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Name: Hema’s Kitchen
Address: 2439 W Devon Ave, Chicago, IL, 60659
Telephone: (773) 338-1627
Price range: Under $11
Rating: 3.22

Hema’s Kitchen

2439 W Devon Ave, Chicago, IL, 60659

(773) 338-1627
Store is closed

Hema’s Kitchen Menu

Appetizers

Vegetable Samosa

Vegetable Pakaros

Spinach Pakoras

Potato Bhajia

Potato Cutlets

Kheema Samosa

Shami Khebob

Tandoori Chicken

Chicken Pakora
Soups

Chicken Mulaghatani

Vegtarian Mulaghatani Soup

Tomato Soup
Hemas Sizzlers

Paneer Tikka

Lamb Boti Khebob

Sheek Khebob

Murg Malai Tikka

Shrimp Lajawab
Light Fare

Shami Roll

Chicken Roll

Sheek Khebob Roll

Veggie Roll
Seafood Entrees

Indian Fish Fry

Green Curry Fish

Curried Fish

Fish Vindaloo

Shrimp Shah Jahani

Sag Shrimp

Shrimp Vindaloo
Vegetarian Entree

Aloo Jeera

Aloo Jeera Matar

Matar Paneer

Aloo Matar

Aloo Matar Panner

Matar Mushroom

Aloo Baigan

Aloo Baigan Matar

Aloo Palak

Sag Panner

Sag Chana

Jal Frezi

Shahi Panner

Aloo Panner

Kofta Lajawab

Dal Dahkni

Dal Palak

Dal With Baigan

Navratan Curry

Vegetable Vindaloo

Dum Ki Gobi

Dum Ki Gobi Matar

Bhendi Masala

Chana Masala
Biryani

Lamb Biryani

Chicken Biryani

Shrimp Biryani

Vegetacble Biryani
Lamb Entrees

Lamb With Okra

Lamb With Baigan & Curry Leaves

Lamb Curry

Aloo Gosht

Sag Gosht

Buna Gosht

Gobi Gosht

Chana Gosht

Lamb Vindaloo

Ghosh Rogan Josh

Kheema Mater

Kheema Aloo Mater

Lamb Korma
Chicken Entrees

Chicken Vindaloo

Choosa Tikka Masala

Murg Makhani

Sag Murg

Haryali Chicken

Chana Murg

Chicken Jalfrazie

Chicken Korma

Egg Curry
Rice

Rice Plate

Peas Pilaf

Zeera Rice

Raita

Aloo Pilaf

Kheema Rice
Breads

Naan

Onion Kulcha

Garlic Naan

Keema Naan

Paratha

Pulka

Poori

Aloo Paratha

Papadam

Masala Papadam
Desserts

Pistachio (or) Mango Kulfi

Gajar Halva

Gulab Jamun

Kheer
Beverages

Mango Lassi

Flavored Lassi

Coffee (or) Tea

Masala Tea

Ginger Tea

Cans Of Regular And Diet Soda

Iced Tea

Healthy Meal suggestions for Hema’s Kitchen

Appetizers

Vegetable Samosa [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Vegetable Pakaros [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Spinach Pakoras [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Potato Bhajia [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Potato Cutlets [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Kheema Samosa [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Shami Khebob [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Tandoori Chicken [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chicken Pakora [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Soups

Chicken Mulaghatani [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Vegtarian Mulaghatani Soup [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Tomato Soup [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Hemas Sizzlers

Paneer Tikka [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Lamb Boti Khebob [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Sheek Khebob [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Murg Malai Tikka [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Shrimp Lajawab [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Light Fare

Shami Roll [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chicken Roll [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Sheek Khebob Roll [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Veggie Roll [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Seafood Entrees

Indian Fish Fry [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Green Curry Fish [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Curried Fish [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Fish Vindaloo [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Shrimp Shah Jahani [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Sag Shrimp [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Shrimp Vindaloo [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Vegetarian Entree

Aloo Jeera [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Jeera Matar [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Matar Paneer [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Matar [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Matar Panner [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Matar Mushroom [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Baigan [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Baigan Matar [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Palak [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Sag Panner [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Sag Chana [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Jal Frezi [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Shahi Panner [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Panner [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Kofta Lajawab [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Dal Dahkni [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Dal Palak [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Dal With Baigan [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Navratan Curry [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Vegetable Vindaloo [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Dum Ki Gobi [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Dum Ki Gobi Matar [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Bhendi Masala [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chana Masala [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Biryani

Lamb Biryani [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chicken Biryani [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Shrimp Biryani [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Vegetacble Biryani [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Lamb Entrees

Lamb With Okra [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Lamb With Baigan & Curry Leaves [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Lamb Curry [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Gosht [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Sag Gosht [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Buna Gosht [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Gobi Gosht [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chana Gosht [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Lamb Vindaloo [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Ghosh Rogan Josh [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Kheema Mater [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Kheema Aloo Mater [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Lamb Korma [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Chicken Entrees

Chicken Vindaloo [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Choosa Tikka Masala [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Murg Makhani [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Sag Murg [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Haryali Chicken [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chana Murg [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chicken Jalfrazie [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Chicken Korma [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Egg Curry [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Rice

Rice Plate [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Peas Pilaf [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Zeera Rice [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Raita [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Pilaf [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Kheema Rice [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Breads

Naan [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Onion Kulcha [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Garlic Naan [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Keema Naan [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Paratha [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Pulka [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Poori [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Aloo Paratha [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Papadam [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Masala Papadam [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Desserts

Pistachio (or) Mango Kulfi [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Gajar Halva [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Gulab Jamun [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Kheer [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]
Beverages

Mango Lassi [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Flavored Lassi [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Coffee (or) Tea [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Masala Tea [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Ginger Tea [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Cans Of Regular And Diet Soda [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

Iced Tea [ Carbohydrates (ms): 0, Sodium (s): 0, Saturated Fat (ms) : 0, Calories: 0, Sugar (ms): 0 ]

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Write An Anonymous Review

Ashley S.

I had a great meal here with my friends. The owner was very friendly and chatted with us for a minute before leading us to our table. She was wearing a beautiful pink sari. After we sat down, it took us a few minutes to look through the menu because there are so many good options. After we decided, though, it took forever to put our orders in. Our waiter didn't come by for 15-20 min. I had to resort to waving my arms in the air to attract his attention. We were starving and ordered 6 dishes for the 3 of us plus samosas and naan. Don't judge. The naan and samosas came out first, and they were both delicious. I tried not to fill up on them, though, because we had so much food coming. For entrees, we ordered the saag paneer, navratan curry, chana masala, a chicken dish, and two other veggie ones that I forget the names of. All of the veggie plates were so delicious, especially the saag paneer which is always my favorite. I don't eat chicken, but my friends said the chicken dish was also very good. You probably can't go wrong with anything you order here. We did have leftovers, but if you come really hungry like we did, you might want to order more than one dish for yourself or at least an appetizer because the portions are on the smaller side. The restaurant is also BYO, but if you forget to bring beer like we did, no worries. There's a liquor store a couple blocks away.
(3)
VIkram N.

My fiance and I ate at Hema's this week. We found the groupon online and decided to try the place out. We have eaten at a number of places on Devon and found that Hemas was one of the worst choices we have made for a number of reasons. We were seated and it took 15 minutes for us to even be acknowledged. When the waitress came over, she literally said "you can order now." No greeting or anything. The restaurant was not even busy. Service continued to be poor throughout the night. They never came by to refill our water and we had to ask for clean dinner plates after they brought out our entrees. As for the food, we ordered a mattar mushroom, bhindi masala and an onion kulcha. Both the mattar paneer and bhindi masala had absolutely no taste and we could not taste the any onion in the onion kulcha. After we finished, we had over half of our food left, which we brought home. I had to add tons of spices at home to make the food somewhat edible. What particularly troubles me is that Hema's is also more expensive than most of the places on devon, so you are getting extremely poor quality food for an expensive price (even with the groupon!) In conclusion, DO NOT go to hema's kitchen. There are much tastier, friendlier and better run indian options within a block of this place.
(1)
Ani K.

Horrible customer service!!! Avoid going there . If I could ,I would give them a 0 star but I am limited by Yelp
(1)
Yohini S.

Hema's could be considered to be one of the more upscale restaurants on Devon street. Unlike other Indian restaurants - it is tastefully decorated and would be a great place to take a date/friend. When we went there on a week day, Hema herself was at the front and greeted us. The place was not too busy so we got seated right away. We ordered Navaratan curry (Mixed vegetable curry) and green curry fish with rice and garlic naan. I loved the naan very much but the curries did not live up to expectations. We found green curry to be a tad bit salty but it definitely had a unique flavor (May be an off day perhaps?). Navaratan curry was good but nothing outstanding. I found the prices to be a bit more on the higher side for this area. Service was fine but food was just okay. Overall it's a decent place but I am not sure if I am would come back here with so many affordable/ good options available in the area.
(3)
Kelley B.

My husband and I ate at Hema's Kitchen on a Saturday Night. The restaurant was busy but we were seated right away. Our waitress was very friendly and knowledgeable when we had a question. Hema's is BYOB, which is always a plus. The menu is large but we order the same thing when dining at Indian restaurants so I didn't really look at all of the options offered by Hema's. We started with the Vegetable Pakaros. By themselves, they were okay, but two accompanying dipping sauces really enhanced the flavour. We also had the naan bread, chicken Tikka Masala, Sag Panner, which is fresh spinach and homemade cheese simmered in spices and gravy, and the Rice Plate. We really wanted to end the meal with Gulab Jamun, but unfortunately, they were out of it. Probably for the best because I was very full. Overall, I would recommend eating here, if you are in the area. Parking was a nightmare, but after circling the block, we were able to find metered parking near the restaurant. The flavors were as expected and we enjoyed our meal here.
(4)
Allison B.

So tasty! We had the sag murg (chicken, spinach, spices) and the Chana gosht (chickpeas, lamb) with rice and naan. We basically licked the plate clean. Also tried tandoori chicken which was a bit spicy for me, but my boyfriend loved it. We've been to Hamas several times now, and have been very happy with our experiences. ALSO, BYOB!
(5)
Dalton A.

Best indian food I've had in Chicago. Aloo Matar Paneer is the way to go! Hema is the owner and checks you out on your way out of the door. Make sure to get a side or rice and garlic naan as it is not included. Great portion sizes, and makes a nice reasonably priced date for two. Can't go wrong on Devon!
(5)
Hallie M.

At this point, they could make food that tastes like gold, and I would never order from here ever again. We placed an order for deliver 2 hours ago. Called once assured it would be here shortly. Called again, and got hung up on. Called a third time, continuing to be assured that it was on its way. That was 10 minutes ago, still nothing. Update: The food came cold and the delivery driver was clueless. To top it off, rice was not included so we are now cooking rice. Won't order from here again. Ever.
(1)
Holly R.

When you eat the food here, you realize you haven't really been eating Indian food at other places. Every dish I have tried has been a treat for my taste buds. All of the flavor, none of the grease. I wish it was closer to public transportation because the parking near there is painful, but once the food arrives, you tend to forget about that part.
(5)
Eric G.

My friend and I spent an explosive fourth of July dining here after a quick visit to Clark and Devon's "boys in blue" station. We went there voluntarily...not in handcuffs. So no explosions there. Since we were in the area, we decided to stop for Indian cuisine and chose Hema's based on my friend's previous positive meal there from years back. The first thing my friend noted when we came in was that the interior was less divey than previous. I did note there was an area where it looked like they were patching up the ceiling and hadn't gotten around to painting. The walls were a tumeric like color (which seems typical in Indian restaurants) and had various paintings that helped set the tone of the place. The restaurant was near empty save a single lady in one table and a man with child in another on the far right. It was around 4PM and assumed things were busier in the evening. We were seated in a middle table with lucky 13 as our table number. Our server appeared to be a novice as she didn't explain portion sizes at all which came to bite us later when ordering naan and rice with our meals. She also didn't take away our menus after ordering even as we motioned to give them to her. I was excited to see they had Keema Samosas (a favorite of mine from Himalayan Restaurant in Niles). So we ordered that along with Spinach Pakoras. The Samosas were smaller than the ones at Himalayan (plus I had to split it with my friend...*LOL*) but to its credit, they were more flavorful that Himalayan. The Spinach Pakoras had a nice crunchy taste to it. They provided the standard red and green sauces (the names I always forget) but they were tiny servings of both. I ordered a Mango Lassi which was okay. For my main meal I ordered something different called Sag Shrimp, which was basically shrimp with fresh spinach simmered. It probably could have used a little more spice but it was good. My friend at first ordered Lamb Vindaloo but hoped they would make it less spicy. Unfortunately we were told based on the sauces that are used, there's no way they could accommodate that request so a different server (she seemed a little more experienced) suggested the Lamb Curry, which my friend liked. Where things could've been explained better was that we could have ordered one rice portion instead of two with the amount of rice given. One order would've been enough. Same with the naan. But hey...I guess more leftovers. Also they never did take our dishes away after we were done. There was a group of six servers just standing around in the back chatting away with not a care in a world for several minutes. One had to be flagged down to give us our check and doggie containers. In fact the dishes were still at our table when we finally paid and left. The food was pretty good...the service was very mediocre. At one point one server bought out our entrees without giving us the main plates. My friend and I sat there thinking are we supposed to eat from our appetizer plates. We were still working on the appetizers though so that kept us busy when the "experienced but rude" server came by minutes later to bring our plates. So it averages out to somewhere in the middle for me.
(3)
Yesenia S.

Hema's lost a longtime customer today. I waited over two hours for my delivery. The most infuriating part was when I called to check up on the order - I was simply lied to. "The order is on the way, will be there in 10 minutes" turned into another 25 minute wait. When the delivery person finally arrived, he didn't have an apology or a bonus item to offer to make up for Hema's failure. The good news is there are tons of excellent restaurants on Devon (like Tiffin, an old favorite) from which to choose instead.
(1)
Roseann M.

Dinner on a recent Monday night was a disappointing experience on several levels. The food was only average, but the server we had was really bad. First, the food. I had the vegetable biryani. Somehow I thought vegetables and rice meant VEGETABLES!!! and rice. You know, big chunks of vegetables. Apparently not. What I got was an Indian version of Chinese fried rice. The vegetables were few and tiny. Although the portion was huge, it was unsatisfying. It was just rice. I asked for medium spice, and I thought it was mildly spicy. There was no "kick" at all. Just a great big Indian yawn. My friend had the Lamb Vindaloo. She liked it. You only get lamb; no rice comes with it. Since I had mass quantities of rice, she took some of mine. We also ordered a garlic naan. Very garlicky, which we liked. The restaurant is BYOB, but we stuck with water. And one reason we only had water was because no one ever asked us if we wanted anything else to drink. That was our wonderful server. She was a young Indian woman, probably early 20's. She was so bad, my friend and I were laughing out loud by the time we were finished eating. The one thing the server did well was get our orders right. She didn't write anything down, either. As a former waitress, I do think it's best to write things down. Then you don't have to remember anything. She repeated what we said, and she got it right. You can see by the earlier paragraphs here that we weren't exactly particular our meals. We took them as they were, and we only ordered three items. Days later, I have to wonder if the lax service was because we had a Groupon. I put it out on our table as soon as we sat down, and I mentioned it to the server. There's no way to tell, of course, but it is a possibility. We got no greeting from her. She never checked on us once we ordered; a young man delivered the food, so she didn't even have to do that. By the way, only five tables were occupied at that time. The serving staff didn't have to break a sweat. She was in a big hurry for us to order; a big hurry for us to finish; and finally, a big hurry for us to pay. She dropped the check on the table and then stood there, looking at us, waiting. Finally we said, we'll take a look at the bill and have it ready in a few minutes. Not two minutes later, she was back. We said we weren't ready yet. Finally, my friend, let's just get this done. We figured out the tip (yes, we tipped, and on the pre-Groupon deduction), counted out the cash, and put it down. When she walked by a few minutes later, my friend held it out to her, and she just kept walking without taking it. That's when my friend and I broke out in laughter. We just couldn't believe how bad that girl was! Maybe my friend and I are too nice. Hema herself was sitting at the front desk when we left. We did not tell her about our dining experience. Of course, she did not say "How was dinner?" We just left. I don't think I'd go again. If the food had been fabulous, maybe we would overlook the rotten service and just hope we had a professional waiter next time. But the food was unremarkable. We can get better elsewhere.
(2)
Ben N.

If the menu at Hema's Kitchen offers an Indian-food experience that's safer and more predictable for non-Indians than you're likely to get at other restaurants on Devon, it's still a quite a good one. It's not all that promising when you walk in, though: The room is long, cave-like, and somewhat dreary and dim, with drab, dated decor. It was empty on a Sunday afternoon at 12:30, although about a half-dozen other tables filled while we were there. And our young server was friendly enough, but her attitude about getting drinks to our table was a little carefree. The food won us over, though. We mostly went with conventional selections: Lamb vindaloo was tender and bold, and saag choley had a deeper and more complex flavor profile than the average saag dish. Bhendi masala, an okra dish, was not quite as good, but still satisfying. Onion kulcha was very nice, too, and some of the "green peppers" with which it is purportedly stuffed were of the jalepeno variety. We'd never had the appetizer shami khebab before: It's a delicate cake of lamb and lentils that was great. Only real disappointment at the table were the vegetable samosas, which were pretty bland. FWIW, I suspect heat levels are kept ratcheted down for the non-Indian clientele. We ordered our stuff at 7 and 8, and the heat in it didn't register all that much.
(4)
Mink L.

First off, the food at Hema s Kitchen was great! We ordered the samosas, lamb vindaloo, chicken masala, Nan, rice plate and sag paneer. The spices of all were very well balanced . Tasted like everything was made to order. Only complaint we have was the service. Young female server, very slow, not very friendly, and besides taking our order never came by. Well, at the very end to bring our checks, and finally a smile. It also didn't help dropping silverware while taking our plates and getting Indian spices on my leg. Some more water and napkins please? Half way through our meal, we had to ask where our rice was. The food was so good. Just wish the service would follow . I'm sure we can find a place with great food and great service with the ambiance that follows. Right?
(3)
Jen K.

Please excuse the lack of dish names in this review, I'm still an Indian food novice and usually just say "can I get that thing?". My group and I chose to venture here because it looks to be the highest rated, and I can see why. The food was great. The restaurant isn't anything special but it fits in with the area. The service is very "to the point" which is fine because they were not impolite. The samosas were awesome, but I don't really know what was in each one. The chicken (masala??) was also amazing. I know I had lamb and plenty of other food options to go with naan. Everything was good and the price point was awesome. To top it off, it's BYOB
(4)
Angie M.

Absolutely delicious food!! My friend picked me up at the airport and brought me straight here. We had Garlic Naan, Chicken Masala, Regular Naan, and a few other dishes I cant even remember the names of.... I tried to pull up the website to see the menu but my work computer marked it as dangerous and blocked it. The food was absolutely amazing, if I am ever back in the Chicago area, I WILL BE BACK! :) It was the perfect start to my amazing vacation.
(5)
Scott J.

Let me first tell you it was my birthday and made a reservation for Saturday evening for six. We arrived on time and the hostess seemed "confused" and asked us to wait. Instead of being seated at one of the nice tables reserved in the dining room, after fifteen minutes we were taken to the darkest back corner to be seated at a table without plates or dinnerware. We had to flag down a waitress to get us setup and place our orders. Since this was a celebration much table talk ensued and time passed by.. Finally we got the attention of our waitress after 40 minutes and asked where our food was? The young lady was obviously flustered and said she had forgotten to place the order in the kitchen. I was once a waiter too and asked her to place the order. No harm was done,it was an honest mistake. When the food finally did arrive, our selections were lukewarm and flavor was at best mediocre, for an Indian Restaurant claiming to be an "authentic" owner run establishment. The next time we will go elsewhere.
(2)
Janis T.

Great flavors. But I have to comment on the multiple chicken bones I had to pick out of my mouth while chewing...also some funky rubbery stuff. I ordered one of the "casserole" type dishes...don't remember name. Also Tandoori chicken was extremely dry and almost inedible.
(2)
Chris W.

Two words ... NEVER AGAIN ! My favorite food in the world is Indian, and last night I thought that I'd trek over to Devon to check out Hema's Kitchen. Well, let's first start things off by saying - they weren't all that busy and the service stunk. It took our server about 20 ... closing in on 25 minutes to open our bottle of wine. Okay fine. So, I placed my order for food, and while it came out much quicker than I expected, it was HORRIBLE. The worst part was that the chicken was greasy and fatty. Ugh! I could get sick just thinking about it. Again ... never again!
(1)
Tiffany R.

I read the reviews and was surprised that people said they had bad service, the wait staff is one of the things i really like about this place. I drive all the way from the south side to come here. The wait staff isn't in your face every two seconds but they are super nice. The restaurant and bathroom is super clean which is a plus for me.
(4)
Brian H.

Nice, friendly and attentive service complements food that, on my one visit so far, was very nice and tending to healthier options if desired. I had aloo baigan matar which I requested as medium spicy with minimal oil. It was terrific. Next time though, I'll try it full spicy. On the side, I got pulka made perfectly soft with minimal oil, as I would wish, though I did not specify that; and the plain rice too was fresh with less oil and less salt than the norm for Indian restaurants in the USA. On a street with tremendous competition, Hema's has the potential to become a place I return to.
(5)
Dave M.

We ordered take out and really enjoyed the meal! The Matar Paneer was good - it had plenty of cheese and just enough peas. We also ordered Haryali Chicken and this was also prepared just right! Please note that the food is on the spicer end of the spectrum but that should definitely be expected. Overall, we really enjoyed our meal and we can't wait to order from here again!
(4)
Jesse T.

Writing this review solely on the hours. Stopped in at 12:01 today for lunch and the doors are locked. The guy inside looks at his watch and tells me to come back in 10 minutes. I don't think so... If you say you open at 11:00 then do it! Even noon. But don't pull the "whenever I want to open" routine because it's not a widely accepted business practice...
(1)
Mat M.

If you like Indian food, then you should trek up to Little India at Devon/Western for some diner at Hema's. This location is authentic, very large and has delicious food. Hema herself is usually working the front counter. Hema's is certainly worth 5 stars for the food - but the service is really a miss, so that's why I've only given 4 stars. On the bright side, good food and BYOB - it doesn't get much better. If you've never had Indian - give it a try, it's going to change your life!
(4)
Calin D.

Hema's has excellent Vegetarian food, as well as great spicy Lamb Vindaloos. (They even made it hot enough for me, which is rare.) Their Naan breads and Samosas are all good, they have American style iced-tea, and the service, price, and atmosphere are also good. Overall, an excellent choice for an affordable night out with the family.
(4)
G W.

This review is for the catering service. My husband and I subcontracted through Paramount Events (one of the vendors on the required list at our venue) to have Hema's food served at our wedding. The food was good and my husband and I can handle it spicy, but we specifically asked multiple times that the food be cooked "mild" for all the elderly white people and not those used to Indian food etc. at our wedding. Hema stated that she understood and we even did a "tasting" (which she charged us full restaurant price for) of a dish with mild flavoring beforehand - it was spiced exactly how we wanted. But on the day of the wedding, not only did she call my husband in the middle of picture-taking to ask for an extra tip for her servers (she claimed she was cooking the food herself and our caterers picked it up, so who was the tip for?) but over half of the dishes were too spicy for some of our guests to enjoy, which was a shame. The food was good, but what we agreed upon beforehand was not followed, and the money-hungry attitude is ridiculously obvious.
(2)
Perry M.

I never had a bad meal here. Yes service can be slow but the food shines through. Love the Tandoori Chicken, Samosa, Tikka Masala, Aloo Gobi. Everything is awesome. Dine in or take out. BYOB. Yeah baby!
(5)
Kirbhashankar P.

The ambience is good but don't go with that the food is nominal and the service is the worst .. We just ordered a couple of dishes and the waitress completely forgot our order and kept on asking us is everything good .. Even after telling that we didn't receive the order , she checked and came back saying that we did not order.. We got frustrated after a while and abt to cancel some other waitress brings it .. No coordination .. So if you have plenty of time and want an ordinary food you can try this place..
(2)
Purva D.

Food was tasty and our server was making suggestions with our order very well , like she told us that the gravy for paneer tikka masala and malai kofta is the same so we should go for either 1 of them . Now the not so good part is : serving size is small . Also the sequence in which our food was presented to us is : 1. main course 2. water 3. plates , cutlery & napkins 4. appetizers :-( :-( :-( if you are lucky this may not happen to you.
(3)
Harold O.

Hema, get back in the kitchen! I went here with three friends on a Wednesday evening. The restaurant was not terribly busy. However, service was abysmal. After asking for water THREE TIMES, we just stole glasses from an empty table and found a pitcher. Our entrees arrived well before our appetizers, and it took THREE TIMES ASKING to get rice. The service aside, the food was excellent. I'd recommend this place highly for take-out or perhaps delivery, but skip going there in person. Hema was at the register the entire two hours we sat there. I think her services are clearly needed in the kitchen, or delivering food to the tables.
(3)
Rebecca O.

The food here is amazing but the service is abysmal. One of the waitresses was pretty rude. They forgot one of our appetizers and one of our drinks (it turns out, they were out of mango lassi's anyway). They also didn't bring us silverware or plates until we were halfway though the meal (we were hungry and just picking up everything with naan)... Only 2/4 of our water glasses were ever filled, once, throughout the meal. The real kicker, though, is we had to ask for rice a whopping total of 3 times before they actually brought it out. I don't know that the quality of the food is worth coming back here...
(2)
Harsh S.

The non vegetarian menu had a lot of varieties. The food tasted good and the quantity was optimum as well.
(4)
SJ A.

I tried Hemas kitchen in both locations. Devon ave and L. Park. Overall, the food was good in both places. However I personally feel that Devon's was better though. When I went with a bunch of co workers to the one in L. park, we stood outside for about 10 minutes or so outside, as they decided not to open the restaurant on time. Once we went inside and started to order the waiter starts telling us that some of the items we picked are not available. Needless, to say it was annoying indeed. Keep in mind there is no buffet at Hemas kitchen (AFAIK). Again, no complaints about the food. However tandoori seriously lacked any flavor whatsoever. chicken biryani was good. Reason for a star off is that ( I should take two off actually) when we stop by on a long weekend for lunch at this location and the service was a nightmare. There was only ONE waiter for the entire location, seriously!?? on a long weekend. The owner was nice enough to come and say " we are taking our own time, so you take your own time to eat". Thanks but no thanks. If not for the decent food, I would not step in there for the "awesome" service they provided. The poor waitress was running around like a chicken taking orders, obviously looking unhappy. I have no clue why they are so so "frugal" (cheap, to be blunt) to have just one waitress on a long weekend. I realize that the food may be decent but don't kill yourself by providing pathetic service.
(3)
Peter K.

Just drove to Hemas because I had a taste for their Indian food and the website says they open at 11am. Waited for over 30 minutes and when no one showed up I took my business to another popular Indian restaurant on Devon. Even one of the workers was waiting outside to start work.
(1)
Karen Anne B.

The food was good, but the service was terrible and the atmosphere left a lot to be desired. I met up with a large group here. It seemed to take forever for them to take our orders. Once we did, some ordered naan or an app, others did not. But when the food would come out, instead of trying to figured out who had ordered what, they would just set it wherever and leave. We recived similar treatment with the beverages, which took forever to arrive. When the entrees came out, they did take the time to deliver them to the proper person, but when it was time for desert we got the same drop-and-run treatment. In addition to their indifference about who ordered what, the staff was a bit rude. The server asked me a question and I answered it three times before she was paying enough attention to notice. The place also feels a bit more like a cafeteria. It's loud, the floors are tile, the walls are dented and dinged up, exposing the white plaster beneath the bright paint. When they cleared some of the tables they would wheel a cart out with tubs and loudly fill them up. It was really kind of tacky. When the check came they wouldn't spit it for us, so we all put in cash and one person paid with a credit card. Again, the credit card was handed to me even though it had a man's name on it and she had taken it from the person whose card it was - at the opposite end of the table. They then came back and asked if we would tip in cash. If a group of friends was coming here again, I might go along for the ride, but I certainly would never recommend this place.
(2)
Sarah P.

Our server was a young unpleasant girl with a total attitude. She was inattentive and at times huffy even. Plates were never cleared from the table (the owner started taking them away once they were piling up), we asked several times for ice for my 9 months pregnant sister until she slammed a glass on the table after finally bringing it to us and never checked back after our entrees were delivered until we flagged her down. Thankfully the food was amazing. 5 stars for the food 1 star for the service
(3)
Raj P.

