Publican Quality Bread has been one of the best-rated bakeries in West Town Chicago since its opening in 2022. However, it is not only Chicago that now gets to enjoy the locally-sourced breads and pastries from James-Beard-award-winning Chef Greg Wade. 

In February of 2024, Publican opened up its Oak Park location. Located at 211 Harrison St., Publican hosts one of the most unique rotating menus in Oak Park, with pastries served from 7 to 9 a.m., bread from 9 to 10 a.m., sandwiches and tartines from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., the “jambon beurre”  (ham and butter sandwich—my personal favorite) from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and finally pizza from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. 

At Publican it is not only the unique and delicious food that is notable, but the drinks as well. Keeping with tradition, I ordered myself an iced chai with oat milk to go with my jambon buerre sandwich and my brown butter chocolate chip cookie. While I am, of course, a staunch advocate for the chai latte, I would also highly recommend the Blue Sweet Seoul Matcha Latte, which has a unique bright blue color.

While I will admit I am slightly biased, as I live only a short distance from Publican, I think it is safe to say that this is so far my favorite chai that I have reviewed. This particular latte doesn’t attempt to disguise its poor quality with sweetness as some others might, but instead is unashamedly slightly spicy, with the milk perfectly cooling down your sip. I have tried the chai latte with many menu items in the past and I can confidently say that this particular drink pairs well with both sweet and savory flavors. The only qualm I have with this delicious drink is the price, which comes in at about $5.25, about a dollar more than last edition’s chai from Daly Bagel. 

Even with the extra dollar this chai is one of the best Oak Park has to offer. I would absolutely rate this drink 5 out of 5 stars. I am eager to see if I can find a better chai in the village of Oak Park, but that’s a question for next edition…