Grind Cafe Co

Cool place. Few yuppies. But annoying wifi freeloaders and downer music.. The cafe staff are very friendly once you get to know them. This isn't Starbucks, ok? Don't expect phoney smiles and fake "have a nice day" comments--this is a mom and pop business--you get what you GIVE so get to know the people who work there and they'll get to know you. Be cool. It's sad when I see yuppie parent types there who are all uptight and make a nuisance of themselves by not busing there own dishes and letting their kids make a lot of noise. Fortunately most of the time the yuppie parent types stay away.

Another nuisance are people who buy a single cup of coffee and then leach off the free wifi all day leaving paying customers no place to sit. The place ought to make a rule about this... you get an hour and they you gotta buy something.

Another complaint--the music is often woeful, melancholy folk music guarenteed to get your day off on the wrong foot. Good music but not happy music. Hard to understand this. Wouldn't the business want their customers to not feel sad? Not asking for musak... how about any indie rock or oldies that are not so saaaaaadddddd.... yeesh.…

Best coffee house in the area!. I've been living here for a while and I've found that the Grind is the best coffee house in Lincoln Square. The have an excellent coffee selection (including a few chocolate drinks) and wonderful food. Their pastry selection is very good, with their croissants being one of the bests, and I'm picky about croissants. Of course what else could be as good as their egg and cheese sandwich on a butter croissant. Their salads are refreshing and their quiche's are delectable. You get wi-fi connection and can sit ouside and enjoy the morning or evening when it's nice out. Who would want to go to the Starbucks on the next block is beyond me... Excellent!…

Love this place.. I work from home and sometime it gets boring. This is one of my favorite places in Chicago that offer free fast WiFi connection. Friendly staff, nice ambiance, patrons here are nice too. They usually have Jazz or Latin-Jazz as background music... and quiche is delicious!…