★★★☆☆ For full experience and review, check out my YouTube Channel-Halal Digest, if their Chili chicken biryani, hunter beef paratha and chicken seekh Kabob paratha. Recently HFSAA certified Posted on September 2, 2020

NR The chicken is "NOT" Zabiha Halal (Hand slaughtered), it is confirmed by regular customers who are avid Zabiha Eaters, IT is not "Zabiha halal Chicken" until further notice. Posted on June 10, 2018

★★★★★ ما شاء الله Very tasty and minimalistic. "No frills" is definitely an accurate description. Prices are also super cheap, especially if you get vegetarian items. And it's 24/7 which is another plus. They only take cash but they have an ATM inside. I had the butter chicken on one visit and gyros parathas on another visit and both times it was very tasty. They don't have fountain drinks but they do sell bottled and canned beverages, and of course water is free. And alhamdulillah they don't play music! Whereas unfortunately most "halaal" places do. They also have a wudu area seperate from the bathrooms. The bathrooms were dirty though when I went around 4-5pm, and I imagine it's probably worse in the late night. But that's a minor complaint, this place is great especially if you need halaal food on a budget. Posted on February 18, 2018

★★★☆☆ Food quality is low. Samosas or pastries can be extra salty. Biryanis are average yet edible. The roasted/grilled leg quarters are $5 a pop each which is ridiculously priced in my opinion. Pratas are reasonably affordable but quality is not consistent. Actually the food quality here is edible or on average. What i find appalling is the lady behind the counter who is extremely unapproachable. Quite rare to find these kind of service staff these days. Maybe the restaurant doesn't care about giving good service so avoid if you can't accept such sour faces upon ordering your food. Else, food is reasonably cheap overall but average on quality. Posted on June 9, 2016

★★☆☆☆ wanna get sick, have diarrhea.. then its for you... cheap very cheap food... but its somehow never fresh..... and i always end up in the washroom Posted on March 23, 2015

★★★★★ My wife dared me to take her here. I did. She looked at me and then the place and was ready to walk out. I told her just to try it. Next day she was begging me to go again. She enjoyed to tasty food and the price. Will be back for sure. Best part is the prayer space in the back. Posted on October 27, 2014

★★★★☆ Good food. Open 24 hrs. Amazing. Posted on August 28, 2014

★★☆☆☆ low prices low quality . Posted on June 15, 2014

★★★☆☆ good for price. taste is so so. Posted on June 30, 2013

★★★★☆ Ordered Ghost korma along with frontier chicken and parantha. Both quality n quantity is amazing!!! Will give 5 stars for food !!! Restrooms are dirty, so avoiding using them if possible !!!! Not much place to sit and eat. Both ambience n restroom could have been better Posted on May 25, 2013

★★★★☆ Overall good food. Biryani a are very tasty. Posted on January 24, 2013

★☆☆☆☆ Its doubt full. How can you even afford to sell soo cheap. People now days dont care i guess. as long as its cheap. I go for the quality not how cheap the food is!! Posted on September 21, 2012

★★★★☆ amazing value, only recommended if you're not picky. chilli chicken rice is the best...if you can handle it lol Posted on September 20, 2012

★★★★★ The proprietor brings excellent food with a social mission. For us, it's about the excellent price; for the owner, it's also a mindfulness of the poor. Outstanding! Posted on July 31, 2012

★★★★★ The price is unbelievably low. Like 2.50$ for the gyros paratha. But if you go, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE CASH!! They have an ATM, but they don't take credit cards or checks or any of that. It's not a formal place by any means, but it's still great food. And they got a prayer room mA. The staff/owners are very polite. I once met a homeless man and I asked him if I could buy him a meal from his favorite restaurant on Devon. He said that his favorite is Ghareeb Nawaz, and since they had known of his situation, they allow him to eat for free whenever he needs to!! Ghareeb Nawaz Zindabad!!!! Posted on July 3, 2012

★★★☆☆ Food was okay. There are other choices around Devon that are better. This place is dirty, and the staff is extremely rude. I didn't enjoy it, and thus do not recommend. Posted on June 28, 2012

