I have been to a Cafecito before at another location, but we really enjoyed this location. I am Cuban so I cook Cuban food all the time, but I can never get a good sandwich, Cafecito did not disappoint me, we ordered Cuban sandwiches and they were great. The bread was like being in Miami and the pork was marinated perfectly. I ordered my espresso with no sugar, and it was very good, my son had a Cafe con Leche and he was not disappointed. Service was great and we enjoyed the atmosphere. read more

Food is dry, ordered the lechón and cubano. dear almighty you need two cups of sauce that was paired with the yucca fritas to balance out the dry sandwiches. Service drags and takes way to long for the bill. Tho ambiance is nice read more

Perhaps it was ordering at 445 pm and the staff were not ready, perhaps it was a recommendation and the reviews....I must report blah. Yes take out, yes a 2 block walk, by our arrival, our Cafe Tre leche was just being poured. With excitement we were back to our room unpacking....first, the coffee - yeah was delicious! Like omg delicious...as in, can we go back for breakfast delicious. We continued to unpack, Cuban Sandwich...now cool to the touch...9 min from pick up. Ok fine, ham looks like it shrunk or was not supposed to cover the sandwich, pork ok amount. A bit chewy and tough...but ok meh. Yucca frittata is just cut up yucca with a mayo-chup dip on side - meh. Guava pork bbq it's a plate of bbq pork and three plantains....not quite convert the width of the styrofoam container... Bbq was truly tasty. Side of black beans and rice was petty good as these things go. Severe disappointment came for dessert. Guava coconut pound cake made me feel like that "gotcha" moment .... Diet conscious folks may enjoy the portion size for 3$ but I stupidly got me hopes up waayyy to high. The cakes in their counter display were visions of excitement...what we got was this bundle of well, you get the picture. Expiration date was 5/8 so either these were created pre-COVID or....or.... Just a bundle of tasteless door-stop crap. Or I am not happy with anything and my wife was ok with everything (shhh, but since there is considerable amount of food left uneaten, maybe 'everything is beautiful' plays in her head). Would I go back, Yes but ONLY dine-in! Steee-rike One! read more

Cafecito - Pound Cake? Maybe not even 8oz cake.... Sad, dry and overall a greater disappointment than not winning 1$ on the million dollar lottery... - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

I came here last Saturday night expecting this to be a casual sandwich shop, like their locations downtown, however, this location offers both a grab and go area and a restaurant style section. My friends and I were promptly seated at a table and a server came to see us very quickly. The menu is the same as what you would find at all their other locations with the exception of the cocktails, beers, and wine. The cocktails were tasty and a decent price ($9). Unfortunately I can't remember the names of the drinks my friends and I tried. However, we each had 2 drinks and we were pleased with each of them. For dinner I ended up getting one of the pressed sandwiches, the Chivito which had steak, ham, bacon, fried egg, mozzarella, lettuce, tomato, onion, and citrus mayo. For all that it was only 7.99. I've also tried the Cubano at another location which was also good, but I would order the Chivito over the Cubano again. The restaurant area isn't too big, probably around 10 tables and a bar area. If you're looking for a lively Cuban restaurant, 90 miles Cuban may be the place for you. However, I think this location of cafecito had decent music, quick service, cheap and filling food, and good drinks. read more

Cafecito - Chivito pressed sandwiches and one of their tasty cocktails - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Came here for breakfast while on a trip to Chicago. Place was conveniently located a few blocks from the hotel we stayed at so it was like a 4 min walk to get here. Came in on a Saturday morning and were promptly seated at a booth. I ordered the La Costa pressed sandwich and it was delicious. I am not normally a fan of arugula but I really enjoyed it in this sandwich. The service is definitely the one that left us a little disappointed. Our waitress never came by to check up on us after taking our orders. We sat there waiting for a good while before a different server came up to ask if we wanted the check. Overall still a solid spot. read more

Cafecito - La Costa Pressed Sandwich - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Loved the tres leches cake! It is so yummy!!! This delicious cake melts in your mouth. Will be back for more!

