Cassava

I was there with couple of my friends for a quick snack which ended up being an 40 minute long wait… We were the only people there

Really yummy food here at Cassava. I went with someone else, and we tried a variety of options: The pulled pork empanadas, roasted veggies empanadas, spinach empanadas, the original roll and the bacon cassava roll. My favorites were the pulled pork and spinach ones — delicious and hearty.
The bathroom is in serious need of a remodel. Things were broken, and the faucet wouldn’t turn off.
Anyway, I’ll be back! Worth a visit.

InSANELY good empanadas. Cute little place, and as a celiac, it was amazing to walk in and know I could eat anything on the menu! My boyfriend and I enjoyed our dinner treats so much we bought a bunch of frozen ones and a dozen cheese buns to take back to Milwaukee with us. We will definitely be back!

Excellent empanadas! They are fresh with quality ingredients and the perfect size; not too filling. Two was perfect for lunch. I had a beef and cheddar and a spinach:
Beef & Cheddar: Grass-​fed beef with cheddar cheese, onions, and bell peppers
Spinach: Mushrooms, roasted garlic with Feta cheese
I would definitely order either or both of those again. They also have chicken, veggie, pork, bacon, egg and cheese, and an apple one. They have a variety of dipping sauces, but they are good with or without. For those who can’t tolerate gluten, they are also completely gluten free!
Yum!

This place is TERRIBLE! I don’t even think that it’s worthy of one star. The worst empanadas my friend and I have ever had.
The service is even worse.

I was pretty curious to try this place since I’m celiac and always appreciate a place that is completely gluten free.
Overall I was pretty happy with my experience. I met a friend here and we dined in. We were the only ones who ate there, which is fine. It’s a very casual place and seems to do most of its business on take-​away orders.
I got two empanadas and decided to try the chocolate cassava roll for dessert. I really loved the roasted veggie and spinach/​mushroom empanadas. The filling for both were outstanding. Extremely flavorful and the ingredients worked well together. The dough is not amazing, but it doesn’t detract from the filling in my opinion. I really enjoyed the chocolate cassava roll as well. It is really small, but I liked that it was small because I just wanted a hint of sweet to finish out the meal.
I would love to see this place offer both empanadas and say buckwheat crepes using the same fillings from the empanadas. They could keep with the gluten-​free theme and not need to do anything new except perfect the basic buckwheat crêpe. Think about it… South America Meets Europe… that’s catchy.

The smoothies taste like straight up apple juice. Also the place smells heavily of beef. We didn’t get any food but threw away all three of our smoothies after a few sips.

YUM!!! not too heavy, quality ingredients. Will forever come here. Surprisingly filling if you have just 2 empanadas, sometimes i even get 1 to have room their awesome chili. Smoothies are good as well!
I purchase a frozen bag to take home since I don’t live nearby. I even give it to friends and family and they love it!

Worse empanada I’ve had! I can’t get over the dough. I’m confused if the dough is supposed to taste «gummy» or if they were undercooked. I’ve had the Brazilian rolls in Brazil before, and they were amazing. This was nothing in comparison. The spinach & mushroom & garlic was good; I ended up just scooping the contents out of the empanada shell. I’m hoping that the 2 empanadas I purchased were just undercooked and that this «cassava dough» is not a representation of the most delicious Brazilian cheese bread in Brazil.

These empanadas were just OK. A bit on the small side, and they took a while to come out. I’m used to Julia’s Empanadas in DC where the empanadas are ready to go and just need to put be in a paper sleeve and then into your mouth and you’re done. Also, the scent of roasted garlic was heavy in the air during my visit, so heavy that when I got home I smelled garlic on my coat, in my hair — everywhere. Good vampire repellant.

Really great smoothies, but a little on the pricey side. However, that is to be expected in that specific neighborhood. Great café interior with comfy seating!

So I haven’t actually dined in here but this review is based on my über eats experience (btw, if you haven’t already, try über eats!)
My order came with 3 empanadas. In the order of my favorite:
Chicken, potatoes
Spinach, mushroom, feta
Beef, cheese
All three were savory and delicious. They arrived warm. I nuked them for a few more seconds to get them hot.
Overall, I was very pleased with the quality of these empanadas. The bread is kind of chewy like, and they don’t skimp on the filling. They are a nice size, too. I barely finished all 3 and was pretty full/​satisfied by the end. I would definitely try the restaurant based off of this experience!

