Introduction to Colibrí Coffee
EAST SIDE — A native Southeast Sider is opening a café in the area and plans to offer arts seminars, monthly dinners and game nights out of the shop. Colibrí Coffee, 3639 E. 106th St. in East Side, will celebrate its grand opening with a ribbon-cutting noon Saturday. The café aims to fill a gap in available gathering spaces in the neighborhood, said owner Anais Robles.
Our Goal
“We have so many creatives in the area, and people that just are tired of going to the North Side or Pilsen to go and be in a third space,” Robles said. “Our goal is to link ourselves to the community as tightly as possible.”
Menu and Coffee
Colibrí offers turkey basil, spicy ham and breakfast sandwiches ($6.25-$7.80), lattes in flavors like cajeta and café de olla ($5.15-$5.50), and other coffeehouse staples like espresso ($3.50), cappuccino ($4) and drip coffee ($3.20-$3.50). The beans brewed at Colibrí are from Ixxa Coffee in nearby Hammond, Indiana, as “we wanted to support a local and minority-owned roaster,” Robles said. All syrups and flavorings are made in-house, said chef and owner Juarez Monegain.
Pastries and Sweets
Monegain, a former sous chef at Theater on the Lake in Lincoln Park, will rotate pastries made on-site from week to week, including croissants, cinnamon rolls, hand pies, cookies, brownies and cakes. “The first business I ever had a concept of opening was a confectionery shop, so brittles and other types of candies are things that will probably make an appearance at some point in the year,” Monegain said.
Community Support
A representative from Calumet Fisheries also visited the café this week, Robles said. The famed seafood shack at the 95th Street bridge is dropping off a sample of smoked salmon Wednesday for Monegain to use that day, and he expects to continue buying from the shop, he said. “They came in and were like, ‘Hey, we have smoked salmon; we would love to supply for you guys and be of service,’” Monegain said. “The community has been super supportive and welcoming.”
The spicy ham (left) and turkey basil sandwiches from Colibrí Coffee. Credit: Provided/Facebook
Family Affair
Colibrí — Spanish for “hummingbird,” the representation of the Aztec god Huitzilopochtli — is a family affair. Robles’ mother Maria, father Jaime, brother Jaime Jr. and sister Idaima all co-own the shop alongside Monegain.
Renovation and Decor
Maria Robles has “always wanted a coffeeshop in this area” and has thrown around the idea of opening one for the past five or six years, Anais Robles said. That idea became reality after leasing the 106th Street location in March 2024 and spending the past year fixing up the shop, she said. The empty storefront needed a “complete renovation,” and the owners “wanted to mix [their] two cultures together” with the décor — most of which comes from Mexico or Africa, Robles said. The Robleses are Mexican, while Monegain is Black.
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