The Highland Cafe

Love this spot, always solid music and vibe. Plus feels super local amidst a lot of fancy schmancy hip spots taking over. Prices are in keeping with the rest of the neighborhood. Killer breakfast sandwiches!

I had the avocado bacon burger with fries with a side of mayo. Deelicious! And plenty of it! They have patio seating, not just take out. With tea my order was about $20. Very reasonable!

This is the COOLEST place to go!! The music they play is sooo good. Not to mention the amazing food as well. I ordered the French toast with bacon and eggs and normally I’m hesitant to eat restaurant eggs but WOW these ones were so good. I’m so glad with what I ordered even tho EVERYTHING on the menu sounded so good!!! It tastes like home cooking!! I came in to study and do homework and it was the perfect atmosphere. Everyone was also super friendly and vibey!!! I 100% will be back!!! I didn’t ordered a drink because I brought my own water bottle so my meal with tip was $21.

This charming café on York Blvd is a delightful spot with both indoor and outdoor seating options, plus reliable WiFi. The interior is beautifully decorated with elements of car culture, featuring motorcycles and vintage road signs. They frequently host community events, including the Makina car club car show, Carrera Arroyo, and Mercado, which add to the vibrant atmosphere alongside various shops on York. The chilaquiles taste just like my mom used to make, and the Mayan Mocha offers the ideal touch of indulgence. Highly recommend--10/10!

The chilaquiles in this place never have disappointed me, EVER. The dranks are great and stronkkk. Love that this institution is still standing strong after all of these years, truly commend the owners for pushing through and delivering great meals in an ever changing Highland park.

GF options…have to ask when ordering at the counter…breakfast was full of flavor, did not disappoint! Small outdoor patio and indoor seating. We got the salmon scramble (ask for a change of bread if GF) and the hamlette. We’ll definitely be going back!

Great service, delicious food and amazing coffee. We only had to wait for about 5 minutes for our food and coffee which was really impressive. The staff was very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. They were also more than happy to make me a iced chai with lavender. We had a fantastic experience and it was a great way to kick off our vacation.

I got the James brown latte and it was so good. And I don’t usually love sweeter coffees. Very cool aesthetic inside

Very good food. The potatoes are good. Got the james brown it is great. The Hamallet I think I spelled it right was very delicious

Great coffee and breakfast spot! I really enjoyed the burrito. The recently updated the back patio and it’s very inviting. Service was really good and food came fast.

Mia Barela

This is the COOLEST place to go!! The music they play is sooo good. Not to mention the amazing food as well. I ordered the French toast with bacon and eggs and normally I’m hesitant to eat restaurant eggs but WOW these ones were so good. I’m so glad with what I ordered even tho EVERYTHING on the menu sounded so good!!! It tastes like home cooking!! I came in to study and do homework and it was the perfect atmosphere. Everyone was also super friendly and vibey!!! I 100% will be back!!! I didn’t ordered a drink because I brought my own water bottle so my meal with tip was $21.

Monique Cruz

This charming café on York Blvd is a delightful spot with both indoor and outdoor seating options, plus reliable WiFi. The interior is beautifully decorated with elements of car culture, featuring motorcycles and vintage road signs. They frequently host community events, including the Makina car club car show, Carrera Arroyo, and Mercado, which add to the vibrant atmosphere alongside various shops on York. The chilaquiles taste just like my mom used to make, and the Mayan Mocha offers the ideal touch of indulgence. Highly recommend--10/10!

J F

The chilaquiles in this place never have disappointed me, EVER. The dranks are great and stronkkk. Love that this institution is still standing strong after all of these years, truly commend the owners for pushing through and delivering great meals in an ever changing Highland park.

Chrissy p

GF options…have to ask when ordering at the counter…breakfast was full of flavor, did not disappoint! Small outdoor patio and indoor seating. We got the salmon scramble (ask for a change of bread if GF) and the hamlette. We’ll definitely be going back!

Jennifer Wilt

Great service, delicious food and amazing coffee. We only had to wait for about 5 minutes for our food and coffee which was really impressive. The staff was very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. They were also more than happy to make me a iced chai with lavender. We had a fantastic experience and it was a great way to kick off our vacation.

