Cafe Brio
524 E Monroe St, Springfield, IL, 62701
Cafe Brio Menu
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Visit below restaurant in Springfield for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Springfield for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Springfield for healthy meals suggestion.
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Address :
524 E Monroe St
Springfield, IL, 62701 - Phone (217) 544-0574
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Opening Hours
- Mon :11:00 am - 3:00pm
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : Yes
Delivery : No
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Lunch
Parking : Street
Bike Parking : No
Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Hipster
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : Full Bar
Outdoor Seating : No
Wi-Fi : No
Has TV : No
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : Yes
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Joe Z.
The three stars is for the potential this place has. Cool atmosphere, on a corner with big windows. Cool paint inside, although a little lax on the maintenance. Menu claims "tapas" although they really are just appetizers. They were out of the one that I ordered. My wife and I both ordered salads which were both very good. Disappointing that we were there on a Saturday night at 9:00p.m. and were literally the only ones there. I don't know if it's downtown Springfield's fault, or the fault of Cafe Brio. Maybe a combination of both.
(3)The Big Babboon I.
Delicious Margarita's and Bloody Mary's...just stay faaaaar away from the food here, close to inedible by most standards
(2)L S.
I have never had a bad experience at Cafe Brio. The food is always delicious and filling, and the atmosphere is calming and fun. The service isn't 100% but it is good enough. I love reading people's opinions and how they get so picky about it. Having one not so good time there doesn't mean you have the brains to say 'stay far far away.' That's just ridiculous. Nowhere you go will be tip top every time. The place is usually busy- so it must not be too bad! I will continue to go to Cafe Brio. The prices are decent, the food is good, the drinks are good, and the location is great (in downtown Springfield).
(4)Jaime H.
Apparently, Cafe Brio is under new ownership. They seem to be doing an excellent job! The house chips and salsa came out right away- perfectly crisp (not greasy or chewy) chips and spicy salsa. My ma and I shared the shrimp BLT with sweet potato fries and southwestern Cobb. Both spot on! Very tasty! To boot, we checked in and got a free slice of hot choco silk pie. Mmm... Happy campers!! Perfectly fueled to head over to the Dana-Thomas House.
(5)Katey A.
Came here with a group of students for dinner. I appreciate that their menu has a little bit of everything so it's great for my picky eaters. The food is good, but the service is rather slow. I had the shrimp BLT with sweet potato fries. YUM! However, It would be better in a wrap instead of the bread roll that they serve it with. The roll was falling about and made it difficult to eat my sandwich.
(3)Melissa S.
I love having brunch here when I'm in Springfield. The tamale cakes and breakfast tacos are yummy. Service is always friendly. I just wish they opened earlier! If you're in town visiting, 11am is a little too late to start your day. They should run a bottomless mimosa special to pull in the brunch business.
(4)Mark A.
Rough evening. Staffing challenged. Owner, Mike, "working" the bar. Waiter, June, doing his best (yes, his) to make up for the poor service. He did a great job and the fries were great. Yelp gave a coupon for a free dessert, which this management does not offer, but did recognize w/ free doughnut holes. I'm Betting it's typically much better than this...
(1)Lisa D.
My friends and I are visiting the Abraham Lincoln museum from out of town and were hankering for some good Springfield cuisine. We looked at place after place, all closed, until we come upon Cafe Brio. It looked closed from first glance and the whole staff was in the back not paying any attention. We even had to walk to the back to get their attention to seat us. The waitress did say they were extremely busy for St. Patty's weekend, but it doesn't really excuse the lack of service and all of the quality issues we encountered. The drinks we ordered were not in stock or took a long time to get to the group of 3 people. The chips were soggy, greasy and chewy. There is also no longer a kids portion of penne...reprint the menu or offer a smaller adult size. The Southwest Cobb salad is appropriately described on the menu and met expectations. The penne was missing mushrooms...one of it's only 3 ingredients. The jerk chicken wrap was made entirely incorrect as to what the menu claimed. The owner came out and apologized and comp'ed two out of the three meals. The service got a little better in the end. It's a shame that the entrees were all pretty good in the end, but the rest of the dining experience ruined a possible repeat customer.
(2)Ricardo E.
Food is cold, and the restaurant temperature feels like a freezer, they need to work in their mexican dishes to be more authentic,
(1)Erica R.
The shrimp blt was excellent. Too bad the service was not good. The poor man who waited on us seemed really confused by everything that was going on at our table. We told him to separate the checks and he could not comprehend this process. Moral of the story: the food is good but the service was not.
(3)Mimi L.
Delivery downtown is advertised to start at 11:00am. I've been calling for an hour, left three messages and still they have never answered the phone, nor called me back. Out of principle I thought I'd see how many calls it would take before leaving this review, but I give up. I literarily called 40 times to no avail. I wonder how many orders they have lost based on simply not answering the phone???
(1)Jovita R.
I am saddened to say one of my favorite restaurants Cafe Brio well formerly favorite restaurant Cafe Brio is just atrocious. I order a falafel the first time it came it was raw in the middle they remade it brought it back it was not cooked again! The waitress proceeded to tell me falafel is supposed to be doughy in the middle. I have had them there before and never had they been like this. I asked is the manager available she proceeded to say oh yeah she didn't come talk to you and I said no. I then waited thinking she might come by nope no word whatsoever. I was not very surprised at this waitress she is not good at all. She also made sure to state a couple of times she is the owner's daughter, she didn't come talk to you? The new management or new owner whatever is totally making a good place a very BAD place for service & food. Needless to say I had sweet potato fries for lunch I will no longer be dining there and will let everyone know how bad they have become.
