first timer. the cheesecake w flourless chocolate base was stupendous. highly recommended

This IS the best bakery in the Fox Valley area. Really cute, clean and comfortable cafe. The service has always been great. Too bad they are far from where I live, or I'd be there every day. I have eaten their almond croissants, cinnamon rolls, macaroons, cookies and almost all of their specialty desserts. And, their hot chocolate is pretty darn good, too. All of these items have been fresh, flavorful and worth every penny. If you are in Geneva, stop by and pick up some of their delicious treats! read more

We stopped in for a sweet treat. We sampled the Chocolate Mousse with a chocolate crust, bathed in chocolate granache--a work of art--tasted Fabulous! Also had the fruit tart--delicious and beautiful! I haven't seen beautiful pastry cases anywhere in US like Cocoa Bean! They rival those in Europe! read more

My fiancé (now husband! Woooo!) went to Cocoa Bean for our wedding cake upon the recommendation of a friend, who also ordered their cake through them. We worked with Inga. She was very friendly and collaborated closely with us as we discussed the kind of cake flavor and decoration. The bakery did some research on the special type of design we were looking for - a simple but elegant combination of art nouveau/art deco. They were also able to provide some customization for the interior by adding freshly sliced peaches, a nice little shout out to my husband's Georgian upbringing. We were so impressed with the quality of the samples we tried, that we ended up ordering a small presentation cake for cutting and about a gross of individual desserts for our wedding guests - lemon custards, chocolate, passionfruit mousse and white chocolate mini cakes. They were a huge hit and zero leftovers! Even days later, when we finally polished off the presentation cake, the interior was as fresh as when it was first served. I highly recommend Cocoa Bean for anything and everything from large-event styled cakes to mini-desserts for any occasion. Thank you so much again for making our special day perfect! read more

After being surprised by my husband with a truly fabulous birthday cake brought all the way north to Libertyville from Cocoa Bean (at the suggestion of a favorite retired caterer)... I urged my daughter to use them for her wedding at Creek Bend in St. Charles. The wedding was just last Saturday and the happy couple was delighted with the elegant and very beautiful cake... simply adorned with fresh greens and roses. And then came the comments from guests who ranged from Washington, DC, to San Diego and San Francisco to Lexington, Va., and from Portland, Oregon and Seattle to Houston and Naples, Fla. and many spots in between... the consensus of many, many was that it was THE BEST wedding cake they'd ever had! Thank you Cocoa Bean! read more

Fantastic bakery! My daughter & I love to go in and drink coffee and eat an almond croissant. Everything we have tried has been excellent. We've always had good service. Try it! read more

I have been a Cocoa Bean customer since they first opened. Their selection is wonderful and the taste of their pastries is consistently EXCELLENT. We have gotten to the point that if we need a special dessert we just go to Cocoa Bean without even considering another alternative. Our favorite is the Isabella. We have tried about every kind of cake they make but keep coming back tot he Isabella as our all time favorite. The staff is always knowledgeable, helpful and professional. The prices are reasonable considering the skill needed to make then and quality of ingredients used in them. I have eaten parties literally all over the world and it is pretty wonderful to find ones so good so close to home. read more

Cocoa Beans made our wedding cake, and it was scrumptious! We arranged a tasting with them 8 months ahead. They prepared 5 items for us based on some criteria we gave. It was an outdoor wedding on a hot day, so we needed a cake that wouldn't melt or fall apart, but we also wanted to avoid the "same old" cake taste. We wanted all of the cakes we tasted, but settle on a chocolate cake with vanilla bean frosting. On wedding day they showed up right before food was served, and the cake lasted 45 minutes without losing shape, taste or texture. Guests loved it! We'll be going back often for tasty treats. read more

I had their Chicken Panini it was fantastic! You get a choice of a cookie too. I'm trying to avoid sweets so I gave it to a little boy who was their. Made his day! Overall great experience! read more

LOVE their cakes! I happened to need a cake last minute and they were able to make a cake that day! A good selection of goodies and they taste amazing! Props to the chef. read more

A very nice small pastry place. Lots mini dessert ( try the carrot mousse cake!!!) Chocolate Croissant one of my favorite. Always have friendly staff there. Worth for 5 star reviewed read more

I would be looking for another place to make your cake for any special event or wedding. We had chosen Cocoa Bean because of recommendations however our experience was quite the opposite. Cocoa Bean seems to be fairly well in small cakes for birthdays and small events as their single tier cakes and pastries were very well made. However Cocoa Bean can not make large cakes for wedding or events. We had our cake ordered, and after 3 meetings with Nancy (the owner) we were confident that our cake was going to be excellent. When the cake was picked up it was horrible. Nothing was like what we ordered the colors were wrong, the shapes of the tiers were not correct, the decorations were not even correct. Moreover there was thumb prints all over the covering and markings over all three tiers. We even had a picture of what we wanted, expressed on all 3 meetings what we wanted, none of it was followed. It was like the cake was thrown together with out any of our notes from any of the meetings. After seeing the cake, a call was placed to Nancy where she confirmed that she did not make the cake, decorate it, nor oversee it before it left the store. As a good will jester she sent day old mini plates out to the reception as we could not display the cake. Nancy refused to look at pictures of the cake that was made or meet with us and we found out after the fact that an intern with no supervision made our cake. Nancy also noted that she would only refund half the amount that we spent, to date we have yet to receive the refund. Needless to my advise would be not to use cocoa bean, but if you do, do not pay for any until you pick it up or have it delivered. read more