Chase Skaff

I got the James brown latte and it was so good. And I don’t usually love sweeter coffees. Very cool aesthetic inside

Angel Contreras

Very good food. The potatoes are good. Got the james brown it is great. The Hamallet I think I spelled it right was very delicious

bartellj

Great coffee and breakfast spot! I really enjoyed the burrito. The recently updated the back patio and it’s very inviting. Service was really good and food came fast.

Joseph was so friendly and welcoming! We got to visit twice during our trip. We were welcomed back with enthusiasm and you can tell the people who work here are part of and enjoy their community. I would highly recommend this place for EXCELLENT food service and atmosphere. We DEFINITELY be back 😀

Highland Cafe is one of those community cafes where you can come weekly and be known on a first name basis. My favorite latte in highland park is the james brown from here and their wraps and sandwiches are always a good not-too-heavy lunch. One of my fav local spots!

Love this place, have been missing the green goddess wrap, so asked about it today and the chef whipped a version of it up for me even though it’s not on the menu anymore! Chef Bridget, thank you! It’s epic! And I heard it’s also your bday!

Best little coffee shop with late hours, gluten free bagels, and incredible coffee. I will be coming here again soon!

It’s a nice & cozy place. I have come for coffee and breakfast and enjoyed it! Staff is super friendly as well.

I've been coming to Highland Cafe for years (may I dare say a decade even). Not only is the coffee good, but the breakfast/brunch/lunch menus are fantastic. Every ingredient is always fresh and perfectly paired. My go-to's are the Sunrise Breakfast Bowl, Huevos Rancheros, Cali Burrito, or their Wrap special. On occasion, a mimosa pairs well with any of my above choices. Indeed, the friendly yet laid back local vibes, along with the hard work that Arnie puts into his restaurant is testament to why this establishment is a Highland Park staple.

Got a mocha latte during their salsa/bachata event on Sunday, delicious, good atmosphere, nice service, very small biz/neighborhood/community vibes.

Ashlee Brown

Best little coffee shop with late hours, gluten free bagels, and incredible coffee. I will be coming here again soon!

Katelyn Feliciano

Highland Cafe is one of those community cafes where you can come weekly and be known on a first name basis. My favorite latte in highland park is the james brown from here and their wraps and sandwiches are always a good not-too-heavy lunch. One of my fav local spots!

Lacy Allen

Love this place, have been missing the green goddess wrap, so asked about it today and the chef whipped a version of it up for me even though it’s not on the menu anymore! Chef Bridget, thank you! It’s epic! And I heard it’s also your bday!

Sherene Arbabi

It’s a nice & cozy place. I have come for coffee and breakfast and enjoyed it! Staff is super friendly as well.

Cielo R.

Got a mocha latte during their salsa/bachata event on Sunday, delicious, good atmosphere, nice service, very small biz/neighborhood/community vibes.

C Ms. E

Joseph was so friendly and welcoming! We got to visit twice during our trip. We were welcomed back with enthusiasm and you can tell the people who work here are part of and enjoy their community. I would highly recommend this place for EXCELLENT food service and atmosphere. We DEFINITELY be back 😀

Emese S.

I've been coming to Highland Cafe for years (may I dare say a decade even). Not only is the coffee good, but the breakfast/brunch/lunch menus are fantastic. Every ingredient is always fresh and perfectly paired. My go-to's are the Sunrise Breakfast Bowl, Huevos Rancheros, Cali Burrito, or their Wrap special. On occasion, a mimosa pairs well with any of my above choices. Indeed, the friendly yet laid back local vibes, along with the hard work that Arnie puts into his restaurant is testament to why this establishment is a Highland Park staple.

Had a Bulgogi burger. Came with a nice salad as a side. Delicious marinated steak, though flavor can be overwhelming if you don't balance your meal. Nice, low key environment - great for lunch dates.

Good food. Good experience. Friendly staff. I'll do it again.

Good breakfast food, excellent coffee, friendly service. I'll definitely be back (when my top 3 are too busy for me to wait 😉)!

Went here for breakfast with a friend and we were IMPRESSED with the food here! It is a cute spot in the growing Highland Park area on York blvd, parking was easy, and staff very friendly! I had: Veggie Breakfast Burrito - Super yummy, I've returned to have more! Would recommend! Friend had: The Oxy - I couldn't stop picking off her plate. I'm definitely returning for more! Also, their fresh squeezed OJ is excellent!

