. So happy to have something new in the neighborhood!

I picked up a couple sandwiches from Zebda on Wednesday to have for lunch on Thursday. My overall impression is that this place is a very nice addition to the neighborhood. They now have their menus back from the printers and are offering an array of appetizers, salads/sides, sandwiches and entrees. Plus, they deliver. If memory serves, official borders for deliver are Peterson, Western, Diversey or Fullerton and Cicero (I think). But the owner said they would be happy to go a little outside that range (there may be an additional charge depending on location).
I picked up a merguez sandwich with roasted red peppers and goat cheese on a baguette ($7) and a ($6) falafel sandwich on m'semene (an Algerian flatbread--similar to a paratha and quite tasty). I also got an extra piece of m'semene and a bastilla (phyllo dough wrap with chicken). Each of the sandwiches came with a generous portion of a side dish (I believe pita chips are also an option). I chose the couscous which was excellent and a pasta salad (which I never got to try but was apparently quite good). The sandwiches were very good, though the bread suffered a little since we consumed them the following day. The bastilla and the couscous, which featured raisins, orange peel and dried appricots, were the standouts for me and I don't even like raisins (full disclosure--I picked most of them out). Per their menu, this place is a collaboration between the French-Algerian owner of Tassili cafe, Mohammed Djeddour and half of the former Mestiza Cocina Mundial team, Katie Garcia. Both were quite friendly and offered to answer any questions about the place. There were a variety of house-made sweets for sale--the chocolate almond cake looked particularly appealing.

Falafel on M'semene:


Merguez sandwich:


Sides:


Bastilla


Thanks for posting on this one Wendy--I would have driven right by it (and I live pretty close).

LTH,

Picked up soup and sandwich for dinner and was not quite as enthused as others. Reasonably priced sandwiches come with a generously portioned side, but both the balsamic glazed steak and grilled chicken panini skewed toward sweet, caramelized/roasted shallots and balsamic masking as opposed to enhancing. Flavor ran together in the soups and sides, both soups tasted strikingly similar as did tabbouleh and couscous sides.

Zebda is a tidy little family run place with what seems a serious commitment to quality, I will eventually give them another go. One note, if pressed for time preorder, it seemed an inordinately long time between ordering and walking out with my meal.

Menu online at Zebdadeli.com

Enjoy,
Gary

i tried zebdadeli today and loved it. i preordered the food, which i strongly concur with others to do. the portions are generous. the food is well seasoned, very fresh. i really enjoyed the grilled eggplant sandwich on homemade bread called kasra, similar to pita, but not as chewy. the smokiness of the grilling came thru clearly. the lamb merzuez sausage had generous amounts of roasted red pepper and goat cheese (the food trifecta, IMO). the couscous was delicious with sweet notes of apricot. the curried fish pastille contained vermicelli, which was new to me. probably my favorite item was artichoke hearts stuffed with greens and feta and pungent with preserved lemon. my only complaint was the side of mixed vegetables dominated by big chunks of preserved lemon, fruit and peel. i love the stuff, but like it chopped up for flavoring. i've never been offered an entire salad of it, and didnt particularly care for it. i also brought home a flat, cornbready round which the counter guy said to try for breakfast, split and filled with butter and honey but it has mint in it, which to me tastes like toothpaste. it doesnt appeal to me, but mint lovers might find it refreshing.
this place is just terrific. i hope the out of the way location doesnt keep them from succeeding. justjoan
(edited to add mint to the cornbread)

Gave Zebda a try over the weekend. Had the Falafal and Curry Chicken Salad sandwiches along with the Loubia soup. All were good and tasted very fresh. The falafal sandwich was served open face, not as pictured above. Disappointed that no sides were offered with the sanwiches as reported by others. This made it a lot less of a value. Willing to give it another try, but not in any real hurry.

Back to Zebda and finally tried the marguez panini I have been dreaming about. It was good but didn't live up to my admittedly high expectations. The ingredients (marguez, arugula, roasted red pepper, goat cheese) were tasty, but the bratwurst size roll overwhelmed and the sandwich was not panini'd. The couscous side I ordered was delivered as tabouleh.

I also got a chicken pastille which I nuked and ate the next day. This was definitely a winner. Chicken, walnuts, and some green filling. Dusting of cinnamon and powdered sugar on this savory pastry wrap. I wasn't expecting the sweet to work so well - what a great combination.

I noticed a few changes from my prior visits. A-LOT more prepared food available - salads and to-go containers - and a bigger menu. I hope this means business is good. It looked quite sad in the early days to see empty deli cases. The prices have shot up quite a bit from my first visit $4 for a sandwich has become $7 for a sandwich & side. Still good fresh food, but not the same value meal as I first enjoyed.

