Ground Up Coffee & Bites

Wanted a break from Starbucks and found this cute coffee shop hidden gem that has a menu of seasonal sweet coffee. Very kind barista’s and the seating is nice because you can stand at the tables and do work (but not much seating because small cozy coffee shop). Delicious coffee great service and cool interior. Would recommended checking it out.

The team at Ground Up always gives the best service! Each visit, the cashier has given a friendly welcome and provided recommendations or suggestions for drinks to try and/or modifications based on your preferences. I love coming in for the seasonal drinks - always so flavorful (and playfully named)! Baristas have made my drink carefully, it never tastes like it was rushed. Appreciate the friendly staff and high quality drinks from this location!

Great vibes from the moment you walk in. Super friendly staff! Favorite cold-brew in Chicago! Their croissants are so soft and tasty. Highly recommend Ground Up Coffee & Bites to anyone visiting Chicago or simply in the area.

Went in on a rainy day after my dermatology appointment next door and left wanting more of this delicious coffee! I typically get iced caramel lattes but they suggested I try the iced honey latte instead and I loved it! Great ambiance and great staff, highly recommend!

We love ground up! Alex the owner has this place running like a well oiled machine. The quality is perfectly consistent every time with a super friendly and patient staff.

I noticed others pointed out that it’s a bit expensive but I would say it’s on par with Starbucks with better quality. Definitely check out the “not a pumpkin spice latte” pumpkin spice latte while you can! And the cheese pies are great too.

I stopped in for the first time and asked the cashier to recommend an iced latte. She was helpful and I decided on the lavender one that was a special. It was delicious with oat milk. I will definitely be back!

I had the worst experience I’ve ever had at any coffee shop. I’m a big fan of coffee shops and love to support small businesses instead of your typical Starbucks. I wish I could give a better review because their pastry I had was actually very good. Their coffee was not coffee shop material and the service was the absolute worst! Mo has the nastiest attitude and customer service skills I’ve ever encountered at a coffee shop that’s supposed to be a “happy place” the girl literally ignored me and when she helped me I asked her to dump some of the coffee out because it was way to strong I didn’t even get the lavender flavor she angrily dumped almost half of it hot then proceeded to top it off with milk. This was the worst $25 ever spent.

I wanted to like this place but can’t really find too many positives in our experience. The cold brew was flavorless and I asked for light ice which came back fully loaded with it. The chai tea we got was over loaded with turmeric and left a bad after taste. On top of that, it’s a bit outrageous to charge $1 extra per drink for oat milk.

Outstanding service. We ordered from the seasonal latte menu and everything was amazing, perfect balance of the flavors (it was a while ago so I'm not sure of the names- a stormy something and a sunshine/yellow something with caramel and citrus - but I'll never forget the delicate, creamy texture). Best spinach/feta pie and apple fritter that we've ever had

I put off leaving a better review and I'm glad I did cause they fired my friend in the most insane way. Owner wrote a fake check to a homeless person in an abusive relationship. Obviously made her situation worse, then was told she wasn't stable, had boundary issues, and was bad for the look of the place cause of marks on her face from being hit by her ex.

Coffee is good, place is very pretty, employees are very nice, and the owner seemed nice and asked for a review. I understand taking risks and running a business isn't easy, but this is just horrible karma.