Sooo I went here a while back. If you're a connoisseur of Indian food, avoid. I grew up with Indian food. It courses through my veins. I know what's good and what's not. The problem is that Hema's management knows that your average american diner is not like this. They know this and exploit it well. It's a good place to get a quick fix but if you want good Indian food, try elsewhere.
(2)
Vijay V.

Firstly food is OK, not worth the hype. Lacked flavor, was under cooked and Oily. Although the waiters were humble they fumble..they tender to forget the order .. And delay the orders..when repeatedly asked for it, they were confused and asked us what we had ordered. Oops.. Not good at all..
(2)
Lisa A.

I like to review a restaurant after a second turn just to be sure of its consistency and Hema's kitchen is one of the best for Indian food in West Rogers Park. Samosas are a standard for appetizers, but I am glad to have tried an appetizer I would never have ordered that was sent to our table by mistake and it was the sheek kabob-minced lamb marinated in herbs and spices. The chicken roll that we ordered was not as good as the sheek kabob though. The entrees were delightful-chicken vindaloo and Dum ki Gobi Matar
(4)
A. W.

Two main points you must know before you go : 1) They may say they are open until 11 pm --- but what they don't tell you is that the kitchen closes at 10 pm. Not standard restaurant listing procedure. Arrived at 9:50 and were rudely told about this. We should've just left then. 2) Possibly some of the worst service I have ever encountered. Perhaps they were peeved we were there late -- but it's a Friday night, it's a party of 4, we're probably going to drop 100 bucks or more. But whatever, the incidents that happened probably would've happened even at 7 pm. So we had 2 staff members helping with the table : -- Took 4 requests to get wine glasses from Server One (it's byob). Plus seemed really annoyed that we asked to put one of our bottles of wine in the freezer to quickly chill it. -- While we were helping clear off appetizer plates for Server Two, I was removing my fork from a small plate and it dropped to the floor. Oops, no biggie. But I can't reach it to put it on one of the plates being removed from the table. So the server bends down to get it... and puts it back on the table, on my own knife! From the floor to my knife and the table in general. All four of us are staring, flabbergasted. I'm not one of those huge germophobes -- a little dirt or unknown grossness isn't going to scare me. But a fork from the restaurant floor then to the tabletop? Wow. So I kindly ask for some new silverware and the gentleman seems dumbfounded that I would request such (geez, some people would've asked for a whole new table cloth). We simply could not believe what we had seen. -- All night had server arms and hands busting through our personal space and taking away dishes from us that we were still eating off of/pushing into leftover containers/etc. Ya buddy, we know it's getting late, but seriously, stop acting like the fifth person at the table. (We finally had to firmly suggest that we would have the plates piled for him when we were done, as in scram!) -- During one of these exchanges, the server who wants us to clear off and leave actually stops what he is doing and answers his cell phone! A server with a cell phone? A bartender on a dead night, I don't mind. But a server taking a phone call while he is already consistently rude to us? Ugh. His wife better be 8 months and 30 days pregnant. -- Not a single question all night. No "how are things?" No "are you still working on this dish?" No "may I bring you more rice or more water?" The food? Look... it was fine. Not groundbreaking. Expected and fine. If I wasn't so rushed and flabbergasted at the employees, perhaps I would've enjoyed the meal more. But even if the food was spectacular, I would never return -- with so many other options around, why support a place with such horrendous customer service? And don't forget! If you do choose to go (ugh)... get there WAAAAY before 10 pm.
(1)
Joe R.

I've been to both of the Hema's multiple times. The food is always very good, but the service is hit or miss. The service at the Devon location was really quite poor last time I was there. The place was mostly empty, but the disinterested young girl waiting on me still managed to ignore me for a good ten minutes before she brought us a menu, and then another interminable wait before she took our order. And her sour demeanor and inattentiveness was a mild annoyance throughout the meal. This is in contrast to Hema, who seems like an adorable, bubbly woman. She even joked around with me and my date on the way to our table. The food is really quite tasty. The Shahi Paneer may be the tastiest thing I've ever eaten. Just typing this makes me want to eat some right now. Hopefully the service is more pleasant next time I dine at Hema's, so I can give them the five star review their food deserves.
(4)
J M.

Great food and helpful service that moves at a casual pace. The food was terrific. Only a couple small gripes: "spicy" dishes weren't as spicy as advertised; the portions are a bit overpriced. That said, we had enough food to have leftovers.
(4)
Judy M.

We had bought a Groupon and thought we'd try Hema's Kitchen. The food was very good. We particularly liked the Mulaghatani soup, very interesting flavors that I've never had elsewhere in a soup.The Lamb Boti Khebob was very good too. You can ask for mild, medium or spicy but we forgot to and it was a little too spicy for my husband. Well priced, but it can add up as you have to pay a little extra for bread and rice if you want it. THe service was a little strange. We didn't know who was our waiter exactly and had to ask for water refills a lot. It took them a while to come take our order and then we got our soup and main course at the same time. That is why it gets three stars.
(3)
Wendy H.

The food is awesome! The service terrible! I've been here a few times service has always been sketchy at best. Today we went and the service was so terrible I doubt I would return no matter how good the food. We were seated by a person how seemed insulted that we would like a table. We were the only ones there. We had to ask to order, never an answer to questions beyond a terrible look. Food came we had to ask for plates. they put food on table and walked away without giving us plates! I'm not making this up! With so many Indian restaurants in the city you'd think they would make an effort. The food is good but totally not worth the frustration of the terrible service. I'm done
(2)
Judith K.

Waited outside to have lunch here. Restaurant was supposed to open at 11am. We arrived at Noon. Doors were locked. We called and they said they would open in 5 minutes. 20 minutes later doors still locked. Glad we made this out destination...NOT!
(1)
adam C.

Great food, but the waitress did mention as she handed back the credit card "Can you tip with cash, the owner doesn't let us keep any of our tips." I gladly did, and gave some extra. So great food, great wait staff, terrible leech of an owner. Shameful dealings from one of the paragons of indian food in Chicago.
(3)
Anni S.

Yesterday was the first time that I went to Hema's, and of course never going back there again. This is not about the food but the sheer cruelty with which the owner treats her employees. I do not want to spend a single buck at a restaurant which will help a nasty old woman get richer. I would encourage all others to stay away from this restaurant. I was just in the middle of my dinner when I heard and saw the owner blast a young female server. If it was so unpleasant for me, I can't even imagine how that young girl felt being screamed at in front of the customers she had been taking care of. It was a bad decision to have dinner here on a Saturday night and I am telling all my friends and relatives to not dine here.
(1)
Jack D.

Hema's probably has the best tasting Indian food in Chicago. I can't recommend the food highly enough, but I have a few caveats. Number one, either I've been growing larger or their portions have been shrinking. I can't begin to express just how disappointing it is to receive what you anticipate will be the best food you've had all week, only to find only a few smallish pieces of delicious meat floating in a container of lonely, albeit delicious, sauce. For the price it's an injustice, honestly. Another thing: the prices. Almost all the items in each section cost the same price. While this may be justifiable, it just strikes me as strange. Going down the vegetarian entrees 23 of 24 are $9.99 (currently). Lamb entrees, (my favorite is lamb with okra, except like I mentioned, it only comes with maybe five pieces of meat), 13 dishes and 11 are $11.99. So, it may be petty but it's weird. Ok, delivery. I've ordered maybe 8 times now and twice it's take over an hour and a half, and they forget stuff. No rice, for instance. Or worse, no bread. If you're familiar with Indian, imagine getting your dinner and no bread. So, you call them, and they say they know and it's coming now. 45 minutes later, after your initial hour to hour-and-a-half wait, you get bread and you can now eat dinner. To make matters worse, their apology is pretty mild. As far as I'm concerned good customer service dictates if you screw up an order you compensate the customer. Either you take money off the order, or if you're a clever entrepreneur you offer a free entree "next time". My advice to potential customers is go. Its delicious, so go, but bring your credit card because its going to cost more than you think. You're going to probably need two entrees per person ($10 - $13 ea), plus 1-2 pieces of bread ($2 - $3.50 ea), rice ($3 - $7 good for 2-4 ppl) and possibly an appetizer ($4) or a drink if you're feeling crazy. All told, $30 and up per person (at least in our experience). Also, only order for delivery if you feel like you could stave off hunger for over an hour. Still, you should go, it's delicious. Did I say that already? Yes, go.
(3)
Renee F.

Terrible customer service! Sure, it was busy. I can allow for slower service. But the waiter was clueless about doing damage control. No apologies for the fact that he lost our order. Plus, it took an hour just to figure it out. Without an apology, I might add. The hostess (possibly Hema herself) was nice enough to step in & offer to comp the appetizers. But that was all. Shoulda left then. Waited another hour for the food which is good. But nothing special. Doubtful I'll be back with so many other options in the neighborhood.
(2)
Greg K.

Haryali Chicken qualifies as a death bed meal. Naan was some of the best I've had, if not the best. This is a great place to go with a few friends and share different curries. It's not the dirt cheap Indian place. You do have to pay extra for naan and rice, but the quality of the curries overshadows that. Bring your own beer.
(5)
Nick S.

The food here was excellent. Tried the bhindi - probably the best I've ever had in my life. The egg curry was good also and the veggie biryani was good. Service was disorganized and screwed up a few times, but the food is good enough to ignore that.
(4)
John L.

This was an excellent meal - but the service was just fair. Our young waitress was correct and helpful, just didn't really move all that fast. If the other comments about tips being kept are true, that would explain her lack of sizzle. Come for the food all the same. Rich colors and fragrances. Excellent, crispy/doughy naan, and a very accurate "heat range" option means everyone will enjoy the dishes they order.
(4)
Norman M.

I dont know what has happened to this place. It used to be the best Indian restaurant in Chicago. It has really fallen off of the cliff. I was there with a groupon last Sunday evening. I got there at 9:20 pm [Closing time is 11 pm] As soon as I walked in, I was met by two bummy looking waiters. I felt as though they were hustling me. Right away they said I needed to order fast as the boss lady wanted to close early. I should have left. This was a sign of things to come. I told them I knew what i wanted and could order fast. { In a quality restaurant, you dont want to be rushed.] I told them I had a groupon....they said they only serve 2 people with the groupon...They escorted me to the door. I saw Mrs. Hema there and told her about my groupon.. She said I could stay. I ordered chicken biyiani. It had small bone fragments and a bone about one inch long. In fried rice dishes, bones are not supposed to be there. The dish was average. Nothing special. I ordered lamb seefka khabob. The plate looked empty; 3 rolled up lamb sausages with a little cooked onion. {Viceroy across the street gives you a heeping place of onion. ] They were good. I had the impression the waiters may have assisted in the kitchen with the rapid serving. This was a miserable experience. I took home half of the chicken biyriani and did not eat it. i was afraid of the bones. What the hell is going on here? Who would want to work here? Did I get an inferior meal because I told them about my groupon? I felt a bit ill after the meal. Sadly, I have another groupon left. I'll give them another try. However, it is unlikely I'll return to Hema's I am finding other restaurants are cutting corners with quality. I may have to buy stuff at Whole Foods and make my own food. I'm afraid of what is going on in the restaurant industry.
(1)
Ramiro G.

My favorite Indian restaurant in Chicago! Its not fancy, but the food is superb, and its quite cheap, BYOB. Hema usually walks around to check that everyone is satisfied, defiantly worth the drive from Downtown. Try the lamb samosas!!!
(5)
Aashish A.

Horrible service. The waitress banged the plates on our table and in general the entire restaurant was in a chaos. Waiters talking loudly, and nobody paying attention. The food was bad too. It was swimming in oil and was very hot/spicy in spite of asking it to be medium hot.
(2)
Sara S.

Food was great (except for the overcooked samosas), but service, not so much. At one point, I heard a loud crash and the server was pouring silverware out of a metal bowl in the dining room instead of the kitchen. She was not terribly attentive to her [three] tables, but she did bring a pitcher of water when requested as the glasses weren't staying full.
(3)
Michel G.

Having been in the restaurant and hotel industry for many years now, I understand the challenges restaurant can face due to being understaffed, surprised by a sudden dinner rush or other factors. I've been to Hema's on Clark and found both service and food to be outstanding. However our experience this past Saturday evening at the Devon location was indeed very disappointing. We entered the place around 7:30 pm and were actually seated after only a 5 minutes wait. So far so good. The server came by and took our order around 10 minutes later. So far so good too. But then literally nothing for half an hour. No water refill, no appetizers, nothing. Two servers in a packed restaurant on a Saturday night just doesn't fly! Bussing and resetting tables, taking orders, running food, taking care of payments? The team was totally overwhelmed and we decided to leave Hema's without having eaten. Fortunately Tiffin across the street had plenty availability and served us well. Please fix your staffing issues immediately!
(1)
Eric P.

There is a reason Indians don't eat here. Usually Americans or tourists, unaware of more authentic version of the cuisine, dine on their food. Trust me and venture out ,keeping your eyes open to where Indians eat. This applies for Chinese, Thai, African, Italian, and etc. It will fill your belly, yes. But why deny yourself the opportunity to eat food prepared in a manor done so for hundreds of years, and tastes which you have never ever experienced before in your mouth? Isn't that the purpose of venturing into foreign cuisine? Imagine as though you are an Indian reviewing McDonalds as local , Western cuisine at it's finest. Anyone with a palate heightened more than a 10 year old would argue. After viewing the waitstaff put each of my ordered plates into the microwave before arrival at my table, I was sold on the unauthentic vibe I was about encounter. The food also does not come with Rice or bread, a very strange thing if you have are familiar with Asian dining. You have to order ,and pay for these staples.. little like going to a steak house, and getting just a slab of meat with your order; sides cost extra. Their Bryiyani was microwaved for 6 minutes (I watched and counted) and tasted much like that Spanish rice you get with beans on the side of your taco. My dinning guest was Asian and believed for a minute she was eating Chicken Fried Rice from Chinese Express. The Bill, at last, was fairly expensive, which concluded my adventure into the world of bland.
(1)
Whitney B.

It was really a shame that Hema's Kitchen handled a simple mistake so poorly tonight. First, we ordered delivery though GrubHub.com . The order took a while, but we were willing to wait for what has always been great food. When it arrived and we unpacked the food, we found out that we had the wrong order. No worries, mistakes happen . . . we will just call the restaurant. And that's when the trouble started . . . We called the restaurant, and the woman on the phone was very polite and told us that she would call the driver and send her back. Someone returned 20 minutes later . . . without our order. The driver, who was also very polite, asked if we checked all the entrees to make sure that they weren't ours. When we said yes, he said that we should make sure. When I explained that I was quite sure that this wasn't our order - mainly because we had a receipt that had the incorrect order on it stapled to the bag - he took it all back and then said that we should give them 20 minutes to get us the right order. We called GrubHub.com's customer service, and they then got onto the phone with Hema's Kitchen. After another 10 minutes, we received a call back only to find out that after waiting what was now 2 hours for food, Hema's was doing us a huge favor by offering us $10 off our order. By the way, the tip and delivery fee totaled $14. And I live about a 10 minute drive in traffic from the restaurant. When we explained that that was not acceptable for this kind of total lack of basic customer service, we got yet ANOTHER phone call from the restaurant. The manager/owner (I don't know which one it was) asked if I was the one that sent the food back, and he proceeded to question me again as to whether I had properly checked to see if the food was mine. This questioning lasted a full five minutes, and I was asked to repeat at least three times whether I actually opened the food to check it. When I explained that it was, he told me that he would send another order and hung up. It was at this point that GrubHub.com customer service called me back and explained that Hema's would now offer me $24.00 off my order . . . which was now 2.5 hours late. When I explained that at this point I would prefer to have a refund, GrubHub.com processed that refund. But it was what happened next that truly set me over the edge. About 20 minutes after I got off the phone with GrubHub.com , someone from Hema's Kitchen called me again . . . now a little over three hours after I have placed my original order, which has since been canceled. I was then offered 50% off my order, and when I explained that at this point I no longer wanted the order, the man on the phone said "Well, we already made it, but fine." And then hung up on me. I am so disappointed that the total lack of acceptable customer service has ruined Hema's Kitchen for me. I have always enjoyed Hema's, and I have NEVER had an experience like this before. But for the cost of the food and the amount of time we had to wait, the terrible customer service is simply not worth it. It's a real shame because they used to be so great.
(1)
M. Tiffany B.

Hands down some of the best Indian food I've had in the city and it fits well for people on a budget especially if u share with a friend!
(4)
Cassie S.

Apparently they are not known for online ordering.....too bad, I was looking forward to it. Never will know, nor go back.
(1)
Gabe M.

One of the worst dining experiences I have had in recent memory. My wife and I were quite hungry at about 11:15 on Saturday, we looked up Indian places that were "Open" at that time, Hema's Kitchen came up saying that it opened at 11am. We drove to Devon and got there at about 11:45. The Open sign was not lit, we went in anyway and say another 2 people waiting for their seat, they said, They don't open until 12pm. Um, ok. So five minutes later a guy comes out and seats us, the floors were very wet from just being mopped, thats ok, cleanliness is good. Then we get some water, then we wait, and wait and wait, then the lady, maybe it was Hema comes out and takes our order at 12:20, then we wait, and wait and wait, and then our food comes at 12:45, an hour after we set foot in the place. In between that time a girl comes and asks what we ordered so she can "Put it in the computer". Why couldn't she have asked Hema in the back? So crazy. Then while we are sitting there we can hear Hema screaming very loudly, mind you there is no music or anything in the dining area so we basically listen to yelling for about 30 minutes while waiting for our food. Was really hoping this place would have been good. I'm going to stick with Essence of India where they actually care about good service to their customers.
(1)
Justin B.

Everything I've read about Little India seems to indicate that Hema's is the place to start, even if it may not be the best...but after not having Indian food at all this calendar year (shameful, I know), I have to say that Hema's is solid. Veggie samosas, lamb biryani, chicken tikka masala, sag paneer, four different kinds of naan/paratha...it was all great, maybe not eye-popping or spectacular but a solid .275 hitter, that solid second scoring option off the bench, you know? The space was fairly plain and empty last night, but otherwise a great experience. My BYO combo of a Sapporo and then Bailey's for dessert may have been a factor in this review. ("may") Service was a little spotty given that in India, people are diving to your table every three minutes offering to provide more help, and at Hema's, let's just say that our server didn't bother dropping by every three minutes!
(4)
Alpha M.

Let me tell you about this woman, she helps people in need but takes advantage of them when she needs them. She is very business minded and will go to any extent to make her moolah!!. Secondly she does not pay TIPS to her employees, she hires people who are studying and making a living. She makes money on people's misery and exploits them. I had a friend who worked for her and she never paid them tips, she just pays minimum wage and keeps the TIPS, you can ask the servers about it. All she does is offers food to them while they are working. I tell you her food is kinda good but oh boy she will exploit the hell out of you. I just hope that one day she pays for it. Her food is not bad and it is catered to mostly caucasians/americans than actually Indians. I WILL NEVER TIP IF I GO THERE. In the kitchen she makes mostly the hispanics work and exploits them and pays them jack. She is just a money hungry woman, she will tell you that she has church/charity in India. All of that i dont know what the hell she does with that money. She has bought a lot of land and built homes in India, by stealing employees TIPS. I just wish a bad karma for her. I hope god does some justice. I will never ever go there to get any food, coz my conscience pricks me and yours will too.
(1)
Vidur G.

I'll keep this brief: Not worth the hype. At ALL. For as much as I've heard about Hema's and its position as a Chicago mainstay for North Indian cuisine, the food fell way short of the mark. The chicken makhani was miserably bland, lacking the depth of spice and flavor that you come to expect with Indian curries. Traditionally, makhani takes hours of simmering to allow the ingredients to combine for that cohesive, full-bodied flavor; it was clear this didn't happen at Hema's as the predominant ingredient was the heavy cream used to mask any seasoning shortcomings. Other dishes, while serviceable, were completely forgettable. The disappointment at Hema's is quite indicative of the Indian food scene in Chicago, where there are several restaurants that receive accolades but few that deserve them. It is not worth the trip to Rogers Park for this spot; you'd be better off going to Cumin in Wicker Park or some South Indian cuisine if you're staying on Devon Ave.
(1)
Brooke M.

Amazing Indian food--well worth the wait for our food (and wine glasses for our BYOW). We (four of us) tried all of the naan, and they all were delicious. The lamb seemed to be a favorite at our table, but the chicken vindaloo (coconut and curried chicken--yum!) and vegetable samosas were scrumptious! While the food was mind blowing, the service was terrible--the wait staff seemed bored though there was plenty to do (we waited 20 minutes for wine glasses and had to grab our own carafe of water)--so I only gave it three stars. They would do way much better as a buffet.
(3)
Patrick J.

Wow. This used to be one of my wife's and my favorite Indian restaurants in Chicago. We convinced a few friends to go as the culminating meal of our last visit. (One member of our group hates Indian food-- I don't get it either-- so this took some doing.) I don't know which was worse: the food or the service. It took a while for our group of 5 to be seated in the nearly empty restaurant. Then, we sat there for a while longer before our server finally made contact. She acted annoyed, didn't bring our drinks until prompted several times, and was generally absent. The food was uncharacteristically bland, but to the extent that it had any flavor that flavor was salt. We had butter chicken, a lamb dish, and naan. The two entrees were nearly indistinguishable except by color. The garlic naan had a fishy taste. All in all, it was an awful experience. We won't be back. It's a real shame.
(1)
Michelle S.

We visited in the past at lunch with coworkers and the food was good so I decided to take the family. They weren't real happy to see a three children under four. One table with people eating and the rest empty but they had waiting for more 15min to be seated so we left and went across the street to sabri Nihari and they were happy to see us and the food is great as is the service!
(1)
Seth F.

I think Hema's Kitchen is widely considered the best and most authentic Indian restaurant in the Chicago. I am far from an expert on the subject, so I usually just save time and assume that's accurate. So any time I venture up to Devon I have grand hopes of exploring but usually end up here. Or at least I did before they opened Hema's II in Lincoln Park. I have a very close friend who states that this Hema's, the orignal, is unequivocally better, to which I respond unequivocally: bullpoop. Whether here or the newer restaurant in Lincoln park you are in for some dern good Indian eats. I traveled in India for 12 days and had the equivalent of 36 meals (or so) and every meal I've eaten at Hema's has been as good as all but a handful of those 36 meals. When they ask you on a scale of 10 how spicy you want your food, don't be a hero. On one occasion some members of our party insisted we order our food at a 7 and that is close to the spiciest food I've ever eaten and I'm no stranger to spice. I use to win bets in college by downing shots of hot sauce. Look, I'm not proud of it, but it happened and now we all need to move on.
(5)
Carmen B.

Despite the mixed reviews posted, we decided to try this restaurant. Unfortunately the quality and flavor profile of the food were on the lower end, and the service was not stellar. I'm not sure what happened, but I think there are other Indian restaurants in the area that can do better.
(2)
Dave S.

We used to like this place, years ago, but man, the service and the food have gone way downhill. We ordered chicken korma and chicken tikka masala, naan and rice. Fist, the naan came out lukewarm and there was no rice. The waitress said the rice would follow but it didn't and then she was up at the counter on the phone for a long time (presumably taking phone orders? but why, when another woman was standing right next to her doing nothing.) We sent back the naan and asked for them to heat it up but it came back lukewarm again. Sorry, folks, but naan should be hot out of the oven. Korma should be rich, nutty and flavorful, but this was bland and mediocre. The tiki masala sauce was the worst- oddly salty and not tasty at all. (And this is coming from someone who ordinarily loves these dishes). The other issue is that the chicken was all dark meat. I don't care for dark meat chicken. Even the vegetable samosas were off. Just a bad, bad meal with poor service to boot. I have no idea what happened to this place. What a shame.
(1)
Mo A.

I don't like this spot nor the one in LP. A lot of hype, and nothing else. Avoid. "GORA spot"
(1)
Rob B.

The last two times I've visited this location the service has been horrible. On both occasions, the saving grace has been the hostess. However, we had to beg for a cork screw, wine glasses, ice bucket, water refills, and dinner plates. I've never had this problem at the Lincoln Park location for some reason but I prefer this location because I've never had to wait for a table here. Also, on both occasions when we finally got our wine glasses they brought us plastic ones that had a red tint from being used so many times and evidently not cleaned thoroughly. In short, great food, horrible service.
(2)
M H.

Saturday night table for 3, place was busy but sat us down right away. 10 minutes to get water on the table. After another 10 had to flag a person down and ask if we had a server. She said I will take your order and acted like she did us a favor. Since it was busy we placed the whole order because we did not know if anybody would come back. Samosas and about 4 entrees. 30 minutes later tables that sat down before us where served and the table that just sat next to us had Samosas in about 5 minutes. Been going here since it was at the other location. Over rated - don't believe the check please hype. Hema puts her name all over the restaurant and if she knew her staff was like this. The place looked like it opened yesterday. It was unkept and dirty. So glad I did not give them a dollar. We got up and left. If the servers are like this, imagine what the cook in the back is doing to the food.
(1)
Nick L.

This was the last place we ate at before embarking on a cross country drive to the west coast. It was chosen because of it's proximity to where we were departing from. It was a weekday afternoon around lunch time and it was pretty quiet, not just inside the restaurant but also service wise. Slow. The food had a very generic taste to it, like most Indian curries that you get from places, there was no spicy flavor that made it stand out. Price wise - it was about the same as other places close by but not great value in my mind. Still follows my perceived trend that the best cuisine to be found is not in the xxxtown. e.g. Chinese food better outside of Chinatown, same for Indian food.....
(3)
Ericka A.

A person less acquainted with Indian food might be asking themselves, "Where's the beef?" Well, my friend, you won't find any here. But don't have a cow, man! They have more than enough vegetarian, seafood, chicken and lamb dishes to make up for it. While not my personal favorite Indian restaurant, it does rank up there. I just happen to prefer my sag paneer with a little more flavor, my murg makhani a little more buttery, my tandoori chicken a bit smokier. These are just personal preferences on my part and do not detract from the fact that all of the dishes are fresh and flavorful. I happily ate everything that I ordered and took nibbles from the dishes my dining companions passed around. The waitress was friendly, we were asked what spice level we wanted, our orders came out correctly and they brought us a corkscrew with a bottle opener attached. They are BYOB. Could you ask for much more?
(4)
Egdbert D.

I prefer the original Hema's Kitchen, which is what made them popular. The food's not the same as I remember. Also, the reception you get at the new place could be improved upon. I didn't really feel like I was a guest. However, the service itself was good. The original place wasn't a sit-down restaurant but maybe that allowed them to concentrate more on serving delicious food that speaks for itself. I used to ride my bike a long way to eat at the old place but for now I think I'll wait until there's a change in the right direction.
(3)
Trent H.

We've lived here for 3 years now so we have had the opportunity to try out a lot of Indian restaurants on Devon Ave. While Hema's blew our minds years ago, we have found that they are not the best on the block any more.
(3)
Gerry A.

A lot to like here including BYOB, and very tasty Indian food, reasonably priced with friendly helpful service. Hema is around most of the time, and even when busy there are smiles all around, you do feel like you are in her dining room for a reunion. Showed up with a party of six at 1:45 on a Monday afternoon and they were almost empty but they served us AND got us out in an hour to catch a plane, nicely done. So it WAS kind of a blur. Far above average Chai, Chicken Tika Marsala, lamb & dal. I didn't care for the Garlic naan, it had that frozen look to it vs just plucked off a nail inside of a burning grill oven, same for the fried bread although better but I would guess the grease wasn't quite hot enuf. Ditto on the samosas, looked frozen or pre-prepared too long, but not a grease bomb, probably baked. Both the garlic naan and samosas would have benefited from a little butter brushed on, I think the good news there is they didn't appear to be fried. I preferred the meat dishes over the veggie dishes, and while they were not large, they were not overseasoned and were rich and complex. Clean, well lit, GROOVY bathroom decor. Three and a half stars rounded DOWN for a first visit and frozen garlic naan.
(3)
Michelle F.