(1)Janee M.
I ordered thr special which was a 8oz ribeye with a crab cake and 3 shrimp scampi. The shrimp jad absolutely no flavor, the crab cake was salty the steak was ok. The mashed potatoes were also too salty to consume. Complete waste of dinner. I should habe went to Augies
(1)Brenda L.
First of all turn the air conditioning on. My son had a long hair in his soda (our server said, "it's not mine, I don't have any hair. We don't have anyone that works here with hair that color." (me:really?)) then my daughter received a dirty napkin and food stuck to her chair. We ordered an appetizer that he forgot to order for us. I had the shrimp BLT which was good. Lots of great flavors, but the sweet potato chips didn't have a crunch to them. My sons fish and chips, he said, was a little fishy. The burgers were good and the brioche grilled cheese filled the void. After a while we couldn't help but laugh. Especially when he almost dropped a knife on my daughters back. And then it continued with him almost fumbling half of the things on our table. What I was really disappointed in was that we couldn't use our $25 coupons that we received with our State House Inn package deal. We could only use one coupon per table and we ended up with four of them. I would've chosen a different place to eat if I would have known we could only use one of those coupons. Part of the super savings was getting dinner with our hotel room. I guess my fault for not asking sooner. Since those coupons came with our package deal, I assumed we would be able to use them all at once. Lesson learned, don't assume.
(1)Ginny C.
First visit to Café Brio, which was recommended by a cashier at the Lincoln Museum! Her recommendation was spot on! Food was excellent. I had the most innovative tacos and my only regret is that I would have to travel four hours again to enjoy this delicious meal! Service was good and the décor is delightful. This is just a short walk from any number of important historical attractions. Oh, and the prices are incredibly reasonable! An excellent choice!
(4)Lorin D.
I am thrilled to report that Cafe Brio has undergone a complete transformation since my last visit. Poorly executed, ill-prepared dishes have been replaced with artful, rave-worthy cuisine. I had the Rotolo, and sweet baby Jesus was it incredible! The puff pastry was just right and the accompanying olive pate was a very nice touch. Wonderful. Jonathan (otherwise affectionately known as Jon-Jon) is a fantastic server. Very pleasant and attentive. I'm so happy that this charming restaurant has been given new life. Give them another try-you won't be disappointed.
(4)Andy S.
Great restaurant. Food is awesome
(5)Steve H.
Have been a big fan of Brio through the years, but under new ownership has really declined. They are constantly either removing items or changing the current items. Mama always says "if it aint broke dont fix it." Even the safe bets like the buff or pesto chicken have changed with ingredients/breads that just do not make sense. The atmosphere is still great, the food has really declined. Oh and the drinks are great but extremely overpriced for Springfield.
(3)Agent O.
Despite past poor service experiences My girl has had here, she thought we'd give it another try as it was near our other plans. It's a sort of cool artsy shabby chic industrial looking place, but not unlike thousands of other places. The food (fish tacos for lunch) was very average. I liked the rice, the tacos themselves were... again, not bad, just very bland. Salsa seemed to be out of a jar. Our server (tallish lean young man, dark hair, beard?) was very good, didn't get his name. HOWEVER, the person playing bartender, I think his name is Jonathan, hasn't a clue about customer relations. We had ordered bloody Marys which were EXTREMELY salty and just horrid. We asked if we could have some made without salt and he said he couldn't as it was a mix they used (Zing Zang). Though he had also rimmed the glasses with a TON of salt (it's not a Margarita, buddy). Then he told us how HE thought it was fine because he had "tasted our drinks with his finger to make sure it wasn't too spicy"... wha what!!!!!? (Which, they weren't spicy even in the slightest bit.) And then, while he said they'd take them off our bill, he walked away without asking if we'd like any other drink instead. He was very unprofessional. Some haughty little young 'guy' who tells you HIS opinion about your drink and seems to care not about yours, is not the person you leave in charge of your restaurant! My girl says the problems she'd had here in the past were due to the exact same thing... haughty servers with a 'better than you' attitude make it unpleasant and not worth it for simply mediocre food.
(2)Sunny M.
The Jerk Chicken was tasty. The service was good. We went for supper and our large group was seated right away. The atmosphere was laid back and the artwork was intriguing.
(4)L L.
Worst dinner. And they will not honor this yelp deal for free dessert. Small portions does not taste good
(1)Kelsey K.
We randomly found Cafe Brio and it was our best dining expereince in our last trip to the Springpatch. The price point was a little higher than most places in Spfld but you get what you pay for. The food was more organic and locally grown and the menu offerings were thoughtful. We really enjoyed our drinks and our meals (Adam got a burrito and I got a goat cheese salad) and our server was great!! My marg was enjoyable and the atmosphere is genuine. I would definitely go back here, but I'll make sure to stop by the best coffee shop in town, Sunsup Koffee Kafe, afterwards!!
(4)S M.
The food was good but the service was awful. My debit card was overcharged, and I'll have to find out how well they handle that. Another review says they changed owners, which would explain a lot. I used to love Cafe Brio, but my last visit there will be to straighten out the overcharge.
(1)Warren W.
