American
Delivery
Gluten-free
Non-veg

Serves meat, vegan options available. Has vegan french toast, tofu scramble, vegan cakes, vegan shakes and coffees, vegan pancakes, veggie burgers, and more. Request no cheese/mayo on the veggie burger. Relocated from 3408 N Clark St. NOTE: ask if fried items are fried in separate oil from meats or not. Open Mon-Thu 10:00am-10:00pm, Fri 10:00am-11:00pm, Sat 8:00am-11:00pm, Sun 8:00am-10:00pm.


Venue map for Pick Me Up Cafe
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58 Reviews

First Review by xsixshotx

shebazzle

Points +425

Vegan
17 Mar 2024

Good vibe, vegan friendly diner

Hadn’t been to the new location but PMU was a post event staple for us back at the old location back when we were young enough to go out. :-)

Met a non-veg friend here for lunch. As I’ve been having pancake cravings, ordered the vegan pecan pancakes. Pretty sure I got 204 pancakes weighing in at 38lbs.

Craving addressed, and pancakes were a little dense but i enjoyed very much. And was super full. Took some leftovers home as well. Bonus.

Not too full to share an order of fried pickles with my friend. Fried pickles and pecan pancakes. Pretty sure I’m not pregnant, but miracles do happen?

Was going to order coffee but noticed no free refills. Diner fail. I’d rather have unlimited “diner”’coffee with my pancakes than one cup o’ good joe. But went americano. It was a solid B.

Friend got some sort of eggplant sandwich. Looked messy but big and tasty. Not sure it it was veganizable but the menu is pretty good on that front.

Pros: Pancakez , Portions, Vibe, seating good, booths with character

Cons: Coffee refills cost $

Jsabins

Points +195

Vegan
30 Jan 2024

Great food and atmosphere

I got the vegan Benedict and it was really good. It’s nice to have a vegan breakfast place with good portions. Lots of vegan dessert, lunch, and breakfast options to choose from. Was visiting from out of town but will definitely be back if I’m ever in the area again.

Pros: Atmosphere , Lots of options, Portion size

sconroy

Points +256

Vegan
04 Nov 2023

Awesome vegan hash

Definitely get the santa fe scramble!

lordofthestrings86

Points +596

Vegan
02 Apr 2023

PMU

A bit of a long wait for not the best pancakes. The best part is the warm berry compote. Bring your appetite if you want to finish it. The stack of 5 are pretty big too.

Pros: Lots of vegan options , Large portions

Cons: Long wait time after ordering , Extra charge for vegan

ChristyBorovoy

Points +50

Vegan
01 Mar 2023

Perfect compromise!

They are very aware of their vegan customers and sensitive to our sensibilities, but if you still have people along who wont eat vegan, this is a great place to eat! They have booze and ice cream! They serve t'ease!

Pros: lots of options, tasty, parking in front

Cons: serves meat

jadaruss

Points +1525

Vegan
03 Oct 2022

Good matcha latte

Lots of vegan options with okay quality. The matcha latte was good tho!

NoFussVegan

Points +339

Vegan
08 Jul 2022

American, and not in a good way…

We had three different dishes for an evening meal. I’ll put this short and sweet: boring, bland, greasy and below average food in huge portions. They couldn’t even get the fries right.
Left slightly nauseous and with a bad first impression of the stereotype of American food.
Two stars only because of the staff.

Lomky

Points +621

Vegan
17 Jun 2022

Exceptional

The best vegan french toast I've ever had. Paired with a delicious root beer float with vegan vanilla ice cream. Extremely friendly service. I regret not having room for the pie!

Pros: Plenty of vegan options, Huge portions, Vegan desserts

philipadrian

Points +104

Vegan
25 May 2022

A Chicago Landmark

I’ve never been disappointed in Pick Me Up. I’ve lived in Chicago for nearly 15 years and although their in a new spot, the value and quality of time, food, and ambiance still give the feel good times. Not to mention the incredibly delicious food with MANY vegan and veg options. They’re also very amenable to customizing things for you. One of my all time faves.

Nieve

Points +3861

Vegan
19 Dec 2021

Alright brunch spot

We stopped in for brunch and I wasn't overly impressed but the food was fine. Tried the vegan benedict, the chocolate chip pancakes, and a matcha latte. The pancakes were the nicest thing I tried, I'd recommend them, the benedict was a bit mediocre. There were a decent number of vegetarian options but only a few vegan options. If you have to go out with meat eaters it would be a good cafe. Everything veggie is clearly labeled which is nice.

JuliannaK

Points +65

Vegetarian
04 Oct 2021

Great food

Have had a few different dishes from the menu and have enjoyed all of them. Menu is clearly marked and they have a lot of both vegetarian and vegan options to choose from!

BiblioBeruthiel

Points +81

Vegan
05 Jul 2021

A Great Option for Mixed Dietary Needs

I went here with a friend who is a meat eater. It was such a great option for us because I often end up eating the one vegan option on a menu or she ends up needing to eat vegan if we go out to eat. I had the vegan cheese fries and the vegan benedict. Both were delicious - one of the best vegan cheese sauces I've had before. Also got a piece of Raspberry Lemon cake to go which was a little on the thicker/drier end but delicious.

Pros: Good for mixed dietary needs, easy parking, very friendly staff

Cons: Not fully vegan/vegetarian

gwennam

Points +469

Vegan
12 Jun 2021

Vegan Pancakes and French Toast!

Love the menu options here. It’s true, great vegan hangover food. Menu is very clearly labeled and the staff are helpful and accommodating. The vegan French toast was so delicious. Can’t wait to come back and try the shakes. Affordable and tasty!

Updated from previous review on 2020-10-04

swankberto

Points +62

Vegan
15 May 2021

Jack of all trades

Not as charming as the old location. Still one of the best places to go for groups w mixed dietary concerns. Service is hit or miss. Your coffee will get cold. Play it safe and always ask for clarification on v/vg menu items.

destwho

Points +26

Vegan
01 Dec 2020

Good food, Misleading menu

The veggie burger I had here was phenomenal, BUT it was labeled “vegan” on the menu when it really wasn’t. They put non vegan cheese/mayo on it. Beware if you’re avoiding these things, just ask to remove these ingredients off the burger when you order.

Pros: Lots of veg options , Good food

Cons: Not as upbeat as original location

valeriammm

Points +39

Vegan
22 Jul 2020

Delicious!

Super fast delivery and generous portions! I had the Santa Fe vegan scramble. Im already looking forward to ordering take out again, their menu had a variety of vegan options from breakfast, pizza, sandwiches, desserts and more

Pros: THE OPTIONS, Fast delivery, Friendly

Cons: Cost

mharris06

Points +644

Vegan
05 Jul 2020

THE BEST VEGAN HUNGOVER FOOD

It just hit the spot so good. Such an awesome environment and happy workers. The food was miraculous. 10/10!

Spyrolights5

Points +76

Vegan
07 May 2020

Good Vegan Nachos

This place is really cute and they have nice vegan options. The pizza grinder was not very good, but the nachos and chili were.

Pros: Nice options for everyone, Cute




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