Our Favorite Bakeries

Time to move past the junky Halloween candy and get back to the good stuff. Chicago is home to so many great bakeries that we just wanted to chime in with our personal favorites. And let’s set the record straight, I’m talking about the best bakeries for parents. Kids will eat anything that comes out of a glass-fronted case. We are the ones who need to be impressed.

Best Italian Pastries: Pasticceria Natalina
This place takes its product very seriously. Each pastry is a work of art. They use the best ingredients available to make the most delicious and authentic Italian pastries you will ever eat. But beware - you get what you pay for. These treats are going to set you back big bucks, as much as $6 per pastry. The Sfogliatelle is my personal favorite - delicate pastry stuffed with heavenly ricotta.

Best Breakfast Treats: Dinkel’s
Doughnuts, coffee cakes, and danish - oh my! They are the best. I buy them when my husband has breakfast meetings and even the healthiest of eaters splurge on these treats. They are worth every calorie and carb. Get them fresh and eat them that day.

Best Fresh Fruit Pie: Hoosier Mama
This tiny storefront in West Town is a gem. They make the best fresh fruit pies. Cherry, blueberry, peach in the summer. Apple and pear in the fall. Not too sweet, these pies let the taste of the fruit shine through. Sit in the window booth with a slice and a big glass of milk - yum.

Best Cookies: Tie - Cafe Selmarie and Bittersweet
There are so many different types of cookies that it is hard to choose just one. Cafe Selmarie makes the most wonderful jam filled cookies. Whether you enjoy the kalochkies, financiers, or linzer hearts and circles, each little treat is sure to satisfy. Bittersweet excels with their dainty mini cookies. Bring an assortment for your hostess gifts during the holidays. Do not miss the chewy, brownie-like chocolate macaroons.

Best Cupcakes: Tie - Molly’s and Sweet Mandy B’s
I know this is a controversial subject, but I need to weigh in. I am not a cupcake lover, so when I love a cupcake it means something. Molly’s are delicate and have a great flavor variety. You can get an assortment of minis which is a fun way to try a variety of flavors. Sweet Mandy B’s is the dream cupcake - big with a ton of awesome frosting. At both of these places the cake is moist (but not falling apart) and the frosting is perfect. You can’t go wrong with either one.

Best Birthday Cakes: Dinkel’s
They get a second nod in my book. These are the perfect kid’s birthday cakes. Moist cake, great frosting (butter cream is my favorite) and fantastic fillings, parents ALWAYS have a slice at a party with a cake from Dinkel’s. I also love that Dinkel’s offers so many fun themes for cakes. If your kid is anything like mine, birthdays are a BIG DEAL. So part of our tradition includes going to the Dinkel’s website and looking at all the different ways his cake could be decorated. Delicious and fun - can’t beat that.

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Itsy Bitsy Gourmet

I have made two weeks of baby food once before. It took me 14 days. So when I got a phone call offering me a session with a professional chef who comes into your home, cooks two weeks of food for your baby, cleans up, and leaves. I jumped at the opportunity.

Who would have ever thought of a business that comes into your home to teach you to make baby food, or just make it for you? Stacey from Itsy Bitsy Gourmet (itsybitsygourmet.com), that’s who. You might be familiar with her food since Stacey was the Executive Chef and owner of Tomboy Restaurant in Andersonville for 11 years. Now she takes her love of all things culinary and brings it right to your baby’s tummy.

To get highly delicious, homemade food for your smallest family members, contact itsybitsygourmet@gmail.com or visit her comprehensive website. Stacey will set up a consult with you and develop a menu. You can buy your own groceries, or you can request Stacey bring all the ingredients. When it’s time for cook day, get ready! Stacey warned me that it would take longer if I helped and she wasn’t kidding. In the time that it took me to peel and cut a handful of carrots, she had peeled, diced, minced, and otherwise prepared 5-6 fruits and vegetables for baking. My brother-in-law came to help for several hours. His training at a top culinary school made him more able to keep up, but I quickly found my roll to be official taste tester (YUM!), container filler, and comic relief. Twice I turned around from a phone call or other distraction only to see that Stacey had created another dish almost instantly.