What a great mix of fusion (mainly latin and asian) dishes. I have seen other complaints regarding the service on here, but can honestly say I have never had poor service. That said, I have also noticed a considerable uptick in the quality of service. My last waitress expertly managed a table of six and I neither felt rushed nor ignored. Will continue to be regulars.
(4)Angela P.
Decided to try this place since I walked past it all the time. It looked cute from the outside and I had seen quite a few people inside so I thought it must having something going for it. I went alone around 1130am on a Sunday. I ended up ordering a coffee and a breakfast burrito. First, the coffee didnt arrive until after my food. She said she had to brew a fresh pot, which is fine. When it arrived it had obvious grounds floating all over the top. I saw the server see the grounds when she sat it down, but she just put it on my table anyway and walked away. Second, when I ordered I made it pretty clear that I cant have dairy. I asked for no cheese in the burrito, which they obliged, but then it came with a huge side portion of sour cream which was on the plate with the burrito. Now, Ive been a server for many, many years and this isnt that big of a deal to me, but a good server knows the menu and will ask the chef/cook to leave off all dairy products, especially when it isnt listed on the menu (it wasnt). As for the food, Im not sure what people are raving about. Maybe I ordered the wrong thing? The burrito came out lightening fast, literally minutes, which always makes me a little wary. There just didnt seem to be anything right about it. The eggs were overcooked, rubbery and in big pieces like they had been cooked into a fritatta then chopped apart. The sausage/chorizo was indistinguishable and the vegetables were just meh. The whole dish reminded me of something on the level of Chipotle or some other chain Mexican. I ate about half the burrito and just didnt want to eat any more of it so I asked for a to-go box and ended up taking it home and throwing it away.
(2)Magen R.
I have been to Cafe Brio a bunch of times while visiting Springfield but last night I tried it out for the first time since I moved to town. I have always been a huge fan of their margaritas and a good friend of mine adores the pomegranate so I had two of those. They're amazing and worth a trip on their own. I also tried the chips and salsa and chips and guacamole. The salsa was good but very spicy not something I'd serve without warning someone first, but it's a mom and pop place so I see how it goes. The guacamole has a nice flavor but is not very chunky. I prefer mine with a lot of onions, tomatoes, etc in it. Finally, I had the shrimp blt for my meal. It was delicious but definitely not a sandwich that can be picked up and eaten. I had to deconstruct it with my knife and fork, it was good but kind of too much work for a meal. All in all Cafe Brio is a great place and I love the atmosphere. I prefer it for enjoying margaritas and appetizers than for the actual meals though.
(4)Brooke R.
The pesto chicken sandwich is splendid! I absolutely loved the hand cut fries. I should have never been adventurous the next time I went. The next time I went I tried the special. A jerk chicken sandwich. It was pretty awful. So hot you couldn't taste anything but pain. I'm sticking to the pesto chicken.
(4)Sara B.
Such a strange menu. Went in thinking we would have an early dinner/ late lunch. The menu was salads, a couple sandwiches and a lot of breakfast. Decent breakfast burrito. The sobba salad was a little off. Not sure how I feel about this place.
(3)Olive B.
I do not know what other people see in this place. The only thing I can think of is this is a Local's favorite....because they have never been out of Springfield. Good cocktails, cute bar area and that's about it. I have been here many times and quit going after finding some sort of metal piece in my fish taco. What the? When I questioned the waitress about it, she took it back to the kitchen and came back with "It's a bone". Really? Did you hear correctly because it looks like a BOLT to me. I stopped going after this experience. The place is always cold in temp, the food is nothing great and now I get a small piece of hardware in my taco. However, this is a favorite restaurant of a friend of mine and when we met downtown one night I decided to give the place another shot. Ordered the Chile Relleno's-- decent but overpriced. Cocktail was good. And why do they always seat two people up against that window? It's very chilly there during the winter months. The highlight of the dinner: the waitress was under the influence of something and was hil-arrrrrrr-ious in her behavior and explanations of the specials. This was a treat considering most waitstaff here act like they are doing you a favor by taking your order. That's all I got. Don't plan on going back.
(1)Dusttin D.
Went in an hour before closing on a Friday night. Poor service, staff was clearly annoyed that we came in late for dinner. The food was cold and VERY overpriced. Would definitely not recommend this place and will not be going back. I heard it's recently been under new ownership - it will not survive with a staff like that.
(1)s. m. j.
We found this restaurant on Yelp after touring the Lincoln library, and I was hopeful for our experience, but it just wasn't what it could have been. Our waitress was sweet and personable, but I ordered guacamole to go with the chips and she brought the entrees before I was able to remind her that we hadn't gotten the guacamole. She did ask me if I still wanted it, and I said yes because I had been waiting and thinking of it. I had the pistachio-crusted tilapia sandwich. There was so much fish on the sandwich, I had to slice it in half and take part of it off to close the sandwich. It was very good, and I loved the fries. My husband said his meal was okay. And honestly, I wished I had declined the guacamole. It tasted like tomatoes somehow, and I eat guacamole because I cannot stand salsa. Somehow, they have made guacamole taste exactly like salsa, which in my book is not good. I scraped off all the pepper and tomato garnish on top, thinking that was the taste issue, but it wasn't. I would try someplace else in Springfield if you have the chance. I wouldn't go back here. Some food was good, some was just okay and the guacamole was NOT good.
(2)Victoria L.