I'm on this Chicken Masala kick, and I can't stop. I just love it so much. It's the best chicken dish ever! So when I was searching for Indian restaurants online, Chicken Masala on the menu was a prerequisite. Hema's Kitchen had it on its online menu, the place had good reviews and it was BYOB, so I figured we should give it a try. My husband and I ate here on a Friday night. There were a few tables occupied, but the place wasn't packed. We were seated right away. There is a little bit of a language barrier with some of the staff. Like, we asked our waitress for an appetizer suggestion, and she basically read the entire appetizer portion of the menu to me. She was nice though, so it was all right. We ended up going with the Tandoori Chicken for an appetizer, and we really didn't care for it. It was super spicy, and the chicken had little pieces of bone in it that you had to pick out of your mouth. Not the best. All of the other food was good, so things definitely got better. For entrees, we had the Chicken Masala (of course), the Matar Paneer and Ghosh Rogan Josh. All were very tasty. I asked for the chicken and the Matar Paneer to have mild spices, and I didn't think they were spicy at all, so that was good. I would have to agree with some of the other Yelps who said the portions were on the small side, especially compared to other restaurants on Devon. For dessert, we each got a Mango Lassi, which was excellent and really hit the spot. While I would recommend this place, I have had better, fresher Indian food on Devon. Hema's kitchen is still good though in my book. NOTE: Expect to see some breasts if you eat here. The artwork is Kama Sutra inspired, and you will see some fully and partially exposed boobs. Consider yourself warned!
(4)
Ali K.

AVOID. I went to this establishment upon the recommendation that it was authentic Indian food, but my experience was horrible. First of all I got food poisoning from likely the un-fresh or day old food we were served. We ordered the tandoori chicken sizzler platter to start but were served two pieces of dry tandoor chicken that were clearly microwaved and nowhere near fresh. The lamb curry we ordered was decent but came out lukewarm and seemed to also have been a "yesterdays food" but microwaved. Our last dish the saag paneer had less than 5 pieces of paneer in the entire dish and covered it up with very oily spinach. This restaurant should be ashamed to call itself "outstanding Indian cuisine" because it serves lukewarm, reheated food that is very mediocre.
(1)
Gary C.

I'd like to begin with "I was damn hungry." So then the story begins months ago when a few friends and I talked about what types of food we have yet to try [together], and Indian was on the top of the list. And after lots of talking, reading, and drooling, I took initiative [in part because my friends and I are among the most indecisive on the planet] and decided on Hema's Kitchen. Talk about judging a book by it's cover, I did NOT expect the decor to wow me like I did. I'm not sure why, but I was thinking like a super dive-y joint. It was legit pretty inside. But forreal, Hema, yes THE Hema, greeted us at the door. Super nice lady. The rest of the staff was aight...nothing special. Although our server made one rather good suggestion. Which leads to... the food. Let me start out by saying portions lack size, but make up in flavor. Our party of three ordered: -garlic naan: drooL!! I'm a sucker for garlic...and carbs. If you are too, then you must get an order or two [one order was decent for the three of us]. -green curry fish: looks can be deceiving, as this fish dish looked like the ooze that turned four turtles into the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. But it was tasty. -shrimp biryani: a flavorful rice dish that adds to filling your stomach in conjunction with the smaller entrees. -lamb vindaloo: now they list it "very spicy," but I could've done spicier! Regardless, this was delish. -choosa tikka masala: very subtle spices, as odd as that may seem. So yeah. Food was delicious, so why three stars? I'll give two big reasons: lackluster service and cost per serving. The service was really mediocre, at best. Our server came up to us and asked if we were ready, which we were, so she stood there ready to take our order...then left without us saying anything. She didn't come back for five minutes. It struck us very odd. The real bone to pick with this boneless dining experience is cost. I'm not the biggest penny pincher out there, especially when it comes to food. I'll spend top dollar on some grub. But I really can't justify spending $60 for 3 people at a restaurant that dished out super small portions. I'll end it with "I left and was still damn hungry." So we went to get gelato.
(3)
Tiffany D.

In reading the reviews, I am thinking that maybe I just went on the wrong day. The food was mediocre at best and the portions were microscopic. The place is clear and a nice atmosphere. The servers were young girls who seemed a bit shy and disinterested in their jobs. Similar to what someone else experienced and mentioned in their review, I paid with my card and they asked to be tipped in cash because the owner keeps the tips. Shame on you! Won't say I will never go back, but I'm not in a rush.
(2)
Scott C.

Hema's is in the midst of Devon surrounded by Indian restaurants and shops. It offers a wide selection of Indian dishes on the menu and is a BYOB restaurant. We came loaded with two bottles of wine to enjoy dinner a couple of days ago. The restaurant decor is fairly simple but orderly. The food was extremely flavorful and the waitress offered several levels of heat (low, medium, or hot) for each dish that we ordered and shared. We ordered two lamb dishes - the biriyani and the chana which offered completely different tasting meals but very flavorful. The lamb chana marsala was spicy and flavorful - we couldn't help but soak it up in the naan to savor its taste. We also ordered a chicken curry dish which was flavorful but very creamy at the same time. The meat in all of the dishes was moist and tender - which was great because at other restaurants that depend on sauce or marsala sometimes overcook their meat - not the case here! The desserts were few in number and we settled on the mango ice cream which complimented our spicy meals with something sweet. On the down side our entire meal was spent swatting at fruit flies which buzzed around often enough to be annoying. Clean those up and it adds a star as the food is outstanding.
(3)
Samuel J.

The food tasted awful. The tandori chicken had a pungent smell. I ordered Choosa Tikka Masal, Gosh rogan josh and shahi paneer. All the three had the same taste just different meats.Its the same indian tomato curry sauce. Lastly I was told by a waitress named Sama that Hema does not pay tips to her staff. Hema's kitchen lacks a sense of morality by stealing the tips of underpaid workers and staff. Poor service and not that great food...
(1)
Pete D.

It has received several big time food critic reviews, I found it to be pretty tasty. Took my wife and parents here, folks were in from out of town and found it to be a pleasant experience. Did not experience any of the service issues others mentioned. BYOB, no corking fee. I would return to Hema's kitchen.
(4)
M. N.

We loved this place and the service was great, food was made fast, nothing but compliments from me and my family. Lamb Vindaloo, Chana Masala were our favorites, we'll be back many times...and Oh if you hear tv it might be the front desk hostess watching on her phone, but she was sweet it didn't bother us ;)
(5)
Rick R.

Any restaurant with such horrifically rude customer service should not even be considered. Management (if there is any) take heed: train any and all that answer your phone to at least give a damn. Can't say I tried this place and I never will. NEXT!
(1)
Max S.

I've eaten at about a dozen places on Devon, and this was by far the slowest service I've experienced. There was no attitude or laziness about it, it was just neglect. The place was half-full so it's not like they were slammed. The food was just as good as it usually is other places, nothing blew me away but it was all faithfully executed. The lackadaisical service distracted from the food, which was disappointing because restaurants are about, well, food. I used to work in the foodservice business and I pride myself on not being a high-maintenance customer, but this was S L O W. Try somewhere else on Devon.
(2)
Aminda S.

There was a time in my life when I was a picky eater. During such time I made my first venture to Hema's Kitchen. After all it was less than a block from my then boyfriend's apartment and it was winter. I remember leaving completely unimpressed and uninspired. I'm not really sure what I was thinking. Probably something like "I love pizza. Cheeseburgers rule. Nom nom nom 'Merica." Such a closed minded eater those days. Shutter to think.... These days I'll eat just about anything but tend to draw the line at bone marrow or brain. I don't know. I'll probably eat that eventually too though. But I digress... this visit to Hema's kitchen was far better. In fact, it kind of blew me away. First, it's so freaking inexpensive. Ridiculously. Freakishly. Inexpensive. My friend and I ordered three apps (one of which was the delicious garlic Naan) and then split a vegetarian entree that was a mix of veggies and yellow lentils, with a side of rice. All that, 25 bones. I mean, what?! As if that wasn't enough, the food itself was so delicious. The samosas were huge in comparison to other Indian places I've eaten, the naan was perfection....carb overload indeed. I was chewing on the bones of the Tandoori Chicken appetizer like a rabid animal during the apocalypse. Seriously. I must have looked ridiculous. But it was so delicious, leaving any meat behind would be a sin. It's BYOB though we had come from a happy hour so no cocktails for this gal. On a Tuesday evening it was pretty empty...maybe four other tables. But I do believe they get pretty busy on the weekends if my memory serves me. Great spot, my friends...
(5)
Sonny B.

Note: This is for the Devon location and NOT the Clark location. The food is decent, hits the spot, definitely better options nearby on Devon. The service, unacceptable, by Indian and American standards. Tonight was my last time visiting this place due to the horrible service that I have encountered on multiple occasions, but tonight was the final straw. We were seated promptly, got water, decided what we wanted, closed our menu and waited 15 minutes to have our order taken. There were two servers and only about three other tables on this slow night. The waitress took our order, confirmed the order and then we waited. Of three main items we ordered, we received one correct item, one incorrect item, did not receive the third order, rice and mango lassis. I finally flagged down a waitress and told her requested the missing items. She came back and brought one mango lassi (which was luke warm) and the rice, stared blankly at us and quickly walked off. I had to flag her down again to ask for a second time for the third order and the other mango lassi. After we had finished our meal, the third order finally arrived along with a luke warm lassi. Normally, I could understand that errors happen but after having similar order issues, and lackluster service in the past, a reasonable person would think it's not just an error but a problem. While the food did hit the spot, after going here multiple times and receiving unacceptable service, and decent food, I would highly recommend going to one of the many other great Indian restaurants and skipping this place.
(1)
Matthew K.

This is Indian food done right. Simple, traditional Indian recipes delivered with consistent quality is the name of the game at Hema's. Somebody who wonders what all the fuss is about Indian food should start his experience here. The service is attentive and friendly and the prices are very reasonable. Whether you're trying Indian food for the first time or you're a connoisseur of Indian cuisine, you will not be disappointed by Hema's Kitchen!
(5)
Sara K.

WORST SERVICE EVER! There was only one server who also was the hostess and one person cleaning the tables..When seated the server didn't even ask for drink order. and what pissed me off the most was when my dad was ordering mid order, she kept smirking as if he was saying something funny... very rude- she clearly did not wanna take the order as she looked overwhelmed. If you take a look around the place, its dirty looking with not so eye catching art..The food is OK nothing great.. we left after appetizers was not worth the wait and the rude service.left hungry and found khan BBQ around the corner.. they service and ambiance over there WAS SO MUCH BETTER! I WILL NEVER RETURN TO THIS PLACE!
(1)
Nessie V.

This is some of the best Indian food I've ever been had, and I've been to India. There were no Indians eating there, which can be a red flag, but was more of a red herring in this case. The spiciness level was just right (for me, just hot enough for me to bear. I requested it to be a "little spicy."). The flavors of the food are enhanced in every aspect. Take the veggie samosas: The crust was great, a little flakier than traditional; The insides were not the spiciest I've had, but had a good taste; The tamarind sauce had a berries in it maybe; and the mint chutney had a kick. So every component was enhanced. The naan was a little different from most places, but I loved it and it stayed soft throughout the meal. The daal with saag I had was really great as well, and I rarely see that on menus. Service was super attentive. I liked the lighting, being many dim lights that added to the general warmth and left you able to see what you were eating. The whole room was actually a bit warm: they had to keep squeegeeing the windows. Another bit of heat came when someone at another table ordered a sizzling platter and all the spices aerosolized, leaving us coughing a bit but determined to order that next time. The noise level was on the verge of being too loud, but you could still hear people at your table. I was surprised by the effort put into the bathrooms. They tend to get severely neglected in many places, even the fancy ones, and my expectations were low as the feel of the restaurant near the back is not as warm. But you turn a corner and instant serenity. Then you go inside and there are candles and paintings and quiet. I almost wanted to chill in there for a while. Can't wait to eat here again. I'd travel way out of my way to do so.
(5)
Niti B.

Ok so after a long anticipation to try this place I was truly disappointed. I am so glad I didn't get to excited and order everything on the menu and the idea to order something to take home to cure the inconvenient craving for matar paneer quickly diminished after my first bite. My friends had both been and I expected better but I can't say that either of them have eaten too much Indian food seeing that I was the only Indian in the group! We ordered the mushroom matar and paneer tikka medium spicy and it was way too spicy for even and Indian like me! The paneer tikka pieces were just blocks of cheese with no real flavor to them if you scrapped of the garham masala that it was tossed around in. The onions were an in between of sauteed and caramelized..which is no place for an onion to be and the peppers were too raw. overall the dish was inconsistent. The mushroom matar lacked any real mushroom but was ok. I'm just glad the bottle of wine we brought was good!... I will always recommend my friends to eat at Raj Darbar instead... the food is better, the drive isn't as far and the service is super friendly
(2)
Roisin C.

A friend of mine who lives in Chicago has been suggesting that we try somewhere on Devon some night, something different from the usual spots we go to. We also wanted a BYOB, so that narrowed it down a lot on Devon. Yelp led us to Hema's and everyone was delighted with it. The restaurant itself is big and spacious but nice and homely at the same time, The staff greeted and seated us pleasantly, and we brought two 12 packs of beer and they didn't mind at all. We ordered a selection of appetizers to start and they were all delicious - my personal favorites were a kind of potato bhaji and also a lamb dish which was no.7 (weirdly I remember) on the app menu. The entrees were similarly delicious, I had lamb rogan josh which I always order at Indian restaurants and this didn't disappoint. It was just the right amount of spice and the perfect portion. I found it a little oily, and i thought this was unusual, but that's only a small complaint. I noticed they also had a really large selection of vegetarian dishes on the menu too. All in all Hema's was really great but I'm docking them a star for the rushed service. In fairness, we did arrive around 9.30 and they were trying to close up, but the waitress basically told us we had to take the bill and the quickest part of the service was the cleanup - the entrees came in stages which was annoying because by the time mine came the other diners were almost done and by the time the naan came, we had all almost finished our meals. Having said that, the Naan was some of the best I've tasted so it was worth the wait for sure! If you're looking for a BYOB on Devon, Hema's is worth a visit!
(4)
Alan F.

A good dependable Indian restaurant in the heart of the Devon Avenue strip of South Asian businesses. I've been here several times during visits to Chicago. This was my first visit to their present space on Devon, which is both larger and better decorated than their previous location on a side street. The menu has a good variety of pretty standard Indian dishes. My party (five people) ordered: Mango lassi Puri--excellent; light and not excessively oily Kheema (lamb) samosa Spinach pakora Lamb vindaloo (this one at first seemed too mild for a vindaloo, but some delayed-action heat turned up at the back of the throat) Lamb biryani Chicken biryani Lamb with okra Shrimp Shah Jahani (mild, in a tomato sauce dominated by cardamom) Service was prompt and friendly. The waiter initially missed one item in our order, but this was quickly remedied. No liquor, but BYOB-friendly. Fair public transportation access, on the 155-Devon bus line about one mile west of the Loyola station on the Red Line..
(4)
Alex A.

I went on the 8th of December, Saturday evening with a group of 4. The restaurant has a nice dÃ©cor, and is very spacious. Its BYOB so bring your own booze. Our young beautiful waitress was also working the front door and was attentive as well was the rest of the staff. Two of my friends ordered chicken, another had a vegetarian dish and I had the curry fish. It was south indian style and I had it medium spicy. Very good, drowned in sauce though which made it south Indian Sea style meaning I had to find the fish. They were mostly chunks. But I didn't come with much of an appetite so it was fine. Plus our 2 bottles of red and white wine kept us full. The service was fine, the ambience, also the waitress. Tip generously.
(3)
Keith M.

Impressively awful. It takes effort to make food this bad. Yes, the service was terrible, but that's not why we walked out 30 seconds after trying the appetizer. We ordered the tandori chicken entree but was told it was only available as an appetizer??? We accepted it, but what they brought out was a luke warm pile of microwaved chicken sitting in melt water. One bite confirmed it tasted as bad as it looked and smelled, spit it out and left. I'm not sure how people give Hema's 4-5 stars. Friends, family, employees?
(1)
Adam K.

Best Indian food this side of the Ganges, hands down class. When Hema is in the house, that's when you get a a real treat. Everytime she is here I am here. Its like we are in sync. I won't get into what to order, that is your journey. But understand this food is closest to mama's. Love.
(5)
Len L.

There are a many choices for an Indian restaurants on Devon, we decided to go to Hema's Kitchen. Don't worry if you forgot to pickup some Indian beer, there are a few liqueur stores around the area that have your favorite beverage on hand. We ordered a couple of appetizers The somosas were prepared well, the chicken tikka was moist and flavorful (Not dry at all). Then the entrees came, The vegetable biryani, garlic nann was excellent, especially with the butter chicken. We were too stuffed to continue with the desert. Overall Hema's Kitchen rocks. Pro's: Free corkage, BYOB, prices, plenty of metered parking. Con's: none.
(4)
Natalie S.

Daaaaaaaaaang, Hema! Love the new digs! Hadn't been into the Devon area location in a long time and found ourselves in the neighborhood tonight. After driving by the old location (oooops! They moved?), we Yelped the address and found the new restaurant. Vast improvement! Goodness... I remember the night i waited for 2 hours to get a table when Hema's was just the ONE storefront on Oakley and could only sit like 20 people. My how the times have changed. Loved the decor. Everything was new and clean and lovely. The service! Wow! It was like a new Hema's! I couldn't take more than 4 sips from my glass before it was filled again. The waitstaff checked in multiple times to see if we needed anything. Everyone was super friendly. The food... ah, the food. Hema's has some of my FAVORITE Indian food. The saag murg is easily one of my favorite dishes, ever. The tandoori chicken is THE BEST I've ever had. We tried the Indian fish fry tonight and while it wasn't my favorite, it's pretty damn good. I would say tonight is going to leave me dreaming about going back... but the beauty is that I have large containers of leftovers waiting for me to consume tomorrow. Mmmmmmmm...
(5)
Hanh B.

In an area with a high competion for great indian food, Hema's kitchen could do so much better. The food was just ok, hardly worth the amount you pay for the very small portions. There are several other indian resturants within twenty feet of this place which i would recommend going to, rather then here. Mediocre food and service that is overpriced in a highly competitive block of indian cuisine.
(2)
Thongsy S.

I'm a sucker for Indian food. But I know good Indian food when I smell it. Hema's is one of my all-time favorite Indian restaurants. Excellent cheap eats. I would recommend coming with a group of people though so you can share and try more than 1 dish. These are the dishes I would recommend: -veggie samosa (flaky and melt in your mouth delicious) -garlic naan (i'm partial to garlic though) -curried fish (can't get enough of this -- two of my favorite ingredients: fish and curry) -chicken tikka masala (a must-have at every Indian dinner that I enjoy) -chicken biryani (it's sort of like chicken curried fried rice but AMAZING) and last but not least, basmati rice....just yummy! In addition to the awesome food, the staff are super friendly and very accommodating. And best part, BYOB...need I say more? Give this place a try and you won't regret it.
(5)
John M.

BYOB. Hema's Kitchen was awesome. I hadn't done the Devon Ave Indian food thing yet and was very pleased. I wanted to make sure to get meat as well as drink and Hema's was perfect. I went here with my cousins who hadn't eaten Indian food before and they loved it, the service was great and food was bountiful. For 5 people we each threw in $15 including a generous tip and were stuffed. Eat here and you'll leave fat and happy.
(5)
Mark S.

We hadn't been to Hema's in quite a few months and since a friend was in from out of town, we thought we would meet up at Hema's since it had been so long. Even though we've always had good experiences at Hema's, I took a quick look at the other Yelp reviews and was surprised at the number of negative reviews. We had the lamb samosas, murg makhani (chicken), lamb curry, matar paneer, naan, rice and raita and brought a bottle of white wine (BYOB). Everything was excellent. Our server was very efficient and the food came out very quickly. The ambiance isn't perfect but I really don't care when I'm enjoying great food and wine in the company of friends.
(5)
Marisa Y.

I hiked all the way out here with my boyfriend and a friend last weekend because id heard so many good things. I would've given this place better reviews but the service was TERRIBLE. seriously. As for the food, I loved the lamb seekh kabobs - they're a must eat. The samosas are also amazing. We tried a lamb dish that was just so so and the chicken tikka was better than average.
(3)
Rita R.

Went here on Valentine's Day - big mistake! Had to wait for almost 45mins to get seated & the food was terrible. The Paneer Makhni & Veg Biryani were so crappy - being Indian myself, I found it hard to place a finger on WHAT they'd added to the gravy - it was tasteless! Really unforgettable V-Day (for all the wrong reasons!!). Wouldn't recommend this place to anyone.
(1)
Rowena L.

Probably my favorite place on Devon! My best friends who were visiting also loved it. The service isn't spectacular, but they weren't rude either. The food was solid.
(4)
Pam D.

This could be a very long review, but I am too tired to go blow by blow. I suggested coming here because several friends (and fellow yelpers) and I decided to celebrate Dawali in style. Heck, I even put my fancy eatin' duds on. I was going to town! Well, as good as the food was, the service was appalling. It took much of the joy out of eating there. I know many ethnic places are not noted for good service, and if this were a hole in the wall joint, I'd have cut them way more slack. This is a place, however, that LOVES to point out it's classy distinction from the other Indian/Pakastani restaurants in Chicago. When we got there, the place was basically empty (see Rris C''s pic, it was us and one other table). Later the place was jammed. Those folks are probably lucky if they got their food at all. I'll let others in our party fill in more details, but needless to say, next Dawali will be spent elsewhere!
(1)
Sam B.

I have been to Hema's kitchen on Devon countless number of times for the past 3 years. This is a great place to go if you are looking for spicy Indian food. Price is a little on the higher side. Hemaji is so cordial and nice talking to. I go there more to see her these days :-) Food is definitely worth trying if you are alright with the spice level. I have not tried meat dishes though (I am a vegetarian).
(4)
Sudipto D.

Slow service , frozen tasteless food , overhyped for its rating and so called best Indian restaurant in Little India.
(1)
Steve M.

BYOB, amazingly delicious Indian food, and a staff that is definitely working to please. What's not to like? The atmosphere is pretty simple. Your requisite country-of-India paintings and decor are near the front and throughout. The space itself has a modern feel, but that definitely doesn't take away from the overall experience. It's the food that's the real star of the show. Disclaimer: Some foods here are a little spicy for Western palattes, so those w/ sensitivities should consider yourselves warned! My lady ordered Chicken Tikka Masala (a rapidly developing addiction for the both of us), which was perfectly creamy with some heat. Not finding Lamb Madras on the menu (I guess Hema's is Northern Indian?), I went with the standard Lamb Curry dish, and boy was it good! There was DEFINITELY some heat there, cause I had to wipe my brow a bit in between bites. So worth it though. We also split a frisbee-sized piece of Garlic Naan as a side, and so we could both sop up the delicious curries we each ordered. Hema's -- you're my fave of the Devon crowd so far.
(4)
Vanessa B.

I came here on a date a while back. I wish I could give it 3.5 stars. That would be more like it. Cons: The wait on a weekend evening can be annoying. Not really their problem, because if they are popular, what can you do? Prices are a bit steep. Wait time for service can be a little long. Pros: Food is incredible. Muttar Paneer and Chicken Mukhani are splendid. Their naan is great as well. Street parking if you have a car. Can be difficult to find a spot but street parking is always awesome. Located in a cool area. I will be back. This is great for dates, families, friend outings. Try to get there before 6 or 7 and you may have less of a wait time.
(3)
David G.

To begin my review, here is one of my favorite quotes in the subject of Indian food: "You're insulting them and you're embarrassing me... EAT IT!" Ok, maybe Indiana Jones wasn't the best person to quote. Scratch that and carry on with the review. I came here with a huge party so we divided the table down the middle, had two separate checks to keep things simple. They seemed to have no issues with that. We ordered a feast. We started off with samosas, which were huge compared to what I'm used to. No complaints there. For the entrees we ordered the sag paneer, lamb with okra, chicken tikka masala, chicken biryani, and a couple of other lamb dishes. They were all good. They were all ordered medium spicy, but they weren't all that spicy. They seemed more on the mild side. Each of us ended up paying $25 for the meal, which isn't TOO bad. Hema's is BYOB with no corkage fee. If you like to drink as much as my friends do, you are in luck.
(4)
Asha B.

I would not say my favorite Indian restaurant but I would definetly recommend it to any one going to Devon in search of good Indian food. If you are hunting down for a place for authentic Hyderabadi chicken Biryani, then this is definetly not the place. The biryani is more of Andhra style than Hyderabadi. Not a veg lover though, but the veg and the aloo biryani are brilliant. Very few places serve good veg biryanis. One of the very few Indian restaurant where you will find mutton Keema. The curry is named as Keema mutter in the menu, but if you are not a fan of mutter you can get it customized with "No mutter". Sea food lover ? - Then the Indian fish fry is something you should not miss. Simply superb. Deserts - Had carrot halwa, not so great. Tasted stale. The chai is definetly not what you expect to be typical Indian tea.It tastes more like the tea bag chai. So word of caution. Overall - Hema's is definetly worth the visit, try it out when in the Indian street of Chicago.
(3)
Alexandra M.

Extremely slow, surly service. Pretty average Indian food. We had to beg several people for silverware, glasses, plates, and even our food, which was clearly left to languish for quite awhile. By the time we were able to remind our server about a missing appetizer and entree she brought them right away, albeit stone-cold. Most of the problems were related to the service, although the Tandoori chicken was mushy and overcooked.
(2)
Ashish D.

This has to be one of the best food available in town in Chicago. We tried the Vegatable Pindaloo which is a great spicy option. The curry is not that oily too. Highly Recommended place !. Surprisingly we did not find any non-desi people with mostly Americans visiting the place. The non-veg options where quite good too according to my friends. Make sure you try the Kulfi since that is something pretty authentic and awesome esp if you have not had one in a while
(5)
Krsna V.

I rarely give second chances. Burn me once, and you are dead to me. I don't care what others have to say, I cannot be convinced after one bad experience. I am a mean-spirited bastard like that. However, I do give second chances for the sake of friends. A friend wanted to check out Hema's. I was in a kind mood (thank you, 70 degree weather) and agreed, even though the last experience at Hema's left a bad taste in my mouth. It was a complete turnaround from the last time I have been to Hema's. We started with Potato Bhajia and Shami Kebob. The Kebob was impeccable; the bajji were good, but greasier than I expected. Hema's advertises itself as food from the Andhra/ Hyderabad region. Hema hails from the city of Hyderabad. The hallmark of all Hyderabadi food, in my opinion, is goat/ lamb biryani. You cannot call yourself a Hyderabadi restaurant unless you can master Hyderabadi biryani. So, to put Hema's to the test, I order the lamb biryani. My friend ordered lamb vindaloo. The waitress warned him it will be very spicy, and it was. Authentic vindaloo should make your nose drip, and makes you sweat profusely. Hema's vindaloo succeeded on both counts. My friend needed extra napkins to wipe his nose and forehead. Score 1 for Hema. Let's get to the biryani. It was pretty close to being a Hyderabadi biryani. Almost, but not quite. But then, this is not the motherland... I shouldn't expect it to taste like the motherland. I still prefer Sabri Nehari's biryani over Hema's. It was quite enjoyable, though. The lamb was marinated in an excellent blend of spices. I give it a 4 out of 5. I was impressed with the yogurt that came with my biryani. It is very typical of Hyderabadis to do that. The yogurt tasted just like it should, thick with a little tang. We ordered paratha and kulcha to go with our lunch. Excellent choices. I also ordered a masala chai towards the end because it was almost 2pm, and time for some caffeine. I decided to substitute coffee with a nice Indian masala chai. The chai was not to my liking, it tasted a little watered down. My experience with second chances has always been mixed: like that one time I decided to give a second chance to an old fling...bastard was still selfish in bed. Or, that other time when I gave a second chance to someone I kicked out of bed for smoking in my apt... who later returned to be an amazing lay. I am glad Hema's did not disappoint. A nice finishing touch was Hema coming to our table and asking about our meal. Sweet lady. I am now more inclined to give second chances. Perhaps, I should call up one of my ex-flings again, see if they have changed for the better.
(4)
Jennifer W.

My review is completely based on the (hot) spiciness level of the food. I asked for zero spiciness, and the food was still inedible to me. I even tried pouring raita on my food and had a mango lassi, but I still could not tolerate the spiciness of the dishes. This review is for other people who have a low tolerance for spiciness. For those who enjoy spicy food, I would disregard this review as you might really enjoy the food at this restaurant.
(1)
John B.

