Crazy Jaws: Show Us Your Ribs!

If the thought of Mardi Gras, Cajun food and hurricanes (the drink, not the weather phenomenon) sets your toes a tappin,’ head to Morton Grove-based restaurant .

Easily, the single most popular dish served is the spicy jambalaya, notes Niral Patel, who co-owns Crazy Jaws with his cousin Sanjay Patel. “It has a nice kick,” says Patel. “People order it two or three times more often than anything else.”  

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The menu also includes such New Orleans mainstays as gumbo, po’ boy and muffuletta sandwiches and red beans and rice.  These are complemented by more traditionally Southern delicacies (cheese grits, fried pickles, hush puppies and catfish fingers among them).

However, Niral Patel relates that since the restaurant opened in March – jambalaya aside – they’ve found that patrons are mostly clamoring for the barbeque dishes: baby-back and beef ribs, beef brisket, pulled pork. Their in-house smoker gives the meats an earthy flavor, and portions are generous (especially so the beef ribs, dubbed by some as “Flintstones ribs”).  Bring your eatin’ pants, y’all.

Crazy Jaws is family-friendly, with a kids’ menu and combo platters that lend themselves to sharing. N’Awlins décor (beads! beads!), a spate of flat-screen TVs broadcasting sports, pool tables and dartboards create a casual, fun ambiance. After 9 p.m., a young adult crowd predominates. Hours: Sun-Fri.: 11 a.m.-2 a.m.; Sat. 11 a.m.-3 a.m.

Crazy Jaws, 9001 Waukegan Rd., Morton Grove (847) 583-8100.