Couture Café

ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST! As of 3÷7÷10, this restaurant is closed and the windows have been papered with no further information. It has always been tough for restaurants to survive but especially when there’s continuing downturn in the economy.
Americans are becoming more frugal now and this may continue in the forseeable future. So the thought of dropping $ 11 for a crêpe in a storefront café did not go over well regardless of how interesting the décor was. This restaurant didn’t distinguish itself from any other restaurants that sell «crap» susette, panninis and coffee. What always wins out is excellent food, great service and a reasonable price (value). If you are missing any of those elements despite how you re-​invent yourself, your business has a high likelihood of failure.
I am sure the next restaurants to close will be the Meatloaf Café and Homemade Pizza restaurants which are several blocks south of the shuttered Couture Café… I never see any patrons at those places when I go by. I stopped briefly in each place to look at the menu and they were extremely high priced — $ 35-​$ 40 for a whole meatloaf; the pizzas were homemade but uncooked. Yikes.

Ok, I definitely appreciate our traditional panera style coffee/​sandwhich non fancy places as much as the next person. But sometimes I love fashion, shiny floors and boutique styling combined with delicious Intelligentsia coffee. You’ve probably heard about the ambiance from everyone, well I say its nice wonderful break from your other café’s (I mean they have magazines you can get lost in when your not surfing the web on their free wifi) and cozy seating you can easily kill a couple of hours in while having great conversation with friends.
Let’s talk food for a second. I have not had a bad meal here. I enjoy all of their crepes and for about $ 10 or $ 11, I can enjoy a delicious crêpe (which comes with a side salad) and a cup of Mocha while hanging out reading or surfing the web. I’d say its not a bad deal. And for all you creative types out there, there is plenty of energy here to inspire!

Ok so I ended up here on a Sunday when Dunlays had a wait for brunch and I was starving. I will say that this place is never busy. Walked in and ordered a coffee and looked over the menu. I ordered the egg scramble with toast instead of crepes. The coffee was really good. Although, I just dont think the service is that great. They brought my coffee with cream, no napkins, no silverware… I accidentally spilled some of the cream and it kind of made a mess because I had nothing to wipe it up with… a little annoying. The food seemed to take quite long for eggs and not busy. The waiter apologized but I dont know what the hold up was. The food… it was surprisingly ok. It was a decent portion for a pretty good price. I may try it again sometime but the service is definitley sub par… they are always nice though. Also took forever to fill up my water… huge pet peeve

Couture (koo-​too r), adjective: being, having, or suggesting the style, quality, etc., of a fashion designer; very fashionable: the couture look.
Couture fail. This place is not, I repeat NOT stylish or fashionable. It’s not ugly, but it’s not very inviting, sleek, or even trendy. The ambiance is not inviting and rather disjointed. The following things should be addressed, in my opinion, if they want to move toward being fashionable:
1) 86 the fluorescent lighting. Yech, no one looks good or fashionable under it.
2) The couch type seating is fine, but the fabric needs to be updated. It looked like something my parents would choose for their den, and trust me they are not trendsetters.
3) Buff or replace the old, dirty floor tiles. The grout is black with dirt and has so much gunk in it, it’s spread to the tile. Grody.
4) Update/​replace the laminate, there are visible dings and chipped spots on the tables and the prep area — fix it, it looks tacky.
5) I like the idea of providing reading material, but replace that ugly, awkward shelf the books sit on. Also, toss the old magazines, magazines from last year are… SO last year.
6) Halloween was nearly a month ago, it’s time for the witch with the pumpkin head to go, and hopefully never return again.
7) Staff should dress the part. In other words no baseball caps, ratty jeans, or duct tape splints on their fingers.
8) Change the music.
Décor and ambiance aside, I didn’t hate this place. I didn’t love it, but it was decent. I decided to duck in here and treat myself to some crepes after scoring the dress I needed and with minimal damage to my credit card.
I had my heart set on sweet crepes, so I pretty much ignored the savory crepes, panini and other items. I ordered the Nutella crêpe with strawberry. Presentation was decent, but I think they also need invest in some new dishes; these dishes looked well worn, clean, but worn. The crêpe was good, priced reasonably, and there was a generous amount of filling.
Service was aloof. Upon entering I wasn’t sure if I ordered from the register or if there was table service. The blasé «sure you can have a seat» didn’t inspire confidence that table service was SOP either.
I know I was critical about the things Couture has gotten wrong, but there also are a number they’ve gotten right. Prices are reasonable, the menu is fairly robust, there’s free wi-​fi, Intelligentsia coffee and it’s BYOB.
TIP: I wouldn’t recommend this place for groups, there are few tables and they all seem to be 2-​tops.