Good food, location and atmosphere but man do they need to get their online ordering sorted out. Twice now, I have had to wait 20 minutes beyond the pickup time (30 Minutes after placing) to get two sandwiches. And its not like the place was busy. 50 minutes for and $18 sandwich. No thanks.

Waiting for my business partners, my wife and I stopped in for a quick breakfast. My wife got the avocado toast and I got the lox and bagels. For drinks, we got a hot Americano and a iced mocha. The iced mocha was pretty tasty. I like a nice darker cocoa taste with a decent amount of sweetness. It was great! The food was just ok. I felt that the food prices were pretty pricey for what we got. The decor was pretty hip and the place is inviting. I noticed that some reviews complained about service, in our time in the restaurant, we didn't experience long delays in the food coming out to us or anything. Just the pricing was pretty high. Otherwise, the taste was just ok.

One of the few cafe in HP along York blvd. The Highland cafe has a hipster vibe that serve decent breakfast food. The staff are amiable and competent. The food price is $$. They have ample breakfast menu. The interior is quaint and relatively small. Honestly, their coffee has a bland taste and the Challah French Toast with slices of strawberry/banana was a lil dry for my palate but the maple syrup did the trick.

A masala chai for $7 that’s basically all milk and sugar?

Very nice people but this was one of the most disappointing bagels I've ever purchased. $17 for Bagel and Lox. The Lox was discolored and there were WAY too many onions. Even the bagel was sliced unevenly. Will not be returning. Plz save your money.

A brew of Americano $5 Not a good coffee If you plan to work while you drink the coffee, make sure you bring your own internet. Theirs is terrible WiFi. I don’t understand why business do not share 5G. What’s the reason to restrict internet speed? They won’t pay more to share what they already are paying for.

Cold coffee, bacon that was also cold and cooked to a crisp, no service at all plus on a Sunday at noon they were out of breakfast potatoes. First time and the last time I'll go here.

Just reduced by another star for this edit. Everything below still stands a year later. Filthy, crappy, should be shut down. I'm done... Trying really hard to be a fan here as this is my new neighborhood. The first time here I ordered a gringo style breakfast and it was terrible. This time it's chilaquiles and the avocado is crunchy hard, not ripe. I'm not giving up on this comfortable place yet even though the health department rates it a B. I'd bet this rating is a direct result of staff ambivalence. I'm also betting the owner is a rare sight here. My cappuccino is good.

Very disappointing place. The regular coffee tasted a little bitter and you don't get free refills only half off. The lattes are overpriced and very small and not the greatest. They took like 35 minutes to bring the order and there was no one else waiting to be served at the time. The burritos are OK, and so the pancakes. The service is average, besides taking so long to serve, the guy who took our order was really nice. Needless to say that I won't be coming back!

If you feel like paying gourmet food prices at subpar quality, this is the place for you. This place has the potential for a place that could be great- but falls short on its promise. You place the order first and then sit down to wait, bistro style. Plenty of places to sit, location is convenient and service isn’t bad. The prices are on the high side for breakfast- think $16-$20. It took 30 mins for us to receive our food, despite the fact it wasn’t a busy time of day. The coffee (which has a burnt flavor to it) is cold by the time your breakfast comes- and wait for it- you don’t get free refills. Breakfast itself wasn’t bad, the pancakes are thick and the bacon is tasty. But thanks to the overall experience and overboard prices, I won’t be coming back.

Laura Tatiana Moreno

Very disappointing place. The regular coffee tasted a little bitter and you don't get free refills only half off. The lattes are overpriced and very small and not the greatest. They took like 35 minutes to bring the order and there was no one else waiting to be served at the time. The burritos are OK, and so the pancakes. The service is average, besides taking so long to serve, the guy who took our order was really nice. Needless to say that I won't be coming back!

Geanina Cáceres

If you feel like paying gourmet food prices at subpar quality, this is the place for you. This place has the potential for a place that could be great- but falls short on its promise. You place the order first and then sit down to wait, bistro style. Plenty of places to sit, location is convenient and service isn’t bad. The prices are on the high side for breakfast- think $16-$20. It took 30 mins for us to receive our food, despite the fact it wasn’t a busy time of day. The coffee (which has a burnt flavor to it) is cold by the time your breakfast comes- and wait for it- you don’t get free refills. Breakfast itself wasn’t bad, the pancakes are thick and the bacon is tasty. But thanks to the overall experience and overboard prices, I won’t be coming back.