Itsy Bitsy Gourmet filled my freezer with four fruit based meals; four vegetable and starch combinations; and four flavorful entrees. My favorites were the Apple/Mango/Avocado blend and the Hawaiian Ginger Pork. My 10-month old loves 3-Bean and Vegetable Stew and the 3-Berry Blend.

Stacey uses only BPA-free microwavable containers to store her baby food. She respects your desire to compost, recycle, or throw out refuse from cook day. Although I prefer organic and locally grown foods when appropriate, you can request Stacey make your food as organic or conventional as you choose.

Advantages:

-Custom menu. Stacey created one meal to order based on our dietary needs. She makes the food as smooth or as chunky as you want. Since my 10-month old is mashing and chewing, Stacey made the perfect blend of smooth and chunky foods using techniques that I wouldn’t have thought of.

-Ingredient information. You buy your own groceries. You know exactly where you get the food and you know exactly what the ingredients are in every dish (most dishes create fantastic flavors with 3-7 ingredients). Stacy will use either water or apple juice to thin foods based on your desires. You can even choose the oil used in cooking.

-Knowledge. I know there are many people making baby food these days. Gourmet cooking stores even sell baby food making machines. Stacey, however, brings important additional knowledge to this process. She discouraged me from making beets and carrots (both high in nitrates) in the same two-week meal rotation. She refused to use the green beans that my brother-in-law bought because they were the wrong type for babies to eat and might cause choking. She also taught me how to make berry dishes without causing a rash-like outbreak on delicate skin. (Curious to know the secrets? Sounds like you should schedule a cook day with Stacey soon).

-Food. The food is wonderful and really captivates a young palate. I was amazed at the vivid colors and aroma created every time I open a new container. Stacey’s food is fresh. It is delicious. It sure beats any mass produced jarred or frozen product I’ve tried.

-Ease. Stacey arrives on cook day with two giant duffle bags full of everything but the kitchen sink. She brings her own scales, bowls, pots, pans, and equipment. All of your equipment and pans stay in the cupboards. Everything is cleaned before and after use and your kitchen will possibly be cleaner when Stacey leaves than when she arrives (although she charges by the hour so a disastrous kitchen will cost you).

Disadvantages:

-Space. You need some serious storage space to store 50-60 6-oz jars of baby food. Our cook day would have filled most of our refrigerator’s freezer, so I used this as an excuse to buy the chest freezer that I have wanted for my garage. If you don’t have storage space, there are other options. For example, I recommend pairing with a neighbor or friend who has a baby of a similar age and splitting up the food. Stacey can do cook parties to accommodate several families. Just tell her all the information first.

-Price. I spent just under $100 for groceries for my day with Stacey (costs will vary based on menu). There is also an hourly chef rate, travel time, and 20 cent charge per 6-ounce plastic container. Altogether, 2-weeks of Itsy Bitsy Gourmet food came to about $4-$5 per container of food. However, the foods are packed full of nutrition, calories, and flavor. Furthermore, I am finding that each container of food is closer to 3 servings rather than 1 serving of traditional baby food packed full of fillers. So Stacey is a better bargain than I first thought.

Everyone seems to be making their own baby food now but my only attempt was a dismal failure that took an entire day to complete (and then I had to go out and buy baby food in jars anyway). Mass produced baby food is highly regulated, safe and nutritious. There is no failure in feeding your baby from a jar. However, if you decide to make your own baby food, you should have at least one or two sessions with Stacey. Her time management skills, flavor combinations, and safety information are imperative to being successful in the kitchen. If you have the funding and storage space, or if you absolutely must know the origin of your baby’s food, Stacey should be in your house every few weeks.

