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On a mission for Kinder Eggs, my gal pal and I stopped in here, thanks to Yelp. This store smells delicious. The bakery area has some amazing looking (and smelling) treats which I would have tried had the bakery line not been so outrageously long. This is not Space Mountain, but it must be just as awesome. Next time, perhaps not on a Saturday.
Luckily the regular checkout line was fine. We grabbed some Kinder Happy Hippos which are one of my favorite little treats and then started freaking out that there appeared to be no eggs. Eeeeek! The impulse purchase area near the checkout saved the day. They didn't actually have any Kinder Eggs, but they had a Ukrainian substitute that got the job done, and proved to be even weirder. One of our eggs had a beetle superhero in it. Hilarious. I'll be back to try some baked goods and spend a small fortune on hippos and eggs.
Mehhh... so...
this place is good if you are looking for eastern European bakery items... and their croissants are good. A note about their bread--you must refrigerate it, which is a good sign of fresh, preservative free bread.
HOWEVER... and listen closely... as other yelpers have mentioned, if you are American you will be treated very poorly. I lived above this place for two years and came in nearly daily... and a few (not everyone) of the employees would look at each other, roll their eyes, and say "oh, the American." The only time I was treated semi-decent was when I came in with my Polish mother. It makes me sad that even when I am kind and a regular patron I am treated like filth... makes you not want to shop somewhere...
that and we had problems with mice in our third story apartment above the bakery... they keep the back door open in the bakery to cool it off... the back door is right next to the dumpsters. so think twice when you bite into a raisin.
I stepped out to head to the Dominicks and never made it.
The sign that said "Bakery" made me take a pause and duck in.
It was small and comfortably packed, but not uninviting.
Entranced by the entire fridge section during the oh-what-to-have-for-breakfast selection process, I was helped to find the cream cheese when caught taking in all the choices of new (to me) and polysyllabic products. Next, off to the baked goods section I went, and since they did not have the bagels I really wanted, I looked at the rolls that were an approximation in shape to hold the lox back at the house. During my deliberation, the lady behind the counter suggested I get the smaller ones because they were fresher--even warm; the larger ones were baked the night before, the buns that morning. Next, I turned and made a short beeline of a few steps to the rows of honey. (I drink a lot of tea). They had almost 2 dozen different kinds, and most of them were in glass jars, not plastic ones. When I carried my happy pile of goods to the register, the girl seemed pretty cheerful. Everyone seemed friendly to me. Perhaps it was because they treated me in kind.
Baked goods: 3 cute knots (sesame, poppyseed, plain) .20 each
Bobo fruit mix drink (Tamarind flavor) 1.69
Langrese forest honey (17.6 oz) 6.89
Another weird juice box with robot label .79
Pastry loaf with cinnamon swirls 2.49
Sweet Kiss spreadable probiotic cheese with raisins (16 oz) 2.99
Taramosalata Greek caviar (8 oz) 2.99
Piatnic Twoj Smak Puszysty (double cream cheese) (150 g) 2.99
26.59 with tax
A Ukrainian bakery in Ukrainian Village? Yep, places like this still exist.
I definitely appreciated having this store within walking distance of my home when we lived in the neighborhood. Fresh bread, cheese, and sausage. What more could you ask for? I've been here several times B.D. (before Dominick's), for basic lunch staples. They carry several varieties of European products - jams, pickles, candies, and more. Appreciate them before it's turned into the inevitable generic corner bar. Support this local business.
Awesome neighborhood store. The smell of fresh baked bread usually hangs in the air up to a half block away. That siren song, er smell, was too much for me to resist.
It was a little intimidating, I'm a big blond guy so all the employees (and the other customers) assumed I was Ukrainian. The friendly smiles and level of service declined slightly once they realized I wasn't. HOWEVER, that didn't stop me from picking up some amazing fresh baked bread and pastries. I also wandered over to the deli counter to find sliced turkey, the same kind I usually buy at Dominick's for $7.99/lb (or more), for only $3.89 per pound!
Great place to do some light shopping and a must if you're looking for fresh baked goods.
I have been shopping there for my groceries for 20 years. Every time I miss home (Poland) and feel sentimental, I crave euro-food...lol.
I have been going back and forth USA/Poland all my life... but I always went back to Ann's when in US for my pastries and bread. I am watching my carb intake, they have the most wonderful variety of breads so even health food freaks can shop there. Polish, Ukrainian, and Lithuanian pastries and breads are the healthiest if you do feel like being a piglette... lol.
They are always made from scratch, always all natural ingredients, allways fresh and if you go early in the morning -still hot. Their cold cuts are not my first choice... I prefer Andy's Deli on Division St. or Milwaukee Ave. Andy's always came the closest to the Christmas coldcuts I remeber having as a child.