Their service is so bad. I wish it was better because the food is excellent. But every time we eat in here, it takes forever to get seated, they come by continuously saying "we'll be right with you" then it takes 15-20 mins for them to come back. Then they take orders and help people that were there well after us. It's really frustrating and disappointing. They need a better system. Definitely don't come here if you're tight for time. read more

Seating took awhile due to capacity. Once seated service was quick. Coffee and tater tots were the highlight. Sandwiches could of used more flavor. read more

Cafecito - Huevos Completo, Bistec Con Huevos, and side of tater tots. - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

We were visiting Chicago for a few days and after eating nothing but "Chicago" food we needed a flavor change. After looking on Yelp we found Cafecito, it was a short 10-15 walk from our hotel. Excellent Cuban food and quality. The steak chimichurri and croquetas de jamon were delicious! Everything we tasted was good. Highly recommend Cafecito and the staff was superb. read more

Small place, looks they tried to serve the best way. My food was cold and not flavor at all. When we told the waitress about the food they give you an attitude. I guess they care more about the money than food service. read more

Great vibes and clean interior! The staff are extremely friendly and the food was great! You have to try their Ropa Vieja!

Finding an inexpensive place to eat in the Gold Coast can be pretty difficult sometimes, but Cafecito is a great option for lunch on a budget. My mom had a doctor's appointment nearby and asked if I wanted to meet her and my dad for a meal, and this was the place we could all agree on that wouldn't break the bank for the group (the bill ended up being only $35 before taxes for all 3 of us!). Cafecito is a seat-yourself, no-reservations restaurant, with both indoor and outdoor seating or carry-out options. We arrived around 11:45 and there were a few tables open inside, but we noticed around 12:00 that it got a lot busier and people were waiting for tables. Nice to know we picked a great spot! They offer sandwiches, salads, and larger plates on their menu, again, all at pretty great prices. I ordered the Exotica Salad, which was around $8 and included grilled shrimp, avocado, corn, and spinach. It was really easy to pick something off the menu because of all of the variety of options. The waitstaff was quick and knowledgeable, and kept coming by to fill water or ask if my dad wanted refills on his Diet Coke. When we were leaving, the waiter gave my dad another Diet Coke to go at no extra cost. I'm not sure if this is just the norm there, but it was nice to get a drink to-go at a sit-down restaurant. If you're looking for a less expensive, yet still filling lunch, Cafecito is a fantastic option. read more

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I'm not usually tempted to leave a poor review, but I have to call out the low quality of service here today. It was a short wait for a table, but after ordering it took over 45 minutes to receive our food. That's already unfortunate, but then the service got even slower. We had to ask multiple times for small things like condiments and it took 20 minutes just to get the check paid (again after having to ask multiple times). By the time we left, we'd spent over an hour and a half at Cafecito, eating into our schedule for the afternoon. It was incredibly frustrating to sit around for long stretches of time waiting for any service at all, even just to get my credit card back so we could leave. The food (cubano combo, skirt steak plate, tostones, and croquetas) was very good, and the outdoor seating was pleasant, but overall it wasn't worth the incredibly slow service. I understand it's hard to fully staff restaurants at the moment, but some adjustment to increase the level of service is probably necessary, even if that reduces the number of tables available. read more

Really enjoyed the plaintain and pineapple pancakes, and the Bistec Con Huevos (steak breakfast sandwich) was good but could have used a bit more flavor. Delightful stop for breakfast and good service. read more

Cafecito - Maduros con Pina (sweet plaintains and pineapple pancakes) - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Fantastic service! Food is very delicious! Servers are friendly! Eric is very professional, knowledgeable with the menu! Highly recommend if you want to have some great food and drinks. read more

A friend recommended this place to me, what's not to like about Cuban food so had to try. We ordered their Cuban sandwich and the ceviche, as it was kind a hot that day. The Cuban sandwich we ate before we could take a pic but let me tell you was awesome. Great taste. The ceviche was good wish it had a bit more flavor but over all happy with meal. We also got an order of yucca fries. Pleasantly surprised with the portion. And was very good. Crispy and toasty in the best possible sense. Only reason I am giving a 4 star is for the customer service which lacked. We had to keep repeating our order. In end we never got our drinks. Which is fine we we went for the food anyway. Went to drink around the corner after our meal. read more

Cafecito - Ceviche, yuca fries, and Cuban sandwich - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Just as it is said in the other reviews, this place is a hidden Jem. This Cuban/mexican restaurant looks more like an order out place from the street, but they have plenty of comfy bohemian seating in the back and a bar. Looks like a number of regulars hang here and relax Great choices of sandwiches or plates. We really enjoyed what we ordered. My husband had a pressed Chicken sandwich which he enjoyed and I had Shrimp Cerviche with salad a bowl of Cuban Black bean soup. The Soup and Cerviche were amazing, but the salad had a tad too much dressing and was vinegary. I really loved the tortilla chips; thin and crispy with just the right amount of salt; obviously homemade. I had a piece of Tres Leches for dessert and it was a good traditional rendering. The bar menu had a good selection of beers and spirits and a list of traditional specialty cocktails with a Cuban twist; many with guava juice. I had a Guava Mai Tai; different and good. Service was also good. This has to be the best deal in River North. Our whole bill with the dink came to $34 before tip. read more

