Experience a foreign culture at these spots specializing in fresh baked goods made from traditional recipes from around the world.
Artopolis Bakery, Cafe and Agora
Eating galactoboureko (puffed pastry with custard), melomacarona (walnut cookies) or kourabiedes (a dense cookie covered in powdered sugar) is the reward your mouth deserves after the effort required to pronounce these Greek specialties. Artopolis also sells baklava, paximadi (a Greek version of the Italian biscotti) and cookies flavored with sesame, honey or cinnamon. This Greektown favorite also has a restaurant, wine bar and craft store. Don’t forget to buy a loaf of hearth-baked bread before you leave. 306 S. Halsted St. 312-559-9000.
New Hong Kong Bakery
This Argyle Street shop specializes in fresh-baked goods of Chinese and Philippine origin. Snack on one of the stuffed egg bread buns (there are usually at least seven different flavors, including ham and egg, corned beef, barbecue chicken or pork and vegetable) and then finish with a single-serving cake made with red, lotus, crystal or green bean paste. Sampling a variety is easy, as most of the items cost less than a buck. There are a few tables here, but they are often monopolized by groups of elderly men. 1050-52 W. Argyle St. 773-878-3226.
Middle East Bakery and Grocery
For the past 17 years, this Andersonville store has been selling its fresh brick oven-baked breads and tubs of homemade tabbouleh or hummus and baba ghanoush (in original recipe or with added flavors such as dill and sun-dried tomato). At the back of the store, step up to the counter and order falafel, folded pastry with feta or spinach fillings, or stuffed grape and cabbage leaves. Many of the fresh sweets are made with honey or sesame seeds. 1512 W. Foster Ave. 773-561-2224.
Panaderia Ayutla
Few of the staff speak English at this bakery shop, so you’ll need to know your Spanish, or be prepared for a little mystery. Grab a pair of tongs and load up a tray with colorful cookies, cupcakes, breads, doughnuts or muffins. Try the empanadas (folded pastry pockets filled with fruit or cream flavors including guava) or, for a real sugar kick, taste the flavored breads topped with sugar designs such as concha or boloban buns. 6963 N. Clark St. 773-764-9077.
Pasieka Bakery
A big appetite is a necessity at Pasieka Bakery. The turnovers, danish or traditional paczki (the Polish equivalent of a jelly-filled doughnut) are so huge they require two hands to hold. The slabs of cake or fresh-baked breads with powdered sugar or icing glaze on top could feed a family reunion. You may feel like a tourist, as the servers and customers prefer to speak their native language. 3056 N. Milwaukee Ave. 773-278-5190.
Swedish American Bakery
Take a number when you enter this busy spot. While you wait your mouth will water over the strudels, bundt cakes, brioches, braided coffee cakes and cookies sold by the pound. Those with nut allergies should be aware that many of the native Swedish treats are made with almonds. You might want to try the Swedish flop instead (it’s buttercream between layers of dough with a struesel topping). 5348 N. Clark St. 773-561-8919.
Tahoora
Take a seat among regulars as you snack on freshly made sweets or savory baked goods that taste of India. Specialty items include halwa puri (a sweet potato and chickpea treat wrapped in fried bread that’s available only on weekends), falooda (a milk-based drink) and kulfi (Indian ice cream). This seven-year-old Devon Avenue bakery and cafe also offers the more familiar samosas or kababs for the less adventurous. 2326 W. Devon Ave. 773-743-7272.
