The World's Only Nutella Café Reopens on Michigan Avenue

Chicago summer just got a little sweeter. The world's only permanent Nutella® Café—owned and operated by Ferrero—has reopened at 189 N. Michigan Avenue after a complete revamp, and it arrives with more than a fresh coat of paint. A redesigned space, an expanded menu, and a first-ever order-ahead feature signal a brand thinking hard about how experiential dining should work in 2026.

For food and beverage operators watching the branded-café playbook evolve, this reopening is worth a close read. It blends nostalgia, Instagram-ready design, and operational convenience into one destination on the Magnificent Mile.

A One-of-a-Kind Destination Gets a Full Redesign

In the heart of the Magnificent Mile, the Nutella Café is a destination no other city in the world can claim. After a top-to-bottom renovation, it has returned with the chocolate hazelnut-filled classics that made it a Chicago staple—crepes, waffles and more—now set inside a completely reimagined room.

The new design leans hard into the brand's most recognizable asset: the jar. Highlights include:

• A custom ordering station inspired by the signature Nutella jar silhouette
• A swirling bronze mesh ceiling and textured walls that echo the chocolate hazelnut spread
• Dedicated zones for merchandise, ordering and dining for a smoother guest flow
• Feature walls throughout designed as "Instagrammable" moments

"Chicago is home to something truly unique, the world's only permanent Nutella Café, and we could not be more honored to welcome guests back," said Richard Fossali, Vice President and General Manager, Fannie May and Nutella Café. "While the space has been completely reimagined, it still delivers everything fans love about the Café. To bring that experience back to Michigan Avenue is a proud moment for everyone at Ferrero."

An Expanded Menu and New Merchandise

The elevated menu introduces several new offerings alongside the fan favorites:

• Nutella Tiramisu Cups
• Nutella Mocha Frappes
• Nutella Milkshakes
• Nutella Ice Cream Cones
• Nutella Peanut Spread, now available as an add-on to café favorites
• Assorted new gelato flavors from Ferrero partner Vero Gelato

Guests can still enjoy beloved staples like customized Nutella jars—the item that keeps Chicagoans and visitors from around the world coming back. New merchandise, including Nutella tumblers, key chains and mini totes, is also available for purchase.

Order Ahead Comes to the Café

The most operationally significant update is coming soon: guests will be able to order ahead for pickup or join a new waitlist to be notified when their table is ready. Whether stopping between meetings or planning a destination visit, the added convenience is built to reduce friction and capture more foot traffic on one of the country's busiest retail corridors.

As the Nutella Café approaches its 10th anniversary in 2027, the renovation marks the start of an exciting next chapter.

Why It Matters

Branded flagship cafés live or die on two things: an experience worth traveling for and throughput that keeps lines moving. This reopening addresses both, and that combination offers a clear signal for hospitality operators and foodservice executives.

Three practical takeaways stand out:

• Design as marketing. By turning the space into a physical extension of the product—jar-shaped ordering station, chocolate-hued textures, photo-ready walls—Ferrero is manufacturing organic social content. For operators, purpose-built "shareable moments" can lower customer acquisition costs.
• Convenience is now table stakes. Layering order-ahead and a digital waitlist onto a premium sit-down experience shows even destination venues must meet guests' expectations for speed. Reducing wait friction protects the impulse spend that drives high-traffic locations.
• Retail plus dining. Dedicated merchandise zones and customizable products (those personalized jars) extend average check beyond food and add a takeaway revenue stream—a model worth studying for any operator with a strong brand identity.

The lesson isn't "build a Nutella Café." It's that even a global sweet-packaged food giant is reengineering its physical footprint around experience, convenience and retail integration—the same levers independent operators can pull at their own scale.

For more on how hospitality brands are rethinking their footprints and menus, see our coverage of how operators are reengineering their programs for scale and the launch of G.S. Gelato's Protein "Pumped Up" Vanilla.

Plan Your Visit

The Nutella Café is open now at 189 N. Michigan Avenue in Chicago. For more information, visit nutella.com or follow along at @nutellacafechicago.

Are branded experiential cafés the future of destination dining—or a niche play only global brands can afford? Weigh in and share your take in the comments.

Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40” for founding American Wholesale Floral. Politz is also the founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.