LOVE everything they make, you could never go wrong with anything they offer. Only wish their hours were longer. read more

I hate to give a small business a bad review... but we called 3 weeks ahead of Easter looking to have them make us a small fondant cake for a housewarming. We were told they were too busy for a small cake that weekend. So we went to French Cake Patisserie in Plainfield instead. All I can say about French Cakes was Tres Bien! Fantastic cake, on time and much more affordable than Cocoa Bean wants! read more

They never delivered our wedding cake. Nor did they respond to emails or calls that day. The owner referred to it as a "disappointment" when she "apologized " by blaming it on a former employee. If you don't want a wedding cake, this is the place to go. If you do, find a reliable business. read more

We needed a cake for a baby shower. We had a specific design in mind. Cocoa Bean was able to make the cake for me and best of all the price was affordable! I received many compliments on the cake. It was awesome. Their desserts are yummy! If they have a snowball when you are there try it! It is definitely the best dessert I've ever had! Thank you to all who worked with me at Cocoa Bean. read more

In a past we ordered from the bakery mousse cakes on several occasions and it was a thick mousse layer on thin sponge. Cakes were not that tall but taste was exceptional. Last year when we ordered the exact same type of cake, it turned out it was different, two think sponge layers and very thing mousse layer, and we didn't like it at all. Recently we tried one more time. I talked to the girl when we were placing the order and explained to her what we needed and if it is possible to make the cake the way it used to be( I didn't get the girl name). She assured us that it is no problem at all and promised to put everything in our order description. After order was placed I still had some concern as girl doesn't sound like she was very interested in what my husband and I were saying, and asked the girl to go over our order again. She repeated everything what we discussed... We got the same two thick layers yellow sponge. So if you what real mousse cake, you will not find it here as well as great customer service. We will not return and I will advise all people we recommended that bakery to of the changes. read more

This has got to be one of the most spectacular dessert destinations I've ever encountered. Their desserts are as beautiful as they are delicious and their staff is very kind and attentive. If you like desserts, this will be your new favorite place! Side note: we have also had their paninis and have not been disappointed, just make sure you leave room for dessert! read more

I had been telling my husband that driving all the way across town for croissants and coffee was going to be worth it and he didn't believe me....until this weekend. He tried the chorizo quiche and some of my chocolate croissant and enlightenment came to him. We also picked up a cheesecake/flourless chocolate cake for a birthday and it was insanely good. I can't describe how picky I am about cheesecake (I dislike 95% of them out there) and I loved it. Nice, friendly staff and great coffee too. read more

Desserts are bland. Witnessed the owner aggressively berate a woman and her young son over an order mix up. Yikes. Won't be back.

Got our wedding cake at the Cocoa Bean last March. Fantastic cake, decorated extactly like my wife requested and tasted wonderful. Will recommend them to all my friends. read more

This place has the best pastries ever, and at VERY competitive prices. You only find this kind of pastries at the best pastry stores in France; but usually not in the US. The quality is superb. Other places in Geneva try to do the same; not even close, and they charge 3 times as much. read more

I stopped by in the late afternoon to get a pastry. They had just closed. So I tried to at least get a glimpse of what they sell from the street. The owner came to the door and asked if he could help me. I said I had read such great things online about his bakery and I had just stopped for a pastry. He invited me in his kitchen. He took out a box and loaded it with pastries that hadn't sold. I asked what I owed him. He said, "nothing, just come back again when we are open." Wow! You don't see things like that any more. read more

Dry pastries. Too expensive. Doesn't except credit cards under a certain amount. Employees are rude depending on who you get.

The Cocoa Bean provided the breakfast sweets for my daughter's wedding day while the girls were getting hair and nails done. They also provided 300 French macaroons that were used as favors at the wedding reception. Everything was lovely and tasted fabulous! My daughter and I were in Geneva about a month before the wedding, and to our surprise, the bakes was actually working on flavors for the macaroon filling to make sure he got the taste he wanted. Amazing! The breakfast items and macaroons were delivered and all went well. The staff was pleasant. Only negative was that it took a some time for our calls and emails to be returned. read more

We ordered an 8 inch, 2 layer carrot cake for a birthday after sampling a small version there. We specified a small amt of frosting as the birthday guest does not like a lot. We paid 49.99 for the cake. It was beautifully decorated and that's where it stops. The sample was light and airy. The cake heavy. It was all frosting! All of our guests ate the little amt of cake and left all of the frosting. What a disappointment! Over priced and over frosted!. 50 bucks for a pound of frosting. Never again. read more

