Curio Cafe - A mom's best friend in Avondale

I've lamented before about the lack of coffee shops in my neighborhood. While technically in Avondale, Curio Cafe is a cute cafe and more. It may be the most child-firendly cafe I've ever been to. They have a play area with a small table, bench and play kitchen for the kids; plus a whole walk that is a blackboard. They also welcome nursing mothers, with two cozy overstuffed chairs and a small sign from La Leche League. (I think this is fair warning though, if you're looking to AVOID children, this is not the place for you.)

How's the food though? Very good!! So far, I've had 3 separate visits at different times of day. The staff is always helpful. A steak sandwich for breakfast at 10am? No problem! This is what I had today - it's a piece of flavorful marinated skirt steak on a fresh, if unexciting Gonnella french roll, with lettuce, tomato, sweet red onion and homemade mayo. I've had the carrot soup to go, it was a generous 12 oz container with a hunk of whole grain bauguette for $4.99. Nicely seasoned, but not overly spiced.

Last weekend I took the family for breakfast. The Spanish Omlette was a nice mix and included a flavorful Spanish Style chorizo, not the crumbly Mexican style. (Not that there's anythign wrong with that.) I had the Plato Tipico - good free renge eggs, perfectly cooked over easy, plantains, black beans, tortillas, house made red sauce and an add on of that same steak. You can also get crepes, individually. I think these are a bargain at $2.50 and maybe the best thing on the menu. We tried the strawberry - it was crisp edged, buttery with fresh chopped starberry filling with just a hint of sugar.

Coffee is good, a strong smooth blend an is Equal Exchange. I've had it hot and iced.

I'm looking forward to enjoying more of their soups and having a place to take the rugrats. besides the arches of gold as we head into the long Chicago winter.

Curio Cafe
3400 N Lawndale Ave
Chicago, IL 60618
(773) 463-2233

I finally made it into this little spot that deserves a fair bit more love than I think it gets. In a totally unassuming spot nestled on a residential corner, Curio quickly and deftly serves up honest plates of good food at a decent price. A bonus to parents of little ones, the kid-friendliness is handled here in a way that few other places manage.

I ate the plato tipico described by kafein above. My boys devoured their quesadillas.

Curio is hardly a destination restaurant, but if you've got little kids (or don't mind them) and are anywhere within a short drive of the place, there are few better brunch/lunch spots that I can think of.

Best,
Michael