This Illinois Coffee Shop Is The Best In The State

By Hannah DeRuyter

March 23, 2022

satisfied customer leaving tip in a bowl with a positive message on a sticker. money, tip, satisfied, positive message
Photo: Getty Images

Most Americans need a cup of joe to get their morning started. Whether they make coffee at home, head to Starbucks, or grab a cup while at work, there are plenty of options to pick from.

Instead of going to a major chain for coffee, Food & Wine curated a list of the best coffee shop each state has to offer.

"The coffee, the look, the vibe—what then, of hospitality, the final and most important piece of the puzzle, at a time when small businesses are often left struggling to find any help at all? Much has been said on the subject of service during the last two years, but as far as a great cafe goes, achieving perfection has never been about the staff working at lightning speed, or being robotically subservient, or even doing perfect work every single time."

The writer of the article visited several coffee shops to find which were the best in each state.

"What has always mattered most is the creation and cultivation of an environment of welcome, energetic, inspiring but never frantic, peaceful, restorative but never listless, knowledgeable but patient, a place where you feel at ease, an antidote to every kind of stress we might be carrying across the threshold."

So, where in Illinois can you find the best coffee shop?

Dayglow.

Here is what the report had to say about Dayglow:

"Tohm Ifergan's family moved from Mexico City to Chicago when he was a kid, and while he's best known these days for the two coffee shops he operates in Los Angeles, his homecoming during the pandemic, when he opened Dayglow next door to his brother's brewery in Humboldt Park, is not only the most notable shop in the city right now, but also perhaps the middle of the country. Too keenly focused, too minimal for some, so very far away from the couch filled cafes of yesteryear, this is a place not to loll around, but to explore some of the top roasting talent on the planet. As in California, Ifergan sources from his favorites in Scandinavia and elsewhere, heavily favoring the lighter, Nordic-style roasts. If you want somewhere to hang out, you might be in the wrong spot; if your goal is locating the best coffee in Chicago, sending you elsewhere first would be a mistake."

Click here to see the best coffee shop in each state.

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