NR This place and been renovated . I used to come here five years ago when I was in college . I certainly wasn't going to order the food knowing their quality. I ordered tea thinking who can screw up tea and that too in the Desi belt of food products. They did . Cold with no aroma and taste . I left it at the counter and walked out . Posted on March 25, 2012

★★☆☆☆ Filthy place, Tasteless, dirty tables and rude and careless employes. Never go back there again. Posted on March 10, 2012

★★★★★ Very good food and great taste full size portions as well ! Try the Saudi Kapsa delisioso but I never been to Saudi ( Posted on March 2, 2012

★★★★☆ This place has changed a lot. But still provides good food at a great price. Posted on February 5, 2012

★★★★★ Loved the price and quality of the food! I think we fed everyone in our party which was about 15 for 60 bucks! It was a great deal! Food was extremely delicious! Will go here again! Anybody on a budget should check this place out! Posted on December 18, 2011

★★★★★ This place really improved. I remember when my friends and I would joke about how they seemed dirty but we ate there anyway. But NOW, its extremely clean and relaxed atmosphere, large and delicious. I am ALWAYS full when I leave and have never left unhappy. Posted on October 18, 2011

★★★★★ The food is awesome, portions generous, prices are insanely low, and selection is vast. This is a must-eat if you're visiting Chicago so that you can tell people that you ate at Ghareeb Nawaz and watch their jealous reactions and prove your Devon-credibility. They have photos of all the dishes up behind the cash register, which is nice if you are not familiar with Indo-Pak cuisine. This place is a real slice of desi Chicago with people stopping in from all walks of life - homesick and cash-strapped students have been known to drive an hour to eat here and usually take home leftover meals for the week, while high-flying professionals will stop in to get their latest party catered from this restaurant. Posted on June 27, 2011

★★★★★ undoubtedly the best place in chicago, light on the pocket and great on the taste and quantity! Posted on April 11, 2011

★★★★★ I made an account here just to comment about how happy this restaurant made me today. I had skipped lunch and spent 30 minutes at the Devon Post Office whose computers crashed when making out a money order for a new apartment's rent and security deposit. Needless to say, after having the stresses of moving and a long wait at the post office I was grumpy and quite a bit poorer. But my day was made by Gahereeb Nawaz (which I learnt meant sustainer of the poor, how apt!) First let me say I've seen reviews especially on Yelp complaining about the aesthetics or cleanliness but the restaurant, they are probably talking about it before it was remodelled, or the sort who expect every restaurant to be perfect. The restaurant now is as clean if not cleaner than any fast food place in the city, with a busboy wiping tables regularly. They have a large selection of meat and vegetable sandwiches, biryani, kebabs and curries but the best part is the price: nothing was more than 5$! The Chicken Boti Paratha was excellent, the best I have ever had in Chicago and the potato pakoras were good too. I agree with those who say that there are other restaurants with higher quality food or a more pleasing ambiance but for a quick lunch or a late-night meal I cannot think of a better place on the North Side. However, the prices are the absolute best. Everything is inexpensive and is given in a large (but not gluttonous or wasteful) portion. I highly recommend paying a visit if you live in one of the neighbourhoods nearby (Rogers Park, Edgewater, Andersonville) it is a short walk from Western Avenue or Clark Street and the Devon bus stops very close and connects to the Red Line. Even if it would take some extra time to get there, the food and the price are well worth one's time. Plus, if you had a day like mine, the food will make you happier and make the rest of your day better. Posted on March 3, 2011

★★★☆☆ Food is good here. Nothing at all fancy. This is mostly a place for cab drivers to eat (they close at 2am, which is perfect for the cab drivers working at night), but you will also see families. Ghareb Nawaz was featured in a Chicago magazine once, so you will also sometimes see non-desis/non-Muslims in line, although this is somewhat rare. They have always been nice to me, and service is good. If you are visiting Chicago, and going to Devon, you need to stop by this place at least once! Posted on September 17, 2010

★★★☆☆ As others have mentioned, cheap place with large protions. Overall, you get what you pay for, taste isn't that great but fills you up. The biryani is good sometimes, they have a huge menu so there is something for everyone. Posted on June 27, 2010