I'm starting Hema's off with 3 stars. It may go up on subsequent visits. I know people love this place -- I ended up there last night because it's my dining companion's favorite Indian place. And I liked it well enough. Just not well enough to be dying to go back. I am not an Indian food expert by any means. I've had my share, from cheap buffets to home-cooked meals. Generally I let other people do the ordering, and take what comes out. So it's not like I have a benchmark that I use to judge an Indian restaurant. (Though I will observe that there is a lot of terrible tandoori chicken in this world.) That said, nothing at Hema's blew me away. Everything seemed a little dulled down. Not in terms of heat -- we ordered everything mild or medium, because I know what "hot" means to an Indian -- but in terms of flavor. Nothing leapt out and said, "I must put more of this in my mouth." I enjoyed it, but less than 15 hours later, all I remember really liking was the naan. For the record, we had Murg Makhani, Aloo Matar Paneer, and Dal Palak. The dal, which according to the menu is seasoned with curry leaves, cumin, mustard seed and garlic, was particularly disappointing. None of those flavors were especially pronounced. As others have noted, bread and rice do not come with the meal. Three entrees served two people, with not enough left over to take home. An interesting side note: a young woman served us throughout the meal -- she answered our questions, took our order, and so on. But at the end of the meal, some young man who had never been to our table before presented the check (to me, the male at the table) and took our money. I guess women aren't trusted with the cash. I'll go back. The meal was enjoyable enough. But I'm still looking for my favorite Indian restaurant in the city.
(3)
Khadijah L.

I love Indian food. and actually I've never found a dish I did not like... still true for Hema's kitchen. Not the best I've had, still pretty up there. I agree that the portions are slightly smaller for the price. Oh and I love that like almost all of the patrons here are white. What is up with that? There are a plethora of Indian restaurants I've yet to try in Devon area, so I think I will skip Hema's next time. Although I will still visit the one in Lincoln Park if I'm in that area.
(3)
Dustin A.

Not only is this restaurant the best Indian food in Chicago in my opinion it is one of my favorite places to eat. I love it. I would love to say what dishes are my favorite but I don't remember what they are called... but everything I have had has been amazing. It is BYOB as well... Super friendly service. The only downside, I liked the intamacy of their tiny old place, they moved about ... 2 years ago .. the new place is larger and nice and clean but just doesn't have the feel of the hidden gem that the old little place once had... but the food and service is still the best.
(5)
Ebs B.

Loved the food! Did not love the service! I went here this past Sunday for something new and a change from the places I normally go. This place has been in my phone for months now, ever since I saw it on Check Please. I was told by some of my Southern Indian friends that this place was where they ate if they didn't want to cook (along with Sabri Nehari). My friend and I ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala and the the Haryali Chicken with an order of naan and basmati rice. The food was really good and the naan and rice were big enough to share with 3 people. For these items, the bill was $36. We also took advantage of the BYOB with no corkage fee. I must warn those out there that they did not bring us a bucket of ice for our white wine so the wine was warm by the end of the meal. Still loving the BYOBs though! The server did not understand much English, but he was very patient with me as I kept changing my mind from the Biryani to the Chicken Masala. What I didn't like about the service is the fact that they seemed to rush us and it wasn't extremely busy and no one was waiting for a table. We got asked a couple times if we were done when they knew we were. Oh well, the food was still tasty and it doesn't claim to have the best service, and the food was still authentic. I'll be back for sure (although, I'll be taking a cab, train, and/or bus instead of driving...way too crazy driving over there. For once in my life, I was willing to pay for a valet and there were none around. Figures :)
(4)
Drun 0.

We came here with great expectations. Food was average. Service was below average. Def not the best Indian cuisine in Chicago.
(2)
Nisarg S.

We were trying out different restaurants in the area so I went there to eat with a couple of friends. Absolutely nothing good to say about the place. THe food was below ordinary and the service was horrible. The real story is that the owner was sitting there in the restaurant. One of the servers made a mistake in the order and brought us the wrong thing. We politely asked him if he could get the correct item. He was polite too and turned back to get us the correct dish. The owner overheard and came up to the table and started shouting at us saying we dont respect the servers and disrespect Indian culture and she could not stop shouting. The server was dumbstruck, so were we. At the end of it all, we went to talk to the server and he said he had absolutely no issue with anything we said or did. The owner is psycho, the food is bad. Do not recommend.
(1)
Lakshmi R.

I'm writing this review with the admission that I prefer South Indian food to North Indian food (if you're a lover of Indian food and didn't know there was a difference, there's something wrong with you). I can't always tell good North Indian food from great North Indian food unless, of course, I'm comparing restaurant fare to homemade stuff. That said, Hema's is pretty good. The prices are a little higher than they should be for the portion sizes and quality. But I appreciated the fact that the food was well-spiced, considering it's frequented by lots of non-Indians, and that it wasn't too oily. Also appreciated our server's willingness to take back a plate of rice we had ordered when we realized we had too much rice and naan already. Overall? Decent Devon restaurant. Not the best, but certainly not at all bad.
(3)
Meredith B.

We went all the way up to Devon for Indian, walked into Hema's, and realized that she also had a Clark Street location. Oops. Still, we thought we'd stay and check the place out. It was BYOB with no corkage fee, so that's always a plus. We began with the vegetable samosas and the lamb samosas. I preferred the vegetable - they were loaded with steaming hot potatoes - but the lamb ones were a bit spicy which was a nice touch. We all split the Sag Paneer, the Chicken Vindaloo, and the Lamb Rogan Josh. The Sag Paneer was pretty good - the flavors weren't anything new, but the cheese was bigger and firmer than I've had anywhere else. That was a pleasant surprise. We were warned that the chicken was spicy, and it WAS....to the point where my tongue started tingling and going numb so intensely that I was a little concerned for myself. This did not happen to either of my dining buddies, so either I'm a pansy or I bit right into some spicy item. I wasn't terribly enthused with the lamb dish - it was certainly good, but there were bits of gristle or something like it throughout the lamb pieces. A bit off-putting. The naan was crispy, addicting, and *huge*. Service was all right, except the girl who poured our water could NOT do it right to save her life. I think she spilled on the table literally every time, spilling profusely on my boyfriend at one point. Not so professional. Honestly, I would've preferred something better if we came all the way up to Devon. It was perfectly fine, standard Indian fare, but I'd rather try somewhere else before coming back.
(3)
Mandy A.

I was a little worried when this place was picked for Supper Club and I read the conflicting reviews. Then we were the only five people in there on a Monday night at 6:30pm. However, once the samosas were delivered to the table, I was sold. (Also, people came in after us which made us feel less awkward.) Enormous and crispy and flavorful and perfect ratio of peas and potatoes to dough, which is hard to do... not to mention the sweet and spicy sauces that came with. I can put that spicy one on anything, for reals. We also got some fried papadam, basically like a giant thin crispy cracker. Holy mother that thing was delicious and fried and salty. Loved it. We got a shitload of naan (some plain, some garlic, some with cheese) and a bunch of dishes and all kind of tried everything. Some chicken and lamb vindaloo, chicken tikki masala, lamb boti khebob and paneer tikka (I think... I know it had cheese in it). When the plates came out, I'm not gonna lie, I was starving and I thought, oh man that's not going to fill me up. Well, I was a goddamn liar. It was PLENTY. Especially with an abundance of naan goodness. I prefered the standard naan but I mean it was all good. Nothing was bad. My lamb vindaloo was so freaking tender I could almost not use a fork. The sauces were all spicy and by the end of the meal we were five sweaty white people sitting at a table. Happy white people but sweaty ass mofos nonetheless. Verdict, Supper Club is still undefeated and Hema's is awesome. All that food and BYOB wine and $20/person, can't beat that with a stick.
(4)
Gaurang B.

It was OK but just Ok. I have had better Indian food elsewhere in Chicago. I felt it's little expensive for quantity they serve. Vindaloo chicken was spicy but ordinary in taste and garlic naan was just garlic embedded in normal plain naan. Owner and waiters are friendly. They came to the table and asked how the food tasted and about our satisfaction. Service, mainly in terms of water, can be improved though. I may try the same place again and update if I find it better that time :)
(3)
Leang E.

We were here upon the recommendation from a friend/coworker of the group. I am not going to lie about having some reservations because I had already been to the one on Clark Street. I was a fan and still am, but wanted something less familiar for my first restaurant on Devon. I know, after all these reviews I haven't been to this part of town to eat. Admittedly, it gets harder for me to get to neighborhoods that are farther from where I live. I appreciated how there wasn't an overwhelming strong scent of Indian food that makes you feel like you'll leave smelling like the food. We ordered the shalam roll, samosas, butter chicken, lamb vindaloo, tandoori chicken, eggplant and potatoes, and spinach and cheese. We held off on dessert to go try another spot. The meat dishes were very good, whereas the vegetarian dishes were just good. I really liked the shalam roll and how different it was, and how it is a hometown specialty. The sauces were very delicious. The prices were comparable and the service was good.
(4)
Paul R.

This is the last time I will visit this place. Although the food was OK, the service was HORRIBLE. My friend and I waited about 15 minutes for someone to take our order, and the place was not busy. The waitress was just stading around talking. When I asked her if we could order, she acted like I was bothering her. And after the meal was over, it also took forever to get our check. No reason this should happen. Hema's used to be good, especially at the old location. Too bad. No wonder it was half full on a Friday evening. I can see this place going out of business, and hopefully replaced by a better place. Don't waste your time and money. Much better restaurants on Devon. I personally like Tiffin.
(1)
Darren S.

I just don't get it. I understand how taste is subjective. I just don't get the raves about this place. I have tried both Hema's Kitchen(the one up near Devon and the one in Lincoln Park). I ordered several items both times...and both have been "meh". The food is surprisingly flavorless for Indian food. I LOVE Indian food and travel to a lot of places in the city and even out of the city. This is probably one of my least favorite Indian restaurants. Maybe because there is not that intensity of flavor (not heat...FLAVOR!), most beginners enjoy Hema's. Or for people brought up with Indian food, they are used to the blandness that is customary to the way their particular family made food. Then everything is "a la carte". I ordered Chicken Tikka Masala this last time just so I could compare it to other places. meh. Then, I had to order rice separately, naan (bread) separately. Along with Samosas the bill came to $23 for lunch for myself. Meh lunch food for $27 (with tip)?!?! Never again. Now I did have a bit left over, but not a lot. Certainly not enough for a meal. Anyway, try it if you wish. I went there originally because of all the hoopla on Yelp then I even went back because I wanted to be fair.... but I guess I just don't see it.
(2)
Emily K.

My girlfriend is vegan so I'm still searching for my favorite meat friendly Indian restaurant on Devon. Hema's isn't it. It was fine. I'm always annoyed when Indian places charge you extra for rice. Like I'm going to eat chicken tikka masala with a spoon if I didn't opt for rice? We ordered the tandoori chicken appetizer which wasn't good. It's hard to mess up delicious tandoori but it was just blah. Our main dishes were good- chicken tikka masala and palak paneer - but the portions were small. Total bill was about $40 for an appetizer, 2 entress and naan. Probably the most I've spent to date on Devon. Again, it wasn't bad. But it wasn't great. And there are so many other great places a stones throw away to waste time here.
(3)
Mindy S.

Yum. Lamb with eggplant was perfectly spiced and lean as can be (no hunks of fat or gristle.) The sag paneer was great. Service friendly. I felt the descriptions of the food on the menu were spot on.
(4)
Sarah L.

I was an Indian food noob up until last Friday night. A friend of mine is obsessed and we finally met up and tried some fabulous Indian fare. I don't know why I waited so long? The food was full of rich flavor and very savory. I can't see myself eating this all the time but it was a nice change of pace. For starters we had the Vegetable Samosa and Tandoori Chicken. The Samosa is a flaky pastry shell stuffed with a delicate combination of potatoes, green peas and coriander leaves. This was an amazing starter and the pastry shell was very fresh. It kind of reminded me of baklava. We also had an Indian staple, Tandoori Chicken. Tender baked chicken marinated in yogurt, lemon, juice, chili pepper, ginger, garlic and other spices. The chicken had great flavor and the color was very bright orange. The winner was the Samosa pastry. It was very different and I never had anything like it. For my main meal I had Dal Palak: roasted lentils cooked with spinach and lemon juice, seasoned with curry leaves, cumin, mustard seed and garlic. You can get your dish mild, medium and spicy. I asked for it mild and it was burning my mouth! It was still very good but I had a hard time eating it. I'm kind of a wuss when it comes to spice. We had garlic naan and basmati rice to go with our dinner. I think the garlic naan complements the main meal very nicely. Some people eat their main dish with rice and naan. That is a bit much to me, hello carb overload! Hema's Kitchen is a lovely Indian Restaurant on the Devon strip. The atmosphere is relaxing and the staff are helpful and good with suggestions. Hema's is BYO with no cork fee. Check it out if you are in the mood to try something different!
(4)
Alisa J.

It's never a good sign when you watch your food be heated up in a microwave before it's served to you. Maybe it's the time of day, 4pm on a Saturday, but this place is nothing like the other reviews I read.
(1)
Deepika T.

Strange that I have two reviews for Hemas Kitchen (1. Devon, 2. Lincoln Park) and they're night and day. I really wanted to like this Hemas Kitchen on Devon, it is closer to my house afterall. But sadly, it simply did not live upto the quality of the Lincoln Park one. The cutlets we had were mushy and under-cooked. The curries were Meh. The rice tasted like it just had a bag of Jewel's frozen mix veggies thrown in with the spices (and the beans were half cooked). Also, I really prefer the ambience of the other one.
(2)
Jessica G.

I love me some Hema's kitchen. The food is really good, and the waiters were super friendly when I went there for dinner a few days ago. I had stopped in to reap the benefits of my 2-for-1 Chicago Public Radio members card, but this place is DEFINITELY going on the rotation. Samosas were light and flakey, papadam was crisp and just a bit chewy, and the dishes hold a delicious depth of flavour that many Indian restaurants forgo in place of just adding more heat. I had the lamb korma, which was swimming with chunks of tender lamb and just the right touch of heat. Even the butter chicken (Chicken Makhani), so often an americanized disappointment, was complex and delicious. I mopped up every last bit of sauce! Yay! I'm a fan.
(4)
Kristin S.

What's more romantic than samosas, sag paneer and bubbly, buttery hot naan? Not much. With my Valentine in New York for the holiday, I talked an awesome, Indian cuisine-loving friend into heading up to Devon with me. We got there fairly early, so we were seated right away. We took our time perusing the menu which is large, but not overwhelming. Below is what we chose: Kheema Samosa: Ground Lamb Samosas: Pretty standard, but there was a good amount of meat in them. There are 2 per order ($4 per order) and they were crispy and hot, but didn't have much flavor until you dipped them in the two sauces that come with. I'd recommend high volumes of both sauces for a truly flavorful experience. Haryali Chicken: This was one we took a leap of faith on and were SO glad we did. The complex spices and aroma were intoxicating with the yogurt cooling it down to the perfect spice level. This was SO good and I'd HIGHLY recommend it. Sag Paneer: Pretty spicy, but I like spicy, so that worked for me. The spinach was incredibly flavorful and the cheese cubes were firm, but not the tasteless, chewy blocks I'm used to. They had a rich, cheese flavor that was able to stand up to the spices. Rice: Yes, this is one of those places where you have to order the rice separately. It was fine with a good texture and very subtle flavor, though I did see some cloves and spices in there. They just got overwhelmed by the spice of the entrees, I guess. The portion of rice was just a LITTLE too small in my opinion, but I like a lot of rice with my Indian food, so maybe it's just me. Naan: Bubbly, buttery and huge. Definitely split with a friend unless you want to be in pain after the meal cause you buckled and ordered a second serving of that tantalizingly hot, soft and crispy bread. So good. Mango Lassi: This was okay. The flavor was good, but it came at room temperature with 2 ice cubes floating in it. By the time we were halfway through, it was warm and weird. Still, it did it's job of cooling the heat from the Sag Paneer and I'll just ask for extra ice cubes next time. Only 4 stars because while it's the best Indian food I've ever had, it is a bit pricey and the service is SLOW. Atmosphere wasn't anything super special, either. We started off okay with our service, but it took over 30 minutes to get the check and by that time, other tables were getting up and leaving before having their orders taken cause they'd been sitting, ignored completely for about 20 minutes. Hema, hire another server and and hostess (the two servers alternated between playing hostess that night) and you'll remain tops in my book. I almost forgot to mention that it's BYOB, too! Maybe that 5th star isn't so far away after all...
(4)
Bryan W.

Great food, good prices and BYOB. One of the best places for Indian food in the city. I will be returning for sure ;-)
(4)
Dibyendu D.

average food and very bad service - unfortunately there is very few good places in Devon (too many average places) and it can be one of those average places. After eating indian food at NY and Washington - I found the food here is pretty ordinary.
(3)
livija m.

beware of a bold hair stylist or in this case beware of anything that has a sign saying " the best....in the city" ... service : awful! the waitress had no idea what is on the menu. She barely spoke English ( or she probably did but sounded like a white noise) , didn't know how to put the order trough - appetizers and entrees came at the same time, mine first - my friend's minutes later... we constantly had to guard our plates to not get them taken away even though we were still in the middle of eating. I was asked twice to give signed check before we even tried to leave ( to me its rude ) . Food - mediocre, nothing special. Not coming back , oh nono ;)
(1)
Nick M.

You want me to go where?!?! Devon Ave... I'll never find parking!! I would say my Top 5 best Indian as far as the food is concerned, I would also say my Top 5 worst service. Service- I pretty sure the owners are thinking if we just put a lot of staff everywhere then everyone can help anyone... First assign staff to tables, I had to tell 3 different people we needed more Naan, and then of course when we finally got it, we got two orders. Second, you have staff just standing around ignoring people. Not good when people are hungry. Third, not speaking English is fine but Hema's staff didn't even have enough sense to figure out what I needed and all I said was "Can we have another order of the vegetable samosa"... I know she understood samosa just didn't seem to get that I wanted more, she had to call over someone else. DÃ©cor- Simple, one big open room, and it gets loud!! Food- Vegetable & Kheema (lamb) Samosa were excellent Chicken roll - Chicken Khebob is rolled in paratha or phulka with onions, tomato and green Chutney. I know chicken roll but it's was really good! Sag Paneer - Fresh spinach and homemade cheese simmered in spices and gravy. Oh yeah! Navratan Curry - Assorted vegetables cooked in a fresh creamy sauce with a hint of light spices. We almost licked the plate!! Choosa Tikka Masala - Marinated boneless chicken cooked in a rich creamy sauce. Gone! Chicken Biryani - Basmati rice cooked with chicken and freshly roasted spices. So much rice but we ate it all! I will say that I don't ever remember a place charging me for plain Naan but they do here and @ $2.00 an order which is only two pieces. Four of us stuffed ourselves for only $20 per person. Plus it's BYOB, not bad at all. I'd go back but only if I have some time to kill.
(4)
Dilip R.

Excellent food. Nice competent service. Very friendly
(5)
Chloe R.

Totally fun, BYOB date place!! Very flavorful and absolutely delicious. Ordered the Sag Paneer, Dal with Baigan, Murg Makhani, Nan and Rice Took the butter chicken (Murg Makhani) up a notch in heat and it was well worth it. Grab yourself some Kingfisher beer down the street and enjoy the food and atmosphere. Just don't mind the falling apart menus.
(4)
Jean C.

Well... I didn't want to be writing this review. I was really looking forward to my meal here after seeing this place on "Check Please" and reading the good reviews here on Yelp. And initially it seemed as if we were going to have a great meal and a great time, but the staff wasn't going to let it happen. It started with our waiter. We literally had to tell him two or three times that we needed more time to look at the menu. We all put in orders for something to drink and he finally left. About five minutes later he came back without our beverages, and asked again so finally we ordered a couple of appetizers -- and he seemed not to be paying attention to what we said because when he repeated our order, we had to correct him. Then we made our orders for entrees. At that point he read our orders back to us and he read them so fast that I didn't even catch that he'd completely missed Jim's entree. Fortunately Jim did so disaster averted. The beverages arrived and the order was wrong, so we pointed that out, and it was fixed. The appetizers arrived and he'd mixed up our samosas with pakoras. We'd ordered one onion kulcha and one naan and a basket of pappadums. He'd repeated that as "One onion kulcha and one garlic naan." "No, we said, "One onion kulcha and one plain naan." We got the garlic naan anyway. Then almost immediately the entrees started arriving in groups of two, but nothing for me. I told the others "Eat. Don't let it get cold." Except that there were no plates. It took us a couple of minutes to get plates. And I waited, and I waited. One of the female staffers came by and said "How is everything?" I said "I'm kind of hoping to get my entree, and she said she'd go check. And I waited. Another female staffer came by and asked the same thing. "I'm still waiting for my entree,' I said, and she said she'd make sure it was coming. And I waited. By now my friends were starting to get annoyed. Me? I'm pretty easy-going. But when another of the wait staff came by, this time a guy, and asked "How's everything?" I said "I wouldn't know, I haven't gotten my entree yet." So he said "I'll go right back and check on that." Now this wasn't something that takes a long time to prepare, this was green curry fish. Our waiter stopped by the table. "How is everything?" he asked and I said "Possibly it would be fine if anyone had ever bothered to bring me my food!" As luck would have it, the last guy to promise to check on my food was at the very next table taking an order, so he turned and said "Oh, they said it'd be right out." How hard would it have been to come and tell me that before he started taking the order? I said "It had better be because I'm this close to telling you to forget it." Yes, I finally did get my fish, and it was good. But y'know, I'm pretty patient and if even one of those people had bothered to come and tell me how it was going, I'd have been happy. I never got an explanation or an apology. And then, as I was finishing my fish, they finally brought the basket of pappadums we'd asked for when we ordered our appetizers. No apologies, nothing. Just plunked it on the table and walked off. We decided to skip dessert. So bottom line is here that the food was good; not great but good, but and the service utterly ruined our enjoyment of the meal. We won't be going back. There are plenty of good, solid places on Devon where the service is anything but indifferent and sloppy. We'll be giving them our money from now on. ETA: The more I think about this the angrier I get. Hema was standing at the desk the whole time we were there. She never paid a bit of attention to anything that was going on right in front of her. Does she even care what we think? I don't believe it, and that cost her another star.
(1)
Jiyoun B.

Lady Hema no longer cooks in her kitchen but she does greet you at the door. My usual order consists of: -Shikh kabob rolls -Chana masala -Lamb Vindaloo -Rice and naan -Aloo mutter paneer was great -Chicken Vindaloo is also an excellent substitution. Also I don't recommend the fish Vindaloo. I keep coming back for more because it's that good. It is one of the best Vindaldoo in the city. The prices have jumped over the years but if this means that Hema's Kitchen will be around and expand even more, I'll be okay. Also BYOB with no corkage fee. Service here some times can bring you down. Incidences? Ya. 1. I saw three servers (at different times) kick around a utensil on the floor instead of picking it up. That's right, kick. under the table you go.... we're they playing fork soccer? I don't know~ 2. Last time I went, we weren't served for forty minutes. We thought at first that the kitchen might busy but when the table next to us, who were seated only ten minutes ago, started getting their food, we were furious. I think they started making our food only after I asked one of the waitress about it, to check if the order even went in. 3. Service was never really that great to begin with but they are a huge improvement from their old location. Go here for some great Indian cuisine. Never you mind the servers.
(5)
Liz M.

Delicious, BYOB, Indian on Devon. I love Devon, it's always worth the trip north, and you'll save a few bucks to boot. Four of us stopped by for dinner and shared 2 orders of samosas and 4 entrees with some rice and naan. Either the food was super delicious (it was), or the portions are kind of small because there absolutely no food left over. This has never happened to me before at an Indian restaurant. I usually come home with enough food for 2 lunches, so I was kind of disappointed that I didn't have anything to enjoy the next day. Overall - great food, but tiny portions and kind of off service definitely left me wanting more.
(3)
Shari D.

I barely remember the food because the service was enough to ruin the meal. Early Friday night at 6pm there were 3 tables full and 4-5 servers. There didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to who did what nor did any of them seem to care about anything but their cell phones. The only thing that was right was my water glass was always full. What went wrong: took forever to take our order, order wasn't given to the kitchen, brought wrong naan, never cleared dishes, asked twice for to-go containers, asked twice for check. No apologies for anything, it was a joke, we were completely invisible. Good food is widely available in this town. Spend your money elsewhere.
(1)
Rris C.

Eh. I expected my chicken tikka massala to have been gound chicken like it sould be. This was just chunks. Oh well, I'll find somewhere else to eat.
(2)
Marco D.

Good food for the price and you get a lot of it. When I get take-out it usually lasts a few days. Hemma is a sweetheart, and her food is always solid. Favorites are the chicken biryani, and aloo baijan.
(4)
e r.

A delightful experience. Traditional Indian food was tasty and had the perfect amount of spice. We walked out of this restaurant full and satisfied. We've never been to the other locations, and there is no need, especially since this location is not on the main road and traffic is not so thick.
(5)
Zaneta W.

The Chicken Tiki Masala was really good!!!! So was the naan. And the rice. It's byob which is a plus, but it closes pretty early, probably b/c they don't serve alcohol. Also, the prices here are really reasonable. I went with a group of people and some of them weren't really fans of the food they got, but I had a good experience. You can never go wrong w/ tiki masala!
(4)
Chicago J.

This is so hard for me. First an explanation. I've been faithful to Hema's as my go-to Indian place for a while now. I usually meet a friend regularly there for lunch, and I've always had a great meal. Added bonus, is that a few times I've met the owner, who walks around and chats with the patrons. I always enjoy that personable experience. Recently, I was in the neighborhood and on a whim I decided to treat myself. I noticed a confusing sign outside that said "Grand Opening" Could Hema have sold, and they're under new management?! No, it's just a ploy she seems to be utilizing to drum up business. I ordered my hands down favorite dish, murgh makhani. The waitress asked, "is that all?" When I indicated it was, she asked if I wanted Naan and rice as well. That had always been a given, but maybe she was new? I gave her the benefit of the doubt. I spent the rest of my time there dealing with the men at the next table that were blatantly flirting with her, occupying all her time and attention, so that I wasn't offered more water, or asked if everything was ok, or if I needed anything else. What's worse is, when I got my chicken, I found a number of tiny bones in it, as if they just chopped up some tandoori chicken and threw it in. I should have complained, I should have gotten someone's attention, but I hate conflict, so I kept my mouth shut. I couldn't even get anyone's attention to get the check, so I went up to the front where Hema was sitting. When she found out I hadn't gotten the check yet, she scolded the server, but printed it up for me. That's when I discovered I had been charged for everything separately. I've never experienced that before, or maybe I just wasn't paying attention? For the same price (less even!) I could go to an Indian Buffet and get an enormous all you can eat/all inclusive meal. What used to be my favorite Indian restaurant has turned into a huge disappointment. Sorry Hema, but I don't think I'll be back any time soon.
(2)
Julie T.

Everything was delicious, but the portions were relatively small. Was sharing entrees family style among 5 people, and everyone was literally able to have a bite of each..meat and fish dishes had maybe five pieces which was disappointing since we each paid about $17 after tip and tax. We ordered: Murg Makhani- chicken with creamy tomato gravy Garlic Naan- fresh, crisp, yet chewy and moist Lamb Curry- good, but the portion I had was mostly fat Chana Masala- chick peas and potatoes in sauce, pretty flavorful..didn't even miss meat in this veggie dish Curried Fish- amazing, i could've had 2 of these entrees myself Good, but wouldn't go back. There's plenty of other places for great Indian in satisfying portions.
(3)
Tiffany B.

I went here with my friend Lauren on recommendation from another friend and from "Check Please". As far as the ambiance, I liked it. Not fancy but the lighting was nice and it was clean and spacious. In between a hole in the wall and a more classic sit down. The service was less than good. The first half of the meal took forever for our water to fill up but then a nice woman started taking care of us and it greatly improved. There was something in my friends water glass and the first waiter didn't seem to understand what we were saying and forgot to replace it or bring us water. But the girl was much more efficient. As for the food, it was okay. Simply okay. We had the veggie and the kheema samosas' and they were good. Not the best but definitely enjoyable. We ordered the Jal Frezi and the Aloo Matar . Both were simply okay with a leaning towards not that great. The Aloo Matatr was better that the Jal Frezi and I enjoyed it with the rice.The nan and plain rice were great though but that's not exactly hard to do. Overall it is a nice meal but $35 for the two of us was over priced considering the food and service. There are plenty of other restaurants on Devon that have a little less ambiance but are better and less $. Or more $ but with a nicer ambiance and better food.
(1)
Ang R.

I wanted to love Hema's, because I know people who do. But I don't love Hema's. I just don't. The samosas just aren't as good as other samosas, and frankly, I don't want to eat at your restaurant if you can't provide me with a tasty samosa. And the cilantro chutney wasn't as light or refreshing as it should be, in my opinion. That said, the Matar Paneer (my ol' standby) was delicious and spicy and right, and that made me happier, after the samosa sadness. The rice was also fragrant and good, though it had too many large pieces of leaf in it for me to really like it. And that's all I ate. Others at the table were saying their meals were strangely spicy (too spicy, almost, for saag paneer), so buyer beware. Order accordingly. The service was indifferent (took a long while for our food to come) but not egregious. Still, I'm trying other Devon Ave places before I commit to this one.
(3)
Hatidza Z.

