Just dessert on a Saturday night?

I wasn't sure how to do a search for possible existing threads on this topic, but...

Saturday night I'm meeting some out-of-towners for dessert, probably at about 9pm. They're staying in the Gold Coast, will have dinner (without me) at Cafe Spiaggia. Can anyone suggest a good place to meet for dessert and coffee? They don't visit Chicago very often, and since it's only dessert, cost is not really a concern. Suggestions can be in the Gold Coast or a short cab ride away. Since I'll be driving to meet them, a neighborhood with at least some possibility of parking would be ideal, but I'm the only one in the group concerned about this.

There are some good suggestions in this thread.

Best,
Michael

Try the Third Coast at 1260 N Dearborn St, they have a ton of coffee drinks and desserts, which I haven't tried. It is a bit hidden away, which gives it an intimate old-school European feel. Perfect for a good chat, not so great if your group is rowdy.

Supposedly there is a new little cafe at 1143 North Wells St. called La Sera, although it is not listed anywhere but Centerstage thus far. I am excited about trying it becuase it seems to serve Julius Meinl coffee. A google search seems to reveal that it has a Turkish flavor, since it will participate in the Chicago Turkish Festival? No garuntees there. It looks cute from the outside.

Head to Tempo Cafe at 6 E. Chestnut for a country diner feel... they server typical diner desserts.

Depending on the family, they might enjoy the feel of Johnny Rockets at 901 N. Rush St. Just about the only think I really recommend at this overpriced spot are the shakes, which are great.

Your best bet might just be Bombon Americano at 1000 N Clark St. I can't vouch for that because I haven't been there... but I've been hearing good things. Supposedly it's small and it closes at 8, so that might take it off your list.

If you feel like it, you could enjoy a walk up Rush Street. At about Rush and Oak there is a cute little park with a Gloria Jeans that has seating and great people watching.

Graze at 35 w Ontario, 312 255 1234

The pastry chef Jordan Rappaport is outstanding.

Oh, one more... if you're looking for something more upscale and a true Chicago experience, why not try the Pump Room at 1301 N. State? They've been getting some nods on here recently.

Thanks for the suggestions and that past thread.

Try the Third Coast

I like Third Coast, but I think it's a little more casual than we want to go for tomorrow night. I'll look into La Sera.

The tricky part is that this is last-minute planning, and we're a group of five which is kind of a deal-breaker number. Tru's lounge only takes groups of up to four, and Blackbird, whose desserts I've always liked, has a hard time accommodating five. I've made two reservations, one at David Burke's Primehouse for the fill-your-own doughnuts and one at Custom House. When I called around, I was upfront about only coming for dessert, and most places were very nice about it. I felt like I got a little attitude from the person at Custom House, but that's still my preference over Primehouse in terms of the food. I'm feeling guilty about taking a table at any place on Saturday night for only dessert--I realize we're a bigger group and won't run up a big bill--but if I figure it's not as bad since I'm telling the restaurants as I inquire about reservations...

You might try up by North and Clybourn, that's a close cab ride and there's a number of places around... I hate to say this on here but if you pick a restaurant in the area and look it up on yelp, you can use the map and select "restaurants nearbye" and have places pin pointed on a map for you. I appreciate that visual tool and use it all the time.

papua2001mk wrote:You might try up by North and Clybourn, that's a close cab ride and there's a number of places around... I hate to say this on here but if you pick a restaurant in the area and look it up on yelp, you can use the map and select "restaurants nearbye" and have places pin pointed on a map for you. I appreciate that visual tool and use it all the time.

Metromix has a "what's nearby" feature as well.

So does LTH, if you're willing to hack.

Here's a search near North and Clybourn using the technique described in the above-linked post.