The 3rd Coast

The greatest diner-​ish spot in the Gold Coast; forever the go-​to. Consistently great music (aka good Pandora stations)! Affordable & good drink specials if you go during the week.
Note: There is no wi-​fi, so not the greatest place to get work done other than reading.

Adorable, cozy, warm and old-​school café. I wasn’t initially greeted for about 10 minutes (hence 4 stars) but you seated yourself. The waiters were not very welcoming but the one who finally waited our table was kind to ask if I needed anything. Food was prompt and they had a great menu. I ordered root beer (I’m sad I forgot the name now but it was a Mexican root beer that had a cinnamon spice to it — delicious!), fresh fruit side and Malibu cheeseburger with goat cheese, spinach, avocado, and roasted red pepper. It was so juicy and perfectly cooked medium rare. I was ecstatic! I love a really well prepared burger any day! I would definitely come back here to try the other parts of the menu or after our baby is born, have a glass of wine. They also have breakfast foods to go as well as wines for sale. It’s such a great little hidden gem. Not many interesting people to watch but the food is wonderful and my waiter made up for the initial cold shoulder from the other waiters. It’s difficult to find parking but there is a parking garage next door and paid street parking. Great for groups or probably a date in the evening for a glass of wine.

Ordered the veggie hash and egg-​whites, really soggy and greasy. Atmosphere is really nice and cozy. Food comes out really fast. Service is good.

Just went back here today after not having been here in awhile. They had expanded their menu since I had been here and it seems like the prices definitely went up. I used to really enjoy their smaller menu with reasonable prices. It was more of a café than a brunch spot. The food is very plain and basic.
It has a cute and cozy atmosphere though. Nice lighting and it usually feels rather cozy. Great scones and nice drink specials during the week nights.

Stopped in for Friday lunch and the place was doing a brisk business. The décor was beautiful, very warm and traditional. As you walk in the first thing you notice are the huge scones in the glass case… I don’t know why I didn’t have one because I love classic scones. Oh well, an opportunity missed. I had the chicken curry salad on a baguette and enjoyed it. My wife had the California salad and her comment was something like «I’ll take a southwest salad at MacDo’s any day over this.» It was a lot of white lettuce and rather skimpy overall. Our waiter was inattentive at best. If he had come by and said «can I interest you in anything else?» I would have had a scone. Now I know why I didn’t have one… darn it.

Had breakfast there 2 times while my visit from NYC. My boyfriend had a GIANT amazing French toast w bananas and walnuts — a must try if you not counting those calories ! I had a veggie sandwich with a side Ceesar salad, thumbs up for carrying GLUTEN FREE BREAD for food nerds like me ;)
Service was friendly both times, cool diner with a hip vibe.
Can get pretty crowded for brunch so don’t mind a wait

Had a pleasant time here with some friends who lived in the building. Very cosy place, but not in a bad way! Came at 11am on a Sunday and the 4 of us were instantly seated and accomdated. The food was fine, sadly nothing spectacular, but by no means disappointing. They had nice drink specials on Sunday morning, but i didn’t try them this time, I had blueberry pancakes and hash browns– no major complaints. The hot chocolate was good. My friend got the Lox meal and it looked very appealing.

Clean, friendly, quick service for lunch. The Ditch Club, with house dill sauce was fantastic. Will return again.

$ 5 Margaritas night Monday. Lovely stylish vintage space. Friendly people. Cool rotating local artist artwork on wall for sale. Good homestyle café food and reasonable prices. A neighborhood gem.

Cozy café style coffee and eatery with a nice relaxed atmosphere. Very nice servers!
On Saturdays they serve $ 5 Bloody Marys, Mimosas and Pimosas. My sister’s chai latte was too sweet (although she didn’t specify less sugar when she ordered) but the barista graciously added more milk for her.
We didn’t eat but found it a nice rest stop on our walk to old town from river north

Unfortunately we had one of the worst customer service experiences in recent memory at 3^rd Coast last weekend. We were staying nearby and stopped there for espresso drinks and juice. Upon learning that we weren’t ordering food, the waiter huffed up and practically yanked the menus out of our hands. The coffee was great, but he never bothered bringing us the juice. Feeling unwelcome, we finished our drinks relatively quickly and asked for the check, then waited 10 minutes while our waiter decided to hang out over by the bar. We finally gave up, left some cash on the table, and walked out. Needless to say, we will not be returning there.

Had wine and dinner with a few friends on a Monday night. It was fairly empty so service was fast.
Interior and décor remind me of an old speakeasy. It’s lounge-​y while still feeling like a nice restaurant.
Wine and food selection are great including light options like salad and soup or heavier options like penne and chicken dishes. They even have several gluten free options too.
Wine selection is decent too.
After reading all the reviews, I know I will have to cone back for brunch.