Good food.
I used to work across the street from this place and wanted to check it out since it was a new place. The chefs were really cool and helpful. I started with a chicken pesto panini after work and it was really good so I went back later to try the crepes.
I love crepes so of course I loved this place. Believe it or not, I had my first taste of Nutella here. I’ve tried the banana with nutella crepes as well as with strawberries and they were both good.
The last time I checked, they also had free wi-​fi there.
My only problem with the place was the seating which I thought was too close together. There’s also old magazines underneath the glass table which reminds me of a nail shop.
The wait staff could have also been a little bit more on the ball.

Food and coffee. Sounds harmless enough. I guess I’ve been spoiled by all the vegetarian places in Chicago; I was expecting this one to be as well. The menu was pretty cool if you eat meat, but I had a hard time finding anything on the vegetarian side.
Whatever, I can roll with that.
The problem is that the staff was WAYY too laid back. They were sitting there reading most of the time, which made me think they don’t really care about the place, which made me not really care about the place. Also, the music was terrible. I mean, «Today» by The Smashing Pumpkins is a cool song for its time, but bluh.
I’m changing it from one star to two. They had free wi-​fi.

Really dug this place. Our server, a woman with short blond hair, was very welcoming. The food was great — Small portions, but like sushi, you walk away satisfied and not over stuffed.
Best of all, no corkage fee BYOB. Sat down with our case of beer, and our server was adamant that we could hang out as long as we wanted.

Really? You have a full menu? Are you sure? I’ve lived across the street from you for over 6 months and I didn’t know you were more than just a coffeeshop with bizarre ultramodern décor.
I had a grilled chicken pesto panini and I have to say it was awesome. Grilled crispy panini bread with oozing melty mozzarella, super tasty white meat chicken, a thin but not invisible layer of roasted red peppers and an awesome pesto spread that packed a little garlic punch to boot. I will definitely get this sandwich again. It also came with a small salad of field greens in a light vinaigrette that was unremarkable if not unwelcome.
I like this place. I will be back, but I will not be back if I am in a hurry because my sandwich took about 20 minutes despite the fact that there were about 5 people in here. It was also $ 10 for my sandwich and a can of soda.

I like the menu — it is refreshing to eat something more modern!
The soup for today was ginger carrot and it was yummy.
More important, free WIFI, good books and a very easy environment that allows me to just sit and do my work.
The food was not too pricey, the service was excellent (They didn’t’ bother me too much).
I’d give it a thumbs up. :)

I walked from the river to here and suddenly realised I was starving, so picked here of all the plethora of places on this stretch of street. I wish I’d stayed hungry.
I was just utterly dejected by the time I left.
First I asked for a medium latte with extra espresso. What I got was a large cup of dishwater. I have made my peace with the fact it’as nigh-​on ipossible to get good strong coffee here (I know, I need to get to Intelligentsia, everyone says), but this was beyond bad. It had foam that was like some kind of fungi. I would’ve assumed it was filter coffee if I hadn’tgot a delicious mouthful of grounds at the bottom of the cup. And for that privilege — $ 4.
My panini was barely warm. It was tasty, but it’s the first meal I’ve had here that didn’t fill me up so I felt a bit cheated. I could understand if they were top notch ingredients, but there’s no need to be sparing with pre-​grilled and reheated chicken and mayonnaise, surely.
All the magazines were a good year or more out of date, so I didn’t really get the ‘couture’ concept — if you were interested in fashion, 2 year-​old Vogues aren’t going to do it for you. Though it might explain the portion sizes. It’s definitely got an identity crisis.
Seriously disappointing. A couple of people have said it’s good to go if you need to sit and work or read, which is true I guess as it’s a reasonably nice space, but I’d still want drinkable coffee for less than $ 4 a cup.

ok ok, so my boyfriend and i woke up last saturday morning with a very random hankering (yes hankering) for crepes. we decided to try this place because the items on the menu looked delicious. the menu did not disappoint.
we each tried a savory crêpe (he had scrambled eggs bacony goodness, i had one with goat cheese and other heavenly ingredients), some coffee (intelligencia is the house blend… yum), and a dessert creppe to top off our already bursting stomachs (we chose nutella, peanut butter and bananas… yum!).
i would say overall, yes, couture café can be a little pricy (especially if you order as much food as we did), but you do get a great deal of food for your buck. i think this place is BYOB because some people near us were making their own mimosas… and im always for the BYOB option. staff was super friendly and it was crowded, so id say couture café should keep up what theyre doing!