Jennifer

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Back To School Ice Cream Weekend

Nobody wants the summer to end, but it is not the worst thing to have the kids back in school. After all the pools, beaches, vacations, block parties, and lemonade it is time to reclaim some time for yourself and for the kids to hit the books. To celebrate this momentous occasion, we have organized the first Back To School Ice Cream Weekend.

The purpose of the ice cream crawl is for everyone to eat way to much ice cream this upcoming weekend. Let the kids have extra treats as they sulk (and parents celebrate) that school is back in session. We, of course, endorse ice cream eating of all kinds, all flavors, all venues, and we have cut deals with some local establishments to make the Ice Cream Weekend that much better:

Bobtail Soda Fountain - $1 kids scoop with purchase of adult scoop.
2951 N. Broadway

Cameron’s Ice Cream & Grill - $1 kids scoop with purchase of adult scoop.
1401 W. Diversey Pkwy

Drew’s Eatery – Free kid’s scoop
2207 W. Montrose

 IceBox – Buy one get one free
2943 N Broadway Street

Baskin Robbins - $1 kids scoop with purchase of adult scoop.
5000 W. Irving Park

Baskin Robbins - $1 kids scoop with purchase of adult scoop.
1982 N. Clybourn Avenue

Baskin Robbins - $1 kids scoop with purchase of adult scoop.
6408 W. Irving Park

Sadly,  Sweet Occasions is not on the list as they have finally gone out of business after a very sporadic year of opening and closing.

Just go to the Coupons section on www.crazykidschicago.com and download the Ice Cream Weekend Member Discount Coupons. Present the coupons at any of the participating shops to get your discounts. After the weekend, let us know which ice cream place is your favorite by voting for the ice cream shop in our new Polls section.

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Larry and Donna

Mom Says: We hope this will be a fun activity for the weekend. I’ll be hitting the gym this week to make up for all the extra carbs.

Dad Says: I don’t think I have ever had 4 milkshakes in a weekend, but this weekend I am going to try. I have eaten at all of these places (Sunday is Treat Day for my kid) and they all have something special to offer.

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Kid Friendly Restaurants

The introduction of children to your life is usually the exit of flexible eating choices. Once the children have arrived you have to schedule eating around naps, their diets, and dealing with the scowls of the waitresses and other patrons. So finding good, kid friendly restaurants in the city is like getting a new best friend or finding $5 in your jeans (a free gallon of gas). A good kid restaurant has to have at least two of the following attributes:

* There has to be a good kid’s menu. Peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese, french fries, and great desserts make a great meal.
* Great kids restaurants understand the meaning of speed. The food must come quickly (and it can come before the adult meal if it need be) and the check must not be tardy. Restaurants that don’t comply could find them in the midst of a meltdown.
* Waiters and waitresses must be with the program. If they are going to be annoyed with kids and or not even try to be entertaining (our favorite waitress always asks our kid how many big onion rings he wants and how many little onion rings) it hurts the experience.

* Exceptional kids restaurants have a gimmick or other activity. It could be as simple as crayons and a paper table cloth or as complicated as a play area or toys. Of course we talked about Nibbles Cafe in an earlier blog that built the restaurant around a play area.

During this week’s blog we provide examples of our favorite kid friendly restaurants. Later this summer we will ask you to vote for your favorite restaurants.

This week we had dinner plans with our friends and the kids. It was a beautiful night and we just new the kids were not going to sit quietly at a restaurant, yet the adults didn’t want to cook. So we decided to sacrifice a bit on food quality and go somewhere that is all about the fun and atmosphere - Oak Street Beachstro (right at the corner of Michigan and Oak Street). It was great for everyone; the kids had a blast playing in the sand and we scored a front row table in the restaurant where we were able to see everything the kids were doing and have some food and drinks. Granted your children need to be older and good listeners to be able to enjoy this set up, but if your kids need a bit more supervision the parents can take turns sitting on the beach with them. If you have babies this is a good place to take them as well because it is completely outside so they can be noisy without bothering other diners. The Beachstro offers a nice kid’s menu with the standard entree choices (hot dog, grilled cheese, chicken tenders, ect.) fruit and milk are options as a side dish and beverage. For the adults the food is pretty mediocre, but there are many choices from salads and quesadillas, to panini and fish. The mixed drinks are pre-made and sweet, so depending on your taste beer and wine may be better choices. Bottom line: Make a reservation and let them know you need a front row seat with a clear view of the beach. Don’t expect too much from the food and enjoy the gorgeous view from this summer-only experience.