Dim, chill lounge music and warmth. I was looking for a spot for where I’m staying and had to park far away. As soon as I got out I saw this place and decided to eat right away since there’s no way I would leave the apt after the walk. It’s kind of a little hideaway slightly below ground level that can serve as a place to have coffee or a place to go on a non over the top date. It’s great.
Everything is simple here and the service was great. I got a Caesar, beef ravioli, and an old fashioned. About 6 – 8 large well cooked ravioli with garlic bread and shaved parm. The sauce was surprisingly good and everything had good flavor. No complaints for this place.
Easy place to stay and disconnect for awhile. Would definitely recommend.

Such a wonderful restaurant! I have only been here once, but already have many plans to return. The atmosphere is quaint and comfortable — it does not feel uptight like many of the other wine bars in Chicago. The staff is knowledgable on their wine, as well as wine and food pairings. The food is delicious — our appetizers and main courses were presented beautifully and tasted even better. And of course, you have to get dessert! I highly recommend the key lime pie. What makes this restaurant so dynamic is the owner — she is a kind and caring individual, always ensuring that her guests are happy and satisfied.

I’ve been coming here for years and will continue to come here as long as they have the best coffee I’ve found in the city. Food is very good, staff is always pleasant, and it’s never so busy that you feel rushed or crowded out. But the coffee, oh man the coffee…

Foods great! Just sucks they charge $ 1.50 per slice of bacon.
Place is cute too
They have different menu for weekday and weekend brunch

Good location, charming interior in an old building, good food… and unfortunately very mediocre service. Went with family this AM, was seated promptly and handed menus and water. Five, ten minutes later (place was busy, not packed) after we had been seated for some time, server arrived. We just ordered food and it arrived. She was slow to arrive, never checked to see if we liked it or anything. The Pancakes were tasty and was the sourdough french toast. If they had good service, would be a great place to go

More than a restaurant — Not only are you served incredible food and at a reasonable price, you are delivered a vibe. I feel like the most inviting homes, thought-​provoking art galleries, and emotionally-​moving theatres, achieve their zenith because they all make you feel something. The 3^rd Coast does this so well. The staff is caring, genuine, and makes you feel a part of their world. Not only does the menu rotate daily but the walls of the restaurant feature different local artists every couple months. The music is always on-​point. Also, both of the co-​owners are often seen walking around the restaurant, involved in operations, and checking in on tables making sure their aim to deliver a beautiful experience is being met.
I have lived in the 1260 N Dearborn building for the last 2.5 years and haven’t left largely because of The 3^rd Coast.

The 3^rd Coast offers solid breakfast options and we found it after staying nearby at Hotel Indigo since it was just a few doors down. When you enter from Dearborn, you are in a lobby of an office building and the 3^rd Coast is located on the left side. You seat yourself and we had no problems finding a table on a Saturday morning. There were quite a few tables with families with toddlers and it was a nice mixture of Saturday locals and tourists. We both had omelettes and you get a very hearty portion of hash browns (or your choice of fruit) and then you can pick from an English muffin or different types of toast. I had the house omelette with ham and cheese and peppers and it was very tasty. Our waitress was very attentive and friendly. She said y’all and it was nice to be greeted with Southern Charm while in the Windy City. I saw someone order a stack of pancakes and they looked yummy. We did not wait long for our food and were in an out in no time. All in all, the prices are great and you really get a hearty portion for $ 11. If there were a 3.5 option, that is what I would rate them.

I should have written this review a long time ago but it never really crossed my mind until I came to 3^rd Coast’s Unilocal page and saw that a few folks had given mediocre reviews. And that offended me to my very core because I feel like this restaurant is like my little baby and I need to protect it!
I’ve come here or ordered carry-​out from here probably 25 times over the past year. The Cajun chicken pasta is single handedly at fault for the fact that I can’t seem to lose those last five pounds. It’s legitimately one of the best pasta dishes I’ve ever had… And I’m Italian so I have some street cred. If you don’t know what to get, you can never go wrong there.
Chopped salad, kale and quinoa salad and coronation chicken salad are amazing — and huge! Sometimes I even get crazy and ask for a scoop of the chicken salad on my kale and quinoa salad. And they do it without question because they’re the sweetest people ever and they don’t judge my bizarre tastes.
Breakfast is always a trusty go-​to as well. Italian omelet with extra marinara is clinically proven to cure hangovers.
It’s a great place. All the people are gems. If you’re in the hood and you’re hungry for ANYTHING at all… This is your no brainer destination.