So good! I really love eating food and sharing with a bunch of friends. Hema's is a great place to do that, plus the food is delicious and reasonably priced. I feel that the place is always pretty crowded, but that's usually a good sign. I definitely find myself going back.
(4)
Keun L.

best lamb vindaloo ever! their naan is huge and tastes and feels like it's made fresh. Here's some short advice about this place, you don't leave here hungry, you leave here full and happy, okay? The service needs a bit of work, but the food makes up for the quality of the service here.
(5)
Ellie B.

This morning I woke up and wondered what the best way to make a few enemies in the shortest amount of time would be.... ...then I remembered that I had yet to review Hema's Kitchen and realized I'd certainly have a few people in arms with my thoughts! The food was just OK. That's right. I'm not going to rave about how stellar everything was, because I'd be LYING. Was the food bad? Certainly not. But it was not bursting with flavor as I would expect based on the many 5 star reviews I've read. My favorite standby for amazing Indian fare is Himalaya, and Hema's was a far cry from their standout dishes. The chicken tikka massala was soup and greasy, though the shami roll would be reason enough for me to make a return visit. The aloo matar paneer was tasty, but not the best I've ever had. Peas pilaf is a safe, tasty bet and the samosas were pretty standard. I was disappointed in the garlic naan - it fell flat, lacking that melt in your mouth quality that I was expecting. In summary - not bad, but definitely not a place I'll crave with any frequency.
(3)
Nicole L.

I suppose 2010 has unleashed my wild side, or just goes to show that I consider trying foreign food spontaneous, I may just be that boring. Tandoori Chicken Lamb Biryani Naan - carbs how I love you so. What an experience this was, I can not say if the food was good because I've never had traditional Indian food but I enjoyed trying everything we ordered and loved the spinach and cheese dish. I was unaware that cold beverages are not common amongst Indian cuisines which was odd for me. The naan was delicious and addicting. Our server barely knew English so the interaction was not the best. I love the carrot desert which is an interesting twist on the idea of desert but I would like to come back and try more dishes for sure. Can't forget the B.Y.O.B.
(3)
Matt R.

This place is good. Flat out. Channel 11 knows it too. They were a little dead but we got our food to go and man, it was excellent. It was decent priced as usual and it was honestly pretty faithful to real ethnic indian food. Maybe it's different when you sit down there, although they seemed polite.
(5)
Dennis J.

Oh Hema's Kitchen.... So painful to eat, yet SO freakin' good! The food is authentic (so I've been told) Indian. I always leave feeling like my insides have just been melted by acid but I can't seem to stop coming back, its a flavor/spice you just can't get anywhere else! I HIGHLY recommend the Hiryali Chicken (its in a cilantro sauce) , plenty of Naan bread, and a tall glass of Mango Lasi to calm the heat. The place is very clean and has nice decor, even the bathroom has fancy mirrors, artwork, and a incent stick burning in rice. The staff is super nice and I think it's cool that every time I go, I see Hema there. It shows pride in her food and restaurant.
(5)
Rehana M.

Let me start this off by saying that this easily could have been a three-star review, had the staff here made the least amount of effort at offering good customer service. After the way I was treated, though, I am NEVER coming back here. Absolutely shocking. My boyfriend and I wanted Indian, and I had a hankering for lamb. After reading rave reviews about Hema's, I was excited to check it out. We were seated promptly, I ordered Spinach Pakoras and Rogan Josh, and he got Shami Kabob and Lamb Vindaloo. I was a little put off when the waitress told us that rice was extra (who does that?) but I shrugged it off. The kabobs were good - nice and spicy, good seasonings. The Spinach Pakoras were pretty tasty too, but the chutney they served with it was a joke. The coriander chutney was obviously watered-down, and the other chutney (I couldn't even tell what it was supposed to be) tasted exactly like cheap sweet-and-sour sauce. On to the entrees...The Vindaloo was not, as the menu claimed, "very spicy." It was medium at best, and my boyfriend was not impressed. The Rogan Josh, on the other hand, was awful. A few gristly lamb chunks were literally swimming in oil; indeed, I tasted nothing but grease. I couldn't make out any spices or seasonings; it was just the blandest Indian food I've ever had. Now, I'm half-Indian myself; I grew up eating this food, and I know what good Indian food is. This is Indian food for yuppie suburbanites. At this point, I was quite disappointed and felt I should speak up. I really didn't want to be "that person," but I couldn't eat the food, and I didn't even want to take it home. I explained very politely to the waitress why I wasn't satisfied, and she went to talk to Hema, the owner. She came back a few minutes later and said she could bring me a salad. I had kind of lost my appetite by then, and I asked if they could just remove the Rogan Josh from our bill. All I got from her was a flat-out no. I went up to the counter to speak with Hema, and was told that "All of her other customers like her food, so why should she bother with one person who doesn't." (!!!) She kept repeating, "It's MY recipe; I didn't force you to order it." I have NEVER encountered someone who knew so little about customer service. If it were my restaurant, the moment someone expressed disappointment, I would immediately offer to remove that item from the bill. How tacky to take it personally that I didn't like her food. She told me, "You can tell your mother that you don't like her food; you can't tell me." Well, I absolutely can, and do. Hema, I don't like your food, your attitude, or your restaurant, and we will NOT be coming back.
(1)
Lisa R.

We just ate @ Hema's on Clark and had a great experience. Our service was good, too. We had the vegetable samosa, Shami kehbob for appetizers, and the Lamb vindaloo, Chicken biryani, Garlic paan. It was all sooo good! We'll be back.
(4)
Venkat R.

We ordered the shahi paneer and vegetable biryani and it was great! Would highly recommend it and will definitely come back.
(4)
Judy L.

Green sauce with chicken. Super yummy samosas. Pistachio kulfi. Buttery naan. The best Indian food ever.
(5)
Vee M.

This is by far my favorite Indian restaurant! The one located here on Devon is ran (as far as I still know) by the direct owners: a very VERY nice Indian family. This place is great for vegetarians or meat lovers and those that love oh so spicy food. For appetizers I suggest to always, ALWAYS start out with Samosas! Doesn't matter what kind (lentil, lamb, beef) - all are delicious and come with 2 dipping sauces: spicy green and sweet red. For the main course we got (under the LAMB entrees) Lamb Curry and Lamb Vindaloo. Both dishes are smothered in sauce, one curry, another in coconut gravey and spices - wow. The lamb was (and is always) so tender and just chewy enough to enjoy the bite and enjoy the drink after the heat (make sure to grab a Mango Lassi to drown down the spicy-ness!). They also have very good bread, I typically get Poori, it's fried daugh that inflates the bread- very good to scoop rice and lamb into the bread! Basically: good lamb, a variety of spices, large menu and mouthwatering food. 2 people 2 entrees 2 drinks, bread and a split appetizer: Less than $50 *I've been to the Clark one also and the same applies as I've had the same dishes there, price wise too.
(5)
Andrew S.

they blow. horrible service. incorrect orders. forgotten appetizers. go to ANY of other indian restaurants on devon.
(1)
Shradha A.

If you've read my review for Hema's Kitchen II, you'll know why this is a 4-star not 5! This was my favorite on Devon for the longest time. But then came HK II and Hema went away to LP. The service went down, the orders started getting mixed up (several times), the food just wasn't the same. I shifted to HK II too. But now, she is back to Devon and when she personally takes care, this is the best!! One plus: Prices are cheaper here than Lincoln Park. One minus: They don't have naan! My favorite part about Hema's Kitchen: It's closer to home food. Trust me I'll know - I grew up in India on mom's food. My recommendations: Chana (chickpeas), Veg samosa, phulka (this is the bread we eat at home, not naan), paratha (and this bread too), yellow daal, veg biryani.
(4)
Benjamin B.

Hema's kitchen is totally top-notch Indian cuisine. The ambience is decent, if a tad crowded... the food is amazing in flavor, easily the best I've had in Chicago. The portions are ample, but not too large... the appetizers are phenomenal and the service is generally quite friendly and helpful. It is BYOB so you can tote that flask of bourbon up in there... yum yum. I highly recommend this place, so just go there... it will speak for itself.
(5)
Kate G.

Our experience wasn't so great. We were seated at a tiny table and then were ignored for quite a while. When we did order, the recommendations for more mild dishes were helpful.....but then they were not mild....and our water glasses were never filled again...despite asking several times....I left sweaty and a little discombobulated by the whole experience. We had a tandoori dish (which was very oily), samosas, and biryani. The food was just ok, but a little overpriced in comparison to other places in the area and very greasy. Oh, and I could not believe they do not have naan.
(2)
Corin W.

I feel a bit silly reviewing Hema's as she is a bit of a legend already in this city. But I can't NOT do a review of my favorite restaurant in Chicago. Given the choice of any place to eat I will always choose Hema's. I used to go there all the time when I taught at Loyola, now that I live up in the Chain O' Lakes I still drive all the way down to Devon for the experience. The woman is a genius when it comes to spices. And she's very particular about how food leaves her kitchen. She ALWAYS remembers how spicy I like my food, and if she sees one of her cooks setting my food in the window under spiced she will recook it herself. She and her daughter Pam are also wonderful company. We've chatted with both of them for hours on occasion. Now, I must warn you--this is a very small place and it's always busy so things sometimes take a little while because everyting is prepared fresh. But I don't get this obsession people have with getting in and out of a restaurant in twenty minutes. I go to Hema's to enjoy the experience. I sit and have masala chai and Pakora and talk to my lover or my dining companions and just celebrate life. If you want fast food go to McDonald's. Dining at Hema's is an event. I could sit there all day and night drinking her tea and taking in the neigborhood. The Shahi paneer is unparallelled in this city; the Saag Murg is sublime; the poori is addictive; the rice perfectly tender and seasoned; the dal is the essence of comfort food. Hema's is the perfect example of why I am certain that Indian food was taught to humans by the Gods.
(5)
Laurie F.

the food is always great, the Kofta is hands down a favorite along with the garlic Naan. Hema's is a great place to go with a small group of friends to order a bunch of different things a few sides of rice and naan and enjoy a bottle (or two) of wine with no corkage fee. Prices are reasonable so you will definitely leave full without breaking the bank
(4)
La C.

I love their food and have been there many times with my friends from India. They do not serve alcohol, but your American friends can bring their own and there is NO corkage fee which is very nice. I've been there several times with groups of friends and everyone has always been very happy with the food and service. And some of my friends are quite picky!
(5)
Jillian S.

Hema's Kitchen (Devon version, NOT Lincoln Park version!!!) is my favorite place for Indian food in all of Chicago. It offers great service, great flavors, and a friendly atmosphere. Make sure you begin your meal with some of their excellent samosas - even though I am not usually a fan of lamb, I must say I enjoyed these even more than the veggie ones I ordered. The chicken vindaloo is EXTREMELY spicy - but is well worth it, although you are going to need two orders of mango lassi to get through it. And the naan. So crispy, so warm, and so fresh. You will truly be "wowed" by your meal at Hema's. It is second to none!
(5)
natalie h.

Our favorite Indian in the whole city! Hema is always so nice and welcoming too. We have our kids with us when we go most of the time and she gives them extra free nan bread and plays with them. The food is AMAZING!!!
(5)
Kim J.

I wanted to love Hema's, I really did. But our experience on Saturday night was downright bad. A group of 6 of us had a reservation. When we arrived, there was no table for us. We waited a few minutes while they cleared off a table in the back. No big deal. However, the table they sat us at was gross. There was water dripping down on two of my friends, and there was obviously water damage up on the ceiling. When we told them about it, they simply suggested we move the table over, but we weren't able to move it over far enough to keep all the dripping water off of us. So gross. We're a forgiving group, and we probably could have overlooked the above if the service was good. Sadly, it wasn't. It took them 20 minutes to even come take our order, and we weren't given wine glasses or a corkscrew until ten minutes after that. When the food came out 40 minutes later, they brought all of our entrees but didn't bring us rice. WTF? No rice with Indian food? By the time they brought us some, the food was getting cold. And when we were done, we sat with dirty plates in front of us for another 20 minutes before we could flag anyone down and get the bill. The food wasn't bad, for the most part. A friend ordered chicken jalfrazie, and it was too hot to even eat. We are not wimps when it comes to spicy - we've done thai spicy at thai joints and not batted an eye. But this was practically inedible. The waiter had even said it was one of the milder dishes. So much for that. When we told the woman at the counter as we left, she brushed off our complaints. We weren't complaining that it was hot - we were more complaining that the waiter didn't know to tell us it would be hot, and in fact told us the opposite. All and all, one of the worst restaurant experiences I've had in awhile. With lots of great choices up on Devon, I will not give this restaurant another dime of my money.
(1)
Tiffany M.

The food is always amazing. We live in the neighborhood and order takeout and eat in frequently. If you're looking for stellar service, you've got the wrong place. But, the Choosa Tikka Masala and Aloo Matar Paneer are hard to beat, so we keep going back.
(4)
Jane K.

Have I mentioned? I love, love, love, looooooooooove this place. To get the bad out of the way: the service is absolutely annoying because, I hate to sound bratty, they are so overbearing. Usually there's about 2 or 3 people waiting tables and each person asks if everything is okay each time that they pass the table, this results in halty conversations and enthusiastic nods since my mouth is almost always busy. Nevertheless, now that I've gotten the bad out of the way. What is there to hate? It's BYOB with liquor stores galore within walking distance and spicy spicy food! I am a huge meat lover but I have vegetarian dishes at this place. I have tried other things but the ones that I keep going back for time after time are: Sheek Khebob Roll- lamb wrapped in goodness Lamb Vindaloo- spicy, marinated lamb Chana Masala- delectable chickpeas and Rice and garlic naan to soak up all the sauces... yum! Goes down well with some cold beer. I prefer the Champagne of Beers for my indian meal. :)
(5)
Donna A.

First of all, I was really psyched to try this place because I recently saw an episode of Chicago's best that showed off this restaurant. So my expectations were pretty high. However, the service totally ruined any good feelings I could have had for the food. We came on a rainy Wednesday night, and the place was about 1/3 full. We get seated right away, but it takes forever to get our order in. OK, whatever that is fine-- just give me my appetizer ASAP because I am hungry! We ordered 2 veggies samosas (pretty good),naan, chicken vindaloo, and a goat dish. It took 20 minutes for our appetizer to come out, it took 21 minutes for our entrees to come out...We started noshing on our entrees while waiting for our rice to come out. Apparently, you have to order rice separately. When we finally flag somebody to inquire about the rice (our waitress is no where to be seen), he informs us that it does not come with the meal but places an order for us. Our rice never comes, but mysteriously appears on the check. Our water is only refilled after we bagged our leftovers, and the missing waitress appears miraculously-- only to throw our check on the table and leave without a word. Summary: HORRIBLE SERVICE, Very meager servings with high prices (that do not include rice), OK tasting food
(1)
Maggie W.

I went here a couple nights ago, because I was in the area and had been to their former Rogers Park location a few years ago and it was delicious. I will agree with someone else who mentioned the food isn't as spicy. I'm the average white person when it comes to spiciness and last time, I had to stop eating because it was spicy (OK, maybe not stop, because it was good, but slow down considerably). This time, my nose got a little bit running, but nothing that required a gallon of water or something. Anyway, the food is delicious. We were the only folks in the restaurant (5pm on a Wednesday, so not odd for it to be empty), and we got good service. Our server recommended some dishes which were very good. Now, keep in mind after living in Rogers Park for school, I have been living in the suburbs for the past 4 years, so as of late I have had to rely on the only Indian restaurant I know of out here for my Indian cravings. So in comparison, Hema's is amazing. But in reality it's just pretty good.
(4)
Ryan L.

Its a looong bus ride up to Hema's but definitely worth it. Very veggie friendly. It felt great to not be limited to the one or two things on the menu that are vegetarian. Samosas and the food were, of course, excellent. The only strange thing is that you have to order the bread separately. But I'll get over it. A+ for Hema and her kitchen.
(5)
PJ K.

Like its offspring at Clark and Fullerton, the original Hema's is quirky (no tandoor and so therefore no naan, tandoori chicken, etc.) and good but also overrated. The original gets an extra star for being a little more generous with the spices (I swear that the Devon location's food is zippier) and the prices ... the Devon/Oakley location is about a dollar cheaper than the Lincoln Park outlet. With the "Check Please"-addled mob having moved on to further flavors of the month, the lines are no longer stretching around the block, and the food is still good -- just don't expect friggin' miracles and you'll have a good dinner.
(4)
John W.

I think those photos are of the old place. The Hemas in the old location on Oakley wasn't as nice as the new one. The new one is on Devon and is much nicer. The food is still awesome! And it's not just white people food, Indian people eat there too. Now, its not the places filled with all men who drive cabs where all the dishes have pieces of bone in them and they slaughter goats in the back but I would have to assume that it's authentic as it gets. One of my absolute favorite dishes of all time is the Murg Makhani which is boneless tandoori chicken in a "rich onion and tomato gravy". You know the bright red of flaming cheetos? That's how red this is: besides this, flaming cheetos and red peppers, you have never eaten anything this red. Did I mention it's all red? Anyway, I have also had the the Chicken Vindaloo, Tikka Masala and the Ghosh Rogan Josh, which were all good and the last time I was there I saw what I believe to be a Lamb, Chicken or Veggie Biryani and it looked great but unless I come here two days in a row I will always get the Murg Makhani with rice because it rocks and is always good as leftovers. It may be too hot to handle for some sans rice. I wasn't too impressed with their Samosas but girlfriend loves them so I eat them and they are fine. The Knaan is always hot, fresh and yummy. For weekends its probably best to have reservations and bring something to drink as it is BYOB. For the spicy foods I would reccomend a light, spicy, citrusy beer such as Hoegaarden or even an Indian lager, a white sparkliing wine or an acidic red wine such as a Barbera.
(4)
searah d.

Had Dinner at Hema's tonight. The service was friendly and far from slow. The food was spiced nicely - for sure not mild, but certainly not over-spiced. Every dish was had was absolutely delicious, the flavors were varied (& scrumptious) and we ate every last bite. There is no question that I would go there again.
(5)
Ernest W.

I'm still a bit of an Indian food novice, and Hema's food certainly had a good amount of spice to it. Despite that, I could feel that a lot of really incredible flavor was also there, even if my sensitivity to spice made it hard to fully appreciate. The Mango Lassis are much sweeter than I would expect, but nevertheless far better than those I've had elsewhere.
(5)
Andrew P.

Really great Indian, but really bad for my digestion. Maybe I ate it too fast because it was so good? The samosas were perhaps the best I've ever had. My wife raves about the paneer. Great service and atmosphere. Bring your iron stomach though.
(3)
Tina T.

On a rainy Saturday, we ventured to Hema's for some spicy Indian fare, and were not disappointed by the food. But the service? Seriously, we could have died at our table and no one would have noticed! We were the first ones in the place early afternoon; we placed our order for an appetizer and drinks, and perused the extensive menu, which features a great selection of the typical standbys. We ordered the kheer samosas, which were pretty darn tasty. Then we placed our entree order. Meanwhile, the restaurant started filling up pretty quickly, about 1/3 full. Our server disappeared for quite a while, as we watched all the tables around us being served their food. Was my husband's lamb vindaloo the culprit that required slow cooking? We drank the rest of our beverages, and waited about 40 minutes. Finally, after all the other tables were eating, one of the hosts stopped by to ask us if we needed to place an order. Our server, who finally resurfaced, realized that she never put our order in. Oh well, another 15 minutes and we finally got our food. The food was pretty good; I especially enjoyed my lamb biryani. And the host did give us a free entree, after I asked for some credit because of the confusion. So all in all, decent food but the service kind of sucks.
(3)
Dasha A.

Went to Hema's yesterday night and have to say that I won't be coming back - too many better options on Devan. Price: for a street like Devan where there are so many choices for Indian food $12 for a simple chicken entree (not including rice) is a but much, but we saw how well reviewed it was and decided to stay to try it out. We got chicken tikka, aloo matar, 1 rice and 2 naans for about $40. Service: not great. Our first waitress didn't speak any English as when we asked you to make sure the food was mild she nodded and went away. When we got the food it was impossible to eat. When we asked a different waitress to replace just one of our entrees with a mild dish, she said she'd check with the owner - fine. She left. Did some other stuff for about 10 minutes. Passed our table. Said "Oh!" and went to go ask the owner. She returned saying she could make our dish less spicy. When it returned (20 minutes later) it was just as spicy. They just added a bit of butter and cream to it, but, of course the chili powder was still there. I just wanted to leave by then so I made me friend (who has a much higher tolerance for spice than I do) finish the food and told the waitress it was fine, she could leave it on the table. Waters refilled once. For most of the meal I had an empty glass standing by the edge of the table waiting for attention. Food: from the words of my friend it wasn't bad. Not amazing, not as good as Chopal's but decent. The naan was amazing. Rice was ordinary. Won't be returning here again. The second waitress came to get our check and apologized that the food was so spicy and suggested that next time we let our waitress know to make it mild. We informed her that we had. Paid, and left.
(2)
Jef B.

MOST IMPORTANT, HEMA'S KITCHEN HAS MOVED to 2439 W. Devon Avenue, Chicago IL. Neither Google Maps nor the Hema's Kitchen website reflect the new address yet. The Oakley location is closed completely. Food is excellent, service is chaotic, often absent, though always friendly. Very noisy restaurant on a Saturday night. This is about the best all-India restaurant on Devon, if you aren't sensitive to ambience and service problems. Parking will likely only be available at a 2-3 block walk away. This is a BYOB restaurant.
(4)
Diana H.

Okay, so two things: 1. I am not an expert in Indian food, having tried only two other Indian restaurants in Chicago. 2. The reason I haven't tried many other places is because I love the food at Hema's, so I keep going back! The food is HOT--and you can get it as hot as you want it. My tongue can't tolerate extreme heat, so I need to ask for it mild, and they are usually able to do a good job of making entrees both tasty and mild enough for my sensitive taste buds. There's lots to choose from, including plenty of stuff for vegetarians. Love their samosas--they could be a meal in themselves! The staff is very courteous. On a couple of occasions, I had the pleasure of meeting Mama Hema herself as she made rounds among the diners to make sure we were enjoying our food. Service can be slow at times, especially on the weekends, but this is a place where I am willing to forgive a little lag time in service, because I know I'll get terrific food and leave feeling all warm and spicy inside. Mmmmmmm... Parking is difficult, so I highly recommend the #155 Devon bus.
(5)
Keith J.

Great location, great food and great service, all in one place. That is hard to beat. I will certainly return and Hema's Kitchen has replaced my past Devon Avenue favorites which was no easy feat. The one issue that I did have was the service when the restaurant was slow, but as soon as the place started to fill up it was like a light switch going off, all of a sudden the service became friendly, attentive and ended up being fantastic. A great place for those interested in trying Indian food and just as good for Indian Food lovers.
(4)
ann d.

The good news: The food at Hema's Kitchen is waaay better than what they're serving at Chicago Curry House in the South Loop. (If the Curry House is where you're headed, think again and make the trip to Devon.) And Hema's serves decently-sized portions - not enough to need a doggy bag, but enough to fill you up IF you order naan and rice. The bad news: the service was V E R Y slow with only 4 or 5 other tables occupied. We had to chase someone down to PLEASE take our order. Then 1 of the 5 plates we ordered arrived and we waited, then requested, then waited for, the rest of our meal. That is so annoying! And unprofessional! The wait staff seemed not to care ONE BIT. For $35 for two light dinners, there are millions of better places to go.
(2)
Dillard R.

FANTASTICALLY DELICIOUS! Having never had Indian food here in Chicago and have been craving it for some time, I thought I would give this place a try. Having been to India and having an Indian best friend , I know the cuisine fairly well. I have experienced fine dining , homemade, to quick grab and go and this was excellent! There were 3 of us and the service was great. The waiter explained to the other 2 who have never had Indian before great detail of each dish we ordered. We ordered Lamb Briyani, Lamb Rogan Josh, Chicken Korma, Harylani Chicken, Rice Plate, Lamb Samosa, Raita ( by the way you can us this sauce as a way to cool your taste buds) and a number of Naan type breads. All were quite Delicious . It was more than enough food for 3. My friends were raving for hours after this experience you would have thought I bought them airline tickets to India. The service was great though it wasn't very busy. I care more about the quality of the food then the service to some extent. I am there to eat not be entertained by the staff. As far as I am concerned this place exceeded my expectations. Hemas Kitchen is on my top 5 list!!!! I will take all of my friends here!
(5)
Sneha R.

Abysmal place! The tandoori chicken, which is supposed to be hot, was stone cold and tasted a little off. Covered in what looked like red paint and didn't have a single char that good tandoori cooked chicken must. We sent it back and asked them to send some samosas instead, which were stone cold. Again. Our entrees were hariyali chicken and vegetable vindaloo. The hariyali chicken had orange colored meat in a light salt-less bland curry. The vegetable vindaloo had mammoth sized cauliflowers with petite carrots, and the curry lacked salt here as well. The naans were good, but it doesn't amount to much when the rest of the food is pretty crappy. My husband and I are amazed that this place actually runs. I'm sure there are places that serve food that's much worse than this, but that's another review on another day. There wasn't a single person who seemed to be in charge of the restaurant. They all seemed to look at this job as just another place to hang out. The service was just plain annoying. The person who brought the food out literally plonked the food on the table without bothering to clear the appetizer plates or even ask about it. And rolled his eyes when we asked him to do so. We also observed that he behaved the same way with everyone else. How this branch proudly displays is Zagat rating on the door is appalling! Their other restaurant on Clark is much better. I remember their service was friendly and inviting. But that was a year ago and much can change in that time span. Therefore, Mrs. Hema, if I were you, I'd get to the restaurant pronto, fire the chef who seems to be working with burnt taste buds, set the service straight, teach the college students you hired to not argue and shout "Shut up!" within earshot of your guests and not team up giggle with each other at the front desk. They were nice, very nice, but providing food service requires a bit more than a casual attitude. I'd also, if I were you, fire that chap who thinks that people are totally OK with having their food thrown onto the table. For those who go here for Indian food, there are better options on Devon. And much better Indian restaurants in other neighborhoods in the city, even Hema's kitchen on Clark is. This branch is not worth you time and money. Steer clear.
(1)
Vaidehi T.

I can't believe I haven't yelped about this place. This is one of the better restaurants in Devon. The food is kept authentic and flavors are not dumbed down. I have dined here a lot of times, and was never disappointed with their food. The food is always freshly made, and you can taste the fresh spices in the food. They never serve stale food sitting in the freezer for a week. I love most of their vegetarian entrees. I have to admit their vegetarian food is better than their non-veg dishes, but their lamb vindaloo is to die for. Hot roti with dum ki gobhi matar is my favorite here. The service is not that great. That's my only complaint about this place. Their prices are higher than usual Indian places, for that price I expect the service and food to be really good. Especially if you are there on a busy weekend, you are left trying to look for your server to order extra food. But the food is great.
(4)
Scott S.

How do you review a Chicago legend? Hema Potla has been serving amazing Indian food for a long time now, first on Oakley, and now on her new digs on Devon proper. She and her daughter Pam are two of the most personable restauranteurs I have ever had the pleasure to meet. Does the service sometimes get spotty? Sure. But I'm there for the food first and foremost. The new space is much larger and more comfortable. The bathrooms are amazingly better. However, the best upgrade of all is the fact that she now has a tandoor! Thus, all the wonderful tandoor breads (like onion kulcha, yum) and tandoor-grilled sizzling platters (including a to-die-for murgh malai kebab) are now available, thus making it that much harder to order. Still, I cannot escape without an order of shahi paneer, the ultimate dish. Is this 5-star as in Alinea 5-star? Of course not. But for Indian, it's one of the best there is, even with inconsistency of service and the occasional kitchen misfire.
(5)
Neha M.

I take back everything I said in that last review. I just got take out from here the other day. Fucking amazing. There's a good chance this place will cater my Indian wedding one day :)
(4)
Aaron A.

Here is the deal. It is not the best Indian food- as their sign leads you to believe. It's average at best. The best part- they deliver quick. It's a good option when you are really hungry- but I wouldn't suggest seeking this place out. You've just been yelped in.
(3)
Nicole S.

Best Indian food I've ever had in Chicago! Great for a date or a family meal.
(4)
Suzan W.