Great kid-friendly food that parents can enjoy too is a surefire success. Minnie’s (Halsted and Armitage) is one of my son’s favorites and I love it too. Everything in the place is mini: beverages, sandwiches, glassware, desserts - all tiny. They offer a children’s meal with your choice of mini PB&J, grilled cheese or pizza, fries and a mini butterscotch shake. Adults can choose any combination of the mini sandwiches (Cuban, chicken, burger, veggie) in varying quantities of three depending on your hunger level, as well as soups and salads. Plenty of child-free adults enjoy Minnie’s, but I never feel that children aren’t welcome. The sound level is very high so any tantrums get lost in the noise. Bottom line: Clever concept, very loud, full bar, don’t miss the crisp skinny fries they are awesome. Did we mention the milkshakes?

It is nice when the restaurant actually welcomes your children. And nowhere is this harder to find then with fine dining restaurants. When my kid is in a chill mood and I want a great meal for both of us, I head to Sola (Lincoln and Byron). Sola offers a delicious kid’s menu (fish and chips, grilled cheese, noodles, ice cream sundaes with sprinkles) and provides crayons so the kids can draw on the paper tablecloths. They are open for lunch on Thursdays and Fridays which is a great time to enjoy this great spot. In the summer the patio is a great option as well. Bottom Line: Outstanding food for kids and parents alike. Only go if your kids can sit for the whole meal with a minimum amount of entertainment.

Piece in Bucktown is one of the best pizza places in the city. Partially owned by Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick, Piece’s  thin pizza is great for adults and kids (don’t forget to order double meat if you are a meat lover). The portions are huge and this place is ultra kid friendly. The waitstaff adores kids, they have a bowling video game that is fun for kids to play without ever actually turning it on, and with all of the balconies and the stairs, kids can wander everywhere. Almost a playground within the restaurant, there is a downstairs with cushioned benches and footstools that are great to climb on. Piece doesn’t really encourage this, but they don’t really discourage it either. Lunch or early dinner is the best time for kids, otherwise it’s too crowded to let the kids roam. Bottom line: phenomenal pizza and micro-brews, fun playtime with kids, lots of places to roam.

Donna and Larry

Mom Says: Having a kid doesn’t stop me from eating out. I just think it’s important to judge your kid’s mood before you choose a restaurant. If your kid doesn’t want to be at a restaurant, no one is happy. And always respect the other diners’ right to not have your child interfering with their meal. A child’s presence can’t ruin a meal, but their loud crabby voices can.

Dad Says: You won’t find a more sandy kid than coming out of Beachstro. Sit back, have a mojito and a margarita and enjoy the splashing and rolling. It will cost you a few minutes at home to spray them down, but it is worth hanging out the beach for dinner.

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Nibbles Cafe

Nibbles Play Café in Wheeling is a fun, two-hour activity for parents and grandparents who want to visit or have lunch while their children play, want a low-key experience with the kids, a playgroup looking for an indoor activity or anyone looking for something to do with the five and under set in the northwest suburbs. Nibbles Cafe is on the corner of Dundee and Buffalo Grove Road and costs $7.50 per child (there may be a discount for a second child) and adults are free.

We took our 22 month old grandson for lunch and play and really liked this new playspace for children. It’s actually a restaurant with booths and tables, with the playspaces built around it. There are also high counters bordering each playspace, where you can sit and watch. Lots of Moms were having lunch the day we were there (we went 11am to 1pm) and we saw other grandparents too. They give you a plastic card with your name on it, which you can use to order food. You order at the counter, then when you leave, you pay for the food and the admission.