This review is for the coffee and scone alone because they deserve it. I rarely ever have good coffee at restaurants that serve breakfast and growing up in the SeaTac area I know a good cup of coffee when I taste one. I absolutely hate weak, watered down coffee, but don’t worry The 3^rd Coast has you covered. You are going to get a cup of strong, flavorful coffee that leaves you wanting more. Now, the scone… I chose the Blueberry one, but I should’ve ordered all three (there were also chocolate and raspberry)! But I knew I was going to get a fatty deep dish pizza later on so I told myself to simmer down. The scone was fluffy yet dense. I don’t even know if that is possible… it was like eating a special dessert and they serve it with whipped cream =) for $ 3.95 I thought it was well worth it. Definitely want to go back and try their breakfast specialties.

Get the scones! They were really delicious and well made. The rest of the food we ordered was rather good, as well. The service was good, even with our clumsy, coffee spilling group. They were really accommodating for our party when we switched seats, needed a larger table, etc. Would definitely pop in for the scones on their own — absolutely delicious.

My boyfriend and I decided to come here for brunch upon a recommendation from the hosts of the Airbnb we were staying at. It was only a few blocks away so we decided to give it a try. It was around 11 am on a Wednesday, so it wasn’t too busy.
Since we weren’t that hungry, we decided to share the Mexican steak and eggs (grilled skirt steak, melted cheese, corn or flour tortillas and pico de gallo, with hash browns). Everything was really bland. I don’t think I would have been able to eat it without the hot sauce or ketchup that they had. We ordered the steak medium rare, but it was really medium well.
The only thing good about this place was probably the coffee. They also seem like they have pretty good drink specials each night, but we didn’t get to try that.
So my advice? Stick to liquids only. Or at least avoid the Mexican steak and eggs.

Cool spot with a great atmosphere.
Food is delicious service fast and courteous.
If your in the Gold Coast and want a great meal in a quaint and quiet place this hits the spot.

This is a solid four star restaurant. I came here with my friend on a Wednesday afternoon. There were a couple tables occupied and we sat ourselves right away. I had the house omelet with a chocolate chip scone. Both were delicious. I never thought to serve a scone with whipped cream, but I’m sold. The only thing that kind of bothered me was the server. Yeah, he was the only server and he had a couple other tables to take care of, but I still don’t think that’s an excuse for rude behavior. We sat awhile before he brought over our menus and even then he just dropped them on the table without a word. When he came back all he said was, «ready?» Oh well, the great food made up for it.

I came here mid/​late afternoon after exploring a museum and was absolutely famished. My friend had looked the place up via Unilocal and said «whatever I get, I’m also getting a scone on the side, so don’t judge!». I would NEVER judge a person for wanting a delicious breakfast food, and as soon as I passed the pastry case with them inside, saw they had raspberry, and that it was served with whipped cream, I had need for one as well!
Their menu and pics posted by fellow Unilocalers made my decision all too difficult. Everything sounded great! I kept flipping the menu back and forth before I decided on a burger. I was pleasantly surprised to see that soup was a side option, as well as hash browns or a salad. There was the slightest inkling of a chill in the air so I went with a cup of their spicy garbanzo barley soup, the Baja Burger and the raspberry scone.
The waiter working seemed to be the only one managing the register and all the tables. It wasn’t super busy, but for one person, I guess it was kind of a lot. He dropped menus on the table that he’d just taken from another table, and by the first time he came around to greet us, it was already decision time for all the food. He came off as a little rushed and abrupt. We ordered food, and diet cokes and began our tortuous wait.
I was a little disappointed to see that the pops were served in cans. AKA– no free refills. Bummer, could’ve used a little more of that caffiene!
Food came out relatively shortly after, and everything was delicious. I LOVED the soup– mild spice, loaded with beans and barley… I’m definitely going to hunt out a recipe for it! The burger was juicy, a little greasy, had a decent amount of avocado on it and TONS of pepperjack cheese– Just what the doctor ordered! The scone was quite large, had a fair amount of raspberries on it, and was also pretty good. It wasn’t a life changing experience, I’d say the soup was the closest food item for that.
My friend ordered similar with an omelet meal, scone and coke. We left with leftovers and our total was like $ 42. I thought it was reasonable for what we got. I’d come back again.

Overall: Cozy and homey little café great for breakfast/​brunch/​lunch or a casual dining experience.
The Good: Atmosphere is comforting and easy going. Service is very friendly and attentive, my coffee was always full. The food was excellent and portioned just right, and came out pretty quickly fresh and ready.
The bad: Not much! Even the music was pretty good.
Atmosphere: ⁹⁄₁₀
Service: ⁹⁄₁₀
Food: ⁹⁄₁₀