Second time coming here. I tried the vegan impossible sandwich. First few bites were great. Then realized the texture of it wasn't cooked throughly. Beside that the flavors are amazingly good. I wish hashbrowns were not only part of the breakfast and I missed them by a few min. Which was upsetting. Great patio section. Great service. read more

Cafecito - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Food was good, the mojito was weird, odd for a Cuban place. The mojito tasted like they used bottled lime juice, the bartender said it was fresh squeezed juice, (I agreed with my wife if was a weird taste) but he switched out my wife's drink for another. Great location before a show (next door). Weird tasting drink, swapped for another everyone is happy, stuff happens and the bartender was so very nice about it. read more

One of the best places to go to when you're craving a good panini/cubanito. Love the vibe inside the place - nice servers, great interior, good place to catch up with friends. I've tried three sandwiches so far - Cubanito, Chivito, Ropa Vieja - very delicious. The bread is perfectly toasted and the ingredient ratio is great. Maduros are a great side dish. Love the Cafe con Leches - perfect amount of milk and froth. Can't miss the $5 Wednesday Mojitos. read more

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Unlike the other well reviewed places in the area, this place is legit amazing! The food quality is fresh and delicious. Many offerings are unique and inventive. I had a breakfast sandwich with steak, eggs, cheddar and onion on a grilled pressed bread. The complimentary hot sauce really gave it a nice kick. It's not your usual bacon egg and cheese. I also got a side of yuca potatoes which were perfectly cooked and super delicious. The prices are very reasonable ($5 or less for breakfast sandwiches, $2 for coffee with refills, $3 sides). They also offer fish, steak, chicken and pork entrees for $10-12. All look amazing!!! This location is right by the childrens hospital and also the modern art museum. Excellent spot for food before or after the museum. Excellent spot for food anytime! Portion sizes are reasonable. Not the giant portions of competitors but I also don't need to have 4 lbs of potatoes and 5 eggs in my omelet. That's just nuts. Some people like that. I like this. read more

Genuinely one of the worst restaurant experiences in my life. Waited 30 minutes for any waiter to arrive to our table after we repeatedly tried communicating with the staff that we were ready. Food came out reasonably quickly but (coffee) came out about 20 minutes after. I ordered an omelette that was meant to come with pork, veggies, and sauce. I received pork in an omelette, ew. I told this to two waiters at different time points and they both tried to lie to me that the omelette I ordered only came with pork (?). I eventually had to pull up the menu on my phone to prove my point, and they finally conceded and told me they would add a manager's discount. Their solution was to remove $4.50 off of our group's $100 check (we asked for the entire meal to be removed which they eventually did). No apology, no offer to bring out different food, just rude wait staff who were trying to gaslight me for their mistake. I normally love Cafecito but this experience was so ridiculous. Will not be returning, I recommend thinking twice about dining here. read more

Cafecito has some pretty good Cuban food downtown at a value price. This small shop is located just behind the Hancock on Chestnut. It has a small indoor seating area and a nice outdoor patio. You have your choice of ordering at the counter or waiter service outside. They have a full menu of traditional Cuban delights. I went with the Cubano combo for a quick dinner. The price was amazing for the area: just under $10 for a sandwich, chips and a drink. The Cuban was very good. It was well constructed and had a good amount of tasty pork. The bread was delicious and toasted perfectly. The habanero hot sauces on each table really set the sandwich off! It was a little on the smaller side, but again for the price was a great value. The choice of chips were either bagged Dorito's or Lays chips. I understand they probably do a lot of carry out business, but this seemed a little tacky. I would have paid more for some plantain chips or something homemade. Other reviewers recommend the cortadito, but it was too late in the day for me to mess with Cuban coffee. If you are in the area and looking for a cheap, quick bite to eat than this is your place. read more

Cafecito - Hot sauces - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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The service is super slow. Just getting extra mustard took 10 min. How does a Cuban sandwich shop not have hot sauce.

I've ordered Cafecito for pickup on UberEats a couple of times and really liked it. My favorites that I end up ordering every time are the shrimp ceviche and Cubano pressed sandwich. Love the flavors and haven't really found another spot in Chicago that compares. Other sandwiches that we have ordered and really enjoyed are the Guava-Q pressed chicken and Lechon pressed. We've had some of the platters before, but honestly the sandwiches are superior. Would definitely recommend! read more

This place is so cute and quaint! The food was delicious and reasonably priced. My whole family loved it. The service was also exceptional. read more

I absolutely love this place... love the food, drinks and aesthetic. But one things I cannot get past is how slow the service is. No matter the time or day, service will take at a minimum an hour and a half... not to mention it's never been at or near full capacity. Would be 5 stars, but for service, Cafecito deserves 3 stars max. read more

I can't give 4 stars with the poor service. I see it's been said in other reviews too. Food is very good but time to step up the service.

