Nutella Cafe Chicago

You know what they say: Money can't buy happiness. No, but it can buy Nutella and that makes me pretty dang happy. While we were in Chicago around Christmas, I had Jason find us parking near the fairly new Nutella Cafe. It's been open for a little more than 1.5 years, but I only just heard about it myself a few months ago and have by jonesing to give them a try ever since. 

While I never turn down the opportunity to head to The Windy City, sometimes Allison isn't too hopped up on taking a day trip there. This time though, all I had to say was "Nutella Cafe" and she was already heading for the car.

Nutella Cafe is located on Michigan Avenue, which was good since we were wanting to do a little holiday shopping and didn't have to go out of our way to eat beforehand. I'll be honest here and say Jason was less than thrilled with our choice of dining that day (sometimes I wonder why I'm still married to that man) since Chicago is home to some of the best eateries in the country, but I knew we would be back the following week and penciled in a stop at Giordano's for some deep dish pizza just for him.

You'll be offered a menu upon entering the cafe, but you'll stand in line and place your order at the register, then a team member will bring your order to you once it's ready. Allison decided to get the Grilled Baguette and I opted for the Fresh Flaky Nutella filled Croissant.

If you aren't in the mood for pastries though, they do have plenty of other offerings like grilled paninis, fruit bowls, salads, crepes, pancakes and waffles to choose from.

Both my croissant and Allison's baguette were right around $5 each, which is a bit pricey, but we are talking about Chicago + Nutella so I knew it wasn't going to be cheap eating. Jason griped the whole time he could have made us the same stuff at home for less than $2, and while honestly the food tasted just like what we could make at home ourselves, we knew going in we were paying for the experience.

Nutella Cafe is a charming little cafe, but it is quite small. There was no open seating available while we were waiting for our order to come up, but we did manage to snag a table right before our food came out. Since seating is super limited here, do know that it's going to be hit or miss on whether or not you'll get a seat if you choose to dine here, especially during peak dining hours and on weekends. Additionally, we couldn't find a garbage bin, but didn't have a problem flagging down staff to clear our table for us.  

While we did enjoy the food, since it is a bit pricey for what you get, we probably won't dine here again. Overall though, I do think it's fun to stop in just for the novelty of going. And, don't forget to grab yourself a souvenir jar of Nutella that says Chicago on it. It's a fun little memento to have of a delicious snack combined with a beautiful city.

Are you a Nutella fan? What's your favorite thing to eat it with?