TARY Coffee

Very pleased with food quality, service and cleanliness. This is my favorite breakfast place now. The cottage cheese pancakes are absolutely delicious. Team is very well trained and polite. I also liked the uniforms. Thank you TARY team, great food, grate service!

My friend and I wanted some coffee after brunch this past Saturday afternoon, and TARY Coffee was a couple blocks away. The interior was pretty minimalistic with good natural lighting. They have other food and desserts here, not just drinks. Overall, it's pretty pricy here.LATTE IRIMSHIK - 8.15Latte irimshik is a normal latte mixed with irimshik, which I learned is a lightly sweet dried cottage cheese, a Kazakh food. I enjoyed the slightly cheesy flavor and I was given a sauce cup container full of it to mix into my latte. I wish I put all of it into my latte in the beginning. Each latte also comes with a rolled up waffle/crepe pastry that you can dip into your drink. Overall, this was a unique drink that was done pretty well. Just $$$.

It's kind of pricey, but the food and drinks were hearty, filling, tasty, and well-presented. The vibes inside were great too-- the decor was beautiful and cohesive and the soft instrumental music created a chill atmosphere perfect for hangouts or light work. Split with a friend, the end price was ~$28 pp.I tried the following items- - Tary Porridge (4.2/5): Very milky, creamy, and hearty with all the soaked tary millets inside. Combined with the large helpings of jam and ghee, it's quite a rich and filling dish.- Baursak with irimshik (4.3/5): This was good! The irimshik had a cottage cheese-like, yet unique taste and texture. The dough is warm and freshly fried.- Tary Cappucino (4.4/5): Another hearty, filling drink with soaked tary millets inside. It tasted good and creamy.

TARY is an elegant, boho chic cafe that serves foods and caffeinated beverages centered around these organic grains. It's a beautiful ambiance when you enter and always packed. It's all about minimalism with this cafe. You order at the counter, receive a number and wait for a table to become available unless there's one open. They bring your food to you and then you're done. My friend and I tried this spot per her recommendation and I was open. I ordered the tary porridge and a slice of the carrot cake with ice cream. She ordered the salmon Benedict and a pot of their new mountain tea. The tea cups/ mugs were bowls. Tasted lovely but we weren't offered honey. I didn't need it but if I did, not sure if they would carry it there. The porridge was nice and came with a side of butter and raspberry preserve. I liked the flavor but it was similar to that of cream of wheat just gluten free with more milk. I still felt hungry - so the price to portion wasn't really adding up. My friend said she enjoyed her Benny but she wished there was more depth and texture to the dish. It felt monotone in consistency. The carrot cake was a no just no. It needs moisture. I felt like it was rubber and super tough to cut through. The ice cream scoop was itsy bitsy. A meatball would've been bigger. Overall, I enjoyed myself and the customer service was good but I wouldn't be inclined to return. To expensive and overrated.

This brand new spot was only steps from our hotel while we were on vacation. It looked amazing and we wanted a new experience for breakfast. The food is great, but they need to work on service and layout of the space. When you walk in you head to the counter to order, but they ask that you grab a table first if you are dining in. The space is small and feels like a coffee shop, so there were people sitting there on their laptops only having a coffee. This would cause a lot of people to be standing around waiting for a table to open. This isn't a problem unless those only ordering a coffee use up all your dining space. We were able to get a table and order. The food came out slow and in phases and they even forgot my pancakes. There was only one person attending to the tables. Both bringing you the order and cleaning up after. Meanwhile you had 6 people cooking. It is clear the service part needs some work, but what is also clear is that once that happens this place will be amazing! I hope to visit again one day and feel amazed! Enjoy!

