For a long time essentially the only nice restaurant in the La Grange Park area was Posto 31, but this fact is no longer true. As of recently Happier Now Cafe and Market opened up at 1016 East 31st St.

 It is an all day restaurant offering a variety of options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They also have a large selection of drinks and to-go meals and snacks. It has a very cute ambiance, good food, and is definitely a great place to check out.

The interior of the cafe is bright, as there is a lot of natural light coming in through the large windows. The decorations are clean, simple and cute. The atmosphere is pleasant and inviting, and is not overwhelmingly decorated. They have a variety of food and drinks located in to-go cases in the cafe, and also sell merchandise such as mugs and T-shirts. There are tables throughout the cafe, and seating at the bar counter as well. Customers place their orders at the walk-up counter, and can opt to sit down and eat in the cafe, or get their food to go. 

They sell a few breakfast options beginning at 8 a.m. and ending once those options run out. There are a handful of sandwich options for lunch time, as well as salads and a soup of the day. They have snacks and small plates as well, which would be good simply on their own or as an appetizer before dinner. Their dinner options include salmon, steak, shrimp, pierogi, and artichoke hearts. 

The woman at the counter was kind and helpful when I walked in, offering me a menu to look at, and being ready to answer any questions if I had them. I chose to order the grilled broccoli Caesar salad ($13) with a side of French fries ($7) as I was there around dinner time. I got my food to go, and waited only about 10 minutes after ordering to receive my food. 

The broccoli Caesar salad was delicious, although not quite what I had been expecting. I anticipated it being a Caesar salad with broccoli in it, but it ended up just being broccoli with Caesar dressing and seasonings on top. With that being said I thought it was very good. The broccoli was grilled perfectly. The seasonings were flavorful and salty, but not overly so. The French fries were a great addition to the meal. They weren’t too crunchy or mushy, which I appreciated, and they came with a side of ketchup. As a vegetarian there weren’t too many menu options for dinners, but this was a very tasty and filling meal.

The interior of Happier Now, while cute, is definitely on the smaller side. There are only a handful of tables, which might be inconvenient if you were to attend at a busy time. Though I think the cafe maximized the space that they did have. Another negative I had about the cafe is that because they are open all day, the variety is slim for each meal time. They have a lot of options altogether, but not very many options available for each specific meal. 

Overall, Happier Now Cafe and Market is a delicious and cute restaurant. It would be a great place to go with family and friends. It is also a good option to pick up food from, as they have a lot of to-go options. I could definitely see myself going back to the restaurant again, and am interested in heading there to try their breakfast and lunch options too.

4.5/5 paws