"Me and my husband were in the parking lot on the third floor on ottawa st. in Will County, and we were discussing what we could find to eat in such a bland looking place, besides we were only in will county because my husband was bonding his son out, and after the whole process we were running off a few sips of coffee. He noticed chévere before I even began to google it, but he couldnt see the name from the parking lot, he could only see food. So I, being eager to see what was delicious to eat for vegans and meat eaters in such a boring county (I rep the Chicago cook county), did a Google search for vegan, and good carnivorous options and I fell upon Chévere Latin Cafe and I loved it the moment I stepped across the threshold. Now, yes it was empty but it was still early (around 11-11:30 am), the decor was so pleasing to me and my husbands eyes (he 's Jamaican and lives for the island feel) we decided to check it out. The first thing he noticed was the counters being held up by pipes and he tells me this has got to be a fellow foreignor place I laughed because my Jamaican man clearly missed the Latin Cafe in the name title. I immediately knew this would be a good spot for us both, because he loves all island food and I love to eat in general lol. He 's vegan so we asked about the vegan options on the menu, and we were discussing this with the owner, who was very insightful and helpful of her menu, which shows me passion. Her menu consisted of many authentic Latin flavors, and dishes. she also had a great natural passion fruit drink called Parchita or Maracuyá which we both ordered and it cost $3.99 for a nice glass full. We ordered the Steak Jibarito (for me the carnivore, which includes fried green plantain sandwiches, steak, greens, chévere sauce, chimichurri and a side of rice and beans i also added roasted red peppers) and the Jibaritofit (for my tasty vegan mate, which consists of roasted red peppers, black beans, chimichurri, mushrooms,onions as well as a side of rice and beans) for $10.00 a piece. I also ordered a slice of the vanilla flan cake to go. The service was good and that 's only because the owner speaks English and I think the chef spoke it a little. I had no problem making my order and I even think having some non English speaking servers are amazing to have but when the owner left to make a store run, the chef had to keep coming out whenever we inquired about different things the restaurant had (such as what was the second drink being mixed next to the passion fruit juice which the server could not answer, she could only nod, smile and go make funny motions with her hands to describe the lady with the big hair needing to ask a question) or when the jibaritofit order had the sauce that includes a dairy product that we asked to be removed from the sandwich order. The service of the server is still worth coming back because she 's pleasant nonetheless and because the chef did not miss a beat AT ALL. The owner engages in conversation, and she even did it with my Jamaican who has a very thick accent. Also even though the Jibaritofit was messed up the first time, when the chef took it back he came out with another one made perfect in an efficient time frame (i wasn 't even halfway done so he made it in time for us to enjoy our meals together) so that alone makes up for the lack of English dialect. I can absolutely say I loved the food, our Jibaritos were fresh, made with fresh ingredients, cooked to perfection, the chimichurri and chévere sauce (inhouse sauce) are to literally cry for, the restaurant was clean, well organized, the drinks were great, and everything was cost efficient as well. I have to also say this, the cake is not for me like literally I don 't think I am a flan type of girl, I want to say it was rather disgusting but apart of trying new things is accepting that your tastebuds might not be a good match for them. Hope this helps anyone wondering where is the good food in will county."
