Coffee Lab, Evanston

Coffee Lab opened quietly early last month in the double space previously occupied by the Linz & Vail gelato shop on Noyes Street in Evanston, just a few doors west of GNR Al's Deli. The configuration of the space remains the same, with the entrance, counter and drink and food prep area in the western half and a small sitting room adjacent, both spaces with picture windows that look out onto Noyes and the park across the street.







If I remember accurately the space before, Coffee Lab has arrived with a fresh coat of white paint and an Ikea-esque kitchen, which gives the space a more modern, not exactly laboratory-like, but perhaps colder feel. I'm guessing the "lab" part comes in with the beakers and retort stands.



Coffee Lab brews Intelligentsia coffee and teas and sells baked goods from Sweet Miss Giving's. It's run by Scott, a former local seminarian, who told me yesterday that he spent a lot of time studying in coffee shops as a student and saw the need for a cafe on this stretch of Noyes.

For now, Coffee Lab is relying on word-of-mouth for publicity. It doesn't seem to have a website or Facebook page yet, which means I should have asked Scott their hours, phone number and wi-fi situation--but didn't.

Coffee Lab
922 Noyes Street
Evanston, IL 60201

happy_stomach wrote:Coffee Lab opened quietly early last month in the double space previously occupied by the Linz & Vail gelato shop on Noyes Street in Evanston, just a few doors west of I'm guessing the "lab" part comes in with the beakers and retort stands.



Coffee Lab brews Intelligentsia coffee and teas and sells baked goods from Sweet Miss Giving's.

This is the same set up and brewing technique that Intelligentsia is now using in their cafes.
Thanks for the tip on this place. I'll have to check it out.
Do they also sell whole beans?

Darren72 wrote:Do they also sell whole beans?

I'm not a coffee drinker, so I always fail to pay attention to such things, but I believe these red Intelligentsia packages at the edge of the counter were whole beans and all marked for sale.

happy_stomach wrote:

You're right. The funny thing is I stared at that photo for a while trying to see if the blackboards in the back had prices for whole beans. I gave up when I decided I couldn't read them well enough.

Thanks.

This is the original-sized photo with the chalkboards for anyone who wants to see prices. The whole beans aren't listed, but cups of coffee are $2.25-$2.50. Espresso drinks are $2-$4 (depending more on size). Tea is $3. Baked goods are $2.30-$3, and I don't know if this is always the case, but bananas are listed as free.

Looks like a nice little place! Just down the block from my old barber Fred (RIP).

Stopped in today. The Bananas are now $1 and no longer come with an unnecessary apostrophe.

Started with a vanilla latte, which was good but not remarkable. My wife initially ordered a 12oz cappuccino (I had ordered first and was asked whether I wanted a 12 or 16oz latte) and was offered a long lecture about "the proper ratio of coffee, milk, blah blah blah" and talked down to a 6oz. When it arrived it had almost no foam, but she said it was good.

After finishing my latte I ordered a brewed coffee - Intelligentsia's Diablo Roast. Which they brew to order and comes in a cup with excess coffee in a beaker (kind of like getting a milkshake with the excess in the metal mixing cup). It was great.

Not a lot of seating. We wanted to read and all that was available was some not too comfy chairs around a coffee-table. Not ideal.

So, if you don't mind your coffee coming with a healthy dose of pretension, I recommend it. It's a bit out of our way, so I doubt we'll be back as we're usually looking for a good place to sit for awhile and this just doesn't cut it on that front. We'll probably try the newly opened Perla Cafe at Dempster/Dodge next.

We did though also walk down the street to nearby Fraiche and grabbed a whoopie pie and twix bar (a homemade version of course) that I'm excited to try later.

Just remembered that this is why I joined LTH in the first place - searched google for Coffee Lab and turned up here.

Their regular coffee is pretty great - they use the pourover technique which creates a nice even cup. I've found that when I order a vanilla latte they tend to use a little too much syrup. That being said, this is a welcomed addition to the coffee shops offered in Evanston.