I had an amazing croissant at this bakery — it felt like I was in Italy! Light, crispy, and perfectly flavorful. It’s so hard to find something like this nowadays. Simply unforgettable.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Michael D
The croissants are the best I've had probably since being in France. Other pastries were also good. Clueless how anyone could give a 1 star review. Been there several times and has not been my experience. People complaining about lunch service in an area of the city with low traffic during lunch, I'm sure they don't have the best staff on weekday lunch service. Just get the pastries and move on
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Corrine Z
This is my new GO TO bakery. So much fresh stuff to pick from each morning. Great coffee. Friendly service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Ashley DeVolder
Fantastic chocolate croissant and vanilla cappuccino! Honestly, all the pastries are fantastic. Highly recommend.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Herrah Hussain
This cafe is exactly what the neighborhood needed! The service, atmosphere, and food is superb. It can be on the pricey side but well worth it. I wouldn't recommend this as a WFH spot, as there are no outlets but excellent otherwise.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Hannah Haws
A cute shop for pastries, coffee, and savory eats.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Nicole Kahla
Best vanilla lattes in Chicago. Pastries are absolutely amazing and the breakfast options are delicious. Big fan of the Levain Breakfast wrap and the sausage breakfast sandwich.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Inga Piterson
I came here for the first time today, excited to finally try what this place had to offer. I originally wanted to get a pain au chocolat, but they were out—no big deal though, because I went for the ham and cheese croissant instead, and wow, I’m so glad I did! It was absolutely delicious. The croissant was perfectly flaky and buttery, and what really made it pop was the mustard—it added this zesty little kick that I loved. Such a simple combo, but they really nailed it.
While I was paying, I noticed a pack of sourdough English muffins sitting on the shelf. They looked so soft and moist, I couldn’t resist grabbing a bag to take home. And let me tell you, they were outstanding! I tried one plain, just to see how it tasted, and it was so good I couldn’t stop snacking on it. I had my second one later with just a little butter, and it was even better—so soft, flavorful, and just the right amount of chew.
I really hope these English muffins are a regular item because I’d definitely come back for them alone. Honestly, everything I tried was amazing, and I can’t wait to return and explore more of their menu. What a great little spot!
d d
Discovered this place by accident after car battery died so I was annoyed. Came in and they were so welcoming and friendly. So put me in a better mood. LOL . Was delicious. Almond croissant and salmon dill on homemade English muffin. Will be back to try other things!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
francie copeland-ford
Popped in on our way to rib fest, it’s been on my list of bakeries to visit. It wasn’t disappointing. Had the pain au raisin. Very buttery. The maple bacon, I’d give it a 9, the maple flavor was more sporadic than my preference. But it was Still a 9.
This place is cute but no WiFi and no plugs so don’t plan to use it as a cafe. I am fine with no WiFi but the no plugs is an issue for working, studying or creating.
Atmosphere: 5
Jeffrey Whitaker
I think the cafe portion of the business is fine, but the bakery/online cake pre-order seems to have significant issues. I had read poor reviews about what sounds like a disastrous Mother’s Day experience for many who had pre-ordered cakes for that day, but I had chalked it up to simply being unprepared for the high volume of demand for that day. Surely a cake pre-ordered well in advance of a random Friday morning would be no problem, right? I got confirmation that my pre-ordered cake would be ready at 10am and received multiple reminders including 24 hours before. I parked right outside just after 10 and let the staff know I was there to pick up the cake. While I am standing there waiting I get a text saying “Hello this is au levain bakery, unfortunately your cake won’t be available today, apologies for the inconvenience. We could offer a full refund or have it ready for you tomorrow morning.” This cake was for a birthday this day! Just like the impacted Mother’s Day customers said in their reviews: That was it. No offer of an alternative. No effort to make it right. No consideration for the fact that this was not just any order, but part of a family celebration for a significant holiday. As a result, just hours before the planned birthday celebration I was left scrambling to find a replacement — a frustrating and entirely avoidable situation. The lack of communication, accountability, and care for customer experience was deeply disappointing. I expected better. I strongly recommend they drop the pre-order portion of their business as they are clearly unprepared for it.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 1
Toria Lesley
We come here every other week, if not once a week and love it. Their breakfast sandwich and French toast are fantastic. The sandwich has caramelized onions on it that really brings the whole sandwich together. Their pastries are fantastic as well with the pistachio escargot being a household favorite. The only pastry I wouldn’t get again would be the cookie croissant, but only because it was too sweet for my personal taste. I recommend going on the earlier side because it’s a neighborhood favorite and they usually sell out of the really good pastries early. We haven’t gotten any of their lattes, but their specialty Au Levain Sparrow coffee has to be some of my favorite coffee in the city. And lastly, the staff is great. I’m not sure what time of day or how busy it has been when people have gone and haven’t found the staff to be kind or welcoming. Every time we have gone in we are usually greeted, they wait quietly as you look over the selection, but that’s how most bakeries are. The older gentleman usually plates the pastries and prepares the black coffees as the younger gentleman takes the order and checks customers out. The staff have also allowed me to take pictures inside their shop and will have polite conversation even. And upon leaving we have always heard them say thank you or goodbye.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kyle Barhamand
Elevated, creative pastry with with a focus on laminated dough. There's always an outrageously delicious new croissant on the menu and their Danish, when available, is ridiculous.
Jenny Z. Lake
I'm an unapologetic pastry snob who's been stalking Chicago's tastiest pastries for 10+ years. When I tell you that these are some of the best, I mean it. The rhubarb croissant I had today made me stop everything else I was doing just to savor it. When a food makes you do that--like you can't mentally process talking to anyone, scrolling your phone, reading a book, etc. because you just have to fully experience what's happening in your mouth--you know the food is top tier. Also, best cheesecake I've ever had. What a treat to have such quality so close to my place! I'm thrilled.