It saddens me to say that I must drop my rating to a lonely one star. On my most recent visit, unfortunately, the quality of the food was nowhere near to what it used to be. We ordered very simple dishes (chicken tika masala, lamb vindaloo)....the quality of the meat in both was probably the worst I have ever had. In addition, the aromatic rice was stale and the paratha was almost raw. As for the service, in one word: RIDICULOUS. It was never stellar but it seems to have gone even further downhill. Will definitely not be going back.
(1)
Lourdes A.

I was late to school but needed my masala fix in a hurry and to go!! So, I jumped off the Devon bus and ordered two veggie samosas, which came with a sweet dipping sauce and on the waitress' suggestion, I also ordered a a Chicken Roll from the Light Fare menu. It's chicken in paratha (type of Indian flatbread) with onions, tomato and green chutney. OMG! It was delish!!! Next time, I'll skip the samosas and get two of the chicken rolls!! And no, I'm not a slob. They are from the Light Fare menu so they are on the small side - most would be able to eat two easily. I was at the Lincoln Park Hema's years ago and was disappointed by their chicken biryani so I will withhold the 4th star until I return again but I am looking forward to updating this review real soon!
(3)
Katie H.

Okay, read my review with a grain of salt because my experience with Indian food is quite limited. But I have to say, I was not impressed with this place. We came early on a Saturday night and were seated right away. The person who sat us quickly brought glasses and a corkscrew for our wine. Our waitress came and took our order for appetizers. The samosas were good, as were the potato slices covered in chick pea flour and deep fried. But the lamb, while spicy with a nice flavor, was way too dry and neither of the sauces (one spicy, one overly sweet) complemented it. A different person came to take our dinner order. I was dissapointed that they didn't have naan, so we ordred 2 kinds of bread (one grilled, one fried). Both were okay, but nothing great. The chicken tikka masala was dissapointing. Yes, this was my first time having it, but my husband loves it and gets it all the time and he agreed, it was really bland. After we'd finished, we sat for about 20 minutes before someone finally came back to check on us, realize that we had piled our plates on the end of the table, and bring us a box and our bill. Another 10 minutes went by before a different person came back to run our card. Normally I'll forgive slow service if the food is good and the prices are low (which this was - 3 apps, 2 breads, rice and an entree were $28) but the food was just lacking. If it was just me, I'd write it off to my inexperince with Indian food, but my husband agreed. I'll definately be trying more Indian, but I don't think I'll be back to Hema's.
(2)
Lorraine L.

I made my mom cry here. No seriously, I did. See, my mom is an old school Mexican mom, she's never really experimented with cuisines of different countries. She's what you call a steak-and-tortilla kind of girl. So one afternoon, I had nothing to do...I said, "hey ma, want to take the bus up to Devon and try some Indian food?" Mom: "Ok mija." So after a 45 minute bus ride up Western to Devon, we arrive at Hema's. It wasn't very crowded and the waiter took care of us right away. I order some saag paneer and I think lamb vindaloo (make it spicy, we're Mexican, we can handle it.) My mom liked the saag, then she tried the lamb. Slowly, tears started rolling down her cheeks and she started sniffling. "Mom, you ok?" She wouldn't stop eating though, she loved it! The waiter finally took pity on her and brought over some yogurt without me having to ask. I love Hema's Kitchen, for the tasty food and for making my mami cry.
(4)
Debbie G.

after hearing good things about Hemas thought we would try it in Sat night. Bad idea. First bad sign, not too many Indian people there, second bad sign, they charge for white rice! Food was way too spicy - they never asked how we wanted it prepared. Only brought a small plate of rice to go with four entrees ( small ones) ! When asked five different people for more rice, finally got if half hour later when all our food was cold. Nobody seemed to know what was going on. If going to Devon, better to go to Sabra Nehari or Tiffin. Or if in Evanston, Mt Everest is always good and they don't charge for rice!
(1)
Nasrin Q.

The food at Hema's has always been decent. Although, other than the kebabs, I find the other dishes not so special and the visible microwave in the kitchen does not build confidence. However, the service is in most urgent need of improvement! The last time I went there with some friends, we got the worst service I have ever experienced in a restaurant. We waited over an hour to just get water, for which we asked three times. As we watched people around us, who arrived later than we did, get their food, we called the waitress and told her. Instead of apologizing and attending to us (for example, bringing us water) she seemed upset that we complained. An hour and half later, our food still had not arrived so we got up to leave; this after complaining to the owner, Hema, as well who said to us "well, the food is very good." This was not our complaint since we had not yet tasted the food. When we lost patience and got up to leave, the owner begged us to stay and they brought our food out. It was cold. We were charged full price for everything. This is the last time I will go to Hema's.The treatment was atrocious and extremely unprofessional.
(1)
imran k.

Go somewhere else.
(1)
Jazz V.

I should have been skeptical of a restaurant who self-proclaim as having the "Best Indian Cuisine". The evening began after I've already been boozing for a couple of hours, and those familiar drunken hunger pangs began to wane in my stomach. Someone mentioned "Devon" and we were out the door before the wine bottle hit the ground. Instead of going to our usual place down the street, we decided to try Hema's kitchen because some of us have heard good things about it. The dining room was nicely decorated in lush colors and intriguing paintings (a huge contrast from our usual place). The wait staff were friendly and helpful. We ordered the saag paneer, chicken tikka masala, channa masala, and chicken makhani. I was starving and still a little drunk, and usually when you're starving and drunk you'd eat the nastiest greasiest heap and proclaim it the best in the city. Such was not the case with our meal. The saag paneer was bland, which did not help its creamy consistency. The Chicken Tikka Masala was, again, underwhelming, although it was the best dish in the bunch. And the chicken makhani. I had no idea what was going on with the chicken makhani as its spice overwhelmed the rest of its flavors. The naan was also not really worth mentioning, and I typically love naan. Perhaps they were having an off night or whatever, but I do not think I'll be returning here for my Indian food fix.
(2)
Lina Y.

The samosas (veggie) were excellent! And everything we had was great. However, like other reviewers, the biggest problem is the service. It was difficult to get the attention of our waiters, and as our mouths were on fire, we didnt get water refills until we had to call them over. Maybe they were understaffed? The food was good, but if the service was better than this place would be excellent.
(3)
Eliza M.

4.5 stars I feel an Indian food obsession coming on. I have been wanting to go to Hema's for a while now and finally made the trip up north. I'm not down (urban dictionary translation: To be 'With It or in 'the know how', knowledgeable about something) with Indian food but I knew I would love it. Love the BYOB. Veggie samosa to start was as good as everyone said it was. I ordered the lamb curry dish with eggplant and it was delicious-- big cubes of lamb and seasoned perfectly. Husband ordered a chicken dish and he was not as impressed. It had pretty good flavor but there was not a lot of chicken. We had some paratha on the side too. Couldn't finish it all and our server seemed a little offended by this.? Service was a little slow too hence the -1/2 star. *Cool music! Hema, I shall return!
(5)
Justin B.

I was a sweaty kid growing up. I hated it. Really hated it. Like semi-debilitatingly awkward condition hated it. Thank you Hema's. For roughly $40, I got to relive my childhood awkwardness. And yet despite needing to go through a number of napkins with my patented dab, not wipe, approach to getting rid of the sweat, I will be back. Maybe as soon as tonight ...
(5)
Stephanie H.

Oh, how I love thee, Hema's Kitchen. My favorite Indian food so far in the city. I have yet to find better. Yum. Yum. Yum. I would have given five stars, but the last two times I was there, the staff was super rude...acting like they were doing me a favor by bringing my food/beverages to the table. I mean, seriously.
(4)
Eric S.

A lot has been written about this place. There has been quite a bit of hype since the place was on Check Please. I really do not care about service; if the food is good, then I will put up with just about anything. It's all about the food. With that said, I will keep it simple -- This place is way over-rated.
(2)
Andrew H.

Went to Hema's new home on Devon today with a group of about 12 people. I had gone before, to their Oakley location, and found it a bit cramped, but the service to be good and the food even better. I was hopeful that their new location would be able to improve on that one dark spot in my mind. Well, it did. The decor and ambience was improved greatly in their new location. It was larger, and more welcoming. Plus, the staff was just as kind before. And the food (once it finally arrived) was excellent and filling. It was the most enjoyable 2 hours this fall. Many dishes were ordered between all the guests. I ordered the Haryali Chicken, and shared Papadam, Garlic Naan, and Keema (Lamb) Naan with the table. All were delicious, though the 'hint' of garlic for the garlic naan was just that; I couldn't taste it. Since we were such a large group, I expected some delays with the food. The appetizers came out after a short wait, and the entrees took a bit longer. Strangely, the rice was brought out after all the entrees. There was only problem; an extra entree was brought out that no one ordered. We should have eaten it anyway, but didn't. I highly recommend Hema's Kitchen!
(5)
James B.

Not bad but nothing inspired here and NO NAN, a dealbreaker in my book given the number local Indian alternatives.
(3)
Jen Ellen D.

Oh my goodness what a wonderful place to get Indian cuisine. I met some friends for a going away dinner gathering in the early evening. The service was almost overly attentive and self conscious. When my friends and were trying to figure out which nan was which out of the several that we ordered, a server came over concerned that something was wrong insisting that she could fix it. The dishes were fantastic. My friends and I are all vegetarians so we only sampled the non-critter dishes. I can't even remember what we had but there were sauteed and grilled veggies, some kind of yummy tasting thing in some kind of yummy tasting cheese sauce, and a curry dish with peas ( my friend loves peas) and lots and lots of nan. There is one thing to note - if the menu and the server say a dish is hot, it is HOT. Be warned. But in the spirit of self-conscious service our server was always asking whether the food was too spicy, insisting she could fix it.
(4)
James W.

Loved this place. The food was very tasty . I had the shrimp vindaloo. I am new to Indian food so I have sometasting to do.
(4)
A H.

I love Hema's. The food is great, I'm a big fan of the lamb vindaloo but be warned it is spicy (yum)!!
(5)
Justin R.

Quite possibly the best Indian restaurant in Chicago, they have another location on the 2400 block of N. Clark St too, the prices are a tiny bit higher but the food is just as good.
(5)
Dominika M.

I am definitely a fan of this gorgeous, delightful place. Food is wonderful, service a bit slow - but with a volume of people coming in and out, it is understandable. I don't think I ever had anything that tasted less than wonderful here. Highly recommended.
(4)
Amy C.

I adore Hema's Kitchen. I used to live in Hema's building in Roger's Park. I would think fondly of her just for her Vindaloo, but during my father's last visit to Chicago before he past away I took him to this restaurant and Hema herself waited on him with such attention that he felt like a king. Great food, fond memories.
(5)
FM G.

Trying to work our way down Devon, my husband and I were given a recommendation to Hema's Kitchen and that's all I can say is it's nothing special. The food was ok, not memorable, I agree with the previous reviewer...where's the tandoori oven???? I'd skip Hema's entirely and walk across the street to Bhabi's Kitchen instead.
(2)
Adriana S.

The food was good but you don't get what you pay for... the portions are very small for the price and you don't even get rice!!!
(2)
Nicole W.

Good food, and that is all that this place has going for it. It's not amazing food, no better than any of the other 4 Indian restaurants I have eaten at in my life in St. Louis, Minneapolis, and Madison. When we got there, Hema the host, ignored us. If she was busy, just an acknowledgement of our arrival would have been fine. Service is crap. I wouldn't even call it service, they have no service. For me, dining out means more than just eating good food. I like to be waited on, even just a tiny bit. We had to beg and plead for menus, for a waiter to serve us, and for the food we ordered. We ordered 2 appetizers, and got only one. We reminded the waiters at least 3 times of our 2nd app, garlic naan, but it never came. My boyfriend's dad never got his drink of iced tea either, after asking a few times. My bf's dad was also served his entree at the same time they brought out the first app. We asked them to take it back, keep it warm, and bring it out w/ the other 3 entrees. They took it back, but served it to him cold when they brought out my entree and my bf's. There was a 10 min delay for my bf's mom's entree. RIce is not served with the entrees, yet they are priced as if rice would come with them... At least it's BYOB and no corkage... so that helps with the pricing. The whole experience was a joke, a clusterf**k. I will never ever go back.
(1)
olivia p.

pretty standard. did not wow me, but good. started with vegetarian samosas which were good. not overly oily and good carb to veggie ratio. shared chicken biryani, saag paneer, lamb with baigan and curry leaves, an order of naan and an order of garlic naan. chicken biryani, standard. good. saag paneer. a little on the mushy side, but not bad. lamb. just a little dry, but the eggplant in it was tasty. good. naan and garlic naan. standard. do you sense a theme? nuf said
(3)
v m.

worst customer service experience i've ever had... there are too many other restaurants in the area with just a great food for anyone to tolerate the way hema's treats its customers (esp at this location)
(1)
kelly l.

This place has been reviewed so many times, I'm mostly writing for myself, to put Hema's in context with the rest of the Indian we are trying on Devon. Overwhelmingly I love Hema's. But it's too expensive. There. Their mulighatawny (spelling!?) Is the best I've ever had (thought my experience is limited!). It's spicy, but not too spicy. Flavorful. You can taste the lentils and the fresh cilantro. They can put chicken in it and dot it with cheese. It's a meal in itself. When I'm sick, this soup makes me better. Their chicken tikka masala is delicious. Exactly what you want it to be. Their naan is buttery and chewy and a delight. Their tandoori chicken is great. moist. When Neal and Julie went with us that one time they got other dishes, none of which I remember. But they loved them. Ate like kings. The mango lassi was good. The interior is clean and pretty. The service is lacking. Inattentive. But, whatever. When we got the check, though, ultimately I think we shelled out around $25 each? I mean, we were feasting. But, still. It's hard to spend that much when there are so many cheaper options on Devon. But I always WANT to go back, cause the food's so good. Ay. We did go to their old location once. Cause they didn't have the right stove they couldn't serve Naan or Tandori, which was disappointing. And the old location was smaller and so freaking 'trendy.' I prefer their newest incarnation.
(4)
Cat B.

I have to admit that I am not an expert on Indian food, but I went here last night and the food was delicious. My friend has eaten here before and has dined on Indian fare more than I. She agrees that that food is fantastic. It is not oily and the breads are fantastic. The service was wonderful and the waiter helped us in deciding what kind of bread to order and how many pieces he thought we would need. I typically can handle spices, but to be safe we ordered ours "regular (choices are hot, regular, and mild) and that was enough spice for me. I think the hot would have wrecked my stomach. It is BYOB as well, which is always nice. The ambiance is wonderful and warm and the other tables of people seemed to really be enjoying themselves as well. As we walked out all of the staff thanked us several times for coming in. Definitely being added as one of my favorites and I will return very soon.
(5)
Lisa H.

Wow! I loved it. I had been jonesing for some seriously good Indian food for a long time. The menu is huge, the quality is great, and it is so inexpensive. The BYOB option makes it even better in my opinion.
(4)
Natalia V.

Best Indian Restaurant in the city. It is worth driving up to Roger's Park. While you are here, do some shopping and go to Hema's.
(5)
Andy G.

Just a quick note on our dining experience tonight...Hema's samosas did not disappoint and she was out in the dining room interacting with customers like always. Tonight's dinner was not up to par, though. The Vindaloo was not spicy - my companion's curry was spicier - which was not what I'm used to. In addition, the service was horrible. I understand Hema's is not somewhere to expect 5-star service - but we waited 10 minutes before being asked for drink orders, 15 after we were finished before the check came, and the table next to ours was seated when we came in and was just receiving our entrees as we were paying the bill. It's not enough to make me stop going - but I'll think twice before making the trek again.
(3)
Nick B.

I've only eaten here once but i feel very safe giving this place a 5. The food was excellent and fairly fair as far as price goes. The service was also very good. I would highly recomend this place
(5)
Sherry W.

Me and my husband went here because of the reviews and i wasnt impressed at all. My huband is indian so dont take the review the wrong way. We were seated fast and given water and the menus after 5 mins of waiting,and they werent busy at all, we saw a woman come out of the back talking with another woman holding a roti ball between her hands and proceded to touch the counter and the other womans hand and then starting rolling the dough again in her hands. At that piont me and my husband had questions on the cleaniness of the place. We cant see whats happening behind the scences but we dont want to see things right i our faces...lol. So we got up and left, went to mysore woodlands and had fun.
(1)
jaime m.

2439 w devon last night i was up on devon grabbing some henna for my hair and body, so of course I wanted to grab some food while I was up there. I knew I knew the name of this spot from somewhere , then I saw the lil post up in the entrance that they were reviewed on check please.. so I passed up all of the other lil spots. got in the place and the guy at the door asked one of the ladies to seat me ....20 mins passed and she did nada.....so he seated me after noticing my obvious frustration since there were clearly open tables...I ordered #56, the murg makhani WHICH WAS SUPPOSED TO BE F*CKING BONLESS....this stuff had random bone pieces-a few shredded pieces of chicken, but a ton chicken cartillage all in it. I had to spit out random chicken pieces, one which looked like a damn chicken ankle or something. it wasn't too spicy though, since the guy who took my order asked me how spicy I wanted it. the spices used didn't see complimentary at all... tasted like there were just a bunch of spices just dumped together....along with the entrÃ©e, I ordered some basmati rice and garlic naan, which were all -yes- sold separately...they could at least give u a damn scoop of rice or something..my bill was a few cents less than $20 :/....next time im on devon , im gonna try one of the buffets...this place did nothing for me and I think they're over priced
(2)
Alexandra D.

The food is just awesome. I have by no means eaten at every Indian in Chicago, but Hema's is my favorite so far. I love that there really is a Hema that cooks for you. The downside is there are often long hungry lines to get in.... and I may have seen a mouse in the bathroom when I was there before but I don't like to talk about that. (I haven't been since she expanded, so in my Indian loving head it is now completely beautiful and rodent free)
(4)
Mrjustice ..

Wonderful Indian food, at a great price. Service was friendly and warm. BYOB. Only negative -- they don't have a Clay Oven, so no Tandoori.
(4)
Leigh K.

I had never been to Hema's, so I was glad to go on Monday night for a friend's birthday dinner. What a delicious meal was had. Everyone in our party of 12 ordered one entree and everything was passed around. We also had pakora, bread with peas cooked in and something else. We had an equal number of vegetarians to non-veggies, so we had an assortment of everything. The sag paneer and the samosas were outstanding. Also, the chicken entrees may have been the best I have had: chicken vindaloo, chicken biryani, chicken tikka masala. The portions were smaller than other Indian places I've been, but maybe the other places upgrade the size for Western palettes? I usually stick to buffets like Viceroy of India or Sher-A-Punjab when I'm on Devon, but wow, Hema's really impressed me and I will be coming back. Very friendly and accommodating service. I am not entirely sure of her age, but I believe Hema herself took our photo.
(5)
John L.

Worth going to for the food (which I had no issues with), but the service was bad. This happens occasionally to me when the service at a restaurant is bad: I get the feeling that the servers have never eaten at a restaurant themselves. It doesn't inspire trust. There were a multitude of people working on various things for our table, almost all of whom seemed disorganized...two seperate waitresses tried to take our order, various different runners brought out our tea and app's. Our food was 'tossed' on the table more than once, my teacup saucer was full of spilled tea, I asked for another saucer and she looked at the saucer and walked away - no other acknowledgement! I had to ask another person for one, and then when another person dropped off a saucer on the table without taking the spilled one away, I had to ask yet ANOTHER person to take away the dirty one. Once we got our food (and the setups...and the plates...after asking for both) the service issues calmed down and we finally enjoyed the food everyone has been talking about. I can't say anything bad about the food - it was very good. They need to bring their whole waitstaff out to another restaurant to experience what normal service is like.
(2)
Brian L.

Went with some friends a couple months ago and easily were able to accommodate to medium to large groups. It's just off Devon so it seems like that keeps the traffic down a bit. Although I didn't especially like my own dish everyone else's was really tasty. Prices were on par with other Indian restaurants in the neighborhood and it's BYOB. Service was a bit slow at times but overall a good experience. I'd definitely go back.
(4)
A M.

This place is awesome! My new favorite Indian restaurant. We tried the Veggie Samosas, Tandoori Chicken, Sheek Khebob Roll, and the Masala Papadam. For dinner we tried these dishes (there were a big group of us for a birthday party): Shrimp Biryani, Ghosh Rogan Josh, Chicken Vindaloo, Chicken Tikka Masala, Sag Murg, Murg Makhani, and a ton of other dishes. We also ordered some Paratha. Everything was really good. It's a BYOB too! Will be going back soon.
(4)
Chris S.

Great authentic Indian food in a comfortable setting. I have been here for lunch and dinner several times and think Hema is definitely on to something. It's not just the food that brings me back as much as it is the care and love that Hema has for the food as well as the customers. She can be found walking the dining room regularly, chatting with all of the well fed guests. This restaurant has been featured on Check Please... and since then has expanded the original location and opened a bigger restaurant in Lincoln Park on Clark that is also excellent. If you are looking for good, well priced Indian food, try Hema's Kitchen.
(4)
Miss O.

so i've gone to the clark kitchen and it was very good. and i just had a chance to get to this one - first of all, it's a bit of a haul if you're trying to take public transit. i had to take the el and then transfer to a bus. i really liked the food here - just as much as the clark street kitchen. it tasted the same, no difference really. now why i'll only go to the clark one is because it's much much closer to me and the service at the devon kitchen was soo slow. i honestly don't think we got out food until a good 45mins had passed. they were very nice but i like having to sit there and starve before i get my meal.
(4)
Jr V.

We were seated promptly and had our order taken right away, samosas-Choosa Tikka Masala - chicken dish with garbanzos - Aloo Parantha. Five minutes later we had our samosas, which were delicious. Fifteen minutes later we had our dishes and parantha. I served myself both dishes and then noticed the dishes after sitting for a couple of minutes. We were really disappointed with all the oil seeping from the dishes. At first we thought it was a type of broth, but we just couldn't stomach the look of the dish. I think we had bad dishes. Even our first waiter noticed and quickly told another younger waiter something and we never saw the man again. The parantha was good too but we won't be coming back.
(2)
art s.

I think we caught them on a bad night. We had heard a lot of good things, but had only a decent experience. There was a party of 18 there when we were seated and they also were short a waiter, so I imagine that had a lot to do with the service we received. But even judging solely upon the food, I'd say it was okay and somewhat uneven. Vegetable samosas were fresh, but not especially flavorful, white the potato cutlets were fantastic, especially accompanied by the green sauce with a touch of cilantro, which seemed different than other Indian presentations we've experienced. Chicken tikka masala and murg makhani were both good - again, very fresh, which compensated for what we felt was not spectacularly unique flavor. Dessert was below average - the gulab jamun was lukewarm and not fresh, somewhat dry. We constantly compared it to our usual place on Devon, the Indian Garden. Indian Garden wins on food and overall ambiance, Hema's has more charm, service is maybe a draw, but Hema's BYO helps with the value. So, depending upon what your priorities are, Hema's could be a solid play - just know what to expect and try not to go when there is a party of 18 already seated on a night they are short-staffed.
(3)
a w.

Indian food right in the heart of Lincoln Park. A great place to go for a filling meal. Their food is not that spicy but still very delicious. Be sure to check out their daily specials -- freshly made with extra care to please customers!
(3)
stephanie c.

Went here for my husband's bday and had a GREAT experience. It was a Tuesday, so we didn't have to wait at all. Our waiter suggested great dishes! The chicken tikka masala was amazing! I had to order that in addition to the other three dishes we got because they were all too spicy for me- our bill was STILL only $50. It's byob, so don't forget to bring some wine!
(5)
k t.

i usually get the murg makhani and saag paneer, it is good, not the best. both indian garden and india house are better but you will pay 2x more for the atmosphere. no naan bread here but the paratha is pretty good.
(3)
G G.

This is a popular Indian place, so weekend nights can be loud and crowded. Delicious meals and warm service: Hema always greats me like an old friend.
(4)
Benjamin H.

I got a chance to check out Hema's 'new' Kitchen yesterday night. Maybe it was myself and my girlfriend, but we had a very average experience. Between food, quality, atmosphere and service, three stars would be a bit of a stretch. We sat down and enjoyed the new, fresh and clean atmosphere complete with dark lighting and cool paintings on the wall. After looking at the menu, our server stopped by to take our order. We started off with a couple of samosas. But first, we asked him the golden question in Indian restaurants with Samosas or Chinese restaurants with eggrolls...can we mix and match?! One beef, one vegetable? Or do we have to order two of the same...which always seems to be the case in most indian restaurants. He told us we could have one of each and we we happily ordered it. When it came to the table, it was two separate orders. We told him we just wanted one order....and then he informed us that it was "not possible" for us have one of each and obviously misunderstood us. But if that wasn't any better, he kind of got shitty with us and was very curt and definitely rude and never offered to take one order away or comp us one for the trouble. It's not like we're some yuppy gringo's....we were on budget and didn't want to order two servings ($3.99 a pop!!?) Anyway, for the rest of the night, our server sort of killed our vibe. He kept trying to "up-sell" us on stuff to the point that it was pretty obnoxious and never offered to give us any decent recommendations. The rest of the staff was almost excessively expedient, to the point that the pacing up and down the restaurant freaked us out a bit. Ahh...so the food? Meh. Really average compared to everything else i've had on Devon. It's not that it was bad, but quite expensive for what you get. I ordered a chicken tikka (not the masala) and it was pretty much a heavily spiced chicken breast on tops of some shredded iceberg lettuce. Seriously, i'm a well trained cook and could have done that at home for about $2.50!! $11.99? Give me a break. My girlfriend's Tikka Masala was good, but nothing mind blowing. Very average, I don't know that i'll ever go back again, considering all of the better deals per quality i've encountered on Devon. I think maybe the Check Please factor has gone to this place's head.
(2)
Saul A.

I LOVE this place!! They're super friendly and the food is amazing. BYOB and the prices are unreal. I had the tika masala chicken and the spinach w paneer. The flavors are like nothing I have tasted before. Growing up in a mexican household I was forced to eat spicy food and eventually became numb to HOT food but the flavors from Hema's bring a whole different meaning to the word SPICY. If i ever get married this place better cater it!!
(4)
Grace L.

For a restaurant of flourescently bright lighting, paper-lined tables and sticky floors, I expected to pay less than $40 for two people, but with entrees running $10 and beyond [excluding rice!], I was wrong. While the flavors and textures of the buttery naan and the spiced, extremely long-grained basmati rice were excellent, the samosas were somewhat bland. And the Vindaloo, for whatever reason, was not the least bit spicy...while the Dal, which we did not expect to be spicy, was at least 1/5 composed of hot chili peppers. For $40, I expect better than this.
(2)
P O.

Man, all the hype about Hema's Kitchen made me excited to visit. What a disappointment! First of all, Hema's is much more expensive than other (wonderful!) Indian food on Devon. So, I was hoping that the food would really rise above the other options. I ordered an appetizer of vegetable fritters that were pretty good. Not mind blowing, but what I expected. The soup I ordered (vegetable lentil) really let me down. It was so salty I could barely eat it, even with 5 glasses of water! Also, despite the $5 price tag, the soup was clearly made with frozen mixed vegetables. Finally, the service was awful. They weren't particularly busy, and had plenty of servers. Still, I was not given a napkin or silverware until I asked, part way through my appetizer. I also had to ask several times to have my water refilled. In short, if Hema's is going to justify charging much more money than other restaurants in the area, it had better up it's game, both in terms of food and service. Sorry I can't be a fan!
(1)
Sarah-jayne M.

Went here last night for dinner and I have to say it was very good. I love the fact that's BYOB - can't complain when you're drinking for cheap! The food was excellent, we had lamb marsala, some kind of fried fish and a chicken tikka dish with garlic naan and rice. It was all very tasty, decent portions and adequately spiced. The service was slow but I was OK with that as I was catching up with an old friend so we had all night to talk. I will definately go back here again!
(4)
Vicky C.

I'll be honest. I used to LOVE Hema's when I was a student at Loyola but every experience that Ive had since then with Hema's has been disappointing. I remember the indian food being so flavorful and spicy that I couldn't wait to have it again. Now, I have to tell the waiter that I really do want it spicy. I think that since Hema's appeared on Check Please and opened her Lincoln Park location, they dumbed down a lot, if not all, of the dishes for caucasian people who cannot handle spicy. This is from someone who is NOT caucasian. I am now on the search for awesome indian food.
(3)
Robin C.

Disappointing. I excitedly went because my friends and I read the great reviews for this place. The samosas and pakoras were great. But we got the chicken tikka, chicken muhrg and an eggplant vegetarian dish and they were all SO salty. It didn't even matter that I was sweating from how spicy things were - I could barely notice the spice or any of the other differentiating flavors because the salt was so distracting. The service was very, very slow, which I can forgive because I went with great company. And the costs were reasonable - around $45 for three - but I'm fairly certain I could have run to CVS and gotten a salt shaker for under three bucks.
(2)
William T.