I found this on yelp, and due to decent reviews I decided to try it. There was no one there when we walked in but they were in fact open and the service was good. It doesn't seem that this place has established their identity or really know what they want to be known for. They have a variety of great items on the menu but together they don't really make sense and nothing we ordered was great, it was good but not great. The dessert was the best part of the meal, so if you go there just order the "better than sex cake", that was my favorite part of the meal. Everything else wasn't anything to write home about, I probably will not be back. Unless I want the cake.
(2)Kristen M.
We wanted to like Cafe Brio and went a couple of times. The servers seem very inexperienced but sweet and friendly. On my last visit I ordered a cup of tea. I had to ask a couple of times for it and when I got the mug of water she was carrying it with her fingers all over the lip of the mug. Ewh. The menu is creative but there are inconsistencies and just some overall weirdness that won't let me go back. For example, on our burger and fries were served in what looked like a trough. It was no more than 4" across and the sandwich didn't even fit in it. The burger was tasty but difficult and awkward to eat. I know you own flat plates. Why couldn't we have one? The deconstructed caesar - while it had a great dressing - I would never order again. I was given a half a head of romaine and a pile of bread crumbs. Good luck Cafe Brio.
(2)Chris C.
The meals we had were inconsistent. My wife and I each had the same meals we had before and this time they were below average meals. I had the 18 hour cooked chicken... Very little actual chicken on the plate. My wife had the pappardelle pasta with meat and mushrooms. Meat was near raw and the pasta was more like lasagna noodles than actual pappardelle. In addition, there was little to no sauce for the pasta. We were definitely unsatisfied. I wonder if they changes chefs????
(2)Irene O.
I was recommended to stop in here by a local supporting local digs. I didn't have a chance to eat here... I just had a drink; it was yummy. I want to reflect on the honest and kind service of the staff. I came down to the capital from Chicago to lobby. I ended up leaving my credit card in the receipt folder. They were so kind to send it back to me! I appreciate it so much!
(4)Mark V.
I've been there before and liked the food, ambiance and service. I published the picture of the funky cool tables. Tonight was different. We had an appetizer of 6 small Italian bread slices topped with mainly plain tasting diced tomatoes, a few cubes of mango, and guacamole. They were hard to keep the toppings on and a little plain. We had habenero chicken, fish tacos, with rice, and black beans. My wife likes hot spicy food, I do not. The habenero was overwhelmingly hot for both of us and not enjoyable for either of us and she didn't like the cinnamon seasoning. The fish tacos were plain, no salsa or spice. I liked them, but my wife thought them too plain. The black beans were good, but a little dried out. The service, rice and asparagus were great. The wooden high chair hurt my butt, but maybe I am getting skinny. Like I said, its been good before, but you never know what's on the menu.
(2)Tara M.
A treasure in the state capitol! Great lighting, staff is young and very friendly! Wandering downtown Springfield on a Monday night to find eats, we stumbled in here. What a find! I had BBQ pork chop, with fresh mashed potatoes and a rough cut cole slaw. SO good! Really impressed the heck out of me! Hubby had the ahi tuna, which was served on Asian noodles and veggies, I don't like tuna, but LOVED the noodles, and he was impressed that nothing needed to be added to it (salt, pepper, soy sauce) to improve the taste. Had an appetizer of chips with both spicy salsa and chipotle sauce... very tasty and it definitely had heat! Definitely some place we'd go again, when visiting the capital!
(5)Alicia H.
Cafe Brio has seen better days. The lone star is for the deliciously spicy bloody mary. I'm pretty sure our order of guacamole had a whole jar of cumin in it. Y U C K. The taste stayed with me all day. Next time I'm in Springfield, it will be Mel-o-cream donuts for breakfast!
(1)Jeff C.
In town on business and the hotel pointed me in their direction. I was hungry for breakfast and got the breakfast that had this masa pancake, eggs any style and a chipotle cheese sauce (which sounded great) along with fried chiles. It was pretty good. However, being my first time in Springfield I am wondering if the locals can't stand a little heat. These fried green chiles were really not very good. It was this heavy corn based (masa?) batter that was heavy, goopy and not really fresh. The salsa was great that came with the chips but it had no heat at all (Literally zero on the spicy scale). Lastly the chipotle cheese sauce had no heat either. If I order something "chipotle" I am expected a little heat, but not here! I also ordered a pancake as the daily special was blueberry pancakes. I was hoping for better but it was marginal. I was not sure about the syrup either as it was not very sweet and hence why I ordered a pancake as I wanted something sweet. Maybe it was a "light" syrup. Oh well. I left full and generally satisfied. I would like to come back and try a margarita.
(3)Sean D.
Came in after being treated like dirt at Obed & Issac (didn't even make it to our table). What a refreshing change. I see a lot of people are not liking the new menu which concerns me because I'm liking it. Got the wings as an appetizer. they were nice and meaty, the sauce was good, and the dipping side was very creative. Split a Shrimp BLT and a burger with my dad. The BLT was a bit awkward to eat but tasty nonetheless, and the burger I had is one of the best I've eaten in Springfield. The only complaint I have is they were pretty skimpy on the side of sweet potato chips. They were delicious and I only got about 8. They were also very accomodating for my infant son.
(4)Sara C.
I went here rather spontaneously with a friend. Nothing was at all above average. The food was "just" okay. The service was "just" okay. People seemed to be there only for the alcohol, but it is a restaurant? I cannot say it was bad, by any means, but better is an option..
(2)Ted C.