Smoked Sandwich: The smoked sandwich was the best! The tortilla-like bread tasted excellent, so much so that I had to order more.Chicken Soup: I loved the bread they used to cover the bowl and the clear broth was delightful. However, there wasn't much chicken insideCoffee: The coffee was decent, nothing extraordinary but enjoyable enough.Ambience: The coffee shop is cute, with a cozy atmosphere. However, I noticed that the window seats had a lot of dead flies on the ground, which detracted from the otherwise pleasant experience.Overall, the smoked sandwich was a standout, and while there were some minor issues, the food and the ambience were generally enjoyable.

Such unique food. Everything tasted so fresh. The decor and ambiance was awesome, and staff amazing. Highly recommend their version of chicken noodle soup. The broth was very delicate and light tasting with a, contrasting with the puff pastry-esque shell. Would definitely come here again!

TARY is such a cute cafe with unique Kazakh food and drinks! There are plenty of tables to sit at and the staff was very friendly and even walked us through the menu.The signature latte comes with a sweetened cheese on the side that you can eat or mix in to the drink. I love the double walled glass cup, it's both aesthetic and ergonomic.The baursaq with irimshik was my favorite dish. It's described as a fried dough bite with cottage cheese and comes with what tasted like condensed milk on the side to dip. The sauce was a bit more liquidy than condensed milk though. The texture of the fried dough was soft like mochi, but the dough tasted similar to Chinese fried donuts (youtiao). Me and my partner were actually quite full after sharing this dish.The cottage cheese pancakes took a bit longer to come out, maybe 20 minutes after the other dishes came out. This had a similar condensed milk sauce. It was very flavorful.We came early on memorial Day and there was actually quite a bit of street parking on Illinois which is super convenient. Bathrooms were gender neutral and very clean as well.

Tary Coffee House, a recent addition to Chicago's vibrant downtown scene, offers a unique culinary adventure into the heart of Kazakhstan. Stepping inside, the unfamiliar becomes inviting, with a menu boasting an array of coffee, tea, pastries, and hearty meals, all featuring the millet grain known as "tary." Prized for its nutritional value in Kazakh culture, tary boasts a subtle earthiness that adds a distinctive touch to their menu.Baursaq with Irimsik ($13) - My exploration began with the Baursaq with Irimsik, a delightful play on textures. These pillowy-soft dough pockets, reminiscent of Japanese mochi, cradled a mild cottage cheese filling. While the concept was intriguing, the filling lacked a flavor punch, leaving me wanting a bit more oomph.Tary Cappuccino ($7.25) - For a taste of their signature ingredient, I opted for the Tary Cappuccino. This rich and smooth coffee boasted a subtle earthiness and nuttiness imparted by the tary flour. The integration was pleasant, offering a unique twist on the classic beverage.Overall, Tary Coffee House is a commendable effort in introducing Chicago to the fascinating cuisine of Kazakhstan. While it may not be your everyday haunt, it's certainly worth a visit for the unique experience and a chance to explore new cultural flavors. Just be prepared for prices that lean towards the higher end.

Love this cafe! I have zero experience with Kazakh food at all, so loved that I got to try some things I'd never heard of before. So far I've tried their mocha, latte irimshik ($8.75), bylamyk porridge ($12.95), and cottage cheese pancakes ($12.95). Would highly recommend the bylamyk porridge (apparently this is just like the Tary porridge but the texture is smoother) and pancakes. I'm guessing the entire food menu is pretty solid. The porridge was slightly sweet and very flavorful and cozy with the ghee and jam poured in. The pancakes were rich and tasty and I loved the milky sauce they came with.The mocha was also fine, though more milky than chocolatey. I wouldn't get the latte irimshik again since it's quite expensive and in my experience the irimshik (kind of like toasted, grainy goat cheese) did not melt very well into the latte, so it turned into a weird grainy latte situation.Since everything is made fresh to order and they put so much care into all of their items, expect to wait a bit. If there's a big line it could also take quite a while since a lot of people will have questions about the menu.Staff is super nice and the inside is very beautiful! Definitely a good cafe for working/studying if you manage to snag a table.