Juice, Art and the $1 Cup: Ready Coffee an Indie with a Twist

Ready Coffee owner John Grbac said he wants the new coffee house-juice bar-art gallery combo to become a community center for the Wicker Park area, and it certainly helps that he knows it well.

This new venture opened June 27 at 1562 N. Milwaukee Ave., taking over the space left by Buckwick Organix, but Grbac previously ran Jimo’s in the early ‘90s. He  remembers when the Bucktown-Wicker Park area had yet to be discovered.

“I’ve seen it from its inception. It was pretty downtrodden,” Grbac said. “It was ripe for the picking, but still had a lot of challenges. Now it does local and national and international traffic.”

Now he sees the area as a beacon for artists and art fans, as well as healthy-minded people, two things that play big at Ready Coffee. The raw, natural juice bar offers a change of pace from the coffee, which is brewed locally, and Grbac is well versed in that end of the business, running a barley juice powder website as well.

This Saturday, Aug. 17, Ready will also introduce its first free yoga classes for anyone who has a mat and wants to come by. Classes are at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. every Saturday and led by Blair Rockoff of Rock Solid Health.  

Every other day, that extra space is known as the Ornot Gallery (ready … or not), which will display art and function as a gallery space for various shows. Artist Kenrick McFarlane was featured in the first show last month. Grbac’s business partner, Adam Banks, collects art, and some of his collection is on the walls, as well as other artists’. Some but not all pieces are for sale. There’s also an Art-o-Mat machine modeled after one Grbac first saw in the Smithsonian. It dispenses small pieces of art, such as jewelry or pictures, for $5.

“I push the notion that it’s a community center for the neighborhood,” Grbac said. “Come look at the art, refresh. Get the buzz of the neighborhood. My style is more laissez faire, come as you are. That’s a more relaxed atmosphere.”

Ready Coffee achieves that atmosphere. Although it’s an independent coffee shop, it still has the bright, clean feeling that larger chains offer. But there’s a very local sense of place in Ready, from the art displays to the chalkboard calendar and a bulletin board where community members can publicize upcoming events and other news.

A high-powered WiFi signal and comfortable seating make it an easy place to hang out for a while, but the quick service helps customers on the go. As does the $1 cup of coffee, which is an oddity nowadays but could challenge nearby chains Starbucks and Caribou.

The coffee comes from a local roaster who’s spent 28 years doing it in the city, Greg Stivers. Ready brings in organic and fair trade coffee from around the world. The $1 cup is 8 ounces, but other sizes and pricing are of course offered.

“That’s a big attraction,” Grbac said. “Sometimes we just want a quick fix.”