Brio seems out of place for Springfield, it's not so much a straight-up Mexican place as it is a Latin fusion kind of place. I think that they had to add some non Latin dishes to keep afloat (ex. the Filet.) The margaritas are AWESOME! They're all 7.50 and they're mixed perfectly, it's the right balance of tequila, juice and liquor. The frozen ones are just as good and only a quarter more. They switch the flavors up on those (blueberry/raspberry with a mango juice swirl.) Delicious! They really are that good, possibly the best margaritas I've had. EVER The food is pretty good, got the chips and the fire roasted salsa, it had a little kick to it that had a great fresh taste to it. I wanted to try the habanero chicken, but it has a peanut-raisin sauce that didn't appeal to me, so, I got the shrimp tacos instead. They were packed with shrimp and spiced just right. Go for the food, stay for the margaritas and then thank me for squaring you away.
(4)Valerie P.
This is NOT a Mexican Restaurant! I live in Texas and I think I have been to practically every Mexican Restaurant in the state and I never seen Soba Noodles on the menu. Granted the noodles were good along with my decent margarita, but I am not a fan of false advertisement.
(2)Rebecca P.
Reasonably priced. Nice selection. My husband got a shrimp BLT that looked really tasty and he enjoyed. I got a spinach, pear, & feta salad with shrimp. Though the spinach leaves were big and hard to cut, the shrimp was tender and flavorful and the bacon/vinaigrette dressing delicious! The pears seem like they could be have been from a can and the flavor didn't "help" the salad too much. The staff was friendly and offered many good suggestions for us to for the day in Springfield. She also let us know she has some of her glass work for sale up the street.
(3)Jenny H.
I usually come here for lunch. The waitresses are very friendly (and cute!), but we've been forgotten about once or twice, especially during busy afternoons. On those afternoons, the food wait has been quite long. Either get here early or plan for more than an hour. The food is fairly good. The chips that I've had have all been home-fried at least; I've gotten many a warm basket. The sandwiches are tasty-- I think they toast the buns in a quarter inch of butter. If you're on a diet, you'll want to avoid that (but definitely don't if you're not!). The soup-of-the-day has been really good lately. The only problem I have with it is the proteins. Some I've had has been tough and gristly (steak sandwich, I think) and sometimes there's not enough (tilapia wraps in particular; otherwise excellent, I have gotten some fish-lite/tortilla heavy servings).
(3)Tanya M.
My friend & I stopped in for lunch. I got a cheesburger & my friend got wings. She does NOT like wing sauce. She didn't realize that they put the buffalo sauce on them. When she asked if she could get them remade w/o the sauce, she was told that she would have to buy another order of wings. My burger and fries were not good enough to me to go back. Tiny burger and lukewarm fries. Add bad service and it just does not leave me with a good experience.
(2)Amanda H.
I really don't understand how this place can garner such positive reviews. The place does look amazing and we tried all weekend to get in. However, I can't believe we ate here. If we weren't starving, had someplace to be really soon, and feeling so generous we would have returned the food and left under normal circumstances. The salsa was definitely canned and the chips obviously not homemade and not even warmed up. These things I can live with. However, I cannot live with ordering orange juice and being given a glass of Tang and then being charged $3.50 for what my receipt called "fresh squeezed orange juice." Come on, guys. Thank God I didn't get the mimosa. I don't think I could stomach Tang and sparkling wine, no matter how weakly mixed. My boy got a Benedict. The poached eggs had hard centers. Not OK. Everything else would have been great, especially if they added a little more potatoes. His food was actually hot. I got the breakfast burrito. It was barely warm and definitely cold by the time I got to the center. It also had grill marks on it (why?). Do they just load up the tortilla and stick it on the grill and hope the fillings get hot enough? Shame, shame, shame. Oh yeah, and the guac was watery. What are they doing back there? Service on a scale of 1 to 5 was a 1. But they were dead so maybe its normal for waitresses in Springfield to text the whole time instead of wait on their two customers. Stay far away.
(1)Jeanne W.
We went to Cafe Brio last night after a show at the Hoogland. We had a nice time and were pleased with the atmosphere and the updated menu. Our dinners were good,not great. A few things sort of missing: chipotle shrimp had no zing at all,clam chowder was very good, but lacking any actual clams.It also arrived without a soup spoon. As others have mentioned,odd shaped dishes can sometimes be difficult. I didn't want my knife to sit on the table in between bites, but IT WOULD NOT STAY on the irregular salad dish. The staff in general was welcoming,helpful,and well-informed. Where the managed missed a great opportunity was in the bar. The bartender was very unpleasant and seemed put-out to have to take drink orders as well as handle wait staff's needs. When you are enjoying a Saturday night out, you really want someone friendly and fun behind the bar.
(3)Jenny A.
My fiance and I stopped in Springfield on our road trip to St. Louis from Chicago. We had big plans to get some chili, which Springfield is apparently famous for, but every place we tried to go to apparently closes by 2 p.m. That's okay, though - there were a couple other places I remembered from my Springfield restaurant search, and one of those places was Cafe Brio. Now, I was really expecting to eat a pretty heavy, unhealthy lunch during our stop in Springfield, but I was pleasantly surprised with Cafe Brio. As other reviewers mention, there's a nice mix and variety of Mexican and Caribbean flavors. I think the restaurant itself calls its food something like "sun fare," and it promises bright flavors and a lot of energy. The food was really good! I had shrimp tacos, and my fiance had a delicious burger. This restaurant definitely didn't skimp on the shrimp - the tacos were way too full! But that's never a problem for me. We didn't get charged for chips and salsa, and our drink refills were free. The service was great - our server was really sweet, and everyone we interacted with was really nice. Since we were road tripping, we didn't, unfortunately, get to sample any of the margaritas, but the list looked great. We'll definitely stop by Cafe Brio again if we're in Springfield, and maybe we can get some margaritas then! As far as decor, it is pretty rustic, but it's definitely colorful, and I find the rusticity pretty inviting. It didn't seem dirty or overly shabby to me.
