Uppercrust Bakery

Came in the other day and dude was jammin childish gambino! Great way to start the day! Ohhhh and the breakfast sandwichi was on point!

Visiting the area, so first time here. Very nondescript décor. I asked if a breakfast sandwich could be made into a panini; he pursed his lips, slanted his brows, and pointed [“duh”] to the panini press. Terrible first impression. Good morning to you, too! 8:30 a.m. and the don’t have the described challah. Waiting on our sandwiches… these better be good!

Still good quality food and reasonable service, considering they make it fresh. Unfortunately last time I was in they were out of both eggs and iceberg lettuce, which meant that I couldn’t get hardly any of the breakfast sandwiches or my usual salad! They are usually better than that, though. Just maybe be careful if you’re a picky eater and/​or attempting to dine with one.

Update: I recently bought a loaf of $ 10 challah, and it was the blandest bread I’ve had in ages. Supremely disappointed!

New to the neighborhood (work around the area). So far I’ve stopped by twice for some grub. And they have not dissapointed!
Their cobb salad with roasted chicken is awesome!
I’ve also tried their soup and sandwhich combos, and they are great as well!
I’ve so far tried their Tomato Basil and Chicken Tortilla soup (they have two different soups each day). Full of great ingredients and flavor, not overly salty. Just right.
The sandwiches I’ve had thus far are the Big Kid’s Grilled Cheese and the Veggie sandwich.
The Big Kid’s Grilled Cheese consists of Provolone, Feta, fresh Mozzarella, tomato on multi-​grain bread.
The Veggie consists of Cucumber, Tomato, herbed Cream Cheese, Micro Greens, and all on Marble Rye.
All fresh, quality ingredients, and all under a good price (compared to other restaurants around the area. They are a tad pricey).
Definitely give them a time and a day for them. You will not be dissapointed!

Amazing sandwich! I had the Meditteranean turkey. Just wish they had more desserts!

I really want to love this cute neighborhood bakery and I am going to give it another try. Had a salad which was just ok. Perhaps the sandwiches are better.

Also– Tried their tomato soup today and it is just fabulous. Not chunky, smooth and flavorful! I love this place!

I tried the Taylor Street sandwich and it was really just a-​okay. There was nothing really special about it. I wish there was something more unique than a bunch of meat, bread, lettuce, and tomatoes. I would rather have the #2 at Mikes Jersey Subs. And because this is a bakery, I would assume the bread would be unbelievable, but it was very average and not even that soft. I don’t see myself coming back here… sorry.

We frequent UCB on Saturday mornings for tasty breakfast sandwiches served on their fantastic bread. The interior space is very open and clean. We’ve never had any trouble finding seating as most people just grab and go. The staff here is super friendly and service is usually pretty speedy.
My only complaint would be regarding their hours. They open at 8 A.M. which is too late to grab something on the way to work. Then they close at 4. So unless you work in the neighborhood, you won’t be partaking of their great food for lunch.

Why go to Jimmy John’s when this is right around the corner? Get a real sandwich! Here’s the deal if you’re at JJ’s, I’ll be your GPS. Turn around, safely proceed through parking lot to Grand Avenue, cross Elizabeth going about a block west, if you’re driving park in their lot to the east of the building, walk in and order.
Friendly staff, cozy atmosphere, nice relaxing warm colors put you at ease. The only two things I’d change, one may be easier than the other. The commercial refrigeration although nice looking looks out of place upfront. The more difficult thing is the restroom, you have to walk through the kitchen to get to it. Of course this isn’t the first time I’ve run into this, and each time it’s something that has that ew factor to it, something about whoever just waltzing through the kitchen.
Make no mistake, this place is very clean and orderly, and everything I’ve had from here has been top notch. my husband eats here regularly for lunch because it’s close to where he works, if I worked in the area it would be a regular go to for me too.
The sandwiches are a little on the pricy side, average 7.95 or so, but it’s made with quality ingredients and unique combinations, I had a BLT with avocado on sourdough toast. I’ll be making this at home now. They also have gazpacho and some fresh fruit offerings.
You have reached your destination.

I specifically went to Uppercrust Bakery as a place with good rating, and was greatly disappointed. I asked for the most popular sandwich and got a $ 13 Brisk (?) sandwich.
What can one expect from a sandwich that costs $ 13 a piece? For that amount (well, for $ 2 – 3 more), I could have enjoyed a china-​plated nicely decorated entrée at a sit-​down waterfront restaurant with clean tablecloth and silverware. Thus, I was eagerly waiting for my $ 13 sandwich in a Grand Ave Uppercrust Bakery establishment.
I was greatly disappointed to see that my sandwich was just some meet between two pieces of bread, with some sauce. Nothing else: not a single vegetable, not a single green, nothing. Just meat and bread. Oh, it was wrapped into some paper. Normal size.
The taste was good, but it was average good. I wish I went to Potbelly. There, I would have had a sandwich for half the price and with better taste.
To sum it up, never again. Highly overpriced, average taste.

4 stars are for the customer service. They are very friendly here. Mainly the guy who cures all the meats. Forgot his name:/. Anywho, I tried the grinder sandwich. The roast beef was tender, juicy and flavorful. I just would have liked something more than meat, cheese and bread. Maybe next time i’ll ask to add some green peppers and onions or something to kick it up a notch. Otherwise, i’m sure i’ll be back to try their other sandwiches, soups and pastries.

love this place. Very relaxed atmosphere and food that keeps me coming in every time I walk by.
Free parking and wifi, too. Always a plus.
People behind the counter couldn’t be nicer. Really hope they stick around!

