Taza Coffee & Deli

This place used to be decent, but it changed ownership and now the coffee is tasteless brown water and the service is deplorable.

The first time I went to Taza I ordered one of their chicken sandwiches and it was amazing. The last time I went there I was very disappointed. They were out of chicken so I got another a sandwich. It seems that unless you can get chicken breasts on your sandwich you are over paying for a cheese and bread sandwich. There is hardly any meat at all.
Perhaps the quality of the staff changes the quality of the sandwich? The first time i got my enormous chicken sandwich of delicousness, not only was there meat on it but the woman working there spent time to actually heat it (as most of them are paninis) and this time the sandwich with barely anything other then bread was cold. Perhaps if you go there you should stick with coffee and chicken, and call it a day.

taza has held host to my internet deprived self many days as of late… workers are friendly & in no way rush u out as some places might prob cause its never crowded in here; good for me… prob not so good for business
specialty coffees dont really taste like their names suggest & hummus is decent

I’ve lived by this place for almost a year and had never had a reason to go in until today. I ordered a roast beef with no mayo, and it had more mayo than I’ve ever seen on a sandwich. The guy working there was very pleasant and working as fast as he could, so I hate to give this place one star, but it’s reasonably expensive for a small sandwich and the beef itself was Arbys-​quality. There are probably good menu items, but I don’t think I’ll make it back in to check and find out.

Nice place! They make my tuna melt in a spinach wrap… the way I want it, and it’s not on the menu! Great people, good service and nothing like the typical coffee shop; freshly made Baba Ganoush and Hummus are a fantastic alternative. I highly recommend it!

This is an awesome place for coffee lovers. The coffee is so good you would want to order more. I didn’t have chance to try the salad but people said it’s really good. I love it here. The atmosphere is perfect for a cold, snowy winter day. The store is a little bit empty because people around here are always in rush, they always take stuff to go. The young man behin the counter is very nice, and profesional. I love it. Strongly recommented!!!

I’m afraid I have to downgrade Taza. Their revolving door of staff has rendered service really inconsistent and incredibly slow of late. Food quality has been spotty, too. They’ve cut back their hours for winter to close at 4 (boo!). And it’s been kind of… dirty… the last few times I’ve visited. It all makes me sad because I used to heart this place, but now it’s just sort of mediocre and depressing in there.

Came here for about 45 minutes while I was getting my oil changed up the street at A Speedline Tire & Auto Service (Brilliant auto shop — but that’s another review…) It was 8:45 in the morning and only one other person was in the shop. The woman behind the counter was incredibly nice and offered suggestions to help my indecisiveness — I ended up getting a ‘Dirty Chai’ (chai with a shot of espresso) and a piece of baklava. Both were amazing — I do desserts for a living and gratefully, the baklava wasn’t saturated in dense, sweet stickiness — it was crispy, flavorful, and the perfect size (a little more than 1″ x 1″), I believe it cost around $ 1.25 — though I wasn’t paying much attention to the price. Regardless, totally worth it. It also had pieces of pistachio — exciting for the eyes and taste buds…
But I digress…
The chai was delicious as well — overall, great recommendations… I spent the remaining time there working on an essay for school until my car was ready. Taza has free wi-​fi and about 10+ tables and 4 bar-​type chairs near the front window — perfect for studying or taking it easy. This may be a regular spot whenever I’m in the area. Check it out.

I’ve been here a few times in the last few years. I was there today because there were no tables open at the coffee shop down the street. It was empty, but that didn’t deter me. I ordered an iced coffee and a greek salad. The salad was ginormous and fresh and tasty, the coffee was good too. The man behind the counter was very nice as well. I’ll continue to go back to Taza when I’m in the area.

I just love this place. ;-) They got me hooked with the baclava! So delicious it’s ridiculous! The staff is always friendly and helpful. And it’s super cozy if you’re gonna hang out.

I came prepared with my wallet in hand so that I could grab a coffee from here after walking the dog. I tried one of the specialty hot coffee drinks, the Snickers, which wasn’t too bad. I did ask for it to be skim thinking just the milk but I think there might be some other fat free caramel or so that made it taste like fat free. It was still pretty good. I also got a blueberry muffin. The prices are average and the barista was nice. She scooped out the whip cream since I didn’t want it, and she forgot to ask if I wanted it or not. It looked nice and cozy and comfy inside. There’s not a ton of seating in there, but they do have outdoor seating to make up for it. They also have some sandwich and panini options as well.