(4)Andrew W.
Second visit here didn't go as well as the first. Nothing on the menu looked exciting and we ended up picking two blah blahs. Eh. Bummer, thought I had a gem.
(3)Mark S.
We had a $25 voucher for Cafe Brio as part of a Lincoln Museum and hotel deal. After looking at the menu online and some of the bad reviews, we reluctantly decided to try it. I mean, it was almost a free lunch, how can you go wrong? The menu items are bizarre, like they are trying to have this fancy eclectic menu. I ordered the Brio burger, which was described with a lot of different toppings, but they used an obviously frozen pre-formed hamburger patty. My thought is that if you want to serve a gourmet hamburger, then use quality ingredients starting with the hamburger. I asked for BBQ sauce but they didn't have any, very weird. The fries were good tasting but some were soggy and mangled. My wife had the buffalo chicken sandwich which was ok, but there was an unappetizing dark area on the chicken meat that was gross and the spice was kind of off. On the bright side, the iced tea (plain) was fresh and good tasting, and our server was excellent. We won't be back. Try Norb Andy's (dive bar but good food) or Obed & Isaacs (nice brewpub) if you are looking for casual spots in Springfield.
(2)Jimmie H.
Good food but definitely not the Latin fusion that they claim to be. If you don't work downtown it's almost impossible to find a parking space for lunch, so come for dinner instead.
(3)Dave M.
We're visitors from the Chicago burbs and have eaten at Brio many, many times - brunch, lunch, and dinner. The coffee is good and the food tasty. As others have commented, they serve a fusion of Mexican and Caribbean cuisines. We don't drink and can't comment on the Margaritas, but others in our group have enjoyed them. The staff, hipsters all, are friendly and competent. We always enjoy going to Cafe Brio!
(4)Percy M.
I know one of the owners and was excited to hear that he bought this place. The former owner had really let the place go and had turned it into a real dump. Four of us went on a Saturday night. The place was almost full when we arrived. The margaritas were top notch. Appetizers were really good. All entrees were good. I thought the rotolo was best. I ordered the fried chicken special. It came with a blue potato salad and homemade corn bread. The potato salad was under seasoned. It needed salt and pepper. The chicken was pretty good. The jerk chicken was really good as well. The chips and salsa were disappointing. Seemed like the chips were just Tostitos that had been thrown into the fryer to re-heat them. Problem was that the oil was not at correct temp and left them greasy with a stale oil taste. Overall an excellent experience though. The few minor issues kept it from getting 5 stars, but it seems they are striving for excellence. Looking forward to going back soon.
(4)Pamela R.
Out of all the places I've been to in downtown Springfield, IL for lunch this is the closest to having a lot of options for vegetarians and somewhat vegan. The portabello mushroom sandwich is comparatively better than the Brickhouse. Usually when I go, there's about 4 to 5 other people who go with me and they usually are pretty satisfied with their food. One guy can't stop getting the Orange Chicken. We go about one ot two times a week and list it as one of our favorite's in Springfield for now. One lady loves the rustic/hippie decor, but I could see it as looking a little shabby/dirty. It's really a matter of taste, but at least they give you something to look at. It does seem to be bustling most times we go, in fact, I usually see a lot of politicians there. On one trip, we saw former governor, Jim Edgar, eating there. So the crowd isn't particularly what I expected for a hippie-looking place. The service is usually decent with friendly chit-chatty waitresses, but there experience is questionable.
(4)Michael H.
Hit this place again, and with less people in the restaurant, it was a great experience. The Eggs Hussard are out of this world!
(5)Angelica E.
So I had an overnight here 2 nights in a row (I'm a flight attendant) so the first night went to Brickhouse and it was cool. Wanting to try somewhere else my FO and I came to this place to get some Mexican food and drinks. The decor was pretty cool inside. Ummm the food I would give about a 2....I had better! The customer service and the margaritas were great....I would give it 4! I would come back to this spot but only for the drinks though...highly recommended!!!
(3)Jeremy O.
Recently, my wife and I went down to Springfield for a little vacation. Not wanting to get anymore fast food, we puttered around downtown to try and find something...and unfortunately, there isn't much to choose from that's not outrageously overpriced (see: Augie's Front Burner) or typical cafe fare. Luckily, we stumbled on Cafe Brio, which seemed reasonably priced and inviting. How surprised we were! Coming from Chicago which has fairly good Latin restaurants I have to say that this one one of the BEST Latin meals I've ever had...and that's not any of their awesome Margaritas talking! The food isn't really Mexican, though they do offer several typical Mexican dishes, like tacos. It's has more of a Caribbean-island flavor with a lot of jerk sauces and such. My wife had the Pork Chop, which was enormous and come with an amazing sauce that was both spicy and smoky while being sweet. I had the steak tacos which were great. Usually, when you order a steak dish in most hispanic-style restaurants, you have to endure a fatty cut of beef. Not here! The steak was moist and juicy and had a nice spicy afterbite. I had ordered my tacos without cheese and they did come out with cheese but, when I told the waitress I couldn't eat them because I was lactose-intolerant, she apologized and even caught on that the gaucamole had cream in it. 15 minutes later, I had a new plate of tacos without any lactose! And the margaritas are perfectly mixed and taste great - buy one! Overall, we'll definitely be coming back whenever we're in town!