I had an amazing croissant at this bakery — it felt like I was in Italy! Light, crispy, and perfectly flavorful. It’s so hard to find something like this nowadays. Simply unforgettable.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The croissants are the best I've had probably since being in France. Other pastries were also good. Clueless how anyone could give a 1 star review. Been there several times and has not been my experience. People complaining about lunch service in an area of the city with low traffic during lunch, I'm sure they don't have the best staff on weekday lunch service. Just get the pastries and move on
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
This is my new GO TO bakery. So much fresh stuff to pick from each morning. Great coffee. Friendly service.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Fantastic chocolate croissant and vanilla cappuccino! Honestly, all the pastries are fantastic. Highly recommend.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This cafe is exactly what the neighborhood needed! The service, atmosphere, and food is superb. It can be on the pricey side but well worth it. I wouldn't recommend this as a WFH spot, as there are no outlets but excellent otherwise.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A cute shop for pastries, coffee, and savory eats.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best vanilla lattes in Chicago. Pastries are absolutely amazing and the breakfast options are delicious. Big fan of the Levain Breakfast wrap and the sausage breakfast sandwich.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I came here for the first time today, excited to finally try what this place had to offer. I originally wanted to get a pain au chocolat, but they were out—no big deal though, because I went for the ham and cheese croissant instead, and wow, I’m so glad I did! It was absolutely delicious. The croissant was perfectly flaky and buttery, and what really made it pop was the mustard—it added this zesty little kick that I loved. Such a simple combo, but they really nailed it.
While I was paying, I noticed a pack of sourdough English muffins sitting on the shelf. They looked so soft and moist, I couldn’t resist grabbing a bag to take home. And let me tell you, they were outstanding! I tried one plain, just to see how it tasted, and it was so good I couldn’t stop snacking on it. I had my second one later with just a little butter, and it was even better—so soft, flavorful, and just the right amount of chew.
I really hope these English muffins are a regular item because I’d definitely come back for them alone. Honestly, everything I tried was amazing, and I can’t wait to return and explore more of their menu. What a great little spot!
Discovered this place by accident after car battery died so I was annoyed.
Came in and they were so welcoming and friendly. So put me in a better mood. LOL . Was delicious. Almond croissant and salmon dill on homemade English muffin. Will be back to try other things!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Popped in on our way to rib fest, it’s been on my list of bakeries to visit. It wasn’t disappointing. Had the pain au raisin. Very buttery. The maple bacon, I’d give it a 9, the maple flavor was more sporadic than my preference. But it was
Still a 9.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
This place is cute but no WiFi and no plugs so don’t plan to use it as a cafe. I am fine with no WiFi but the no plugs is an issue for working, studying or creating.
Atmosphere: 5
I think the cafe portion of the business is fine, but the bakery/online cake pre-order seems to have significant issues. I had read poor reviews about what sounds like a disastrous Mother’s Day experience for many who had pre-ordered cakes for that day, but I had chalked it up to simply being unprepared for the high volume of demand for that day. Surely a cake pre-ordered well in advance of a random Friday morning would be no problem, right? I got confirmation that my pre-ordered cake would be ready at 10am and received multiple reminders including 24 hours before. I parked right outside just after 10 and let the staff know I was there to pick up the cake. While I am standing there waiting I get a text saying “Hello this is au levain bakery, unfortunately your cake won’t be available today, apologies for the inconvenience. We could offer a full refund or have it ready for you tomorrow morning.” This cake was for a birthday this day! Just like the impacted Mother’s Day customers said in their reviews: That was it. No offer of an alternative. No effort to make it right. No consideration for the fact that this was not just any order, but part of a family celebration for a significant holiday.
As a result, just hours before the planned birthday celebration I was left scrambling to find a replacement — a frustrating and entirely avoidable situation. The lack of communication, accountability, and care for customer experience was deeply disappointing. I expected better. I strongly recommend they drop the pre-order portion of their business as they are clearly unprepared for it.
Atmosphere: 5
Service: 1
We come here every other week, if not once a week and love it. Their breakfast sandwich and French toast are fantastic. The sandwich has caramelized onions on it that really brings the whole sandwich together. Their pastries are fantastic as well with the pistachio escargot being a household favorite. The only pastry I wouldn’t get again would be the cookie croissant, but only because it was too sweet for my personal taste. I recommend going on the earlier side because it’s a neighborhood favorite and they usually sell out of the really good pastries early.
We haven’t gotten any of their lattes, but their specialty Au Levain Sparrow coffee has to be some of my favorite coffee in the city.
And lastly, the staff is great. I’m not sure what time of day or how busy it has been when people have gone and haven’t found the staff to be kind or welcoming. Every time we have gone in we are usually greeted, they wait quietly as you look over the selection, but that’s how most bakeries are. The older gentleman usually plates the pastries and prepares the black coffees as the younger gentleman takes the order and checks customers out. The staff have also allowed me to take pictures inside their shop and will have polite conversation even. And upon leaving we have always heard them say thank you or goodbye.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Elevated, creative pastry with with a focus on laminated dough. There's always an outrageously delicious new croissant on the menu and their Danish, when available, is ridiculous.
I'm an unapologetic pastry snob who's been stalking Chicago's tastiest pastries for 10+ years. When I tell you that these are some of the best, I mean it. The rhubarb croissant I had today made me stop everything else I was doing just to savor it. When a food makes you do that--like you can't mentally process talking to anyone, scrolling your phone, reading a book, etc. because you just have to fully experience what's happening in your mouth--you know the food is top tier. Also, best cheesecake I've ever had. What a treat to have such quality so close to my place! I'm thrilled.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
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