Dark Side Coffee House — Restaurant in Cicero

I have been to Dark Side many times & have always been greeted by kind and welcoming employees. The food options are delightful and their seasonal menus are always fun & original. I’ve rated food low to include their coffee offerings, not to criticize the baked goods. I often wish they had for-here dishes & service that offers water with your coffee if you’re seated to drink & study. Though candidly, there isn’t much space for peace for loitering inside the cafe. I’m aware that not all cafes are focused on espresso quality and technique, but I’ve also felt that their drinks leave much to be desired if you’re seeking a coffee-forward beverage. Their flavor options are delicious and balanced but ordering a plain latte or cortado will get you a bubbly, sour drink. Baristas should be trained to steam milk to the texture of wet paint or melted ice cream, as adding air is intended to affect the proteins in a way that sweetens the milk flavor and enhances the experience. They did not provide a well-balanced coffee-forward smooth taste. Overall, I recommend for families or sweet lovers but not a...

3/19/22: Went back again and same thing. Nearly $6 for a half filled cup. I am actually angry at this point. The picture below is what was handed to us. I really really want to love this place it's cute and has great options, but please... care more.

For a cute independent coffee shop, it’s run pretty corporate. The drinks are really good and I love the options, but they’re stingy. They load the drinks with ice because that’s a common way to rip customers off, so when I asked for no ice they acted annoyed and confused and only filled the cup 3/4 so they could stick to their measurement… I really wanted to love this place; it’s pretty and they have great yummy options, but every time I’ve gone I’ve left disappointed in their...

One of the extremely few coffee shops where the espresso based drinks are drinkable without adding a million pumps of flavor syrup. I did not have high hopes initially considering they are located in a really small town, but I was pleasantly blown away. The cappuccino didn't just taste like all milk as is the norm these days and best of all didn't have sourness or any bitterness at all (even though I asked for extra shots). That tells me the shots were extracted correctly and baristas knew how to operate the espresso machine (an extreme rarity these days).

I will definitely be back to try just the espresso. All the chic looking and Instagram-worthy coffee shops in Indy could learn a lesson from them on how to do the...