Olive & Oak Cafe lies at the corner of Webster and Sheffield avenues, mere blocks from DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus, as one of the newest additions in a neighborhood where it’s not always easy to stand out.

The shop, operating from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., offers coffee, smoothies, sandwiches, baked goods and other items including halal options. It caters to students with plenty of outlets for chargers, free Wi-Fi and no time limits for customers, said owner Jay Falanh, who has created a friendly place to study or work.

“I definitely like how it’s more homey,” said Izzy Vega, a freshman studying sports communication. “It’s very welcoming as opposed to a lot of the other places nearby.”

With its brightly lit spacious interior and high ceilings, the cafe has a laid-back atmosphere that serves as an escape from the fluorescent lights and stuffiness of a classroom or library.

A handful of staff members float back and forth behind the counter, crafting drinks, frying bacon and eggs while calling out orders. They interact as a cohesive unit, cracking jokes with one another and laughing while tending to the cafe.

Everyone behind the counter works hard, Falanh said. He added, “Even though we’re not related, it’s like family.”

At lunchtime, customers rotate in and out of the shop, some grabbing a quick bite and others taking a seat at one of the many tables. Most individuals work on their laptops, headphones on, focused on their task at hand accompanied by a cortado or cherry danish.

Others lounge in the colorful cushioned armchairs just beyond the small pickup counter.

Tables don’t stay unoccupied for long and the chatter of conversations dampens the upbeat music playing from overhead speakers.

Vega took a sip of her strawberry matcha with cold foam and added, “I think for the north side of downtown, this is the best you can get.”

First-time customer Kate Nadler, who is studying neuroscience at the University of Illinois Chicago, said she likes the place so far, calling it “a nice environment, not too loud.”

Along with the welcoming atmosphere, customers like DePaul alum Beth Xanthopoulos say Olive & Oak Cafe’s reasonable prices stand out in an area saturated by more expensive coffee shops.

“I think they were pretty reasonable, especially for the amount of matcha that I got here,” she said. “I’m so used to paying $8 and then getting something that’s literally half the size of this.”

They offer build-your-own bagel sandwiches and paninis for $9, and there is no extra charge for alternative milks or cold foam on drinks. Lattes are $6.50 and smoothies are $6.75. 

 “If the experience is good at the register, it just follows all the way through,” Falanh said.

Xanthopoulos said she enjoys patronizing a cafe that isn’t a chain like Starbucks.

“It’s nice that you guys (DePaul students) have a small business to support now,” Xanthopoulos said.

Olive & Oak Cafe also has a mobile app that allows users who have created an account to place and pay for online orders for immediate pickup or at a scheduled time.

Past the pickup counter is a staircase descending to the basement of the building, currently closed off by a single metal chain. Falanh and his team are working to turn the downstairs level into a designated quiet area with about 20 spaces for people to “lock in” on their work or studies.

“I want them to have the best atmosphere for them to do that in,” Falanh said.

He added that inspiration for this space came from the work- and study-centered environment that has naturally evolved in Olive & Oak Cafe since it first opened in mid-November. Falanh expects to open the cafe’s lower level in March.

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