Thank God the food is fantastic at this restaurant, because the ambience and service is not at all impressive. I will get to the restaurants detriments after I praise it for its wonderful food. The garlic nan was exactly what it should be and the orange scented rice was cooked perfectly. My wife and I had the Rogan Josh (The best I have ever had, including my own and I make a mean Rogan Josh) and Chicken Vindaloo, which was not as spicy as we expected but delicious. Without a question, some if not the, best Indian food we have ever had (including London restaurants). So... now I will tell you the downside. And I didn't want to put this into the review because we ate there at 5:30pm on a Wednesday and I'm sure it is not always this way: There was no music playing at all, it may have been the most silent dining experience I have ever had... which makes fun conversation hard because you don't want everyone in the restaurant to hear what you are talking about. The service was OK... very (and I hate to say this) foreign... like Asian restaurants, etc. not asking if you want drinks, hovering when bored, no personality at all and taking a long time to clear dishes, refill drinks and get your check (we had to ask) when it is obvious you are done. The owner, Hema, was there (saw her on Check Please TV show, WTTW11) and she was sitting at a table with her husband (I'm guessing) and was helping her son do Social Studies homework... cute... but not when I'm out to eat with my wife. The job of a restaurantour is to take care of service and talk to guests when applicable... I don't care what her son is working on for homework. Anyway... GO FOR THE FOOD!!! It is fantastic... I'm sure the place is a bit different on a Saturday night, as far an ambience and service is concerned. I would highly recommend it for anyone looking for good, authentic, solid Indian fare. Bravo!
(4)
Gee S.

Largely absent? I have met Yetis more conspicuous than the waitstaff here. Last Friday, I witnessed a crowded and disastrous night at Hema's. There were at least ten couples on dates, and every single one of them looked miserable trying to make small talk with one another while enduring the 2 hr plus wait for food. In the meantime, waiters and waitresses (all of them quite nice, it must be said) kept coming to our table and asking us if we were finished eating our non-existent food. When we finally got our dishes, one of them was pretty great, my Korma (listed as "mild" on the menu) was so over spiced that I had a choking fit and couldn't finish it. I switched dishes with my fellow diner, who is less spice-sensitive than I. She was also unable to eat the Korma and was left with a crushing "spice headache". (In case some of you are wondering, this is indeed a restaurant review, and not a critical analysis of Dune, starring a young Kyle Maclachlan.) I was looking forward to eating here because of the excellent reputation. I am very sorry to say I won't be coming back.
(1)
Food S.

It's one of the few BYOB Indian Restaurants at Devon Ave. The food is really flavourful and they have a good menu so you can't go wrong. Everything is a' la carte ( no typical buffet here). All of their kebabs are really good but my favourite is the Seekh Kabab. The 'Green Curry Fish' is awesome ( did I mention that I am VERY picky about Fish Curry?) and I must have ordered it a zillion times. The portions are a little smaller compared to the rest of Devon but I rather like that- keeps me from pigging out which is hard to do :)
(4)
Hoppie G.

Good food but did not include rice or naan. However the food was delicious but portion sizes were on the small side.
(3)
Kerri C.

Hands-down, the best Indian on Devon. Every dish is fantastic.
(5)
Robyn T.

Come hungry. I ate entirely too much on my recent visit to Hema's...the food was just too good I had to keep eating it. Of course my stomach was killing me after my fabulous meal, but that is a price I had to pay - I couldn't eat enough. Mango lassi is a delicious way to start your eating extravaganza. Also loved sharing the samosas (2 per order) and pakoras. My friend and I split an order of jasmine rice which was enough for both our dishes. Highly recommend the chicken tikka masala which is my favorite standby at Indian restaurants. The space is smaller than I'd anticipated but the staff was all very friendly. I was pleasantly surprised to see the 'Yelp' sticker on the window - I'd heard about Hema's in Zagat's and "Check Please" so its a big success with everyone!
(4)
Barry Z.

Hema's is officially out of the rotation. Had my 2nd bad experience in a row (didn't review the last time, to avoid being unfair, in case it was just a bad night). After the first time, where we had bad service and undercooked chicken, it's been a few months. So this Sun evening, we gave it another try. There were only 2 parties seated, with 3 servers, so you would think the odds on us getting decent service would be good. You'd be wrong. The service was the worst I've probably ever had. No one came to our table at ANY point in the evening, unless we got up and asked them. They all just stood around up front not looking at us. We had to get up and ask to have our order taken by a sullen waitress. I got up and went to ask that our water glasses be refilled after a long time waiting. I complained about the lack of service at that time. And even after that, no one bothered to come by for the next half hour, so once again I had to go and request our check and take-home boxes. Took another 10 minutes to get the boxes, and I had to re-request the check. This place has just gotten accustomed to its critical mass of popularity with the American crowd, and has been phoning it in for awhile. Our food wasn't undercooked this time, but they brought out the first main course at the same time as the samosas, so it just sat there cooling for about 10 minutes before the rest of the food came out. Really? The only other table was also trying to get their bill when we were, and I overheard them asking to have something taken off, so something was wrong with their meal. Devon has too many other choices to require anyone to put up with this. The food here is fine, but nothing exceptional, and just as expensive as better places. You might as well get minimally competent service by eating elsewhere.
(1)
MaryAnne M.

Went here on a Saturday night with a group of friends. I'm a fan of Hemas because it's one of the few BYOB's on Devon. (Udupi Palace is another). Although they might not be clear on the concept of the BYOB. We brought a couple of red wines, but my one friend brought a 6 pack of Blue Moon and asked the server to place it in the cooler. The server seemed to not understand why. Fast forward and my friend asked for another beer and the server looked at him as if to say : "We don't serve beer". On to the food. The Samosas are great. My one friend and I ordered the Vindaloo-seasoned meat cooked in rich gravy with potatoes, coconut and curry leaves. Listed on the menu as Very Spicy. He ordered chicken & I ordered lamb. But they only gave me a side of yogurt as if I couldn't hang with the hot. It is pretty spicy. But I didn't tear up or anything. I could have went spicier. Out of spite I refused to use the yogurt. My one friend who's never had Indian ordered the Chicken Biryani: Basmati rice cooked with chicken and freshly roasted spices. Great Indian food, nice intimate room.
(4)
Chan K.

Great service and food. I ordered the shrimp vindaloo and okra dishes. Both were delicious and very spicy, and we requested merely medium heat. The vindaloo had more tomato than I have typically seen, giving the sauce a thicker consistency. The interior was minimalist, dim and the Indian music was upbeat yet relaxing. I felt like the walls needed more decor (there was some artwork). Overall, Hema's is a good place for a date. Don't forget to bring a a dry white wine to balance out the spice.
(4)
Marion B.

I've visited both this location and the one on Clark...the food is good at both. The service at both is....weird. Yes, bad weird. The food is good enough to make up for it. But it's still weird. We went for my roomie's 30th birthday and this is how it went. There were a total of 6 of us. We had wine with us. We asked for an opener and glasses. Approximately 10 minutes later, we got up and retrieved these items ourselves from the sideboard (maybe this is how it's supposed to go....maybe why the guy didn't come back?). The waiter finally came back and asked if we were ready to order. We said that we were. He said, "Okay. Just a minute" and walked away. He did not return for several minutes. When he finally came back, we began ordering...we ordered several servings of bread, and he told us that it was too much. We said, "it's okay, we're really hungry." (this was not a lie...we'd been sitting there for about 30 minutes already.) And he told us "You understand that it's a lot of bread," and we again told him that it was okay, if we couldn't finish it we would take it home, and ordered the rest of our food. Why was he arguing with us? Why was he trying to talk us OUT of spending our money there? Weird. Anyway, we got our samosas and assorted other appetizers, and then sat there. And sat there. And sat there. For about an hour (I'd been here before...it does not take that long.) Then he brought out all of our meals, except for the one belonging to the birthday girl....he didn't seem to notice, so we pointed it out. Ten minutes later, her food finally came out....I know it was just rotten luck, but geez, why'd it have to be the birthday girl's? The food was DELICIOUS. Which is why they stay at 3 stars. The guy was just so-WEIRD. And...it's always weird there....but yummy, so I torture myself every 3 months or so. p.s. We ate all the bread.
(3)
Kimberly L.

My all time favorite Indian restaurant. Everything I've had is exceptional but if I had to pick just one dish (and why would you?) it would be the Sag Paneer, which is what heaven would taste like if it were green and cheesy. I often end up overordering and getting not only the saffron rice but also the excellent pulka*. I love how friendly they are and that it's a BYOB. It's small and sometimes crowded but I love the neighborhood and the whole experience (except for all the crazy driving). If you haven't been in a while, you must come back. My first visit could well have been my last if the food weren't spectacular. Way back a few years ago one waited close to an hour for food and they had a surreal restroom that was so bad that one would rather pee in an alley than brave that dirty, dank and cramped little room. But there was quickly a new clean restroom and the Lincoln Park location seemed to alleviate some of the crowding. One word of warning for booze loving restaurant goers...stock up before you venture out unless you like Indian beer or boone's farm because that's all the local shops provide. *In my initial review, I committed an egregious error and said I'd been enjoying naan at Hema's. No...no...I'm so sorry for everyone who had dashed hopes of finally wolfing down some naan at Hema's...I'd actually been enjoying pulka. (Mindy W..I'm so sorry!) From my rudimentary understanding, pulka (also spelled phulka), is punjabi; it's an unleavened soft bread, puffed up using fire, made without oil. Naan, on the other hand, is made with yeast and oil. But pulka is still yummy! And I think it's healthier. Try it! And pls don't be annoyed w/me and my error! Or I'll have to keep adding more exclamation points so you know how sorry I am!!!
(5)
Andrea C.

This place is really just Eh!!!!! After reading the reviews, I decided to give this place a try. I LOVE INDIAN FOOD. Oh how I miss living in Berkeley, the Bay Area had amazing indian food. Hema is an Eh... because 1. The service is horrible 2. BYOB except no ice buckets so we had warm white wine. YUCK! 3. Portions are small 4. Food was bland, tasteless, and spicy was the only flavor. 5. The table for 2's are extremely tiny, your plate and a dish of curry barely fit on the table if you have glasses of water Needless to say, this place is just EH and not worth the drive from Bucktown. Anyone have any suggestions on where to get better Indian food?
(2)
Janet E.

I went on a Saturday night around 830pm. Parking sucked so be prepared for that if you decide to come here. The place was packed. Business was great and the food was good but I dont think I would go back. We didnt get seated until 9:15pm. People that were seated 30 minutes before us were still waiting for their food. We got our food faster than some because the majority of our dishes were appetizers. They served us the food but forgot to give us utensils and dinner plates. They rarely came around to refill water and half way through our meal we had a different waiter ask us what we had ordered because they had lost the receipt for our meal. I had ordered a chai tea at the beginning of the meal and it didnt come until after I had finished my dinner. The atmosphere was very loud because the floor was tiled and there were no tapestries on the walls to absorb the sound. The food was good but I've had comparable if not better food at Klay Oven in the River North. The prices here are not even cheap for a Devon restaurant. Although the food was good I dont plan to come back here for a really really long time.
(2)
Juan L.

Love this place! It's always clean and the food is just delicious! My Wife loved it. Wants to go back for her Bday. She's been telling me the whole day how much she enjoyed the food. We will go back!!!
(4)
shr m.

Food - We ordered for dal dakhni, phulkas, biryani and a chicken dish. Everything was delicious and tasted very fresh Ambience - This actually has a decent ambience compared to the other restaurants on Devon ave. Service - Good service and they were fast mainly because we went there at 10pm. I have only one complaint that they don't take more than 2 cards for payment. We were only three people and they should have taken 3 cards. Overall, it's a good establishment with some delicious andhra food.
(4)
Kayla P.

Honestly I wasn't so impressed with the place. I am a white American and I love spicy food! But this was not so spicy. I don't know if they just look at me and just assume that I can't handle spice....or maybe I should have asked for SPICE? Otherwise, I've had much better Indian food growing up and I know what it's supposed to taste like. Also, it was too pricey for what they gave you and rice IS NOT given with your dish...you have to order it separately!
(3)
Victoria W.

I was looking forward to trying Hema's Kitchen, especially with so many positive reviews, but man what a disappointment! Service was indifferent and the food was pretty boring. The main flavor in the Sag Paneer was salt, and there were only 4 cubes of cheese. The main flavor in the biryani was pepper, and it reminded me of something I can get in the frozen aisle at Trader Joe's. I went with a friend who is Indian, and she was even more disappointed. With so many other options on Devon, we won't be going back to Hema's.
(2)
Misty H.

Service = great. Food = awesome. Prices = reasonable. Atmosphere = enchanting. Music = beautiful. The Lamb Vindaloo is my favorite and my recommendation. I grew up eating tons of authentic Indian food with Indian families both in America and India so I am pretty picky. For a restaurant, the food here is pretty good.
(5)
William D.

We tried this place years ago at the old location off of Devon. We didn't care for it then. Tonight we saw the new location and thought we would give it a try again. And again we were extremely disappointed. I can't figure out the hype on this place. People must really be ignorant here. I ordered CTM, one of the most common indian dishes and the most eaten dish in the UK. I have had it all over the world. I think I know what it should look like and taste like. I was definitey given Butter Chicken which is found on most indian buffets. This wasn't even a good buffet dish. We had veggie and lamb samosas, they were pretty good. The biryani was abysmal. Worst of all was the lack of good service. Three waitstaff people and I wonder if any of them spoke English. I would expect this in India, not the US. I hate places that tote they are better than the rest and are not even close to being good. There are many holes in the wall type places on Devon that would put this place to shame...They need to wake up or they won't last long.
(1)
Anthony Z.

Samosa and pakora were very good...but entrees.....YUK. Really messed with my belly, too. Guess I'm going back to the old standards Tiffin and Indian Garden.
(2)
Erinn L.

I love Hema's! But, I don't have much experience with Indian food. I have been here twice and had it as delivery at work twice. I think the delivery may have been from the Clark location though. The first time I traveled up there it was PACKED, but this weekend it was pretty empty, which weirded me out a little. A few of the waiters were kind of rude this time, too. Nothing terrible, but there was some eye rolling. The samosas are wonderful, they have tons of vegetarian options, the chutneys that they put on the table are delicious, and they will make things less spicy if you ask them. The bread is not naan but is still really good. I took a group of seven friends here for my bachelorette party dinner this weekend and they held the table for us for an extra 45 minutes...I'm not usually one to be late like that...let's just say it's a long bus ride from Humboldt Park.
(4)
Abby B.

I have been to Hema's at least once a month for the past 3 years. It is my go to place when people from out of town come. Last week my husband and I went to the new location on Devon. Normally we go to the one in Lincoln park, but decided to try the one on Devon out in hopes that they finally got an oven that can make nan. They did and it was the most spectacular nan we've ever had. My favorite dishes there are the tikka masala and the murg makhani. My husband likes basically any lamb dish. Service here isn't the greatest, but I'm still giving Hema's 5 stars nonetheless. Though you may have to wait a couple minutes to get your order taken or your check, your water is always filled. One problem I have: it is hard for them to get the level of spice right on your dish. The "medium" spice is not hot enough and (for me) the "hot" is way too hot. Last time my husband said "medium, medium-hot" and that came out perfectly. The new location is also a lot better. It is a larger space, tons of tables. The decor is pretty much still the same, bright orange walls and random indian artwork. It is simple and functional. Overall, this is the best Indian food you can get in Chicago. We don't go anywhere else when we have a craving for Indian.
(5)
Denise O.

My boyfriend took me to this place after seeing it on that PBS show (Check Please!). They were not kidding! the food is amazing! I was a bit scared the first time, cause I had never tasted Indian food before but WOW! It was delicious. The veal was my favorite, paired with the aromatic rice, it was awesome spicy goodness! The only thing I was not crazy about is that you have to buy everything separately. Which makes it a bit pricey. But if you want some authentic delicious cuisine, by all means check out Hema's Kitchen. You will not be disapointed!
(4)
tony c.

i'm sorry to say that i'm not aboard the hema's bandwagon. i try and avoid the place as much as possible, mostly because something about the atmosphere gets to me.. and it's pretty expensive relative to portions and whatnot. that being said, the food is decent - not the best i've encountered on devon. the only reason i haven't afforded hema's 2 stars is the last time i was roped into eating there with a friend i had a terrible experience with the staff. she and i placed our orders, and then i decided that i had a craving for some naan, so i told him. he said that i had ordered a dry dish and suggested i get a sauce-based dish instead. good call! so i picked something else on the fly. he very quickly rattles off everything we ordered and my friend says "i have no idea, but i think we trust you" and we all have a laugh. the food comes out and the entree i had originally ordered comes out with the entree i had ordered on the fly. "oh, i think you misunderstood," i said, "i just wanted this one." pointing to the saucy one. "you had suggested i get something else, *instead* of the dish that i had originally ordered, and i agreed." "well, sir," he says, "that's why i read the dishes you had ordered back to you." wow, okay fair but i'm sorry if i'm too ignorant to pick up on a language i'm not familiar with when it's rattled back to me like that. he proceeds to suggest that i have to keep my extra dish. my friend says "oh, honey.. now isn't the time to argue." he takes the dish in a huff and storms away. all of a sudden, it's a half hour 'til closing and we're the last people there. yes, the last people there, but keep in mind - they're not officially closed. the waiter keeps pacing back and forth by our table and giving us the stink eye. the bus boy comes out and keeps reaching across us while we're eating to inconvenience us into taking a hint. they make a whole bunch of ruckus cleaning up the other tables and giving us the stare down. i kept checking the time... still good, technically. i understand wanting to go home, so maybe i'm the jerk for keeping them all the way 'til closing time. in any case, they handled it poorly in my opinion and they wont be seeing my business ever again.
(1)
Jessica A.

In a word, the cuisine here is Americanized. Too salty, too oily, bland and uninteresting. For example, the dal I got last night was more like a canned bean dip than anything else. It's not worth it to go here when there are plenty of other good indian restaurants to choose from on Devon. I'd recommend Uru-Swati instead.
(1)
Kelly B.

we tried hema's because of their great review on "check please" and how other friends have enjoyed the place...unfortunately Hema's fell drastically short of expectations and i dont plan to return. We waited a half an hour before anyone took our order, another 45min before we got food, and then another ten before we just got up, went up to the hostess and said, "we want our check, we're leaving." The portions are too small for the price, we didn't receive our entrees all at once, and the lentils I ordered were inedible. I am a huge fan of spicy indian food, but this was just a mush of spices that practically made me choke. plus, we werent the only ones. five other tables were in the same position as us, and we even got food before the tables that arrived before us. the waitstaff didnt even acknowledge that we had been waiting for so long, nor did they do anything to compensate for it. i should have taken note when we walked into the restaurant and the hostess was arguing with a customer who had a take out order. next time im on devon, im going somewhere else.
(1)
Jane C.

Another great evening of delishious Indian food, fine wine and a good time. Thanks!!
(4)
Stan S.

Food prepared with love is what makes for an exceptional restaurant and once you meet Hema, you will understand why the food is so delicious here. She is the archetypal grandma and she makes great Indian grub and serves it up at extremely reasonable prices. This is really a family place. Last time in there, I had fun interacting with a grandson. This is a tiny storefront that has been discovered, so it is best to come during off hours, or be prepared to wait. I hear tell they are opening up a branch in Lincoln Park. This place deserves every bit of its success. It is for real good.
(5)
Mark S.

The food here is good. Seems fresh and hot and it's comforting that the kitchen remains pretty open (although not nearly as open as before their wide-open kitchen was exposed on check please- they were temporarily shut down after being discovered...doh!) I wish Hema's kids didn't slobber all over the front door. But that's a lot better than eating at the other Devon Indian places where "Annapurna knows what" is going on in their closed kitchens while they're reheating your food, so Hema's is my favorite, by far. Go here and you'll like it too.
(4)
Marion P.

I've eaten here a few times, and I think next time I'll try a new place rather than coming back. The food is good, but it isn't fantastic - it's not their fault that my eyes were running and my face turning hot and red from the food, I could have asked them to make it mild, however, I'm pretty sure there are not supposed to be 7 spoons of salt in one eggplant dish (it really hurt my tongue, and there is nothing pleasurable or healthy about ingesting such an amount of salt), and there wasn't a great variety of flavors beyond heat and salt in the main dishes. I'm also wondering if they're using their good reputation to go overboard with the prices. The food is already pricey enough, but then no rice included, and 3$ for each small plate of it? And then little things, like mediocre service, or biting into meat samosas after ordering vegetable ones, and receiving blank stares in response to our complain. Yes, I'm sure they're also good, but it's not what I ordered, and an "oh no, our mistake, sorry!" would have been nice.
(3)
Karen L.

I got really scared when I walked in because it was so dark, but I think that was the atmosphere they were going for...? My mom and I weren't sure what to order so we asked the waiter. He wasn't very helpful and just said "most people just order a random dish.." So we ordered some vegetarian samosas, some crispy lentil crackers (my mom really wanted some) and a chicken curry dish (sorry I forgot what it was called). We got the lentil crackers first and they tasted really funky. We didn't finish them. The samosas were OK. The pastry puff was crispy and delicious, but there was not enough filling in it! Also, the spicy green sauce tasted watered down, but the sweet sauce was perfect. Finally, we got our entree and it was REALLY TINY. It was the size of a gravy boat and there wasn't a lot of chicken in it... But it tasted pretty delicious because it had a nice balance of rich flavor and spiciness. My mom and I felt pretty jipped though because we paid over $20 for this not so great food. Also, the service was pretty bad. The waiters weren't inviting and when my mom and I walked in (we're Chinese), they just stared at us for like 10 seconds before they realized we wanted to eat at the restaurant. And they just weren't that friendly the entire time we were there. My final thoughts- this restaurant isn't worth your money. You could definitely find a better and cheaper meal with GOOD service elsewhere.
(2)
Michelle A.

I've heard so many people rave about this place, and twice now over the years my husband and I have gone to try it out. Both times we have been completely ignored by the waitstaff. The first time was a couple of years ago, when we placed our orders and then waited an hour and a half without so much as a comment from the waitstaff we were frantically trying to flag down. We ended up leaving hungry. The other day we decided to try again, arriving for lunch. We walked in to a completely empty restaurant during the lunch hour (should have been a clue), shouted hello a few times to try to get someone on the staff to hear us (they were all in the kitchen talking it seems), and turned around again to leave. Sorry, Hema, I wouldn't know if your food was good because your service has been horrid and there will not be a third try for us.
(1)
Inspector G.

Hema's Kitchen is moving. Keep an eye out for their new location coming in March 2008. The owner told that they'd be moving about 1 block west from their current location. As to the food, we've generally had great experience hear. The atmosphere is low key on week-nights and the food is excellent, particularly given the reasonable price.
(4)
Ann G.

Indeed, as good as it gets! This place is BYOB and I've never had better Indian food. I will be bringing friends next time!
(5)
Kirstie S.

Very rich and good Indian food...I have heard this location is better and haven't gone to the other one. Prices can be a little expensive and I think it's ridiculous when Indian food doesn't come with bread or rice options but otherwise recommended. Nice staff and comfortable eating environment, especially since they expanded into the other room.
(4)
Sam G.

Delicious.
(5)
Leah J.

911...911...someone get the fire department...my mouth is on fire!!! I've had Indian food before, but maybe this place was the real deal? The real deal on my taste buds. I popped in here on a Monday night after work and was seated immediately (all of 5 people filled the tiny restaurant). Within 5 minutes my order was taken and 10 minutes later my food was on the table. I ordered light: Veggie Samosa, Shami Roll (more like a wrap), and the pulka bread (grilled flat bread w/o butter). I was going to order the rice, but was told "If I get the rice, I should (more like must) order an entree." So I passed and felt like crawling under the table for my lack of Indian food "pairing" knowledge. The samosa's were ok. The crust reminded me of pie, but as soon as you got to the filling (potatoes, peas, etc) all I could taste was hotness. The potatoes were seasoned in a way I couldn't figure out. I doused my samosa with the red jelly sauce which had accompanied it. It kind of helped. The Shami Roll brought on another level of fire. The consistency of the shredded lamb was delicious. But my taste buds could not take the heat. The pulka was not what I expected. It was just a piece of flatbread. Thought I'd see something similar to Bhabi's breads (delicious), but no luck. Maybe I went on an off hour, maybe I shouldn't have gone alone and maybe I shouldn't have tested my pallette w/o inquiring about the heat!!
(2)
Jocelyn G.

We've been going to Hema's for years. We love the new space. The food has not changed except that it costs a bit more than back in the old days. The service has improved quite a bit. They do not seem to get backed up very much, but I still think the service could be a bit better- pouring water refills, checking on tables a bit better, etc... But the food is so AMAZING- fresh and made to order and delicious- that I cannot mind the imperect service. The staff is all very friendly and the new space is much nicer.
(4)
Laura C.

We love this place. The vindaloo is YUM! Service has always been good. Delivery is way over priced at $6 plus tip so walk or drive over. And try the vindaloo.
(5)
Quantas G.

Tasty, tasty Indian food. I ventured away from my typical Indian choices of Palak Paneer, Chicken Korma and Chicken Tikka Masala. I tried Hema's Haryali Chicken. Can we all say it together? D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S. Great concoction of tender chicken, spinach, herbs and spices. Highly recommended. Atmosphere offers nothing worth noting. Service was about average. Prices and portions were typical of Devon Ave eateries: $10 to $15 per entree excluding rice. Go with friends, leave as lovers...of Hema's.
(4)
K N.

I love this place...best Indian food in Chicago! My favorites are the sag murg, lamb biryani, and dom ki gobi matar. There is also this piece of lamb that they spice up for an appetizer that is really wonderful. I love that they owner's daughter, who apparently runs the place, always stops by to welcome each table. She is super friendly. Definitely go here...soon! It's BYOB with no corkage fee, so that's fun too.
(5)
carey c.

On a good night, Hemas has the best Indian food in Chicago. (you have to specify spice) on an off night, you can barely get your food. The head waiter (the head waiter, not the others) is really pleasant, and the owner is a doll, but sometimes, I don't get served too quickly, which is a drag. and i hate to say it, but I noticed an African American gave a bad review down the list there, and the one time I got really dismal service was when I was with two African American friends. I might just be imagining things, but there you go...
(3)
John P.

For my previous Indian employer, I spent many weeks over the last 5 years working primarily in Mumbai and Pune, making friends, learning about the culture and eating the food. Recently my wife and I moved back to Chicago from Dallas - land of limited diversity. I took my wife out for Indian food (and Greek, Italian, Polish, Ethiopian, ...); my wife immediately developed a fondness for anything Indian. We've been sampling everywhere - India House, Tandoor, Gaylord, and India Grill - all very good. Several weeks ago we ended up on Devon at Udupi Palace because I wanted Dossai - a Southern Indian Crepe-like staple made from lentil flour - FANTASTIC! Last week we tried Hema's Kitchen on Oakley at Devon which has recently expanded into two store fronts. Hema's immediately became one of our favorites. The restaurant reminds me a little of some of the places I went in India - including the kitchens of some of my friends' families. We immediately felt at home. Hema (dressed in Indian regaila) made friendly conversation with us while we were waiting to be served. After a while she proceeded into the kitchen where she prepared food and directed the waiters. The food was excellent; and yes, they don't serve Naan - but there are plenty of other choices in the bread category (we had Paratha and the PEPPERY Papadam). My wife and I each ordered a vegetarian entree. She had lentils (Dal Palak); I had potatoes (Aloo Matar Paneer) - both EXCELLENT. We shared the entrees and the outstanding basmati rice. We also shared a Samosa appetizer (2 Samosas) - we've learned the hard way that in most Indian restaurants one appetizer is usually plenty. I also had an excellent Mango Lassi to drink (think Thai iced tea). Overall, an excellent experience; we'll be back. Oh, I noticed several complaints about the parking in the other reviews for Hema's and other spots on Devon. We parked on a side street about a block away with no problem. Personally, I'd forget trying to park on Devon. The side streets are fine; besides, a walk before and after dinner is probably advisable.
(5)
Sean D.