I really do love this place… It’s an excellent place for me to sit and work with my laptop, and the breakfast crepes are super delicious.
As a new business, I think they are trying to work out some kinks and figure out what type of place they really are. Is it a coffee shop? Is it a diner? Is it just a place for individuals?
The crepes are great, a lot better than the majority of places that I’ve eaten at in Chicago. The only downside is that this place is expensive, you can’t get out of here with a decent meal for for less than $ 12 (if you include the crêpe and the drink).
The servers are really nice, which for me, makes up for the disorganization. As long as they are pleasant, and there aren’t any glaring errors, I’m ok with waiting a little bit longer for something really tasty.

I’m a really big fan of this place. Though their dinners are always great, the dessert is the best. The nutella crepes and the fresh berries and cream is really a great, unique alternative to ice cream. Plus you can impress your constituents by looking, I dunno, cultured or somethin’. The staff is always friendly, which is rare in Chicago, I think.
Sure, it’s a bit pricey, but that’s Lincoln Park. I don’t mind paying the price knowing the security that comes with always getting a great crêpe. Oh, and Intelligentsia completely owns.
I wish I knew why Nicolas Z. down there felt so angry at this place, and I wanted to respond. But seeing that this is the one and only place he reviewed, perhaps he had a vendetta. I think the other 20+ positive reviews for a place that hasn’t been open six months say enough.

I got exactly what I ordered, it tasted great and the smoothie was delicious. I came hungry and walked away full. I wasn’t there for the ‘atmosphere’, I was there for conversation with a friend and it was a great venue for that.
I would definitely return.

I’m a crêpe lover so I wanted to adore this place and unfortunately I didn’t. But I see potential for greatness in the future, which is why I will definitely go back… just under different circumstances. Let me explain:
Went with a group (6 of us total) for lunch and we had to wait about 20 minutes for a large enough area to open up so we could move tables together. (Each table seats 2, basically) Fine, not a problem at all, and the waitresses were very helpful in shuffling around the seating for us. We got a round of coffees and put in our lunch order. It became really clear at this time that Couture is a coffeeshop that happens to serve food, and not a restaurant that happens to serve coffee.
Examples:
— we ended up with 3 or 4 waitresses and there was a bit of miscommunication as a result
— Cream/​sugar wasn’t brought to the table for coffee, you had to go over to the serving station (a la Starbucks) to get that stuff
— Had to ask specifically for a glass of water for everyone
— Everyone’s meals were brought out at different times, and they would have forgotten one of the entrees if we hadn’t reminded them that we were still waiting. Final entrée came out after everyone else had finished their meals.
— One of the crepes was missing a featured ingredient
— When placing my order, I asked if chicken could be added to my crêpe… a separate plate of chicken came out with my dish, it wasn’t mixed in! why? so weird!
Onto the food:
— They had some awesome specials, one of which was an avocado, cheese and roasted red pepper crêpe (this is what I attempted to add chicken too, to make it a bit more filling for lunch). It was DELICIOUS.
— The portobello, bacon, mozz and spinach crêpe was also very tasty.
— They use «sweet» crepes for their savory dishes (as opposed to wheat crepes), so just a heads up if you’re picky about that sort of thing.
I don’t want to give the impression that the meal was a total bust — because the waitstaff was super nice and the food was mostly delicious. But things were just a little *too* laid back and inconsistent. With that in mind I will definitely come back here with my computer and hang out, grab a coffee and desert crêpe, or go for lunch if I’m eating by myself or with one other person. But as an «organized» dining experience, it just wasn’t great.

Okay. So I was totally turned off by the high fashion, runway theme of this place. It just screamed pretension and mediocre, overpriced food. I’m in the area quite often, and the thought to try this spot out had always passed my mind but I always settle for going to somewhere a little less showy. My friend and I eventually made our way here because we had an undeniable craving for crepes, and we were too lazy to walk anywhere else.
We were not only surprised by the amazingly friendly service, but also the food totally delivered. We were lucky to make it for the brunch menu, and everything sounded good. Even the items on the regular menu were oh-​so-​tempting. We settled on splitting two brunch crepes, and instead of the regular crepes — we opted for the healthier buckwheat crepes. The crêpe fillings were delicious. I don’t remember what we got but one had egg, veggies, and goat cheese, and the other had apples, raspberry vinaigrette, and goat cheese. Can you tell that we needed a goat cheese fix? While we could have used a little more goat cheese, we totally devoured our crepes. The buckwheat crepes were a good choice too. They were perfect and didn’t taste grainy.
Our server Anna was great as well. Super personable and gave us great suggestions. I’m glad that we decided to visit this place. It totally de-​mystified the idea of a «couture» crêpe.
Btw. The sticks of gum at each table are a nice touch.

