The Spoke & Bird (South Loop)
Restaurant · Prairie District ·
Farm-to-table cafe with large patio, craft beer & pastries
Farm-to-table cafe with large patio, craft beer & pastries
"Open since 2014, this South Loop café—run by Scott Golas and business partner Alicia Bird—specializes in sourcing and using products from local farms and purveyors; Golas even has a "tomato guy," and later in the morning the patio will be filled with tomato plants and those who have preordered them. The café features a menu of seasonal, mostly made-from-scratch baked goods, sandwiches, and salads, with local beer on tap and an extensive coffee drink menu. Golas says, "We buy as much as we can from local farms and urban gardeners, and then take that to create made-to-order items," and adds, "We design our spaces with very little storage, so we don’t buy anything frozen." Located in a historic building shared with the Chicago Park District, it offers indoor and outdoor dining; tableside service runs Friday through Sunday while ordering is done via QR codes at a kiosk on other days. On adapting service models, Golas notes, "The pandemic forced us to explore different service models," observing that people now accept a lighter-touch approach that lets the team "slip back and forth between different options." Catering has been strong given the proximity to McCormick Place and nearby hotels. The owners emphasize operating in neighborhoods that lack access to healthy food: "Our plan is to not to head north because there seems to be a plethora of options available there," he says. "It’s to go into neighborhoods that don’t have access to healthy food." - Lisa Shames
"Spoke & Bird’s pastries are legendary. Fun, craveable, and creative in the morning. But this cafe also serves an outstanding smash burger that shows they’re about more than baked goods. A Pilsen location is almost open." - Ashok Selvam
"Located a block away from picturesque "Millionaire’s Row," the main draw at Spoke & Bird is their excellent patio and the park next door where you can forget that you’re a block away from freight train tracks. But this coffee shop is open year-round, and there’s a surprisingly extensive food menu. Breakfast (served until 5pm) has options like cheesy grits with vegetables, challah french toast, and biscuits and gravy. There are salads, soups, and sandwiches for lunch and dinner, plus booze to numb the pain of not investing in Bitcoin in 2014 and becoming a millionaire yourself." - veda kilaru, adrian kane, john ringor
"This cafe and bistro’s expansive patio is the main draw, while traditional cafe items like baked goods, soups and sandwiches accompany the atmosphere. There’s a large beer list to round out the spot, making it a place to hang out with a brew in hand. The pastries are wonderful." - Ashok Selvam
"Chicago has a lot of great bakeries, and Spoke & Bird is among them. Decadent cinnamon rolls, breakfast sandwiches, and more. They’re a great choice for delivery, too. Ignore the chain coffee churn and opt for Spoke & Bird." - Ashok Selvam
