Taipei Cafe
Taipei Cafe — neighborhood cafe in Lakeview. Old-school in the best sense, with zero pretense. The cooking is rooted in real tradition. "The pork belly was melt in your mouth and I really like the egg and green beans were incredible too" — LizaLove [$]
What 261 diners keep saying
What 261 diners keep saying
verbatim, from Google
“I am a sucker for Taiwanese food being a Taiwanese family. Love their bento boxes. The braised pork bowl is good but definitely the saltiest one I’ve ever had. Loved their other dishes.”

“Quick service and kind staff. Not crazy busy either so there was a spot to sit down and rest. Bathroom is not available for non costumers.”

“Five stars because the popcorn chicken (not pictured) was amazingly seasoned and fried. Beef noodle soup was just mid - noodles and broth were nothing special, but the shank was tender.”

“it has real Taiwanse food ,maybe the best beef noodle soup I came across in US , soup was delicious ,hot soup taste a lot better when outside was 1F /-17C . Very cool building and interior decoration . Most customers ordered boba teas and carry out . They didn't play Chinese nor Taiwanse music in the background was little strange , I guess it was Japanese music.”

“Nice convenient bubble tea place w taiwanese foods as well. Tables and seating and a kiosk for ordering.”

“We ordered online and got it to go. Popcorn chicken was pretty good, as well as the Taiwanese sausage with garlic. Also tried the brown sugar boba with sesame cream which had a solid black sesame flavor and well cooked boba. Everything was pretty good.”

“A little bit of Taiwan here in Chicago. They're known for their bento boxes and beef noodle soup. Both tasted good, but nothing overly special. I wish they had cut the bok choy into smaller pieces for the beef noodle soup and at times, the popcorn chicken can be a little salty. The food comes out relatively fast (10-15 minutes). They do have quality boba and teas. There is limited seating inside, so to go orders are common. There is a restroom inside.”

“This is where I go of I want that authentic Taiwanese dish taste. Good food in general. Bubble tea can be improved.”

“Popcorn chicken and the pork belly baos were delicious. The beef bao was okay and the main reason why I came is for the Taiwanese beef noodle soup which i found to be lacking. It lacked in flavor and the huge chunks of beef. Instead the broth was bland and they had thinly sliced beef like hot pot in it.”
Sounds like your kind of place?
Star it — your hit list is where dinner decisions get made.
One email a month — new openings, hidden gems, and where locals are actually eating.
More dining in Lakeview & North Center
See the ranking →In the same lane · budget
If it's packed, walk to…



More good rooms in Lakeview, minutes away.