This has become my go-​to lunch spot in the last year. Have been here 50+ times and that has been increasing in frequency due to the friendliness of Brian + Eric + Rob. The quality of the food is fantastic and they typically have a delicious special that is always worth trying. Super friendly, casual and high quality food. Highly recommend.

I love this spot! I come here about once a week, however, I will be giving them a timeout. Today, my sandwich was mediocre (stale bread, wilted greens, and no tomatoes). Damn you, Upper Crust! I had such high hopes for you…

I live across the street, so I have come here on occasion when my husband and I are out of coffee (or are otherwise too lazy to make our own).
They have a modest selection of coffee drinks available, but what we tried was good. They also have a nice selection of breakfast sandwiches. But, they don’t seem to have many gluten free options (fair enough — it is a bakery after all — can’t really fault them there), so I am not able to eat much at this location. They do have a granola parfait that looks mediocre.
Overall, service is prompt and they are very friendly. Did I mention it smells amazing in there?

I stopped by here for the first time today and thought is was, as the Unilocal rating indicator says, A-​OK.
I thought everyone there was very friendly and meant well, though things just seemed off. I’m not sure if all the employees were new or what, but everyone seemed like they didn’t really know what they were doing. A ton of little mistakes were made with about 50% of the orders I saw them making for other customers. Things were very harried and I just got the impression they were not familiar with all the specifics of how to property write up the orders, communicate them to whoever was working the line, deal with customizations, etc.
But like I said, they were all very friendly and corrected the errors — it certainly wasn’t intentional or even a result of apathy, but rather just inexperience.
I thought the coffee and espresso were very good — I believe they use Metropolis products.
I thought the food was good, but not great. I had a cup of the chicken tortilla soup, which was clearly home made and was very flavorful. But it was mostly broth, with very few pieces of anything solid (chicken, veggies, etc) and I don’t think I found a single piece of tortilla. But still, I liked the spiciness and the few chunks of chicken I had were juicy.
I also later had a breakfast sandwich, which was more disappointing. The biggest problem was the «egg» they use is that pre-​frozen rubbery yellow hockey puck favored by fast food establishments. It is very processed and unnatural tasting. It would be a lot better if they used actual fresh eggs, at least microwaving them to order (though actually cooking them in a skillet would be ideal, but I realize less practical). The balance of the sandwich was also off because they used a brioche bread. The whole thing was too sweet and rich, with «egg», brioche (a rich, eggy bread), provolone cheese, and a scant amount of bacon. There was no acid/​sour/​tart, no counter point for all this richness. This could have been done by using a sharp cheddar cheese or by using a sourdough bread, for instance. Or hell, even a real, thick, peppered bacon would have helped.
But, the balance of flavors is a secondary complaint to the insipid egg patty they use.
Next time I go back (and I will go back — the place has more pros than cons), I think I’ll try one of the sandwiches, which looked good. Though I will not be having any of the breakfast products — maybe if my seat is uncomfortable, I could ask to borrow an egg patty to use as a cushion…

AFTER THE CRUMBS SETTLED!
Many people do not know of the Great Sandwich War of 2012 but I do. It is a sad story that pitted neighbor against neighbor and it was all about bread. It was happening right before our eyes but most of us kept our heads in our subs and ignored the signs. But I couldn’t…I was dragged in deeper then I ever wanted to be.
One good thing came out of this sandwich war. I found a nice bakery that does not have attitude. That place is Uppercrust. I found Uppercrust thanks to Bari who after decades of using bread from the store next door to them was not able to keep the supply lines open. You see that long time good neighbor wanted a piece of the sandwich market that Bari created so long ago. So they made it hard on them to get there bread, bread crust pun intended. Bari had to seek a new supplier and Uppercrust is that new bakery. I am also able to buy Uppercrust bread at Bari too. The best part is I can use my credit card (cash only next door) and it is cheaper then next door. Two big bonuses!
I decided to check out Uppercrust because the bread is fantastic. I love the location and the employees. They were super friendly here. There is also a parking lot, unlike the other bakery down the street. They also serve sandwiches here too. Bari has paved the way for some many sandwich places in this neighborhood. They do deserve some respect.
A fun story. On the first day I tried Uppercrust, I walked in to order 2 loaves of French bread only to find out that Bari had just cleaned them out 10 minutes before I arrived. It was 1pm on a Friday and they took there last 150 loaves. Luckily I was able to go to Bari and the owners sold me 2 loaves. I didn’t have to go to the evil mean neighbor. When will this bread war end?
I also learned that Bari uses the bread crumbs from Uppercrust for there famous meatball sandwich, which was selected in the top 50 sandwiches in Chicago.
I like Uppercrust and thank you Bari for introducing them to me. That is how neighbor businesses are suppose to treat each other with professional respect.
I am a huge fan of Uppercrust. And hopefully 2013 we will see more sandwich love and less bread wars!!! Stay crusty my friends!!!

Yay! A new coffee house in the ‘hood! I’m so excited for this place and I really hope it stays in business.
Swim café is so freaking expensive… it’s ridiculous. And Sip café down the street has some of the jerkiest baristas working.
Here, the prices are more than reasonable for the food you get and the staff is friendly and helpful.
Husbo and I went in on Saturday morning and got a large iced coffee, a chicken/​provolone/​red pepper panini that was incredibly good and filling, an italian selection of meats on foccacia that was amazing, a large latte, and a piece of strawberry pound cake. $ 20 later, we were stuffed.
My only complaint:
Today’s country music blasting from the radio. Very unappetizing for folks who aren’t into country music. I always feel restaurants should have a music selection that is neutral across all parties :)