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    Sugar Factory - River North

    3.0 (980 reviews)
    Closed 11:00 am - 10:00 pm

    Sugar Factory - River North Photos

    Business Info

    SUGAR FACTORY - RIVER NORTH ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Loud
    Touristy
    Trendy
    Classy

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    Recommended Reviews - Sugar Factory - River North

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    Comic made with ai about the event.

    Came in at 8:59pm and was turned away. As they stopped taking tables. Wasted a whole trip, parking and called to complain and spoke to the rudest manager I have ever heard. Will follow up with some of his statements in a second post. My toddler crying.

    The Sugar Factory is beautiful, the ambiance is great, and very fun. The waitress, Kat was wonderful and very friendly.The food was hot and delicious .

    Sampler Platter* Sugar Factory Rainbow Sliders*
    Ariel A.

    The staff was all very friendly and welcoming. I went for a birthday during one of Chicago's cold weather days. I think because of that the place was on the empty side, but everything looked clean. The sliders weren't bad and the sampler platter was good! I think I would just get the sampler platter since all the food is very filling. Portions are on the bigger side. The sandwich was okay, not crazy flavorful but it was just a grilled chicken sandwich. I think if I go again I would get a burger. Overall the experience was great, just be prepared to spend a decent amount especially on their popular drinks :)

    Alek D.

    This place is fire I asked for a strawberry milk shake and it was fire and when they brought my cousin and brothers sugar drinks to us they really did it on the drinks alright top 5 out of 5 stars.

    Strawberry Cheesecake Overload Rainbow Brite  S'mores Brownie  Mocha - iced coffee
    Angie W.

    We made a last minute reservation for 4 and when we arrived there was a line to be seated. It seemed like staff was all over the place. We were asked if a flat top table would be okay, then when we asked if we could have a booth they said it'd be 10-15 minute wait because they only had one busser every though there had to be 5+ booths open in all different sections. We ordered 4 drinks + fries but never got the fries. The insane milkshakes are so fun and definitely shareable. It's fun- they have a photographer that comes around and offers pictures - with a charge if you decide to purchase. Inside the restaurant was clean, honestly it was nice we came around 9:30p because though it was busy it wasn't crazy! Staff was nice- attentive enough for what we were there for. 20% gratuity is already added to bill. 4 drinks with tax and tip was over $100. Fun experience, but not somewhere Imid return to over and over.

    Chicken fajitas
    Marena C.

    Excellent service from our server Keyla. She went above & beyond as our server. The atmosphere was great! The staff very nice and polite. The food was delicious! Will definitely recommend The Sugar Factory to friends & family. We've encountered a few rude servers while visit Chicago, but none at The Sugar Factory. Very happy customers!

    Waffle Breakfast Burger*
    Amber B.

    I haven't been to The Sugar Factory in probably 10 years. I was excited to go here with my boyfriend for a spontaneous date night! Immediately when we walked in, we were greeted by the host which was nice. We didn't stand there too long and wait which is important to me. Before we were seated in our booth, we went to the bar for a drink and sat there for 10 minutes while the bartender was just talking to a co-worker. We were never greeted or offered a drink. Luckily, our table was ready within those 10 minutes so we just went to our table. I'd say the service was mediocre; we felt like we were bothering our server. Our server was nice and all, but just didn't seem to really care too much about us as customers. It was just an odd experience. I will say, the food was pretty good! But not worth what we paid for sure. We tried the waffle burger and the chicken pasta and then we also had macaroni cheese balls and like I mentioned, wasn't worth the money but was still good. I'd say the restaurant is definitely not my style and the vibes were not what I typically look for so for that reason, I definitely will not be back.The candy in the store seemed old and the selection was really minimal, there wasn't much to choose from and the section was just so small. I thought the candy section was larger and had a better selection. That was disappointing. Overall, the experience was eh.

    Alfred L.

    I'm not a fan of authoring negative reviews, but in this case, I need to warn as many people as possible. I never have understood the allure of the Sugar Factory, and even more puzzled after my recent visit. I vsited their Chicago location and waited 20 minutes for a reservation that was scheduled and still had to sit in uncomfortable high tables by the bar. The level of service was pretty good, with the young man who waited on us being very attentive and management staff coming by a couple of times to check to see how things were going. Unfortunately, the quality of food that comes frozen, out of a bag, from Costco, would've been better. The onion wings were greasy and mushy. The chicken and waffles looked beautiful. The chicken was a perfect golden brown and the first set of waffles looked really nice. The positive aspect of it ended there. The waffles were room temperature and the chicken made me think of The Sugarhill Gang. Though it was hot and fresh out of the fryer, it was unseasoned and tasted like wood. I kept the chicken and tried to suffer through it while they remade my waffles and they came back even worse. Soggy throughout. Tahirah, my colleague, shared that her fajitas were so bad that no amount of added salt or pepper could rescue them. The dry ice bubbling Peña Colada tasted like base syrup, to be mixed with a gallon of water, to make pineapple coconut koolaide. The coupes de gras, was the ice cream sundae, that tasted like artificially flavored mushy icemilk. This place is only about the visual aspect of a gimmick laden dining experience, and fails as it pertains to food texture, flavor and quality. If you want a neat video and photos for your IG, go here. If you want food that you can eat and enjoy when you are in Chicago, you would do better going to Harold's for some fried chicken and French fries.