★★★☆☆ You can expect some very good biryani from this place, but only at certain times of the day. Sometimes the food is great and sometimes it's just nasty or blan. The prices are great and they are very popular there is always a line waiting. Posted on December 4, 2009

★★★★★ While visiting Chicago with my wife, we passed by this restaurant several times on our way to Sukhadia's. The reasonable prices listed and the endless array of customers intrigued us. On our last day in Chi Town we decided to try...we picked up a Gyro Boti Paratha and drove down Devon Street. We parked and ate... and at that moment we knew we would not be going to Sukhadia's as originally planned...which was also amazing, but to Ghareeb Nawaz( Sustainer of the Poor). We came back and picked up Butter Chicken and more Boti Paratha.....DELICIOUS! I cannot wait to go back to this restaurant. It can use a touch of paint and some better care but the food is simply the best I've had in a long time. Great work! Salaam Posted on October 18, 2009

★★★☆☆ I was surprised with their cheap prices and food quantity! All i had was halwa puri. it was ok. not great, not bad either. I liked ZamZam's halwa puri better. I wanna try their biryani next time i go to Chicago. Posted on October 12, 2009

★★★★★ Been there dozens of times. down and dirty kinda place, cheap with better than ok food. Worth a visit. I like lamb biryani, haleem, tandoori chi. Paratha items are good too. Excellent place for the no waiter, cheap environment they have, worth a visit or a few. Posted on September 3, 2009

★★★★☆ This place is awesome. Although there is no ambiance (as it is a literally a hole in the wall place) you still need to drop by this joint. The food is excellent and the portions are huge.....Definitely your money's worth. I love dropping by this place whenever I am in Chi-town. Posted on May 31, 2009

★★★☆☆ Ate here once. Generous portions of food, low prices no glitz or glamour. Worth a visit. Posted on May 17, 2009

★★★★★ I will have to say for the Price the FOOD AND PLACE both are great. A Place to DEFINETELY eat at or take out from Posted on July 29, 2008

★★★★☆ God Bless the owners of Ghareeb Nawaz! This place rocks! Posted on August 6, 2007

★★★☆☆ Busy place but quick service, not bad food if you like greasy stuff! Hunter beef paratha roll is good!! Posted on July 24, 2007

★★★★★ The best budget restaurant in US! where else can you can get chicken kabab paratha or chicken biryani for almost $3! Tastes real good! A must for any visitor to Devon! Posted on July 6, 2007

★★★☆☆ Cheap food, and healthy portions, unfortunately not healthy food. I think there was food in my oil, but I may be wrong (just kidding). The staff is nice, in fact one of the nicer staffs on Devon Ave. This place is open late, and inexpensive. I was there one at around 12 at night (probably the only one there that was not a taxi driver at that time at night) and the place was full. This place has a fast food/short order atmosphere. You have plates on trays, and sit in diner-style booths. The food was not the best I have ever had, but this place operates in a short order format, and is similar to a worker's canteen back in Pakistan or India. You will get lots of food right away for little money, but it won't be the healthiest or the best food. Not the cleanest place either. Worth a shot if you are on Devon late, or in a pinch for cash. Posted on April 19, 2007

★★★★☆ For those on a budget this is the place to be. They use a certain spice in all their food which I don't like so I rarely eat here. I do like the haleem though, best on Devon. They now make it regularly whereas before you would go and it was not there. Lines waiting to order are too long so I don't go as often. But if you can handle their one spice, the food will be delicious. Posted on March 26, 2007

★★★★★ i love the food there its so good!! it may look a bit like a place for like you know but food is excellent!!! i think whoever goes there will love it! (Heavy though) Posted on March 16, 2007

★★★★★ This place serves the best desi food and is very inexpensive(the bill never exceeds $10 for 2 persons). Also,I think it is opened 24 hours because one night we took away food at 1:30 am from there. I was surprised that it was open. The only negaive point is the environment which is not suaitable for families. Posted on December 7, 2006