Nice little cozy spot to chill out. Staff is really nice. Lots of outdoor seating.

A decent little coffee house on a quiet patch of Damen near Foster.
Yummy Paninis and Intelligensia coffee. The palce has free WIFI nad is a quiet tiny friendly place for hanging although the seating spartan and not too inviting. The sandwiches and salads are good and there is a lot of mediterranean selections (hummous, baba gannoush, grape leaves, etc).
There is outdoor seating too. A nice addition to this part of town.

I’m a little disappointed in Taza… and enough so to say that I would have rather gone to a Starbucks. I came here to study and was turned off by the gaudy décor of simple lamps and random pictures that were just nailed to the walls. The barista was not very welcoming and said that it’s doubtful that an iced chai could be made. Their ice machine is super slow and can’t produce ice fast enough for the customer’s that come in. On a summer day, it’s a bit of a necessity. She put the four cubes of ice in the cup and was sweet enough to not charge me for the soy milk. Still close to $ 4 for a [iced] luke-​warm soy chai tea is a bit extreme, especially without a charming café scene. Instead, venture down south a block to the old Ventrella, now Dolce Casa Café where there’s a nice ambiance, reasonable prices and the lovely owner Emalia.

Well, who knew Intelligentsia Coffee is actually from Chicago!
Good coffee to you, sir! And thanks for the wifi and nice seating area.
And let’s now avoid nasty Dunkin’ Donut and Caribou Coffee at ALL cost!

Intelligentsia coffee, decent sandwiches, and Middle Eastern food. Bagels and cream cheese are kinda uninspiring, but that’s not that big a deal. I customarily come here only for coffee anyway.
Other cons include usually awful music playing (Bryan Adams last time I was there) and occasionally sloooooooow service b/​c there is almost always only one barista working at a time. This is especially bad when the three people in front of you ordered sandwiches.
But, yeah, a good neighborhood spot.

This place is great! My lady and I go here nearly every morning. I usually get a redeye and it’s very consistent. The drip coffee is nearly always fresh, even if you go in the late afternoon as I sometimes do.
We got sandwiches once when we were feeling lazy and were really surprised by how good they were! The bread is really great. If you get a couple lattes and a couple sandwiches (they come with chips) it’ll be about 20 bucks but that isn’t bad at all and it’s a great way to start a weekend day if you’ve slept in.
Everyone who works there is really nice and knows our names.
They have a buy 10 get one free card for both coffee drinks and for sandwiches.
They have RedEyes (the free paper that costs about what it’s worth) and the onion there, too. Also they usually have ‘mindful metropolis’, if you’re into that sorta thing.

I live just down the street from Taza and I love it! It’s my weekly treat. A medium Intelligencia coffee (you had me at Intelligencia) and a sesame bagel with cream cheese. $ 4.20 every time. Now, let me tell you, you HAVE to love the cream cheese if you order from this place. They pile the stuff on there but it is delicious.
I once swayed away and got an espresso drink, I think it was a mocha and that was subpar but since my love for Intelligencia is so strong I have never swayed again.
I have also indulged in their stuffed grape leaves, chicken panini and muffins, all of which are subpar.
Coffee and bagels, that’s what all the Amundson crew orders and there’s a reason.
Customer service is always, always, always fantastic and they really take the time to get to know the customers which is something I’ve never experienced even as a daily visitor to a Loop Starbucks.
They will make you laugh, the prices are decent. I love this place!

Free wifi! Good-​looking food — will have to come back to try it next time, since I wasn’t hungry on this particular visit. Good service. Great iced chai — though it was a little pricey for a lot of ice — the only reason this didn’t receive five stars.
Can’t wait to try it again!

Three cheers for Intelligentsia coffee! They use their Black Cat Roast for espresso beverages. The brewed coffee is excellent too.
Service is always friendly and helpful, although, don’t go here at lunch time during the week – all the Amundsen H.S. staff overwhelm the sole barista working with sandwich after sandwich, making it impossible to order a coffee within ten minutes. Depending on who is working, the knowledge and skill in preparing the beverage can falter. One time, a barista (who was new, yes, but was working alone) wanted to use steamed milk for my iced latte – boo.
Prices are what you expect at a Chicago café – Starbucks prices.