Service and staff were great! Nothing on them whatsoever. The salmon bowl was blazing hot, def microwaved on blast and overcooked. The tinga tacos also very microwave blast and all stuck together. The fries were burnt and mostly just air. I’m sorry, I wish I liked it, for real, but I felt bad spending 60 bucks on did that just didn’t hit :/

Had a salmon bowl, it tasted bad. Salmon was over cooked, strangely watery. The seasoning was not great. My husband ordered the chicken tacos and they were bland. The staff was very kind and brought our dog a bowl of water. I was bummed b/c I wanted to like the place more. Will try again- but will try breakfast.

Jenna Balfe

Had a salmon bowl, it tasted bad. Salmon was over cooked, strangely watery. The seasoning was not great. My husband ordered the chicken tacos and they were bland. The staff was very kind and brought our dog a bowl of water. I was bummed b/c I wanted to like the place more. Will try again- but will try breakfast.

Dennis Brewster

Service and staff were great! Nothing on them whatsoever. The salmon bowl was blazing hot, def microwaved on blast and overcooked. The tinga tacos also very microwave blast and all stuck together. The fries were burnt and mostly just air. I’m sorry, I wish I liked it, for real, but I felt bad spending 60 bucks on did that just didn’t hit :/

The WORST coffee you can ever have in your life...... it's so bad can't even try one more sip

Service is bad. I had not been here in a while, and service is the same. I was watching a white skinny guy worker who couldn’t go out of the way to serve anyone cus it was 15 minutes to closing. He was in a hurry to close and was making a lot of noise bringing tables and chairs inside the restaurant while there were customers still eating, It was uncomfortable. Some girls also walked in, they tried to order coffee from him, he did not take their orders, so they didn’t order anything. It was a bit upsetting watching this guy. I don’t fee like coming to support this restaurant. There are many other places around where food is so delicious and workers treat you nicely and are respectful,maybe owner is not to this guys, who knows.

I asked for Oat milk, they charged me extra and yet they gave me whole milk in my watered down matcha latte (do not recommend). I am lactose intolerant and because of this I have been experiencing terrible stomach pains. If you're going to charge extra for a substitution, at least give the customer what they ordered. Never coming back here again.

Most of the staff is cordial but one women was incredibly rude. We ordered coffee from this establishment and had bagels from belles bagels a few steps away. We sat ate and drank our coffee. We started to pack up and look for another place to go when the female employee came out and told us to leave (20 mins of sitting time). She said we can’t have outside food. She was late of telling us this because we had already finished our food (empty bag on the table) but hadn’t finished our drinks we purchased from them. We didn’t get a “hi”, “hello”, “Don’t know if you were aware....”. She could’ve spoken to paying customers with an entirely different tone. She chose to be rude when she woke up this morning. We had no problem packing up and leaving, we were doing that anyway. She look at the table and saw that we had drinks from them and walked away. No apology, nothing! Won’t be coming here again.

We met some friends for breakfast and the first thing they mentioned was how they were charged for 2 of the same coffees. I tried the salmon scramble and my wife the chilaquiles. While the plates popped in color they lacked flavor. Scramble egg and salmon not a good combination. Lavender coffee too sweet. Definitely not recommending

Asked for something similar to a Carmel macchiato, which they had on their menu. Pretentious dude with an attitude stared at me and said "no." Apparently they didn't do "Starbucks drinks" here, if you're looking for pretentious failed actors like some Portlandia episode, come here. Stuck up and full of themselves.

I feel sick writing this. The coffee was horrible. It tasted acrid which indicates over-roasting or burned, as well as rancid, indicating the machines may be not properly cleaned. I felt sick after drinking the coffee, even though they made me a second type. I am not planning to go back as this first experience was really bad.

B R

I feel sick writing this. The coffee was horrible. It tasted acrid which indicates over-roasting or burned, as well as rancid, indicating the machines may be not properly cleaned. I felt sick after drinking the coffee, even though they made me a second type. I am not planning to go back as this first experience was really bad.