Of course the kids can just play, but the food was good and making it a lunch and play experience is worth it. Our grandson was just the right age for the room with the balls and tubes. This consisted of a kind of slide with attached tubes, and the kids drop various colorful balls into the top tubes, which then drop down through other tubes. It held his attention for a good hour! He also played in the sand room which is not really sand but filled with uncooked rice. There are two tables and lots of containers for rice. Filling and emptying the containers was another hit and the kids can get as messy as they want. There are a couple of staffers who do nothing but clean up the rice and the toys. We noticed baskets for dirty toys in each room.

Then we sat down for lunch. We sat in a booth, but there are also regular size tables and kid size tables and chairs. Our grandson had a kid meal which consisted of a fun peanut butter and jelly sandwich cut in the shape of a flower, a couple of baked smiley face fries, fresh fruit and milk. Grandpa had half of a provolone and roast beef sandwich with a cup of chicken noodle soup and grandma had an outstanding half of a roasted veggie, goat cheese and pesto sandwich on a ciabatta roll with a mandarin sesame salad. They also sell bite size desserts for $2 each and several other salads, sandwiches and kid meals. Our lunches were $7.75 each and the kid meal was $4.

After lunch, he played with the trains on the train table for awhile and then we left as it was his nap time. Other rooms had a kitchen, dress up clothes, giant Legos, face painting and craft supplies. So there’s some stuff for older kids, but we think 18 months-3 years old is the perfect age. There’s also an area with bright colored mats and tunnels for babies.

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Grandma and Grandpa

Grandma says: I would have loved a place like this when my kids were small. Lunch and conversation with a girlfriend, and still being able to watch the kids. And the food was great.

Grandpa says: There are plenty of seats where you can relax but still be able to watch the kids from close up. The food was good but the portions were more Grandma size than Grandpa size.

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The Choo Choo Restaurant

What can we say about The Choo Choo restaurant in Des Plaines? TAKE YOUR KIDS THERE. It an old-school diner, with a model train that runs around a track and brings out the food. Our child sits in the booth and watches in amazement as the train comes around. Can it get much better than food and trains?

The restaurant is tiny. There are several booths and counter seating, so get there early. As in, “before it opens early” to guarantee yourself a seat next to the tracks (or any seat for that matter). Avoid school holidays and weekends if possible. The hours of the restaurant, which is cash only, are Saturday to Wednesday, 10:30am until 3:00pm, and Thursday and Friday 10:30am until 8:00pm.

In addition to the model train there is one free “train-like” ride in The Choo Choo that kids can go on over-and-over to their hearts content. They just sit in it and it rocks back and forth. Basic fun for little ones.

The food is great, greasy diner fare. Yummy cheese burgers, fries, hot dogs, grilled cheese, and milkshakes. If you’ve been reading the previous blogs you know we care about, and prefer, healthy food choices and The Choo Choo restaurant has a few — veggie burgers and grilled chicken. But we’ve never tried them. This place is such a guilty pleasure for us that we use it as an excuse to deviate from our depressingly healthy eating habits. Worth every carb and calorie.

For our kid, the absolute final cherry on the cake at The Choo Choo is dessert. It’s a cupcake with a train whistle on top. Brought to him on a model train. What could be better?

Our child’s Grandma and Grandpa make this a day’s activity by taking him to The Choo Choo on…the train. The restaurant is located a short walk from the Des Plaines Metra stop. Probably not a good a idea in the horrifically cold weather we’ve been having, but brilliant when the weather is nicer.

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Larry and Donna

Mom Says: Go early, but even if you have to wait a bit, it is so much fun. Parents should splurge on a cheeseburger and fries, it’s worth it.

Dad Says: I recommend getting the cupcake as an appetizer.

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