Thank you to Cocoa Bean owners/chef for helping to make my daughter and future son-in-laws shower complete. After an initial rocky start to our business relations, Cocoa Bean did wonderful service recovery and made a most delicious and beautiful cake. The guests at the shower enjoyed the yummy cake and strawberry mousse filling, something requested by my daughter. The quality of the Cocoa Bean's baked goods are superior to most and I want to go on record to say again, that they did a superior job working through a challenging and difficult situation! Thank you again. read more

I come here once a week for a morning pastry. Their pastries and desserts are absolutely authentic and amazing. I've been visiting them for years and I've probably tried almost everything they offer. I can't believe anyone would give this place a negative review. I've had the small desserts and had a few of the large cakes and they are spectacular. The employees are always friendly and I can't say I've ever been disappointed by anything that I've eaten there. I'm well aware of the other options in Geneva and the surrounding towns but nothing even comes close. read more

their lemon bar is the best i've ever had. it's the perfect balance of tart & sweetness in the lemony gel. love the slightly salty, soft (but with substance) crust, which complements the sweetness perfectly. YUM. I want MORE! read more

Stopped in to get some valentines treats...let me say they are absolutely heavenly. We tried 4 different individual cakes. The passion fruit and white cake was perfect. These are not the overly sugared cakes you usually find. I was transported back to Paris in every bite. You can tell the chef is classically trained. The case of confections was absolutely beautiful and no detail was overlooked. Best place for a sweet treat in the Chicagoland area. I can't wait to try some of their savory dishes. Highly recommend! read more

This place is overpriced for what they serve. The owner is so rude and they fight all the time. No wonder they have a hiring sign outside all the time! It's very small as well but I admit the small petite desserts are tasty (and overpriced) but there is no parking! read more

The very best coffee - great place for a good cup.... oh and, how about those desserts and croissants? Might as well have one while you're there, you won't be disappointed... .**** read more

Not disappointed - wow! I've been looking for GOOD pastries since I moved to west suburbs 2 years ago but had only encountered overly sweet, icing- happy, doughy duds. The reviews are right - as close to French-style pastries as I,ve had in Chicago. Loved croissants and mini almond, almond blueberry and chocolate almond mini cakes. Also loved the mini concept. Looking forward to tasting ALL they have over the next few months, weeks or days, well, not days. Next on my list is Vanille in Chicago. read more

Working with Nancy was amazing. She is very good at what she does. Neither my husband nor I like wedding cake. We find it to be dry, flat, and gross. Our cake from the Cocoa Bean was excellent! They make the cake about a day before the event, and decorate it the morning of. Also, they use real butter instead of shortening which means that the cake is moist and delicious. I would recommend them in a heart beat. Nancy took a design I found online gave it her own flair and made it even more beautiful. read more

I've had many cakes and speciality cakes , Communion, Graduation, Birthday and Wedding cakes made by Coco Bean. All of them were fantastic!. Their mini's are to die for! I like the lemon tart and chocolate raspberry. I would recommend the white cake with raspberry mousse filling. I had that at a wedding where the cake was decorated with purple sugar ribbons spiralling upwards. Truely a unique design. read more

The Cocoa Bean serves some of the best croissants in the area. I lived in Paris and it more than holds its own against the little boulangerie near my apartment. I've only had a small sample of their deserts but when I did purchase them they have always been excellent. I do understand some of the comments expressing frustration with the service. It is not a big place and the staff can get overwhelmed on weekend mornings and lunch time. The service staff tries to cope but that's not always so easy for them. On weekends it's difficult to find a seat especially in the cooler/colder months. I realize it is not an option for most people but the best time to savor the coffee and croissant's is during the week. I have never ordered any cakes so I can't speak to their quality. I drive 10 miles to come here and I hate to drive, yet it is always worth the effort. Note: Parking can be very challenging. There is a small lot next to the place but it shares the spaces with other establishments. I park on a side street and walk. Oh the reason why I don't give it five stars is that I haven't sampled enough of their products to give them an unqualified endorsement and that I have on occasion experienced some small breakdowns in service. read more

I never write reviews, but this one I will write for. Their food is delicious, and I can honestly say so. Everything is made fresh, and made with perfection. The reason why I am writing this review is because of a larger issue. I came in one time, and I ordered a yummy croissant and a couple of their mini treats, and sat down in the corner back table. It was the late afternoon, and this young girl was working behind the counter. She was the sweetest thing ever, and I had never gotten the best service of my life by her. As I was sitting down, the chef in the back came up to her and started yelling at her, and I could tell she was trying to hold her complexion, but as a mother, I could tell the tears would come. I don't want to make a bad review for this business, but as a business owner myself, I know you need to treat your employees right. I do not support disrespect, and anger taken out on employees, especially not the ones behind the counter. All of them are hard workers, but the chef multiple times I've seen scolded and humiliated his workers. I have not seen that girl since at cocoa bean, and it is a shame. read more