Wendy

We were planning to go out last night for dinner, but I was feeling a bit under the weather and didn't want to head out into the deep freeze. Switched gears and looked for a place that would deliver me some soup. Not in the mood for Asian, I remembered Zebda. I'd only done carry-out from them once - decided their Harrira might be just the thing. Jonathan was pretty hungry so we wound up ordering quite a few things. (Yay, I have leftovers for lunch today!)

Here's some photos with a few thoughts.

The Harrira with a generous side of bread. Nice bits of chunky chickpeas, celery, and carrots. Arrived nice and hot. Needed a bit of salt. Not outstanding, but satistied.


We shared the Stuffed Grape Leaves. These were a cold preparation. My favorite of the order. The combination of cinnamon and tomato really worked for me. Generous portion. Sauce on the side was garlicky good.


My Sandwich, of which I still have half for today - their Eggplant 2 Ways. I especially enjoyed the Kasra bread. This was grilled eggplant, baba ghanoush, roasted tomatoes, and spinach. Nice combination, also needed salt (IMHO.)
Closed:

Open:

Jonathan got the Mini Kebob Trio and proclaimed it more flavorful than Noon O' Kebab's.

He also got a side of Basmati Rice and some Falafel. I thought the rice looked too buttery, but he seemed to enjoy it with the kebabs. Falafel I'd give a 6 out of 10. Certainly not the worst I've had - just somewhere in the middle.



I like the variety on the menu. We'll definately order from them again. -Lynn

Got delivery from Zebda again a few nights ago. Mixed results. We shared a side of hummus that came with a foil-wrapped packet of traditional pita bread as well as a cup of toasted pita triangles. I get why they sent the toasted - the hummus was thick. Really thick. Seasoned well and tasty, but not my preferance on texture.



Sorry, not a great photo. Hopefully, you can see as well that Jonathan's side of rice was a bit clumpy this time too.

I intend to try 3 of their 4 pesco-vegetarian sandwiches (just not interested in the Nutella, Banana, and Jam Panini as I can easily do that at home.) I really enjoyed the Eggplant Two Ways, but moved on to their Falafel Sandwich. Jonathan tried the Tandoori Chicken Sandwich. We were a little surprised they arrived open-face. I prefered the Kasra bread of the eggplant sandwich to the M'Samene both of these sandwiches were served on.

Zebda Falafel Sandwich:


It wound up being a pretty messy sandwich, but good flavor and I really appreciated the freshness of the greens and cucumbers.


Zebda Tandoori Chicken Sandwich:


Jonathan says "ditto to what she said about the falafel sandwich."

I really want to love this place, but I'm just not there yet. I will however move on to pesco-vegeatrian sandwich number three - Salmon w/ roasted tomatoes, shaved red onion, and green goddess dressing on a baguette. I just won't be ordering it with a side of hummus.

Coming home from work last night to an hour of shoveling, I didn't really feel like cooking and couldn't movtivate to go out. A sandwich from Zebda sounded good.

So here it is - Pesco-vegetarian sandwich #3:



I thought it was an extremely generous portion of salmon for $7. The fish was fresh and had nice char-grilled flavor. I would have appreciated a bit more of the Green Goddess dressing and/or for the dressing to have had a bit more punch to it. A minor quibble - this was a tasty sandwich.

Jonathan got the trio of kebobs again which he found equally as enjoyable as the first time he ordered them. You get a choice of three sauces with the kebobs. He always gets the Harissa. He also had a side of falafel, a side of rice, and we shared an order of Baba Ghanoush. I went with the Baba because I wasn't so thrilled with the texture of their Hummus last time. Same deal with the Baba - it's just way thicker than suits my preferances.

I think we're going to try Entrees next time. Jonathan has expressed interest in the Penne Pasta (House-made merguez, eggplant, spinach and mint with a goat cheese tomato sauce for $11.)

Keeping the Zebda thread alive (although starting to wonder if I'm the only LTH'er patronizing this place.... )

Veered away from the sandwiches Friday night and enjoyed a very fresh house salad with a nice olive vinaigrette and their Gnocchi entree.





Jonathan inhaled his Penne with House-Made Merguez, Eggplant, Spinach, and Mint with Goat Cheese Tomato Sauce before I could get a picture.