★★★★☆ Went to this place During ISNA convention at 1am, it was crowded and the food is good. The place place in the restaurant is the restrooms as it is newly remodled. Food is extremely cheap and the quantity is way too much Posted on September 13, 2006

★★★★★ Went here for breakfast, flew from UK and drove from OHIO to have breakfast here and WOW! Tru to the streets of lahore it was amazing. Halva Puree & chanay with lasee and chai yum yum Posted on July 8, 2006

★★★★★ This place has the best desi food on Devon! I have seen people who drive all the way from Indiana and Wisconsin every weekend just for their chicken biryani! The prices are amazing too...you can pretty much feed your whole family for under $10. And I have been there recently and it seems like they've really cleaned the place up. They made a new section for families and its so clean! And they remodeled their bathrooms...with marble and state of the art furnishings! It seemed like a bathroom from a five-star restaurant! I usually hate public bathrooms but I had no problem using this one. They also have a prayer room and a place to make Wudu. Hands down...first-class fast food! Posted on May 23, 2006

★★★★☆ this place smells funky, looks dirty, and qualifies for a true hole in the wall - and that is exactly what makes their food great. it's almost like eating off a 'tehla' (street vendors in pak/india) - good biryani, kabob rolls - everything is excellent (fattening, greasy, spicey, and some remanants of human sweat surely make it in into the food from the temple of the poor cook slaving over the stove - which makes it authentic and 'just like hom'), and CHEAP. Posted on January 23, 2006

★★★☆☆ Great Hunter beef Paratha Roll. (not spicy) Posted on January 19, 2006

★★★★☆ Great food and cheap. However, we always got the food to go as the inside was not cleanest place. Posted on December 24, 2005

★★☆☆☆ Assalam-u-Alaikum: Of course the prices are cheap but I did not find any taste on their food. It is a self service restaurant. I did not find it very good for the family. My family did not like it at all but I like it because I don't need to spend too much money first time during my visit to Chicago. Wassalam: Fayyaz! Posted on October 7, 2005

★★★★☆ I have one word of advice for you, Carry out! This place is very dirty from inside, and the trays they served me my kabab paratha in was dirty. I was thinking about whether or not to eat my food. Finally I took the dive and ate it and i did not become sick. Stick to their biryani, clean and simple and ask for it in a carry out box, and preferably eat it at your home or hotel. The food is relatively cheap though and if you are in the chicago area for a while and on a tight budget this is a good place to go for desi's. Posted on March 22, 2005

NR I'm from toronto but whenever i go to chicago to visit family i make sure i go to gharib nawaz for breakfast lunch and dinner. The prices are incredibly low you can get a hugeass plate of biryani for like 2.50. I guess i just like the dhaba style way that the place runs and im glad that they have gotten their act together and concentrated on hygeine as well. Theres a small musallah inside and a wudu area too :-) Posted on November 17, 2004

★★★★★ I'm from toronto but whenever i go to chicago to visit family i make sure i go to gharib nawaz for breakfast lunch and dinner. The prices are incredibly low you can get a hugeass plate of biryani for like 2.50. I guess i just like the dhaba style way that the place runs and im glad that they have gotten their act together and concentrated on hygeine as well. Theres a small musallah inside and a wudu area too :-) Posted on November 17, 2004

★★★★☆ A great place for gyros and biryani. Beware, the greasy gyros paratha is heart attack waiting to happen, but you can't beat the taste or the price. Ghareeb is a lean operation. With prices so low, the food doesn't sit for too long, so there isn't a freshness problem. The place can close suddenly if they run out of food for the day. The menu is on a chalkboard and changes according to what food supplies they have on hand. Yes, cleanliness is an issue, more so here than probably any other restaurant on Devon Avenue. For this reason, I cannot give it a full 5 stars. Posted on October 29, 2004

★★★★★ Best food Posted on October 15, 2004

★★☆☆☆ I have been to Gareeb Nawaz three times all the time I said it to my self may be this time there food is not OK. But when I see the reviews and heard from couple of people I went again and the food quality was worse. Its tasted old the third time I even have to through the food and left. There Paratha was OK and the price is redicalously cheap then I said to my self. I guess what you pay what you get. Posted on July 9, 2004