Let me caveat this review by saying that I dined here several months ago, but decided to post this review after eating at Bhabi's for the first time: We first tried Hema's when the line at Bhabi's was too long following their appears on "Check Please!" We were very pleasantly surprised. The other patrons in Hema's were mostly Indian (always a good sign), compared to our recent visit to Bhabi's which was serving mostly Caucasians. The menu was incredibly vast with dishes that I had no familiarity with, providing a culinary adventure (and expensive bill after ordering all those dishes). The only negative I could say about this restaurant is the absence of naan. I am not familiar with the proper use of the bread in a meal, but when I eat Indian food, I want naan! The portions are huge and the flavors of the dishes were spectacular. I liked that you could really heat it up if you wanted to and order something really spicy and if you're dining partner prefers a little less spice, you could find something for her as well. I highly recommend making the trip up north for Hema's.
(4)
Renato P.

I had some rare down time while in the city, so I decided to finally try Hema's. I think a long enough time had passed so that the hype that once surrounded this place will not influence my opinion on this place. To sum up, there are some things I would like to be different here, but my food was really good. The space is a bit dingy, but homey, so no gripes here. The staff couldn't have been nicer, and the menu selection more plentiful. My only gripe as someone that likes to sample a variety of different flavors was the lack of a sampler platter or combo platter. That being said, I ordered the tandoori chicken appetizer and really liked it, very good. The garlic naan was absolutely great, I don't think I've ever been happier eating naan. The lamb boti kabob is spicy, really spicy... I mean it. I am a bit of a spice wimp, but it wasn't really heat, so I really dug this dish, very good. If I am ever in the place to do so again, I would readily eat here again.
(4)
Dominique M.

Went here last night, and both myself and my boyfriend agreed the food was fantastic! We had vegetable samosas, some type of potato appetizer(forgot the name), garlic naan, vegetable vindaloo, and i forgot his dish's name. All of them were excellent!! Service also was pretty good. Our water glasses never went empty, and we were checked on frequently. Only strange thing was that we didn't receive our check for a good 20 minutes after we boxed up our food. We thought that possibly we had to go to the register to pay, so we got our coats on, and asked the bus boy if that's where we were to pay, and he responded "Let me get your check." Huh? Plus our original server during this was eating food, and then got up and left to go home. We were confused by this all, but I guess the food and initial service made up for it.
(4)
Karen S.

Hema's is the real deal. The food is absolutely amazing. I had not been in about 3 years, and they remodeled inside and it's very nice. We walked in around 8:15pm, and Hema greeted us at the door. It was pretty busy, but we were able to get a table right away. We got the chicken tandoori appetizer. It was delicious. The cilantro sauce that came with it quickly disappeared. They also brought us a cherry dipping sauce, but I didn't realize what it was until the end of our meal, and I wish I had more chicken to dip into it. I ordered Pulka bread which was very good. It's a whole wheat grilled bread - more like a tortilla than bread. For dinner I had the hiryali chicken which is what I always get. The sauce has amazing flavors - cilantro, green pepper, yogurt, ginger, garlic, curry leaves and coconut - yum! My boyfriend had Paneer Tika which is homemade cheese, peppers, onions and spices cooked in the tandoor and brought out to the table sizzling. We did not know what to expect, but this dish was fantastic. The cheese was very mild. The vegetables were quite spicy, and my boyfriend loved it. It came with a sauce that had a hint of mint to it, and it was delicious. I wanted to drink it! He also ordered Buna Gosht which is lamb with peppers, onions, curry leaves, and black pepper. This dish was amazing as well. Everything we ordered was spiced exactly how we like it... I wish I had saved room for dessert, but instead I had ginger tea. I see in some reviews people complaining that it was dark inside? Were you in the same restaraunt I was last night because it was not dark inside at all... It was a little loud inside, but it was busy so noise is expected. The service was a little slow because it was busy, but everyone was very friendly. I also saw some reviews of people complaining about the portion sizes, and the prices. I don't know what you are talking about. I thought the portion sizes were perfect. I don't like going to a restaraunt where they give you an obscene amount of food. I thought the prices were very fair. Our bill came to less than $50 for 2 people, and we ate a lot of food. We love this place, and we will coming back for sure.
(5)
Caitlin O.

My favorite Indian restaurant in the city, introduced to me by Benjamin B. not only is the food well-priced and delicious, they're more than happy to customize the food to suit your tastes. For example - I can't eat spicy food. I just can't. I like it but it'll make me rather sick. And without question, they will always leave out any chili at all at my request. At most they'll make sure I just don't want any heat to it at all before they bring it back to me. Delicious every time. Haven't been here recently so I can't say much about the crowd - I never had too much of an issue for it. Definitely BYOB, works great with a dry red wine. The lamb is just EXCELLENT. I need to get back here.
(5)
Gfiddy F.

Absolutely delicious.
(5)
Larisa O.

Wow. Amazing food. It was so delicious I turned to my friend and said, "Let's come here every night." Pleasant ambient, Friday at 7:30 and not packed. They also take the NPR 2-for-1 card -- which is always appreciated!
(5)
Jim M.

I wanted to like this place. I wanted Hema's Kitchen to go all Sally Field and shout "You like me! You really like me!" But I no like. I went on Diwali; I'm not sure what the holiday is, but from my experience at Hema's, it has something to do with bad service at a restaurant. Three of the five in our party show up for our 5:30 reservation, the other 40% looking for parking on Devon. I know, I know, it takes awhile sometimes, that's a given. We get seated pretty quickly, there was one other table way at the back with folks at it. Our guests arrive a couple of minutes later; we get big pitchers of water and menus. That's when one of the most disappointing experiences in my history of restaurant going begins. Service was bad. I've read a few of the five-star reviews, and everyone says "Oh, these people who want to jump in and out of here, they aren't here for the food...." That's wrong. I like to linger when I eat. But I also like the food to arrive. Our waiter got our orders wrong about 25% of the time. Drinks, appetizers, main course. And up to a point I'll be very easy going about it. But Hema's, sorry, can't forgive when four people ask how things are, 100% are told we're waiting for food, and 25% actually give us an answer. Thanks for asking, but when you go back to check on a dish that's not arrived, how about stopping back by and telling us why it isn't out yet? When the food did come out, it was good. I wasn't blown away; it was good. As someone who likes to linger when I eat, how about giving me enough time to finish my appetizer before bringing out the main course? And how about bringing them all out at the same time, as opposed to the 25 minute interval between all the dishes arriving? No dessert, which is just wrong as far as I'm concerned, but I didn't want to dash down the street to refill the meter with another hours worth of quarters. I really wanted to Sally Field this restaurant. I really did.
(2)
Kris O.

Bit of a ways on Devon Street from the El. Then took the 155 bus, where there are a myriad of Indian restaurants, shops, etc. Personally, I'm a big fan of Indian food, and the only dislike I had at Hema's was waiting for the food. Ordered the Chicken Tikka Masala (what I always get), and we got the lamb briani. The tikka masala could have been a bit creamier, but still good. We ordered the equivalent to naan and a fried version. Both very good.
(3)
victoria r.

Since reading great reviews through google, etc we had high expectations of this place. Upon arriving in the taxi we thought anything but the best. Location... not so great. About a 25 min ride outside downtown and 10-15 min ride from Lincoln Park (cute shopping area). However, it was, by far, the BEST Indian food I've had. BYOB. Great service and willing to give opinions. Hole in the wall, tight, and shabby but if you want authentic and delicious Indian... GO! Make a reservation if the party is more then two. Gets packed quickly. I highly recommend the Kheema Samosa, Sheek kabob, Murg Makhani (tandoori chicken) with theZeera rice. First time ever trying Indian dessert and it was a pleasant surprise! The Indian rice pudding (Kheer) was sooo yummy. We also enjoyed the Gulab Tamun (almost a rich, decadent small donut ball). Extremely inexpensive! 2 apps, 1 entree, 1 side, and 2 desserts came out to $38.( Would have paid double) . I heard they also have another location downtown. However all the reviews I read were for this address so I figured we should go there. Will definitely return to again!
(4)
Ariana G.

Amaaaazing food here! I love the location and the prices are reasonable given the area is expensive. My husband and I come here a lot, but wish we went more often!
(4)
Jeff M.

great but got trendy then not- keep trying
(3)
turn p.

One of my favorite Indian restaurants in Devon. I like the lamb dishes and the chicken tendori. I like that it's BYOB. I wish the ambiance is cozier but if you want good Indian food and good service, this is one of the places in Devon to go.
(4)
Andrew D.

I guess I expected more from an Indian restaurant located on Devon. I've had better food at cabbie joins off Orleans near the Loop. Very overpriced and poor service.
(2)
alexis h.

This place is really overrated. I went here for lunch today with friends and had an absolutely atrocious experience. It took 2.5 hours from the time we sat down until our food was served. Service - non-existent. We were seated right away. That's the only good part of the service we received here. They were non existent. Our main dishes came out at varying times - one person's food arrived around 20 minutes ahead of the rest. The wait between our samosas and our main courses, was ridiculous - around 40 minutes. Terrible, horrible service. The kind of service you expect in a local hole in the wall, where the food is $3. Food - Again, a real disappointment. The flavoring in the samosas was just spicy - none of the subtle blend of spices we've come to expect in them. I had the aloo pakora - the sauce was okay, but it was a bag of frozen peas and 3 potato chunks. My husband had the veggie vindaloo - again, nothing to write home about. Our friends had some of the lamb and chicken dishes. All were bland, and noone even took their leftovers home. Not sure why everyone is raving about this food - I've had better indian food in so many places. Its sad to see this place with such a high rating. Prices - ridiculous for the service and quality of food. they charge for rice? all in all, between four people, we spent $80 for lunch. Kind of ridiculous with sh*tty service and bland adequate food. I won't be going back again EVER. I'd recommend you find some other delicious Indian place to fill your belly.
(1)
Stephanie T.

I don't think this place is all it's cracked up to be. A little pricey for what you get.
(2)
Rachel B.

First off, the food is amazing. The veggie samosas with mint chutney were incredible--like, they actually made me want to die. The menu is huge but the waitstaff is very helpful in choosing what to eat. I'm convinced you can't go wrong here, though. The service, by the way, was hilarious. There was a woman (Hema's daughter) walking around chatting with people and overseeing the waitstaff, who she described as "young old men--they are so lazy!" They were a little slow, but she made up for it by being awesome and bossing them around. Really, I would go back to this place in a minute.
(5)
Morgan H.

I love the food at Hema's, I just wish the service was on par. The veggie samosas here are incredible - big, tasty and the sauces are great. I'm also a big fan of their garlic naan. They bake the garlic into the bread, so you get a great flavor and texture, but it isn't overpowering. I also love the sag paneer. It has a perfect spice to it, and with a side order of basmati rice, makes a perfect meal. Unfortunately the waitstaff isn't as good as the chef. Our waitress plainly wanted to be anywhere but there, so getting things like water refills and our check was a challenge.
(3)
Jeff K.

So so so spicy. Great food...great value. Order the veggie samosas, peas & Cheese. Vindaloo is really spicy
(4)
Duncan S.

Pretty standard Indian restaurant with just reasonable food, but not overly special. Nice decor and fairly comfortable surrounds, helpful enough wait staff and BYOB is a real plus. We had three curry dishes and it was a little hard to determine a great deal of difference between each of the dishes. The vindaloo had some bite, but not enough acidity. The fourth dish was tandoori chicken that was overly dry and poor. Naan was pretty good, again nothing spectacular. Pricing mid range for this hood.
(3)
Carter G.

BRING ON THE SPICE! This hands down is the best Indian Food in the Entire city of Chicago. My good Indian friend and I frequent India House and Gaylords downtown. On Saturday my Friend called and suggested we head up to Devon for lunch. The food was outstanding! My friend told the waiter to make everything Spicy, but these dishes also come mild if requested. We Started out with vegetable samosas. I'm not big vegetable person to begin with, but hands down the freshness inside each one of these was amazing. For entrees we had: Lamb Biryani- which is similar to fried rice---Excellent Chicken Makhani-- I normally would go with the Lamb or Chicken Vindaloo---this was an amazing alternative Chana (chickpeas)----How many times can I use the word AMAZING in one post. We also had an order of the regular and garlic nan.... Lastly, the price was 1/2 of what it would of been downtown and the food was TWICE as good. For a truly authentic Indian Meal...Check out Hema's Kitchen on Devon!
(5)
Ash D.

WOOO SPICY! The food was awesome! But man is it spicy! I got mine in the milder Version and it was SPICY. It was my first Indian Food Experience and it was goood. Did I mention it was spicy? Our waiters were a little rude to some of the people at the table, but it was most of our first time eating this type of food. We were all a bit cautious. It didn't help that we took lots of pictures while we were there. They don't serve alcohol BUT (there's always a but) you can bring your own in. OH! you should definitely try the samosas, they were really good, oh and spicy!
(4)
Brian C.

Go for the food and you will likely be thrilled. Great chicken tikka masala and lamb vindaloo. The ground lamb and chick pea kabobs (appetizer) was also delicious.
(5)
Erin R.

I was sworn that this restaurant was the best Indian food ever and I have to say i agree! The decor is somewhat less than desirable but once you get some of their naan bread you soon forget that part. I had the chicken tiki masala and wanted it spicy but was warned not to do so. So I got it medium and i was sweating so much i had to put my hair back. ha! Really really flavorful and great if you are in the mood for some good Indian.
(4)
David B.

Best Indian on Devon. A little expensive, but worth it.
(5)
matthew g.

Devon offers so many good Indian place and so so many bad ones too. We wandered in here by accident because we had bad directions looking for Ghandi India. Turned out to be a nice surprise. Despite a massively long wait for our waiter (and then for our check), we left satisfied with a good meal. In two visits now I had the sag paneer and veggie vindaloo. Both were excellent.
(4)
nina D.

My husband ordered a lamb dish that was tender and had a great sauce. We also had plenty of parantha and naan. I had a daal dish that was also fairly good. I would definitely go back.
(4)
Kristin V.

At first, I was confused and questioned the authenticity of the food when the entire neighborhood was hustling and bustling with people from India, but in Hema's Kitchen there wasn't anyone Indian. Then I realized that there was another Hema's Kitchen in Lincoln Park and this restaurant is quite well publicized, perhaps that was the reason??? At any rate, a friend and I ate the Sag Paneer (Fresh Spinach and Homemade cheese) and the Choosa Tikka Masala (Chicken in orange cream sauce). The dishes could've been made mild (you can opt for mild, medium and spicy for all entrees) and we should've chosen that option when offered. Alas, it was tasty, but I am not sure I understand all the hype.
(4)
Og B.

i have eaten here many many many times. the prices have gone up 2 or 3 times. i dont seem to mind. except the last two times. the waiter left us sitting there for nearly 20 minutes with nothing but menus in our hungry hungry hands. also, there was glass in our food. its hard to bounce back from glass in the food. but this place has alot going for it. byob. nice owner lady. nice atmosphere. cleanliness. delisciousness. just to name a few. i will find my way back here eventually...
(4)
J J.

Best Indian food for non-native Indian food eaters. Quaint dining area, friendly family run business, ton of food, and cheap prices!
(5)
Anjali B.

My only issue with Hema's Kitchen is that there is no buffet - I have SUCH a hard time deciding what to eat! The BYOB makes up for it, though.... And I think Indian beer (Kingfisher) makes a great compliment to the spicy (for western tastes - you have to ask for it to be spicy hot if you've got my tex-mex/indian upbringing), and it's part of the whole Devon atmosphere. The vegetable samosas are perfectly crisp and flaky with no oily residue... I will definitely return again and again...
(5)
D K.

The only Indian restaurant I visited in Chicago and I was pleased. Tasty vegetable pakoros and, even though I ordered it mild, really flavorful aloo matar paneer -- layers of flavors and just a hint of butter. My friend's spicier eggplant dish (I forget which one) was equally tasty, and the heat melded well with the rest of the spices. All in all, a really good meal at a really good price!
(4)
K J.

Please avoid the place if you can!!! The only thing you can taste in the food is "Red chili". I ordered Mango Lassi and got a mango milkshake. Then the paneer tikka was full of red chili powder nothing else. The malai kofta was really bad.. the kofta's where hard and seemed not cooked with the gravy itself. The breads were okay. Service is very slow. It took around 40 min for our food to get served. I will never go back there. I have lived in north india.. this food is for sure not from north india..
(1)
Nik M.

Don't bother-- it's dumbed down-- no spice- no character- Indian food-- save your time and money- Although it is the perfect place to go if your bring your small town parents who have scared taste buds but are wanting to somewhat step out of there ground beef casserole comfort zone- They won't love it but they'll eat-
(1)
S M.

I ordered the chicken tikka masala (and the rice, since you have to order that separately) and it was good. Nothing spectacular. I would have given this place 3 stars but it took FOREVER and a day to get our food. I think we were there for over 2 hours, so definitely slow food.
(2)
Stacy S.

I'm not Indian, so I could never comment on how authentically "country" this place is...I've nver been to India! But man-o-man is this place good! You know it is good when you actually see Indian people eating here! I like it hot and they serve it up right. My only complaint is the service is not always the best, but it certainly isn't the worst! Oh, and there isn't any Naan bread...but they do have great alternative options!
(4)
Johanna C.

Hema's is a really great place to get Indian food. I order take out from here often. It seems that she raised her prices after business boomed on Check Please. My favorites are the Veggie Samosas, Sag Paneer, Aloo Matter Paneer and the Choosa Tikka Masala. The food tends to be on the spicy side so make sure you ask them to adjust it to your palette if you can't handle spicy food. It is moderately priced (average entree is $12) but you'll have to pay extra for pulka (no naan at the location on Oakley), rice, etc. so you'll be paying around $20 per person. The mango lassis are nice and thick. Make sure you go on a weeknight because Devon is not a good place to park on the weekends.
(5)
Kriss W.

We waited a good half an hour or more to be seated at a rickety table they'd made up right by the front counter, and the service was slooow - but the owner/manager did come by once to apologize. The veggie pakoras were really good; I ordered lamb curry, which was good but nothing to write home about; my partner had the sizzling shrimp kebob, which was also good - the shrimp were huge! I had to order the jasmine rice as an extra, but it was delicious. The meal was decently-priced but again, the serivce left much to be desire. Overall, though, I wasn't impressed enough to go back.
(3)
D. J.

This place is about 600 paces from my apartment. I ordered when I was sick, and when I called I gave directions as well as the address. I did tell them that I was ill and that's why I was ordering. The delivery guy had to call twice to get directions. After the food arrived, I noticed there was no rice, so I called back. Apparently, rice has to be ordered (and paid for) separately instead of coming with the meal as it does with Indian delivery in the rest of the English-speaking world. So, here I am, sick, with an entree that will be cold by the time I've cooked the rice, which is precisely what I'd ordered from Hema's to avoid having to do. To make matters worse, when I called back, the fellow who answered the phone started calling me "ma'am," whereas before he'd been calling me the more appropriate "sir," in an obvious attempt to condescend.
(1)
Soo S.

I was always a skeptic when it came to Indian Food. After a friend of mine took me to Hema's I've been hooked on Indian Food. I have tried several Indian restaurants but have to say that Hema's is by far the best Indian food I have tasted. The flavor is like a party in your mouth. It is definitely far from bland. The parking is a bit difficult to find near Oakley, but the food is worth the several trips around the block.
(5)
Sarah D.

dear god. so tasty. the finest place for shahi and sag paneer. i would eat at hema's every day if possible.
(5)
Timothy B.

Best Indian food I've ever had. The lassi sucked but who cares. I most likely won't go anywhere else from now on because I've been pretty disappointed with other Indian restaurants on Devon.
(5)
Jenna K.

It's pretty good Indian food, nice & polite service. I love that they don't clear the dishes until ALL parties have finished - that is very good manners. The only real downside is the homogenous population inside. The restaurant feels inauthentic without any Indian or Pakistani families eating there. I did see one guy in the four times I've been, but he was just reading the paper. Just sayin'.
(4)
Pedantic S.

One of the best restaurants for Indian food in Chicago. I have liked every dish I have tried here (and I have eaten here at least 8-9 times across both locations) - appetizers (meat starters are always tender), rice dishes (biryani), meat curries, and veggies. Hema's has a south Indian - Andhra - flair to it, which makes it unique and interesting. I find some of their dishes to be a tad spicy, relative to other Indian places so you need to speak to the servers about specific dishes you order. The service is always friendly and efficient, and the restaurant is very clean and looks hygienic. I remember Hema's Kitchen as a hole in the wall on a side street off Devon Avenue when I first started going there around 2002. Hema has expanded to two locations - a swankier and spacious place on Devon Ave and a new location on Clark. Hema the chef/ owner is always around at one of the two locations. Her success speaks volumes about her love for cooking/ food and its popularity with people. Highly recommended.
(5)
Ruth R.

Awesome place, in terms of how delicious their food was. I really liked it. I had some kind of chicken dish in sauce with potato and their garlic bread, and I loved it. Our waitress was also really nice and pretty fast with our food. She didn't really understand how payment worked though, and instead of trying to explain to her what we wanted back she just got way too large of a tip lol. Oh well. My guy and I were the only ones in there on a weekday afternoon, I thought it was kind of weird.
(4)
Syed N.

Below average food & horrible service. You have to wait a long time to get food, since the servers/waiters and kitchen chefs are not trained properly. There is a lot of yelling & screaming going on in the kitchen (it's very entertaining to listen to the conflicts going on in the kitchen). As you enter the place, you are warmly greeted with the owner Hema herself. As you depart the establishment shell-shocked by the horrible experience, you are warmly wished adieu by Hema again. She's awesome. Wish she can do more than just sit & greet people. How about train your darn employees? Example of horrible service: we asked for yogurt and the server served it with the wetness form his hands dripping into the yogurt. I am sure this place used to be good long time ago, but it is horrible now. Must avoid.
(1)
Lindsey B.

For the people writing reviews about Hema's and saying there was "no spice" or "not enough spice" or the food was "dumbed down for people who can't handle Indian food", I'd like to say, You are sorely mistaken! We ordered the lamb vindaloo, a peas and cheese type dish (#26 as I recall), a cauliflower dish with more paneer in it, a shrimp dish suggested by the waiter since we didn't want another vindaloo dish, and a few other things. (I can't remember my Indian words, so this is the best I can do.) I put a little of everything on my plate, and happily took my first bite of the vindaloo. The first bite tasted great, so I had another. It was spicy, yes, but good. By the third bite, I was frantically wondering where the yogurt stuff was!! Holy Mother of God that stuff was SO HOT. One of our friends grew up in Egypt and has lived all over the world, including India, so he did the ordering for us. I must've missed the part where he said "Extra Spicy Lamb Vindaloo, Please". If you are giving this place a bad review based on lack of spice; notice the fine print on the menu. You CAN order different levels of spice. Spicy, Extra Spicy, VERY Spicy. I urge you to think twice before you go for VERY spicy. Overall, great place! The food was excellent, and the waiter was very very nice. Hema's daughter came to our table and spoke with us about their building needing some repairs, and the fact that they are moving to another location somewhere else in Rogers Park. She was quite nice. I'm deducting one star for the fact that the waiter forgot to bring us any of the bread that we ordered as well as the yogurt mouth-fire-putter-outer I so desperately needed following the vindaloo. Also deducting another star for a combination of things: We had a pregnant woman with us who really really wanted a sprite and the waiter never brought it, and also the parking situation really stinks! We had a party of 8 people, and most of us were late because the parking was no where to be found. I realize it's Chicago, and parking is hard pretty much everywhere, I mean I'm used to walking 5 blocks home after parking my car, but this was a little ridiculous in this area.
(3)
Saneel R.

This place is really good. It's a pretty low key environment and who can argue with BYOB? The food was good (be warned caucasians: when the say spicy, they mean it!), but I would say the service left something to be desired. On a Fri or Sat night, it gets busy, but not overwhelming, they just don't have enough waiters running around. So, plan on being there for the long haul. I wouldn't recommend it if you need to catch a movie or show after.
(4)
Tony G.

I am a huge fan of Hema's Kitchen. I'm not a connoisseur of Indian food, but I will say that Hema's is the best that I've ever had. The owner is very friendly and came out to speak with us after our meal. It wasn't very busy the time that we were there, and the service was really good. Unlike some 'ethnic' restaurants, I didn't feel intimidated by the menu. Additionally, our server was very helpful in explaining what the different types of food were like. Add to the great food and good service the fact that Hema's is BYOB, and you've got a winner! Oh, parking is tough in that neighborhood, but you can find a meter on one of the side streets if you're willing to walk a couple blocks. I wasn't able to easily find the parking lots that they suggest you park in.
(5)
Moni B.

They definitely have fresh food but freshness doesn't equal tastiness. If you are looking for authentic indian food head somewhere else. If you are newly trying out an indian restaurant, it's a good fit. Basically a tame tasting indian restaurant. Service is good, nothing great, but price is kinda high. Would give two stars but the restaurant is very clean and ambiance is nice So it averages out to 3
(3)
Matthew S.

Hema's kitchen first came to my attention a few years ago, when I saw it reviewed on Check! Please. And of course, it was swamped with attention from all of Chicago land, who thought of Indian food as a far away exotic treat. The fact is, Indian food is just delicious, and should be a part of your weekly diet. And given that it takes a lot of time to prepare some of my favourite dishes, and my busy schedule - some times its just easier to let Hema do the work for me. I have been here several times, because I can always count on the consistency of the flavours, service, and atmosphere. I wish I could say I've been here when it is packed, but that hasn't happened yet. People are missing out. To start, I really love the flat bread they serve here. Perfect char marks on the bread let me know that it was prepared the right way. The appetizers are served in perfect timing to the entree - and the water glasses are always full. I like that no one looks at me funny for just eating with my hands here. I believe to enjoy Indian food, one should eat it traditionally. If you aren't comfortable with that, do use the silverware they provide you with - but it isn't necessary. Just remember to wash your hands before you start! The palak paneer is my go to dish for gauging how well food is prepared. Hema's has got it down, and I've never been dissatisfied. I have also tried the butter chicken, and the chicken biryani. Unlike some places, I haven't had to wrestle with gristle or bones in any of the chicken dishes. I also like that the food isn't overly greasy. But lets be honest, you can't cook authentic Indian cuisine without ghee! They also have a dessert menu - but with all the dessert places I can go on Devon, I usually like to make a second stop to round out my night. If you are new to Indian food, or experienced with the culinary nuance of this delicious type of repast, I have to suggest you try Hema's.
(4)
Kathy T.

We came without reservation in a Saturday night. We were quickly seated for a table of four. They helped opened our two bottle of wines and also offered to put it in an ice bucket for us. The food came out quickly. We stayed and chatted for quiet a long time after receiving our meal. The chicken biryani are a bit spicy, but it was delicious. All the portions are huge! Overall, my dining experience was quietly enjoyable here.
(4)
Abhishek M.

I am torn between giving Hema's 3 and 4 stars. Restaurant itself was clean and inviting. We got the Green fish curry and Murg Makhani and they were pretty spot on with flavors and taste. Nan was soft and overall a solid meal. Prices for being on Devon are a little bit higher than the norm. So now of course you still wonder why the 3 stars? If you haven't guessed, it was the service!! There was only 1 server who also played hostess, cashier, and answered the phone which rang non stop for takeout and delivery orders. During our time there, she would disappear for 10 minutes behind the kitchen door with no one to refill our water glasses or place another nan order with. They are BYO!
(3)
Sarita T.

Went to Hema's Kitchen for the first time last night. It was a-ok. It was busier than most of the other Indian restaurants I've visited on Devon Street over the past several years, and I certainly can't complain about the food. It wasn't the best Indian I've ever had and the decor is a bit rundown and straightforward, and perhaps the prices were a bit high considering ($13.99? Really?) that you're only getting a single serving of tomato-based stew and some chikpeas. But I'll probably be back sometime soon.
(3)

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Address : 2439 W Devon Ave
Chicago, IL, 60659
Phone (773) 338-1627
Website https://www.hemaskitchen.com
Click To Get Directions

Opening Hours

Mon :11:00 am - 11

Specialities

Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : Yes
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Dinner
Parking : Street
Bike Parking : No
Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Casual
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : No
Outdoor Seating : No
Wi-Fi : No
Has TV : No
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : Yes

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Hema’s Kitchen

2439 W Devon Ave, Chicago, IL, 60659

Hema’s Kitchen Menu

Appetizers

Soups

Hemas Sizzlers

Light Fare

Seafood Entrees

Vegetarian Entree

Biryani

Lamb Entrees

Chicken Entrees

Rice

Breads

Desserts

Beverages

Healthy Meal suggestions for Hema’s Kitchen

Appetizers

Soups

Hemas Sizzlers

Light Fare

Seafood Entrees

Vegetarian Entree

Biryani

Lamb Entrees

Chicken Entrees

Rice

Breads

Desserts

Beverages

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