Brightwok Kitchen
| Address: | 21 E Adams St, Chicago, IL 60603, USA |
| Phone: | +1 312-583-0729 |
| Site: | brightwok.com |
| Rating: | 4.5 |
| Working: | 11AM–8PM 11AM–8PM 11AM–8PM 11AM–8PM 11AM–8PM 11:30AM–8PM Closed |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 13
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Robert Beaty
My wife is on the strict Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) diet for various health reasons, and as a result has been unable to eat restaurant food in over a year. We were working at a camp near Chicago this week, and our hosts offered to take us into the city one evening. I decided to Google if there were any AIP-friendly joints, and a site by the "Phoenix Helix" had a list, and Chicago had two places, one of which was Brightwok. We went, and we enjoyed it! My wife could only have veggies as a base and couldnt have any of the sauces due to soy sauce. She also had the Tumeric Ginger tea. I had rice noodles, Thai Basil sauce, and steak with various veggies. I also got a Ginger Beer. I thought the rice noodles were a little overdone, and the sauce had very little flavor for some reason. Added siracha sauce to improve it. They didnt announce our drinks were ready when they were ready, and I stood there with my ticket waiting but the guy never asked me about it. Besides that, I enjoyed it. Good food, good ginger beer. My wife wishes they had AIP-friendly sauces, though, and that would be a plus. Final thought: Assi, the woman behind the counter, was so nice and friendly and helpful. She deserves a raise.
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muffinpuppylover
My overall experience at Brightwok Kitchen has been great. I have visited many times and each time Brightwok Kitchen meets my expectations. Their staff is undereducated; as a server you are supposed to know what is in every single sauce or find someone that does. Standing there saying “I don’t know” is not okay. Their process is very simple, you pick a sauce, base, protein and four vegetables. There are $1.50 extras such as egg and mushrooms. Both are delicious, however I prefer the mushrooms. The bases are white rice, rice noodles, brown rice, or mixed greens. They cook the rice noodles well in the wok but the rice tends gets a little mushy. It’s a fully customizable bowl, so if you want it spicy, cooked longer, or half rice and noodles, they’ll let you do that. The price of the bowls is based off the protein you get so expect to pay around $10-$14 for your meal. I have gotten faster service here than the McDonalds across the street. Brightwok Kitchen makes your food in under 10 minutes. I wish they had more options without tree nuts, hopefully when I go back they might.
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Arlene Armstrong
Tasty, Healthy Restaurant in the Loop Crunchy, tasty, savory, healthy, delicious, satisfying, fresh. A few words to describe my new favorite restaurant. Brightwok is a beautiful light-filled space, well organized, super clean, and a meal here won’t break the bank. The Thai basil sauce on my husband’s stir fry was fabulous, as was my coconut curry sauce — and the friendly line cooks put on just the right amount, enough to flavor the ingredients but not swimming in sauce. Having the brown rice option is also a plus. In addition to eating stir fries for lunch, we got salads to go. The veggies were so fresh and the salads so large, they lasted through several meals. The food was well packed, nothing leaked, and the shopping bag was convenient for carrying it home. BTW, everything on the menu is gluten-free. If you’re feeling virtuous after eating all the healthy veggies and protein, try the Sinful Banana Chips for dessert. Yum!
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Christopher Drummond
Looking on Yelp for something healthy but filling and saw this place. My Co worker and I ate here while visiting for a conference nearby and both of us loved it. Its a cafeteria style service model where you choose your base (rices, noodles, greens), sauce and customize with protein choice, veggies and meats. Everything was fresh, done to perfection. Ingredients (including beverages) are carefully sourced. The place was not busy when we walked in around early dinner time frame on a Tuesday evening but we were in and out promptly. I Highly recommended getting the Thai Basil sauce MAGNIFICENT !!!!!!
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Joshua Katz
The food was absolutely delicious. The line was to the door when we arrived but it went impressively quick. The staff was friendly and made suitable recommendations. The only reason i could not give it 5 stars was that it was a sauna in there. It was cooler outside on a warm summer day than it was inside. My entree had a bit of a kick and so the combination of the spicy food and sauna like conditions left me needing a shower. In the spring or fall this would have been 5 stars.
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Claire Pieterek
Its tasty, although youll need sriracha for additional heat because what you order may be quite bland. Its better than Pret because its a warm meal and theyre earnest, you can get veggies, and its pretty quick. If you order "Thai style" iced tea/coffee, be aware that they use coconut milk, so it will look like it is spoiled. It tastes odd, too. This isnt noted on their menu board. If that is not what you want, order a different drink or get water.
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Tom Wilkowske
My son and I ate here while visiting colleges in Chicago and both liked it a lot. A cafeteria style service model where you choose your base (rices, noodles, greens) and customize with protein choice, veggies and sauces. Everything was fresh, done to perfection. Ingredients (including beverages) are carefully sourced. The place was busy when we walked in around lunch hour on a Monday but we were in and out promptly. Highly recommended!
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Jamie Barrar
Such a wonderful restaurant experience. Staff was super helpful and provided great recommendations on what to order, which drinks and sides were they favorite. As someone who does not eat gluten or dairy - I loved that I could have each sauce and salad dressing! The fact that each bowl is made to order makes it an entirely different experience each time I visit, which is why I keep going back! Absolutely love it every time!
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Bhakti Sharma
The person making my food was also cleaning the other stovetops with dirty water and a towel and although he had gloves on, he didnt change them before going back to cooking my food. And I actually saw this happen since they have an open kitchen. The order after me had an egg included and he cracked the egg with the dirty gloves still on! I wouldnt go here if it were the last place on earth.
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Jason Hao
The style is a cross between something like Flat Top Grill and Chipotle - you get to choose the base, the protein, the sauce, and the vegetables. Its curated enough that you cant really mess it up. Ingredients are fresh and the end product is really delicious and a lot healthier than other fast food options around. Would definitely recommend for a quick Asian bite if youre in the area.
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Jakub C
Had it for the first time today after seeing it a bit ago and being interested. Very impressed. Better than Shophouse. Friendly service, clean, hip, tasty, numerous options all seem on the healthy side, although I got rice noodles and creamy cashew sauce, so probably the heaviest option. Understandably busy at lunchhour. I just wish Brightwok wasnt such a Far-walk from my office.
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Steven Ungaro
The service was incredibly friendly and the food was delicious. Its a "build-your-own" stir fry or salad place with a bit of flare. They have several sauces to choose from and you can get mild or spicy versions, too. I got the coconut curry sauce (hot) with chicken, noodles, broccoli, carrots and onions. The food was amazing and really spicy. Will be going back soon!
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Laura Mantzoros
Really great place to grab lunch. You can order ahead or for delivery instead of waiting in line (it can get pretty busy during lunch hour). The menu is diverse without being overwhelming. I do with that their veggie selection had a few more things, like pea pods and waterchestnuts, but it definitely wasnt a meal ruiner. Make sure you get the egg on top!
