Andrew W.
Yelp
I really wish that Yelp would allow for us to give half stars or fractional stars. I feel strongly that this coffee shop is not a four-star place (I will explain), but it's too good to be a three-star place. Hence, while I have given them four stars, my official rating is 3.5 or 3.75 starts.
First the positive. The coffee here is very excellent. The latte has a deep rich coffee flavor and had a texture was thick and luxurious. Too often lattes can just taste like dirty or burnt water, not at this place. Also, the latter art was a very nice touch. The cold brew was also very good. It had a deep, rich coffee taste, it's certainly along one of the better ones I've had in Chicago. I also bought a bag of beans and have enjoyed brewing them home. The atmosphere is very good. While this spot is new, and when I went the decor didn't seem to be full finished, the coffee shop was bright, airy and I liked the vibe. A lot of people were working remotely here, and I could understand why. The service was good, but not exceptional. The cashier was nice enough, but seemed a bit standoffish. Kind of like a "I'm too cool for your" vibe. Again, not mean, but could have been a little bit friendlier.
Second, the negatives. I have discussed the service above, so I don't need to go over that again. The major negative is the price. For starters, the almond croissant was $7.50 before tax. This the single most expensive croissant I've ever seen and I've been going to independent coffee shops for nearly two decades, including coffee shops in Dubai, UAE (which tend to pricey) and New York within the last year. The question her is value, that intersection of price and what you get back in quality/quantity. By comparison, a ham and cheese croissant down the street at Printers Row, a comparable independent coffee shop costs $6.50. The is an expensive croissant, even when compared to similar coffee shop. The croissant tastes good, but was way too sugary and very soft. It was however, larger that your average croissant. I feel like they have created their croissants to be Instagram worthy, and then priced them accordingly. The total bill for one latte, one cold brew and one croissant was nearly $20.00 (the bag of beans was about $21.00). I understand prices are rising for many reasons, if not just for the natural increase in inflation, but the prices hear drag down the rating and prohibits this spot form being an everyday stop or even weekly stop for me.
In sum, this a good coffee shop. You should go here, but often will depend on your budget. They have good coffee and I won't mind coming back and snapping a few photos for Instagram here myself, but this is a spot in the rotation of places to give yourself a treat from time to time.