You also must try the MasMix Butter... it's so delicious, made from fresh sweetcream, only a scrape on your bread and you have the taste of heaven in your mouth, yummmmm.
European jellies are also all natural (like your grandma used to make and store in the pantry...lol, well at least mine did, I know how to make them too, and used to, but now I have no place to store them. I miss the old days when women had time to make all these delicious foods, no packaged stuff, everything was made from scratch, with the love in your heart ) any way, these foods will not cost you a fortune like at the health foods stores.
Go to Ann's. It's Great! Fresh! Tasty! Food! Hugs. Kat
This is such a great little store!
I went in here last weekend because my friends decided to throw a bbq at my new apartment at the last minute... and I wasn't prepared.
We bought fresh bread, cheese, little bagel ring chip things, and a box of those powdered cookies with jam in the middle. Everything was delicious, fresh and cheap. The cookies were demolished in a very short amount of time.
I would say about 90% of the products on the shelf are European. When I saw the chocolate Kinder eggs I loved eating when I was in Germany, I really thought I was back in Europe.
If you live nearby, definitely check this place out!
Great Ukrainian bakery in the Ukrainian Village carrying a great variety of imported foods from Ukraine, Poland and Germany.
We've been frequenting Ann's for over 30 years. Our parents used to stop there either after Ukrainian School on Saturday or after Church on Sundays to pick up a fresh loaf of bread. Now that we live in the Ukrainian Village it's where we go when we have a craving for fresh bread, apple turnovers, fresh muffins, plum cake, Krakus ham, horseradish cheese, honey and kobassa.
Ann's carries fresh baked breads and baked goods- A great selection of Ukrainian wheat bread ($1 for small loaf!), white bread, sunflower bread, garlicky bread, raisin bread, turnovers, muffins, cookies, cakes and tortes. (Come after 2 PM if you want the freshest loaf of the extra large Ukrainian bread - you can get a warm sliced 1/2 or full loaf then).
At Easter they carry Ukrainian Paska (Easter bread) and all the fixings you need to put together your Easter basket (fresh kabanossy and sausages, smoked ham, cheeses and horseradish). The lines are nearly out the door the few days leading up to Easter. The prices at the deli beat out Jewel and Dominick's any day!
There's also a great selection of imported foods- juices, chocolates, teas, cereals, smoked fish, caviar, honey, etc.
We remember Ann's before it remodeled and added a cafe seating area. It was quaint back then, but limited as to what it carried. With the expansion it now has the room to carry a lot more products and to provide seating for about 20 people. Luckily, even with all the upgrades inside the prices have remained VERY reasonable!
I have been going to Ann's bakery for years. It used to be a small joint with the best rye bread around, but they've really turned it into something else.
They've revamped the layout to include a small seating/cafe area, which is awesome if you're in the mood to just sit and chat with some friends, or just stare out the window and watch the people pass by.
Cookies and bread are not the only items you can buy there now. Deli meats, soups, and other basic grocery items can also be found there! And if Ukrainian is not your first language, don't fret! The staff speaks English as well, and they are always willing to explain certain Ukrainian-based food items to you.
Make sure to come here around Easter time to buy their seasonal Babka! Not sure what that is? Well, now you GOTTA go check it out and ask! ;)
After reading Kat's review I'm heading back to Ann's to get some of that MasMix butter!
But for now, here's a scoop: The other day I was lollygagging at Ann's and took a closer look at the deli counter's cheeses and coldcuts.
Lorraine Swiss cheese for exactly one-half (ONE-HALF!) the price per pound they sell it for at Jewel or Dominick's.
Ditto, the ham.
Ditto, oven-baked turkey breast!
Sweet Lord, I guess I overreacted because I walked out with enough meat and cheese to open a low-carb luncheonette.
Another bonus. There were two counter girls working the store and BOTH of them spoke English. That's unusual, in my experience, and to be perfectly honest, not as much fun.
One more thing. Their mini apricot kolachkes are very close to being better than sex. I bought half a bag, intending to share them with my better half, but by the time I got home, I was already finished. A bit of a metaphor there, I think.
Corner of Leavitt and Chicago Avenue. Enjoy.
My step-mother is Ukrainian. Her entire family (and herself) are all terrible cooks so as a child I always assumed Ukraine was the land of disgusting food and people who don't age well and smell like High Mass incense and golumpki.
One thing I did always like about the Ukrainians though was their dessert. Kolaczki are awesome and Ann's Bakery is the perfect place to get them. They are wonderfully fresh and bite sized so you feel justified in eating about 20 of them in one sitting. Good stuff.