★★★★★ To whom it may concern: Comments have been considered and we are now working on all the problems you fine folks have been concerned about. We are doing our best and hope that you will stay with us for all your indo-pakistani food needs. Thank you for choosing Ghareeb Nawaz. -Management P.S. I'm the management of McDonalds and have nothing to do with Ghareeb Nawaz but I'm sure that if I was the owner of Ghareeb Nawaz, I would say what I just said. Thank you for choosing McDonalds for all your greesy fast food needs. Posted on March 11, 2004

★★★★★ Ghareeb Nawaz is by far the most flavorfull and excellent zabiha/halal restaurant i have been to on Devon. It's #1 on my recomendation list. The people are very friendly and comforting. And i believe that the customers are their #1 priority....or else...why would they be so generous? Name me one other restaurant that trys so hard and adjusts themselves to fit your needs? Posted on March 10, 2004

★★★★☆ Good cheap food. I've had food from here many times. Its sometimes really good and sometimes just OK. The best thing about this place is that it is really cheap. Posted on February 16, 2004

★★★★☆ When you really want good tasting food but nothing else, you go where the taxi drivers go. Gharib Nawaz is that place. The decor has been upgraded from 'dirty' to 'uncomfortable,' but the food is excellent and the portions sizeable. Limited variety, but if you want great tasting basic biryani and other such desi staples (and don't care about appearances), come here first when on Devon. Posted on January 13, 2004

★★★★★ Excellent Food. Best prices ever. They opened another restaurant in western suburbs called Banda Nawaz. Both are great restaurants to go to. Posted on October 21, 2003

★★★★★ hi,this is one of my favouirate places to be as i am hyderbadi type of guy and the type of atmosphere i like is pretty much the same what is there at that place.i am a fan of places like that cause the food is cheap and my kind of hyderabadi taste,a must place to eat if you want to have the hyderabadi experience. Posted on July 5, 2003

★★★★★ Food is excellent. The quality is very good. Even their catering is good. Their Haleem is exquisite. Posted on February 9, 2003

★★★★☆ A great place for the bachelor and the ""gharib"". Good food within $5. The atmosphere is the typical steamy/greasy fast food type that most South Asian restaurants stoop to, but warm and congenial. A great variety of paratha wraps, all excellent. Biryani is average lamb being better than the chicken. Not a whole lot of desert to choose from, but on the bustling Devon so something could be found nearby. Parking is horrendous. Separate family room, but mainli broke bachelors. I beleive these people cater. Posted on September 30, 2002

★★★★☆ The owner belongs to mehdawi sect, a sect gone away from mainstream muslims. The food can not be guaranteed that its halal, people who care about halal should not eat there. Posted on March 19, 2002

★★★★☆ "Ghareeb Nawaz - full of people 100% of the time, not really a suitable place for ladies even though they have a family room, the chicken biryani is chancy - above excellent sometimes, ok sometimes - make sure its fresh. Lamb biryani is usually excellent because they only make it fresh and sell out of it as soon as its made, so you'll be lucky to get an order. The parathas are the safest bet, but they put a lot of onions in it. If you like onions, it's fine. Gyros, kabab parathas, etc.. all relatively inexpensive and fresh. This is a good place to eat for bachelors and married men who've argued with their wives and so don't get to eat at home, also a good place to cater parties on the cheap, and for immense sized families or students. Good on the pocket as well. But be warned, don't look at how they clean dishes and tables etc.. or you will never come here again. Ignorance can be bliss in some cases. PS - In Ramadan they are as hospitable as ever, with a generous usually expanded menu (samosas, kheer, dahi vada, etc..) and generous portions as always. " Posted on November 13, 2001

★★★★☆ Great food for less money. Good biryani, gyro paratha (my favorite). Pure zabiha/halal meat. Everybody is welcome. Posted on July 5, 2000

★★★☆☆ "The food & service was very good in the begining. After getting a good reputation, the food is now average, especially the biryani, and I got the feeling that they don't care about their customers anymore." Posted on November 5, 1999