(5)Daniel F.
Used to go to Springfield from Champaign on a regular basis from the mid 90s to about 2008 or so, and Brio was a stalwart on my rotation. I though it more edgy and better earlier in that time frame, though I have been there in the last year or two and though that their Tex-Mex stuff was pretty good, and drinks as well. It can be loud, and servers spotty, but it has been steady over time. I am glad to see some better non-chain restos have opened up in Springfield over the last few years, because other than a few ethnic choices, Springfield was slim pickings. And places closed early - almost always.
(3)Aimee E.
Great food, serviced sucked!!!!! Don't go, unless you have the whole afternoon to wait foe your server to acknowledge you or bring you water, food, and ranch dressing. The table next to had not been cleared the 1 hr and 45 mins we have been here. Boo. Chef is good. Thats all this place has going for it.
(1)Barbara P.
Chose this place for lunch after reading the Yelp reviews - wanted someplace within walking distance of the Lincoln Museum & this fit the bill. I agree with some previous reviewers that the portions aren't large & the prices aren't cheap, but then again the portions aren't tiny & the prices aren't outrageous either - pretty much right down the middle. Our server was very friendly & attentive - he refilled our drinks without even asking, though the refills did show up on the bill - hmmm. I had the Spring Mix Salad with seared Tuna - excellent flavor combos & just the right amount of dressing. It was just what I wanted after having had a big heavy breakfast that morning. The food took a bit of time to come out of the kitchen, but not enough to be annoying unless you were in a hurry. Some interesting menu combos looked yummy & I'd come again if I'm ever in Springfield to try additional menu items.
(3)Adele S.
Seems like this place is better for dinner than lunch. My friend is down here frequently for court cases and he recommended Cafe Brio for mexican. It didn't seem very mexican to me, more latin I think. My inlaw's of course, complained about the sticky chairs. If there were nothing for them to complain about, the world would stop revolving. My husband and I both had salads...greens, a sweet balsamic vinaigrette, craisins, caramelized nuts and a grilled chicken breast. Nothing Mexican about that. It was a very tasty salad, the chicken didn't have that "pollo propane" flavor that seems to be the norm with grilled chicken. Chicken was very tender. Dad-in-law had a kind of eggs benedict with crabmeat-very good. Mom-in-law had huevos rancheros...a fried tortilla topped with black beans, a scrambled egg (she complained it was an omelet because it was flat, not the mound of runny mush that she likes) and salsa. Oh, and it was greasy. But she is a complainer, what do you want? Looked ok to me! My daughter is 8 and there was nothing on the menu that appealed to her, and she generally likes to try different things. As another reviewer said, good selection of margaritas and beer. Do get a margarita. It is the best fucking margarita I have had in a LONG time. In fact, have two. The fruit juice is fresh and they don't skimp on the tequila. My only complaint is the portions were too small, at least the salads were. I've had side salads that were bigger than this. The other entrees were decent size. We would have liked some bread along with the salad, maybe tortilla chips and salsa or something. I would like to come back for dinner next time we pass through but because of the salad size, my hubby might not go for that.
(4)Jeff M.
I had the steak tacos. They were very good and the service was quick and pleasant.
(4)K S.
Excellent decor and service! Love the fish tacos and I rarely even eat fish!
(4)Melissa H.
This is a great Latin fusion restaurant for foodies who find themselves in Springfield. This is the place you want to go if you're looking for food that is not fried, not sandwiches, and has herbs and spices used in cooking (really a rare thing here!) It's located downtown, so parking can be a little scary sometimes.
(4)Bruce Z.
Stopped in for supper whilst visiting as a tourist one day. The place probably looked very hip when it first opened but it is badly in need of a cleaning and paint job. I don't mean the faux plaster problems. I mean the smoke and dirt on the ceilings and walls. The original paint job and HVAC/lighting was probably killer kool . But oh it's gotta be impossible to keep up with unless you close for a week. And they have not done so. In a long while apparently. The tables along the window line (not sure of the rest of the place) should not have been allowed in use by the health department as they were unsealed wood with many open gaps full of crumbs. Typically this style would have had a sheet of glass on top to make it possible to keep clean. As it was it was akin to eating off a badly maintained picnic table. As stated above by others service was sketchy and being charged for refills on drinks (tea/pop) is not something I am used to. There was a nice ethusiastic crowd eating away by the time we left. When we arrived at about 5:30 on a Monday eve it was pretty empty. I do not really recall the food other than it was tasty. Portions were adequate. The location of the restaurant affects the prices I am sure but the decore does not lead one to expect the prices. A bit of a disconnect there. I am usually kind of laid back about things - really I am - but when I saw the bar keep wearing flip flops it sort of sealed the deal for me regarding this place. The managment does not appear to want to do the needed work with staff and structure to keep this place attractive.
(2)Chris P.
