You and your pet

We love our customers, and we love dogs. But we need to address an issue that has

become increasingly difficult and potentially costly for our business to manage.

Please do not bring pets into our cafe.

We fully support the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the rights and

dignity of guests with disabilities. Legitimate service animals are welcome, and we

will always respect and accommodate them as required by law.

A service animal, however, is not simply an animal that provides comfort or

companionship. Under the ADA, a service animal is trained to perform work

or tasks for a person with a disability. Emotional support, comfort, or

companionship alone does not make an animal a service animal under the ADA,

that describes a pet.

We train our employees to understand these distinctions and to treat every guest

with respect. When it is not obvious that a dog is a service animal, employees may

ask only the questions permitted by law. They cannot demand medical

documentation, certification, identification, or proof of a disability.

This puts our employees in a difficult position when someone brings a pet into the

cafe and represents it as a service animal. In a busy cafe environment, there is often

no practical opportunity to determine the circumstances before the animal is

already inside.

More importantly, there are real consequences for us as a business.

Chicago Health Department regulations prohibit animals in our establishment

except where legally permitted (legitimate service-animals). If our business is

found to be in violation, we, as the business operator, can be subject to a fine of

up to $1000 for each violation.

That is why we are asking our guests for something very simple:

Please don’t put our employees or our business in that position.

If your dog is a legitimate service animal protected by the ADA, you are welcome

here. We will respect your rights and treat you with the dignity you deserve.

If your dog is a pet, please leave your pet at home.

If your animal provides emotional support, comfort, or companionship but does not

meet the ADA definition of a service animal, please understand that this does not

automatically give the animal the same access rights in a food establishment.We are not asking anyone to prove a disability. We are not asking for certification.

We are not asking for medical information.

We are asking for honesty.

The ADA provides important protections so that people with disabilities can

participate fully in their communities. We take those protections seriously.

Misrepresenting a pet as a service animal, however, places our employees in a

difficult position and exposes our small business to consequences it should not

have to bear.

We will continue to welcome legitimate service animals and to comply fully with

our responsibilities under the law.

We simply ask that you help us do the right thing.

Thank you for your understanding, your honesty, and your consideration for our

employees, our guests with disabilities, and our business.