    Bobbii J.

    It was alright. We got the $150 dollar burger but staff were not enthusiastic. Very dreary vibes. We got two of the fishbowl drinks. My boyfriend didn't finish his so I did. Keep in mind these were supposedly the highest percentage drinks, we got the Long Island iced tea drink. I had BOTH of them and didn't feel tipsy or drunk. I was shocked and disappointed. Why are drinks $40, you tell us they are alcoholic, and yet I had nearly two and didn't feel anything. Pretty sad we spent so much money to not feel appreciated or taken care of.

    Rainbow pancakes
    Cassie H.

    This was candy heaven for the kids. The drinks are expensive but large, an experience, and delicious. The server warns you if you opt for the alcoholic version that it does contain 6-8 shots and I bet that some people can get in a lot of trouble that way! The rainbow pancakes were large enough that our entire table shared. They're a little sweet even without the maple syrup!!! Be prepared for lots of dining room noise but the booths are private for your own experience. My takeaway: come for the drinks and candy, but you can make it a dessert stop after eating your meal elsewhere!

    Unicorn hot chocolate

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    Sugar Factory - River North Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Sugar Factory - River North

    Any dress code??

    None that I noticed or was told. Very casual atmosphere.

    Do you have to make a reservation?

    You don’t have to make reservations, although I would suggest that you did during the weekends.

    Any happy hour specials?

    Yes

    View All 4 Questions

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    Ichiban Candy & Snacks

    4.4(19 reviews)
    2.6 miChinatown
    Locally owned & operated
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    When we were little, we always came to Chinatown for candies and toys. The neighborhood has changed…read moreover the years, but they are still a place to get our favorite rice candy, Botan. I think it used to be called Tomoe Ame, but it's the same as ever, though it used to come with a tiny plastic or even metal toy, and now it comes with a toy tattoo. The candy is a lightly-flavored set-jelly candy, much like a Turkish Delight, and the inner wrapper right next to the candy is rice-paper that melts in your mouth! I think we used to shop down Wentworth south of Cermak, and there are still authentic restaurants and all kinds of shops there. Nowadays we mostly head to the Chinatown Square open-air mall. This time we stopped in the Ichiban Candy & Snacks store. They have so many kinds of sweets, and yes, Botan Ame! They sell a trendy new ice cream bar, Dubai Pistachio Chocolate Flavor! Inside a fairly thick chocolate shell, the filling is like skinny long bright green sprinkles! It's fun and unusual. Even better, while we were there (Nov 2025), if you bought over $35 of candy, (we did :-), the friendly staff gave out a free ice cream bar as a sample! We all got to taste it. Pretty good! They have good old White Rabbit candy, like a white taffy roll. They have unusual "Chinese flavors" of Lay's Potato Chips we got Cucumber, Lime, Peking Duck, Five Spice, and Wasabi. They also have cans of formed potato chips like pringles. Other than the spicy flavors and the wasabi, none really have the flavor in the name, but they are all interesting, and every one we tried went well with beer :-). You can never go wrong with various flavors of Kit Kat. We like the original Pocky sticks and the chocolate-filled Hello Panda cookies. And there is a vast assortment of by-the-pound hard candies and chewy candies. We stop in now and then just to refill our candy dishes :-)

    This candy store has tons of variety and sells chocolate, chews, chips, ramen, beverages, gummies,…read moreand more. Everything is clean and organized, and a lot of the candy is loose so you can pack your own bag and purchase based on weight. There are also tons of packaged snacks and candies too. You can pay with cash or card, with a $5 minimum to use a card.

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    It'Sugar

    It'Sugar

    3.8(41 reviews)
    0.3 miNear North Side, River East

    Today on Christmas Day, when almost all the stores on Michigan Avenue were closed, It'Sugar was…read moresurprisingly open. It felt nice to find a colorful and lively place while everything else around was quiet. The store had a cheerful holiday vibe with bright lights and shelves full of candies, chocolates, and fun treats. There were some really good deals going on, with many items on 50% and even 75% discount, which made it a great time to shop. You could find a mix of classic candies, chocolates, and fun novelty items at reasonable prices. Even though it was Christmas, the store was not very busy, so it was easy to walk around, browse comfortably, and take your time choosing items. The staff was friendly and helpful, and the overall atmosphere was fun and relaxed. Overall, It'Sugar on Michigan Avenue was a nice surprise on Christmas Day -- colorful, cheerful, and perfect for picking up sweet treats or small gifts while enjoying the holiday mood.

    What a FUN store! While visiting Chicago with a friend, we…read morediscovered this location after a full day of site seeing, shopping and hours of walking. We treated ourselves to bags of our favorite candies. We were greeting with a friendly staff. One worker sang while stocking products in the bins. She was a delight. The store was very organized, clean and bright It was the perfect pick me up

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    It'Sugar - My Candy Assortment Purchase-08/23

    My Candy Assortment Purchase-08/23

    It'Sugar - My candy purchase assortment-08/23

    My candy purchase assortment-08/23

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    Sugar Factory - River North - candy - Updated June 2026

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