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Chicago’s cab drivers are an awesome source of restaurant recommendations.

If you live in any sort of a big city that requires you to take cabs on a regular basis, you’ve likely noticed that most of your cab drivers are immigrants from another country. Chicago is certainly no exception. As someone who will eat just about anything and loves trying new and different ethnic cuisines, I recently realized that these gentlemen are a potential goldmine of information on the restaurants that specialize in food from their home countries. With that in mind, I’ve begun asking every cab driver I encounter where he’s from and what restaurant is the best representation of that cuisine in the Chicago area. Below, you will find the results of my inquiries. Click on a restaurant’s name to check out its Yelp page:

African:

• Algerian – Tassili – 4342 N Elston – Irving Park
• Cote D’Ivoire – Palace Gate Restaurant – 4548 N Magnolia Ave – Uptown
• Eritrean – Ethiopian Diamond Restaurant – 6120 N Broadway St – Edgewater
• Ethiopian – The Peacock Cafe and Restaurant – 6014 North Broadway – Edgewater
• Ethiopian – Ethiopian Diamond Restaurant – 6120 N Broadway St – Edgewater
• Ethiopian – Demera Ethiopian Restaurant – 4801 N Broadway St – Uptown
• Ghanaian – Grace’s African Restaurant – 4409 N Broadway Street
• Kenyan – NONE
• Moroccan – Zad – 3112 N Broadway Ave – Lakeview
• Moroccan – Marrakesh – 941 W Randolph – West Loop
• Nigerian – Vee Vee African Restaurant – 6232 N Broadway Street – Edgewater – X2
• Nigerian - Nigerian Kitchen – 1363 W Wilson Avenue – Uptown
• Nigerian – TBS African Restaurant – 4507 N Sheridan Rd – Uptown
• Nigerian – Bolat African Cuisine – 3346 N Clark St – Lakeview
• Nigerian – B&Q Afro Root Cuisine – 4701 N Kenmore Ave. – Uptown
• Somali – Muqdisho Grill – 2826 N. Lincoln – Lakeview
• Somali – Banadir Restaurant – 6221 N Clark St – Edgewater
• Somali – Mogadishu Restaurant – 931 N Orleans – Near North Side

American (by region, for cab drivers from the U.S.):

• Chicago Pizza – Father & Son Pizza – 2475 N Milwaukee Ave – Logan Square

Caribbean:

• Jamaican – Jamaica Jerk – 1631 W Howard Street – Rogers Park

East Asian:

• Korean – San Soo Gab San – 5247 N Western Ave – Lincoln Square
• Korean – Jin Ju – 5203 N Clark St – Edgewater

Eastern European:

• Polish – Big Fish Restaurant – 7117 W Addison St – Dunning
• Romanian – Nelly’s Saloon – 3256 N Elston Ave – Avondale
• Romanian – Restaurant Perla – 5522 W Belmont Ave
• Russian – Rasputin – California at Golf (Can’t find it, any ideas?)

Latin American:

• Puerto Rican – La Bruquena – 2726 W Division Street – Humboldt Park
• Puerto Rican – Tumbao – 3213 W Armitage Ave – Logan Square

Middle Eastern:

• Afghan – Kabul House – 4949 Oakton St – Skokie
• Iraqi – Venus Restaurant - 7156 N California Ave
• Jordanian – Reza’s Restaurant – 432 W Ontario St – River North
• Jordanian – Noon O Kabab – 4661 N Kedzie Ave – Albany Park
• Lebanese – Pita Inn – 3910 Dempster St – Skokie
• Palestinian – Al Bawadi Grill – 7216 W. 87th Street – Bridgeview

South Asian:

• Indian - Flaming Wok N’ Grill – 903 N Halsted St – Goose Island
• Indian – Sheesh Mahal Dhaba Restaurant – 6355 N Maplewood Ave
• Indian – Pakiza Restaurant – 1011 N Orleans St – Near North Side
• Indian – India House Restaurant - 59 W Grand Ave – Near North Side
• Indian – Baba Palace – 334 W Chicago Ave – Near North Side
• Indian (Vegetarian) – Udupi Palace Restaurant – 2543 W Devon Ave
• Nepalese - Chicago Curry House – 899 S Plymouth Ct – South Loop
• Pakistani – Anmol Barbecue Restaurant – 2858 W Devon Ave
• Pakistani – Khan’s BBQ Restaurant - 2401 W Devon Ave
• Pakistani – Usmania – 2244 W Devon Ave
• Pakistani – Sabri Nihari Restaurant – 2502 W Devon Ave
• Sri Lankan – NONE