Leaves 'n Beans Coffee - Pekin, Illinois

Zach R.

Always amazing food, service, and quality coffee. I've been going here for 2 years now.

John P.

I recently went there to grab a coffee, and my barista (Alex) was so kindhearted, he helped me find a drink that was suitable for my fiance & was happy to take the time for us. I really loved this as Starbucks never gives this kind of service. I thought he was a manager! I will be coming back here more often.

Jacob Y.

My order is always correct, the food delicious and surprisingly the tea/coffee is still hot when I get my order. The chicken panini is the best! When I go in to the Pekin location, they are always friendly and helpful. The place has always been clean when I have gone in. I will always order from here!

Joshua D.

Review Date: May 22nd, 2021

These leaves and beans are sprouting up everywhere!

It’s always a pleasant surprise when a local business opens up a new location. With Leaves ‘n Beans, it wasn’t a huge surprise to see they opened yet another location, this time in Pekin. Personally, I have found Pekin to be lacking good coffeehouses so it was a pleasant surprise to see them get a Peoria-based legend. This location opened in April 2021 and I wasted no time in checking it out.

Maria and I popped in on a sunny and extremely hot Saturday afternoon. I was surprised to see the place empty. I figured with the weather finally playing nice, this place would be busy with kids getting sugary drinks, some end-of-semester college students cramming in for finals (unless they already took them), and people just out and about. Nope. Maria and I had the place to ourselves for the later part of the afternoon. There was the occasional person stopping in and their drive-thru had a few visitors.

The staff was super friendly in taking my order and they even brought my order out to me after telling me to pick it up at the end… I ended up wandering from the ‘pick up’ area to look at the art on the opposite wall while I waited. My drink of choice wasn’t a bitter black coffee like I’ve been ordering lately. With the weather being generally awful as of late, I needed something to perk me up and I picked the ‘Sugar Daddy’ to do just that. This is the first time I ordered this at a Leaves ‘n Beans and it was pretty good. I don’t remember what makes up the ‘Sugar Daddy’ besides it being a latte. Maybe it was caramel and… hazelnut? That sounds about right but don’t quote me on that. Either way, it was just the thing I needed on this sunny and hot afternoon. I also grabbed a chocolate chip cookie from their selection of baked goods. The cookie itself was decent. Nothing to write home about but it went well with my drink.

As is typical for me, they do offer a food menu but I wasn’t hungry enough to order something from it.

The interior of this Leaves ‘n Beans location was two things. Larger than I expected and nicer than I anticipated. As I walked in, I was impressed with the size of the ‘dining area’ and how it was laid out. There is plenty of space for people to sit without sitting too close to the next table. There was also this cozy little nook heading back towards the bathroom that would be perfect for a small group of friends to sit there for some privacy. On the wall between the register and the pick up area was a nicely crafted wood wall with Pekin in metal letters and the company logo above it. You can see it above and below. It is a very nice touch to the overall aesthetics of the coffeehouse.

Truth be told, the building its located in has seen better days and had some empty retail spots. I almost didn’t believe this was were the place was located because from the road, it looked nearly empty and abandoned but sure enough, there was coffee located on the right side of this little strip. I am not too familiar with Pekin but I do hope that this location brings in some foot traffic to the area and becomes a thriving strip of stores.

Pekin, do your best to support this place so you all have an actual place to get coffee that isn’t McDonald’s or maybe that one-off Starbucks.

Tabitha R.

Great breakfast and light lunch options. The breakfast sandwich is awesome! Also love the avocado toast! Their flavored coffee is incredible and well-priced. Jamaican me nutty is my new favorite!

Laura

Staff are always so friendly and helpful! I usually have a complicated order for sugar-free coffee and they always make great suggestions and the coffee is delicious!

Tabatha M.

I order from here around 5 times a week give or take. You all do a wonderful job and I can't get enough but I want to say I really appreciate Bryce. He sees me the most I'd say and when I made a mistake on my order and he personally called to make sure that was correct. You just don't get that kind of care at big corporate places. Give this man a raise 🙌

Nocona D.

Their food and coffee is always 👌 perfect. Staff is generally very pleasant. I know they haven't been opened very long but just want to give some tips... communication is very important between you and your fellow staff and also your customers, and just remember to keep smiling 😃. That always helps people want to come back. I would love to see this business stick around! Keep up the good work everyone!👏