LOVE this place. Stumbled upon it while looking for dinner. This was our first time to Springfield and to this restaurant. It has a great menu with something for everyone. Great selection of margaritas and beer. My wife who is vegetarian found lots of good options and I did also. She had the chili rejeno (sp) and I had the tilapia wrap. Both were under $10 and with drink plus chips and the chipotle queso we were both happily full when we left. Prices were very reasonable and service was fantastic friendly and helpful while making choices. Definitely check this out. Next time in Springfield we will go back for sure.
(5)Stan G.
Chicagoan on biz in springfield. Had the chicken Habanero. Just amazing, black and pinto beans and great rice, spicy breaded chicken w/ raisins. Oh man, good stuff. Not inexpensive but suprisingly good. They are starting out so the decor is not great but that dish was incredible. I'd highly recommend.
(4)Laura O.
Came here twice for dinner while in town for work. Loved the Habenaro chicken with smoked gouda mashers!! It's in the downtown Springfield area that has definetely spruced up since I visited the area years ago for a school trip! (AGES AGO!) The interior was very artsy.
(4)Patricia H.
Cafe Brio frustrates me. It has a very interesting menu as there is always more than one thing I would like to try. They have started charging for chips and salsa which is a little unfair considering the wait for entrees after ordering is a little longer than necessary. They are definitely trying for something different which I can appreciate, but I can't help but feel it is a little off. More so than anything, the atmosphere is rather unjustly pretentious.
(3)Kevin W.
I was impressed with my trip to Springfield, and Cafe Brio was an enjoyable lunch. We had a certificate from Travel Zoo for our stay and we received a gift certificate good for $25 to Cafe Brio, which obviously we were gonna use! Now, they don't tell you this, but LEMONADE REFILLS ARE NOT FREE, but it was worth EVERY penny. That's how good their lemonade is. I would literally make every attempt to swing by just for the lemonade next time I am in Springfield! The food wasn't half bad either! I had the orange chicken, the chicken itself was moist and delicious and the flavor was outstanding. I like the overall experience and would definitely recommend them for lunch anytime!
(4)Lara G.
Cafe Brio was one of my favorite restaurants downtown until it changed owners about a year and a half ago. During this period the food was terrible and the service was even worse. I heard through the grapevine that the old owner was back so a friend and I went today to test it out. Sure enough the old owner was back, the menu was back and the food was back to being delicious! I couldn't be happier and will definitely start recommending it again! (And my food recommendation for lunch is the soba noodle salad with blackened chicken. I could eat that every day!)
(5)Lesley F.
I was hopeful that Cafe Brio was back on track with new ownership. I went for the first time in a while today. It was utterly disappointing! I'm not sure if they didn't pay their light bill or what, but there was no overhead lighting and they had candle sticks on the tables for light...that was weird. Also, almost all of the paper menus were completely gross with food stains, water rings, grease, etc. The tables and floor felt sticky and gross. The food was "meh" I won't be back.
(1)katie s.
First time in Springfield in a long time. Stumbled on Cafe Brio while waiting for 4 hour break before a wedding reception. My husband and I both had the shrimp BLT. LOVED IT!!! Jonathon the bartender was very welcoming.
(5)Jenny H.
The service was good and prices reasonable, which is all that saved this review from a single star. The food was over salty, had cheap ingredients, and was overall just not good. Both my husband and I felt sick shortly after eating the portobello sandwich, but our kids were ok after eating quesadillas. Good tasting chips are brought out with jarred salsa to begin. The sandwich had a terrible hoagie bun with some oily aoli and cheese sauce and a HALF portobello mushroom 1/8 inch think. If the rest of the menu items are this terrible, run!
(2)Jene Y.
Beautiful everywhere. Love the funky feeling of the painting. Service exceeded expectations. Never rushed or stuffy. Always anticipating every need. Friendly and informative without being intrusive. I had Salmon which is cooked perfectly. My husband had Steak special, he enjoyed every bite. We would definitely go back.
(5)Chris W.
Good food, easy to order gluten free. Friendliest place we have been to in a long time. Great Margaritas
(4)Noelle B.
Had dinner with a friend here recently and it was a pretty disappointing experience. The $6.99 margaritas were terrible. We asked for them to be frozen and it was almost as if they didn't know how to make a margarita. Not much flavor to them and they were very watered down tasting. The menu seems much more condensed now than I remember it used to be. I got the smoked chicken sandwich, the bits of chicken included on the oversized bun were good, but the sandwich overall was incredibly dry...no sauce of any kind. Sweet potato fries are delicious...sadly, that's about the only thing they have going for them.
(2)Ryan C.
Stopped in for lunch today and the staff was super friendly and attentive. I sat at the bar and promptly taken care of and and had a hot fresh meal in minutes. I've been here once before and I will definately be going back again.
(4)Michael B.
Friendly staff. Laid back atmosphere. Kid friendly. Mediocre food. Wouldn't come back, but didn't have a poor experience.
(2)Mathew P.
As a general statement, Springfield is not a place with great food. After living in Springfield for a year, I discovered Cafe Brio-- it was a particularly bad time in my life as far as eating was concerned. Cafe Brio was the first enjoyable lunch I had in this city. The Shrimp BLT with sweet potato chips were excellent.
(4)Chad C.
Great place! It's been a while since we ate here since we don't live in the area. We were driving through Springfield heading north around supper time and trying to decide where to eat. My wife and I both thought about Brio. The food is great. Very fresh and unique. I had steak tacos my wife had an asian inspired ahi tuna. We also got an order of guacamole that was amazing. You need to try this place!
(5)