The food was absolutely amazing and the service was quick. The menu was easy to read and the service was extremely kind. All around one of the best places I've had visiting Chicago. read more

Had breakfast here at peak brunch time. The food was decent and the service was a little slow, but in their defense it was very busy. Tried two egg dishes with rice and beans and $5 mimosas. I want to come back to try the lunch menu when it's not as busy or order to go. I gave them minus one star for having to chase down our waitress to pay our bill. read more

Excellent Cuban sandwiches including a vegetarian version. We ate in the full service sit down area, but the walk up take-away was quick and well run too. Loved the food! read more

Was excited to try this place for a long time but was really disappointed. The cafe con leche was really good - it was the perfect amount of sweet and was also creamy and used good quality coffee. However, I was really disappointed by the sandwich. I ordered the Timba, which had Swiss cheese and guava jam. There was hardly any cheese (covered less than 1/3 of the bread) which meant that the sandwich was basically plain white bread with a little jam. The prices are really good (sandwich was only $4) so I might come back one more time to try a different sandwich, but overall this experience was not a good meal at all. read more

Cafecito - Timba Sandwich - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The server was nice and the food was amazing!!! I'm vegan and the menu was very inclusive. read more

Cafecito - Vegan Vaca Frita Platillo - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Amazing food - we had the Spanish chorizo sandwich with shrimp (mar y terra?) done in the Cuba style. So flavorful- and the plantains were amazing. The other traditional Cuban dishes that we saw going past us such as Lechon (pork) looked incredible. We ended the meal with a tres leches. What I enjoyed most about the trust waitress is that it was not overly sweet, but still very flavorful. They have a full bar and authentic Cuban coffee! read more

I love cuban food and this place didn't disappoint! It's difficult to find cheap but good food near downtown. They have a lot of seating inside and outside. If you want to be served they have a separate section in the back. Everyone was friendly and the order came out fast. The sandwiches we ordered were very flavorful and crunchy! The crunch isn't from the bread alone... I noted tiny pieces of string fries in my sandwich. Yum! I will stop by again on my visit. read more

Cafecito - Chivito and cortito (special) sandwiches - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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This is a perfect place for a low-key, affordable and delicious dinner. The place had many booths and tables available on an early Friday night. The entrance to the restaurant is connected to the lobby of a residential building. It took us a while to figure out. We ordered yucca frita, tostones, a steak chimichurri platillo, and a ropa vieja platillo. The starters were huge and freshly fried. Once you had one of the yucca cubes you couldn't stop eating. The tostones had crispy edges and were served with a chimichurri dipping sauce. We were half full by the time the platillos arrived. The portions were equally huge. Each plate came with sweet plantains, beans, and rice. They all came together for a perfect bite along with the proteins. We will come back for sure to try other dishes. read more

Cafecito - Steak chimichurri platillo - Cuban Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Really good breakfast plates and sandwiches for breakfast or lunch. The Cuban coffee smacks. Service is pretty fast for takeout

The specialty coffee (cafe con leche) was soooo delicious and warms your soul. The Boracho sandwich was soooo delicious. Cozy place and amazing staff. read more

Food: 4/5 Service: 3/5 Cleanliness: 4/5 Now Cafecito has other locations around Chicago but I particularly like this one due to its location and bar it offers (they have Happy Hour). If you want to dine-in, you seat yourself. I wouldn't say there are too many seats since it's a fairly small place but it's not a place you're looking to spend hours anyway. A fair amount of people take take-out too. The thing about seating yourself is that sometimes you won't be seen until 5-10mins after being seated with no menu or water whatsoever. When it gets busy they may just forget or are just shortstaff so your stuck with twiddling your thumbs. That's ok since it's a super casual place. Sandwiches: ~$7 tasty with a crunch. You can get additional side of rice and beans for ~$3. Platters: ~$11 loving the plaintains. We would recommend Léchon! We also tried the Steak and BBQ Chicken but they were dry. Think they tried balancing that out with drenching the chicken in BBQ sauce, meh. Would I come back? For cheap eats yes. read more

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Amazing food but there are no non alcoholic drinks just water! Did take some time sit it's busy !