Café Yaya is a standout. The lattes and pastries are both unique and excellent, clearly made with care and intention. The space itself is warm and inviting, with a relaxed, thoughtful atmosphere that makes you want to linger. Yes, it’s on the higher end price-wise, but the quality more than justifies it. If you’re happy to pay a bit more for truly great food and a lovely experience, this place absolutely delivers.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Julia DiRenna
We really wanted to like this new restaurant, but our experience fell short. Our total ended up being over $400 for oysters, small dishes, 1 dessert, and six drinks, plus an 4% employee healthcare fee and an automatically added 20% gratuity. The food was mediocre, the service was slow, and our server was upselling items without mentioning the additional costs. We don’t mind paying for a great dining experience, but this was nowhere near worth the price.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
Jvaneck
Good food, good service. Spoke with a friendly and accommodating manager I believe was Arthur. Will be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kevin Kauffman
Great lounging and social time grabbing wine, espresso and olives. Amazing staff who made for an overall wonderful experience that lasted far longer than originally anticipated. Will be back.
Idk why people complain about the service charge. Just know it exists going in and it’s nice not to be pressured to tip. It’s a nice restaurant / bar attached to galit and everyone knows it. No need to be cheap and try to pay less.
Priscilla Martinez
The food is disappointing and THEY AUTOMATICALLY ADD A 24% SERVICE AND EMPLOYEE INSURANCE CHARGE TO YOUR BILL! paying over $70 for 2 people to have breakfast, WITHOUT DRINKS, is completely insane. They charge a mandatory 20% service charge, even if you just order a premade pastry they just have to put in a bag, and then they charge an additional 4% for employee insurance. This is optional but we were never given the option to remove it as we were not notified of this. Do they not pay their employees appropriately? Or provide insurance for them? I tip well, but tipping should never be mandatory and forced, especially when employees are being paid a regular wage (not servers), and 24% is just plain theft. I’m extremely turned off from this place. You can see from the picture that my food was extremely dry and hard to eat, not seasoned at all and looked like it was missing a key ingredient mentioned on the menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
Eran Dromy
Came here for quick lunch. Good vibes and service.
Only tried the Turkey sandwich which was nice.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Frank Uhler
The food was fantastic—fresh, flavorful, and clearly made with care. Every dish I tried was delicious. The staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming, making the whole experience even better. It’s the kind of place that instantly feels warm and inviting. I’ll definitely be coming back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Alina Allen
Amazing service, amazing food, amazing environment. This is one of the best brunch places in Lincoln Park! Get the shakshuka
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Julia Wojtach
Very clean and chill atmosphere. Perfect spot for brunch, with pleasant staff and delicious food. While this may seem on the pricier side this is because of a built in gratuity and service fee.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rebecca Hirsh
Cafe Yaya was incredible food and service. The food was amazing, we’re still talking about which was our favorite. Andrés is the owner and he was super kind when we got there and the whole staff was super attentive and helpful. It has a great atmosphere and cannot emphasize enough how great everyone was. Definitely will be back!
We like this establishment and love the creativity of their work and the originality of taste in each dish. We enjoyed the food so much, but when coming home both my partner and I got upset stomachs. We usually eat very well and get upset stomachs only when the ingredients are of low quality. It might be the oil they are using. It is really unfortunate when this happens in restaurants whose food you like.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Monica Bernardo
Great pastries and coffee!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Nora Barnicle
I do not understand how this restaurant could be rated 4.1. The food is amazing. Go back and have the cod and chicken and report back. Seriously they are the very best!!
Café Yaya is a standout. The lattes and pastries are both unique and excellent, clearly made with care and intention. The space itself is warm and inviting, with a relaxed, thoughtful atmosphere that makes you want to linger. Yes, it’s on the higher end price-wise, but the quality more than justifies it. If you’re happy to pay a bit more for truly great food and a lovely experience, this place absolutely delivers.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We really wanted to like this new restaurant, but our experience fell short. Our total ended up being over $400 for oysters, small dishes, 1 dessert, and six drinks, plus an 4% employee healthcare fee and an automatically added 20% gratuity. The food was mediocre, the service was slow, and our server was upselling items without mentioning the additional costs. We don’t mind paying for a great dining experience, but this was nowhere near worth the price.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
Good food, good service. Spoke with a friendly and accommodating manager I believe was Arthur. Will be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great lounging and social time grabbing wine, espresso and olives. Amazing staff who made for an overall wonderful experience that lasted far longer than originally anticipated. Will be back.
Idk why people complain about the service charge. Just know it exists going in and it’s nice not to be pressured to tip. It’s a nice restaurant / bar attached to galit and everyone knows it. No need to be cheap and try to pay less.
The food is disappointing and THEY AUTOMATICALLY ADD A 24% SERVICE AND EMPLOYEE INSURANCE CHARGE TO YOUR BILL! paying over $70 for 2 people to have breakfast, WITHOUT DRINKS, is completely insane. They charge a mandatory 20% service charge, even if you just order a premade pastry they just have to put in a bag, and then they charge an additional 4% for employee insurance. This is optional but we were never given the option to remove it as we were not notified of this. Do they not pay their employees appropriately? Or provide insurance for them? I tip well, but tipping should never be mandatory and forced, especially when employees are being paid a regular wage (not servers), and 24% is just plain theft. I’m extremely turned off from this place. You can see from the picture that my food was extremely dry and hard to eat, not seasoned at all and looked like it was missing a key ingredient mentioned on the menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 3
Came here for quick lunch. Good vibes and service.
Only tried the Turkey sandwich which was nice.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food was fantastic—fresh, flavorful, and clearly made with care. Every dish I tried was delicious. The staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming, making the whole experience even better. It’s the kind of place that instantly feels warm and inviting. I’ll definitely be coming back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amazing service, amazing food, amazing environment. This is one of the best brunch places in Lincoln Park! Get the shakshuka
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Very clean and chill atmosphere. Perfect spot for brunch, with pleasant staff and delicious food.
While this may seem on the pricier side this is because of a built in gratuity and service fee.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Cafe Yaya was incredible food and service. The food was amazing, we’re still talking about which was our favorite. Andrés is the owner and he was super kind when we got there and the whole staff was super attentive and helpful. It has a great atmosphere and cannot emphasize enough how great everyone was. Definitely will be back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
Great atmosphere and fun to share plates
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We like this establishment and love the creativity of their work and the originality of taste in each dish. We enjoyed the food so much, but when coming home both my partner and I got upset stomachs. We usually eat very well and get upset stomachs only when the ingredients are of low quality. It might be the oil they are using. It is really unfortunate when this happens in restaurants whose food you like.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Great pastries and coffee!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
I do not understand how this restaurant could be rated 4.1. The food is amazing. Go back and have the cod and chicken and report back. Seriously they are the very best!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 4
Beautiful humans
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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