I hadn’t been to Wrigleyville in years, and while I was there, I decided to wander around like a meander around the neighborhood like a «Silly Old Bear.» I had lived in the area in my first apartment in Chicago, within shouting distance from the ballpark (i.e., I could hear the fans; they couldn’t hear me), but I’m not referring the Cubs; since cubs are young bears. I am, of course, referring to Winnie the Pooh, who will fairly regularly require a «smackerel» of this or that, in both cases referring to honey.
My third smackerel that Sunday afternoon happened to be a single empanada from Cassava. I tried the spinach & mushroom and wow! That smackerel was lip-​smackereling good. I’d remembered having cassava buns in Brazil that I enjoyed, but these… a completely new sensation. Very fresh ingredients, with the dough cooked to a perfect soft and chewy consistency, with the perfect sensation of garlic on the tongue and in the nose.
When I was getting ready to leave, it must have been the Christopher Robbin in me who realized that I could use some tasty vitamins and fiber; so I got a dark berry smoothie to go, to consume while I continued my walkabout. It was delicious; I got it with coconut milk and it was the perfect accompaniment as I headed down Clark in the direction of Brazil.
It’s lucky that there exists a Unilocal; otherwise I never would have gone into the place. They don’t have a menu out front; so I wouldn’t have had a clue what they served, and I would have assumed that whatever it was, that it was a sit-​down restaurant. When I’m just looking for a smackerel of something, I don’t expect there to be a smackerel server. They don’t exist, outside of the Five Hundred Acre Wood, anyway.
The consultant in me wanted to say, «Hey! You’re doing this all wrong! You need to capture some foot traffic through awareness. It’s as easy as a simple menu or news clipping!» But I don’t work for free, and I try to keep my Sundays free. I almost bit my tongue to avoid breaking those principles; luckily I noticed the straw in my mouth and avoided a catastrophe. Then again, another empanada might have worked to soften the blow.

Gluten free facility, yay! The empanadas are tasty, chicken empanada is good. Their jalapeño rolls are definitely to try. I am definitely going again.

We got the steak empanada and spinach mushroom empanada as well as the dark chocolate frozen mocha since it was ridiculously hot outside. The empanadas were both extremely tasty, with fresh filling with real ingredients. However, I would not call these empanadas… the dough is chewy and bready rather than flaky or pastry like. Overall, the food and drink were really good and hit the spot, but if you’re looking for a real empanada you should look elsewhere.

I like that you’re gluten free, but it’s annoying that you over charge for a GF product. Just like everybody else. You’re basically charging nearly $ 4 for a chewy hot pocket. (They’re always chewy) you use good ingredients yes. But maybe diversify your menu a bit. And 75 cent for a smaller than silver dollar sized roll. WOW make them bigger (you probably can’t because it would be a blob of chewy dough), give 2 or charge less. Anyone who actually leads a GF lifestyle would be excited to see this place. But then would quickly become resentful because of price.
Also if you’re going to charge more for a fresh cooked product… how about make sure it’s not gross and chewy/​doughy. You should probably reformulate your flour mix for this chewy problem.
I’ve been GF for almost 10 years and it’s nice to see more celiac friendly places but gf doesn’t mean more special and doesn’t have to be so pricey.

so I came here for a smoothie instead of an empanada. apparently that’s not the thing to do BUT I can comment on the delectability of the almond banana smoothie. it’s REAL good. and what’s even better than that is that it’s AFFORDABLE. I’m talking $ 4.95 for a 16 oz. smoothie. say whaaaaat! this truly is rare.
I don’t know that I’d necessarily come here to chill– it’s more of a grab your food and go place although they do have a pretty good amount of seating.
the location is prime and the cashier was great. I asked if they had water bottles (not seeing any fountain drink selections where I could get tap water) and the cashier told me he would be happy to get me tap water as well. way to go.
I’m satisfied and my wallet is still full. I’m diggin it.

When I came in yesterday, I didn’t realize I’d been here before. Unilocal says I have, so I can’t argue!
I recently became gluten intolerant so I now look at food differently — not willing to give up on taste but more aware of healthier cooking. That search led me here to try their gluten free empanadas! I loved their spinach one and my fiancé really liked their veggie one.
I’m not sure what kind of dough they use because it’s hard to achieve that taste + texture without wheat, they did a good job of it! The corners are a little starchy but don’t let that hold you back from digging into the rest — it’s worth it! The rolls are more doughy so we enjoyed the empanada more.

Celiacs! Gather ’round! A gluten free establishment for you to behold! All hail cassava! A lovely spot in Chicago to drop in and claim a gluten free snack. They have salty and sweet, baked empanadas.
We had the pork, steak and cheese, spinach and mushroom, and an apple empanada. All were delicious. A bit pricey for the size. That would be my only complaint. I did not get satisfied. But I can be greedy.
It was wonderful to see a GF dedicated bakery. My wife was in heaven. And happy wife= happy life! Thanks Cassava chicago!

Yesssss squishy, gooey, lovable, gluten free empanadas! What a treasure of a place. We tried the shredded pork, beef and cheddar, steak, and spinach mushroom, plus the jalapeño/​cheddar, bacon, and chocolate rolls. Everything was delicious. Don’t come here expecting your traditional, wheaty empanada though — since they’re made out of cassava, the texture is more like chewy rice dough or mochi, not «bready» or crusty. I eat A LOT and 2 empanadas + a couple rolls was plenty. These suckers are dense.
Found out they also deliver AND they’re available frozen at Whole Foods!