Overpriced, yes! Hence only 4 stars. But the service, the variety, how comfortable and spacious the seatings is (as opposed to the neighboring well-​known competition), I guess the couple of extra bucks is worth it.
Hubby had snicker wannabe which was so very sweet and overpowered my crêpe au chocolate with chocolate mousse and fresh raspberries. Both were great tho, don’t get me wrong. We wish that they made the crepes in the pan upon ordering rather than using a pre-​made crêpe that they took out of the fridge. C’est la vie!

I pass this place every time I walk home from work, and marketing geniuses that they are, they are usually passing out free samples. So, of course, I got lured in for dinner.
This is definitely a new take on a crêpe restaurant. It seems… dare I say… healthy? The crepes are very thin, not eggy at all and aren’t laden with cream or cheese based sauces. They’re also served with a side salad of nice dark leafy greens and a light vinaigrette dressing.
I had the Mediterranean and American crepes– the American was filled with BBQ pork and was pretty tasty, but my favorite was the Mediterranean, which was filled with spinach, sun dried tomatoes, olives, and feta. Any of the filling that spilled out, I just added to the little side salad.
I finished off my meal with the cherry/​marscapone crêpe. Sooo good. (Probably not as healthy as the meal itself, but oh well). They have really good coffee took, but next time I come back I’ll bring a bottle of wine, as they’re a BYOB.

I liked this place. Cool décor… they had tables which had magazines in them! The tables are glass and have a little shelf/​drawer section in which they display magazines.
The staff is very friendly… they actually smile (gasp) and say hello and speak pleasantly with you. There was a woman outside giving out free samples and she even said goodbye and wished me a nice day when I left.
I had the iced tea. I didn’t even have to add sugar or splenda to it. Not that it was sweet or anything… It just tasted good. It was made just right.
Plus they have free Wi-​fi here! And you don’t need a code. I had my Palm pilot with me and got on no problem.
So why didn’t I give this place 5 stars? Because while I was there, they were playing some godawful music and playing it WAY too LOUD! Other than that, I really loved this place. I would go back again despite the music.

I stumbled upon this creperie, near the corner of Clark and Wrightwood, and I was sure I had not seen it this morning on my way to work, so it must have just opened. I walked in and the entire staff greeted me with the excitement of the opening day, while asking me if I wanted to eat, what I wanted to eat, what I wanted to drink… almost overwhelming, but you have to love the attention.
The chef queried my preferences and we settled for a sweet honey mascarpone and cherries crêpe suzette and a small cappuccino. The crêpe was small enough to eat by myself, but large enough to be shared with one other person and still hit the spot. It was fantastic, a bit sweet for my taste, but highly recommendable nonetheless. When the manager/​owner (I failed to ask him his association to the restaurant) checked up on me, I told him my impression; next thing I know, he and the chef are discussing the ingredients and the recipe, assessing my assessment and figuring out how they could improve that crêpe, hopefully by making it less sweet. Just for the instant feedback you get 5 stars: it shows you care about your costumers.
The staff was very friendly and attentive, though they still seemed out of place. Keep in mind they had opened for the first time about 5 hours before I walked in. The menu includes many sweet and savory crepes, paninis, soups and salads, though I barely remember because my order was a one-​on-​one recommendation by the chef. The coffee was Intelligentsia and they got my cappuccino right, so I was overall satisfied with my experience, plus, because there were many available tables I got to sit down and work for a while while enjoying my dessert, though I couldn’t gauge the vibe of the place, whether it will be a restaurant or a coffee shop type were you can set yourself up and work for a couple of hours.
The locale is black on white, stylish, loungy, though still not completely decorated, with remarkably bright white lighting, and I mean office quality bright white lights, good for reading and writing. Several small tables with clear glass above solid shelves (in between which they keep assorted news and fashion magazines), lined up against one wall and opposite to it, stools and a bar, for those who prefer not to use the tables. Very spacious, so it seemed. The manager told me about how they’re trying to make it as stylish as possible, a la french haute couture, as hinted by the one painting on the wall, so we’ll see how that’s turning out in a couple of weeks.