We were very pleased with the quality and quick delivery service of this order. It had been awhile but am now feeling motivated to try them again soon. -Lynn

I had a quick Mediterranean lunch at Zebda (at 4344 N. Elston) for the first time Today. I cannot believe that I waited so long to get there since it is worth a detour, as they used to say in the old Guide Michelin.
The home made meatballs in a very tasty tomato sauce, probably jazzed up with harissa, were quite tender and flavorful.
The picturesque and colorful Zebda couscous salad is a model of freshness, and creativity: mesclun, perfectly cooked couscous with nuggets of preserved apricot and lemon, almonds, grilled eggplant and tomato topped with 2 mini chicken kebabs nicely seasoned with a North-African type mix of herbs and spices. The only regret is that the harissa vinaigrette is a bit shy and not very assertive ...
Otherwise, it's really a very good place for a fragrant lunch.
Too bad there are only 2 tiny tables with 2 chairs. But Zebda calls itself a deli and carry out place, not a restaurant.
In fact you can order a full Couscous Royal or various types of Tagines from him for any party of 6 people or more.
The young man from Morocco helping behind the counter is very helpful.
Towards the end I had a nice conversation with the owner Mohammed Djeddour, a pleasant Algerian fellow who arrived in Chicago in the early eighties and worked in several local French eateries.
The chef at Zebda is Katie Garcia, who created quite a reputation for herself when she was in charge of Mundial-Cocina Mestiza in Pilsen.
He also owns and manages the restaurant next door, Tassili, a place that looks very popular at any time of day and night with a very lively spectrum of local customers, some arabic-speaking.
One thing is sure, I'll go back there for more.

You can take your Zebda food over to Tassili and eat it. Based on my experience, though, I think a female who did so would feel kind of out of place. (Not my experience as a female, just extrapolating from the feel.) Anyway, yeah, I really like this place among lunch choices not terribly far from me, conspicuous lack of atmosphere notwithstanding.

I noticed Zebda earlier this week as I was driving to Beef & Burger and thought it looked interesting. I made a mental note to check it out sometime in the future. Then I read through this reconstituted thread and decided that sometime in the future was now!

Stopped by for dinner and all I can say is, what a find! I had the grilled chicken panini with a side of chicken curry salad and was blown away. Very fresh tasting chicken with sweet accents of caramelized shallots, earthy spinach, rich brie, and a tangy Dijon mayo, all on a crispy, light panini. The curried chicken salad was very good and a remarkably generous portion for a mere side dish that was included in the $7 price. I also shared an order of excellent Baba Ghanoush with a friend. The Baba was smoky and dense with a good mouth feel.

Others who ordered with me tried the chicken tandoori sandwich and the salmon sandwich with sides of couscous and pasta salad. Everyone raved. One guy ordered the flan for dessert. An order of flan seemed high at $4 per serving, but when we pulled it out of the bag and saw the portion size, we realized it was easily big enough to feed two to four people depending on your appetite. Oh yeah, it was really good, too. Not too sweet with a caramel sauce that had a slight coffee-like bitterness rounding out the flavor.

Can't say enough good things about Zebda. Thanks to wendy for her initial post alerting us to this small treasure, and thanks also to LynnB for reviving the thread at just the right time.

We'll be regulars at Zebda from now on!

Buddy

Dinner delivered from Zebda this past Friday:

I started with their house salad pictured upthread. Great quality mixed greens with lots of fresh shredded carrots and cucumbers. Jonathan had some hummus/pita.

Managed to get a shot of Jonathan's Penne entree this time. Penne with House-made Merguez, Eggplant, Spinach and Mint with Goat Cheese Tomato Sauce:


Zebda Penne by MsLynnB, on Flickr

I took a bit of a risk and tried the salmon entree. I figured it might arrive overcooked and it was. A generous portion, seasoned nicely, on a bed of fresh carrots, zucchini, and leeks with preserved lemon brown butter - it was still enjoyable. Nice caramelization on the carrots.


Zebda Salmon by MsLynnB, on Flickr

Buddy, glad you enjoyed it - hope you've been back. We're happy to see they seem to be making it.

I've been steadily making my way through their menu. Haven't had any of the entrees, but I've had just about all the sandwiches and "pizzas". Standouts in the sandwich category have been the grilled chicken and the lamb kabob sandwich. Generous portions in each and nicely prepared. The pizzas are basically a Middle Eastern flat bread with preset ingredients piled on top.

My one complaint with Zebda is that they tend to under-season their meats. My experience with the salmon (on a sandwich) was that it was slightly overcooked and the flavors were not nearly assertive enough. Same with the sauces; they need to provide a little more spark to the meats and vegetables they are accompanying.

In general, they put out a high quality product at a very reasonable price. I'll keep going back and report on faves.

Buddy