DOWNTOWN — Chicago-based Groundswell Coffee Roasters is opening inside the Fine Arts Building this month, seven years after the building’s original cafe closed.

Located at 410 S. Michigan Ave., next to the former Artist’s Cafe storefront, Groundswell will open July 20, serving breakfast burritos, sandwiches, pastries from West Loop bakery Good Ambler and an exclusive Groundswell x Fine Arts Building coffee roast.

Adapting a space from the early 1900s to a coffee shop in 2026 took about a year, Groundswell Owner & Founder Jason Foster told Block Club. Air conditioning needed to be added and an open elevator shaft needed to be covered, among other things.

The result: a sleek, modern design with wood paneling, an aqua velvet couch for lounging, warm overhead lighting and plentiful seating along the front window and at circular tables throughout the space.

“It was very important to the building and to me to keep everything just sort of natural and organic and looking like it belongs in this building, rather than just kind of inserting a random coffee shop,” Foster said. “It feels like the Fine Arts Building.”

Zac Heren makes a coffee at Groundswell Coffee Roasters in the Fine Arts Building on July 7, 2026. Credit: Giacomo Cain/Block Club Chicago

The Fine Arts Building, a Chicago landmark, has undergone significant renovations and refurbishings, which included a multi-million dollar restoration of the Studebaker Theater in 2023.

The building is almost fully leased, according to artistic director Jacob Harvey. Tenants who call the arts space home include the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival, the Chicago Opera Theater, the Jazz Institute of Chicago and the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras.

The anticipation for the opening of Groundswell has been building, with passersby peeking into the window and trying to walk in while finishing touches were being made Tuesday afternoon. The cafe will be one of the few, if not only, local coffee shops along Michigan Avenue Downtown.

“You walk down the street, and you’ll see Dunkin’, Starbucks, Ghirardelli is still up there, Stan’s. … This is a mom and pop shop, and I’m literally just a pop, like I’m just a guy,” Foster said. “It’s really, really humbling to be on such an iconic street, in such an iconic building and in a commercial hub of the world.”

While Groundswell gears up for opening, Harvey said the Fine Arts Buildings is looking for its next tenant to take up what used to be the Artist’s Cafe. The cafe was an iconic staple along Michigan Avenue, closing after nearly 60 years in 2019. Known for its casual fare, the cafe served theatergoers, tourists and celebrities, including Johnny Carson, Mick Jagger, Bette Midler and a young Gwyneth Paltrow.

Like Groundswell, the former Artist’s Cafe space has gone through significant rehabilitation. The whole storefront has been repaired along with the ground-floor facade, Harvey said.

“Part of being able to bring Groundswell in [is] hopefully being able to bring a restaurant in next door,” Harvey said.

Groundswell will be open 7 a.m.-7 p.m. daily starting July 20.