While this place is an excellent bakery... The help downright rude and could care less if you need help or not. I wrote the owner about an incident I encountered with a lazy and very unhelpful counter girl that was too busy just standing there doing absolutely nothing and could not wait on me....Bad attitudes! Smile! It will not kill you!
I never received a reply... In short... This place obviously has too much business and could care less about it's future reputation...! The owner obviously isn't concerned about his business. This post was updated 28 October 2007
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I was looking for a loaf of rye bread to accompany my Saint Patrick's Day corned beef & cabbage feast. I usually end up going to Dominicks for a bag of beefsteak rye. This year, I figured that it would be a good idea to go to a real bakery to buy a loaf of fresh baked rye bread to impress my family.
Well, I could not have been more disappointed in Ann's bread. First of all, I'm not even sure that the loaf that I received was rye. It was labeled as rye. The rack that the lady took it from seemed to all be rye bread. But when I got home to open it up, it looked as white as wonder bread. Not a seed in site. Not even any brown or tan color. Several guests questioned what type of bread they were eating.
To go along with the lack of ryeness was a noticeable lack of freshness. I have very serious doubts that my loaf of bread was baked on the day that I purchased it. I was really missing that packaged beefsteak at this point. I'm not exactly in a family full of food snobs. This bread was just plain aw full.
Hard bread.
No rye flavor.
Obviously, I'll be looking somewhere else for my next loaf of anything.
I *loved* exploring this little shop. Lots of fascinating food items - even if I wasn't 100% sure what everything was. *And* they have Softis, which are my all-time favorite candy and bring back lots of happy childhood memories (my parents were born in Germany). My only complaint is that the staff was not very friendly or helpful. Oh, two complaints: I wanted to buy a small piece of cake but was told they only sell it by the half-pound. What?!? There's *no way* I am eating a half-pound of cake, so I was unable to try their cakes. Brought home a knapsack of Softis, though!
Great if you can grab a loaf of fresh rye while it's still warm. Better than most if you can grab a loaf from Ann's at a suburban Polish Grocer. Bready and flakey pastries are also pretty good and worth their conservative price.
I stopped in here yesterday looking for a pastry.. anything sweet and creamy and delish. I will go against the grain and say that I was pretty disappointed! Lots of euro groceries (and one of my favorite candy bars - the LION bar) and great deli and bread selection, but when I walked by and smelled the delish smell - I thought a sweet pastry.
They had lots of refridgerated (tiramisu, etc) pastries, and they have danishes that are as big as your head, but that just wasn't what I was craving. They are inexpensive though, and its just around the corner, so I'm sure I'll be back.
I was a bit surprised that the lady who rang me up, and seemed really nice, either was not nice or didn't speak any english. I said please and thank yous - yet garnered no vocal response from her. She actually never even told me my total - just rang me up, looked at me, and put her hand out for my money. When she was finished with my order - she pleasantly chatted with the woman behind me but not in english. I was a little sad. I was excited to try this new place, and already felt a little bad about not knowing any polish, but this made me feel worse.
Solid little grocery. Lots of Polish delights. I found many interesting juice combinations, ice cream selections, sauces and chocolates. Just a fun place to explore.
A staple of the Ukrainian community. Their fresh baked bread is simply the best and the pastries will make your mouth water. At the small deli counter you can load up on Polish sausage and lunch meats. You can even take a seat and enjoy your sweets in their dining area.
one word: kolaczki
oh yes.
Ann's is still a great small place despite the recent changes. The breads are still good, maybe not as good as in the past, but still the best around. If you are looking for eastern European snacks, drinks, meats or pickled veg this is the best assortment on the this side of town. A good selection of calling cards are also available.
Neighborhood Ukrainian bakery. Their bread is freshly baked. You can get day old bread for $0.50 a loaf and it makes the best stuffing.
I would give them 4.5 stars, but, hey, what the hell, 5! This is a great spot with a nice selection of Polish drinks, and a very small area for the more well known stuff, but it is okay. The cakes are pretty good, I like the bread, the deli is great, there are seats, they have chocolate, honey, household items, magazines, but polish magazines, cards, but polish cards, and near everything. It's a great place, I know the owner, and it is pretty good. The cakes are a little more light, although I like them that way. It's a great place worth a try! I recommend.
Neighborhood: Ukrainian Village
Category: Bakeries
Neighborhood: Wrigleyville
Category: Bakeries
Neighborhood: Ukrainian Village
Category: Grocery
Neighborhood: Ukrainian Village
Category: Delis
Neighborhood: Ukrainian Village
Category: Toy Stores
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