Kneads & Wants on Lincoln Ave in Skokie has kouign-amann. I had never heard of them before reading this thread, but I had to try it when I saw them. Although I had no point of comparison, they were delicious. I'd be curious how they stack up to other versions this group likes.

bungalowgirl wrote:Kneads & Wants on Lincoln Ave in Skokie has kouign-amann.

A nearby bakery I've never heard of! Thanks for the tip! Gotta check it out...

(That's the former location of Sweety Pies, which used to have terrific buttercream cupcakes, but I assume they have no relation other than the location.)

nsxtasy wrote:

bungalowgirl wrote:Kneads & Wants on Lincoln Ave in Skokie has kouign-amann.

A nearby bakery I've never heard of! Thanks for the tip! Gotta check it out...

I stopped by there this morning, but they had a problem with their croissant dough this morning so they had neither croissants nor kouign amanns. Their scones are good! (And they said they have been open at that location for three years.)

nsxtasy wrote:This morning I made the inconvenient (for me) trek to Verzenay, only to find that they had no kouign amanns, and none of some of their other items (brioche). So I'll just have to scratch them off my list, while providing this tip to others: If there's anything you really want when you're headed to Verzenay, order it in advance. (I did get a few items they had. Their croissants are outstanding, and the cherry chocolate chip bread pudding is also excellent.)

Today I went back to Verzenay. I had considered ordering in advance, but the online ordering on their website isn't working (shows everything as "not available"). I had considered ordering over the phone, but decided to take my chances. As it turns out, at the store today they had almost everything they show on their website, and I got a bunch of things.

Their kouign amanns are very, very good. I like the fact that they are somewhat sweet, but not too sweet, and also the way they have a bit of sweetness on the outside and a bit more on the outside. Theirs is a winner!

(I also got another croissant and chocolate cherry bread pudding, which I greatly enjoyed last time.)

nsxtasy wrote:

nsxtasy wrote:

bungalowgirl wrote:Kneads & Wants on Lincoln Ave in Skokie has kouign-amann.

A nearby bakery I've never heard of! Thanks for the tip! Gotta check it out...

I stopped by there this morning, but they had a problem with their croissant dough this morning so they had neither croissants nor kouign amanns. Their scones are good! (And they said they have been open at that location for three years.)

I stopped by Kneads & Wants again this morning around 10:30, and the kouign amanns were all gone! Oh well, I tried. Again.

NY Times recipe for making it yourself: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/102 ... tion=click ( behind pay wall )

lougord99 wrote:NY Times recipe for making it yourself: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/102 ... tion=click ( behind pay wall )

There's also one at food52
https://food52.com/recipes/27245-kouign-amann

Click here for an article in eater.com about the new morning cafe at Daisies in Logan Square. It includes this photo of their kouign amann:

This past week, I've been out of town. I returned to the awesome Madame Matisse in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Their kouign amann was very good, and some of their other items are amazing, including the best pain au raisin I've ever had in my life, the best baguette I've had in the past twenty years, etc. I love this bakery, and overall I think it's better than any of the many bakeries I've tried in Chicago, New York City, and elsewhere, including...

...San Francisco, where I tried several places earlier this week. b. patisserie is well known for their kouign amann in several flavors. This week's were regular (plain), chocolate, and spam (yes, really). I only tried the plain one and it was excellent, as were numerous other items. I thought b. was excellent overall with many other delicious pastries. Equally wonderful was Maison Nico, although they didn't have kouign amann, but I loved their cruffin (croissant dough in the shape of a muffin and filled with vanilla pastry cream) and their chestnut croissant and their caneles (with your choice of soft or crunchy crust). I also had several good items at Arsicault Bakery, including a decent kouign amann.

nsxtasy wrote:

nsxtasy wrote:

bungalowgirl wrote:Kneads & Wants on Lincoln Ave in Skokie has kouign-amann.

A nearby bakery I've never heard of! Thanks for the tip! Gotta check it out...

I stopped by there this morning, but they had a problem with their croissant dough this morning so they had neither croissants nor kouign amanns. Their scones are good! (And they said they have been open at that location for three years.)

I went back to Kneads and Wants this morning and they had plenty of kouign amanns (6-8 as of 9:30). And they're very, very good! Somewhat sweet without overdoing it, nicely balanced with the croissant dough flavor.

Above I mentioned that their scones are very good. Pictured here (clockwise from the left) are their bacon cheddar scone, sour cherry scone, and the vanilla-flavored "Let me be perfectly queer scone".

paleitk wrote:Lost Larson has a fantastic Kouign-amann that I didn't see mentioned outright in the Lost Larson thread. Ranks up there with the best I've had (b. patisserie in SF makes really great ones!).

I got some at Lost Larson this morning. They're very good (as are the ones at b. patisserie), although I still prefer the ones at Good Ambler over either of those.

If you plan on going to Lost Larson on a weekend morning, you can save time by ordering in advance on their website (as I did), so you don't have to wait quite a while in line. It also ensures that they won't run out before you get there.

My quest to try kouign amanns around town continues!

The first place I went... TRIED to go, anyway... was Kasama.

gastro gnome wrote:Currently, for these sorts of flaky pastries, PQB and Kasama are probably the best I've tried of late, although still below what I thought Cellar Door was turning out.

Chicago Hokie wrote:As noted above, the cardamom kouign amann at Kasama is excellent. In general, the pastries at Kasama are all excellent, and our favorite in the city.

And this is the slow-moving line out front of Kasama at 10:40 this morning (a weekday), which doesn't even show the additional line of people waiting just inside the door:

I'm not going to wait 90+ minutes in line to try someone's kouign amann, no matter how good it is, so I left. Are waiting times like this typical there? I'm guessing you can bypass the line if you order in advance, correct? That's what some other places do - e.g. my recent visit to Lost Larson in my post above this one, although that was on a weekend morning - and what I guess I'll have to do some time if I want to try the ones at Kasama.

The place I went where I did score a kouign amann was at Daisies, the Bucktown shop from acclaimed pastry chef Leigh Omilinsky. I thought her kouign amann was very good indeed, better than most. Hers features sweetness incorporated throughout the pastry (not just on top or on the bottom) and is not as sweet as some, thus may particularly appeal to anyone who feels that some kouign amanns are too sweet.

Warning, they only had one kouign amann at 11:30 this morning. So if you have your heart set on getting any, ordering in advance for pickup may be a wise move.

She had a lot of other delicious looking pastries; I have not yet tried the other items I got, but they looked delicious.

While I was in that part of town, I also stopped by Mindy's Bakery, about halfway between Kasama and Daisies. Mindy's does not have a kouign amann per se. However, they do an excellent morning bun. Morning buns have a lot in common with kouign amann, both made from a laminated croissant-like dough and baked in muffin tins. Unlike the kouign amann, morning buns typically have the dough formed in a spiral, and add a bit of cinnamon. Here is one from Mindy's, a good one:

One caution about Mindy's. She produces her baked goods throughout the day, and to some extent this is shown in the menu on their website as the first bake, second bake, etc. If you haven't pre-ordered, you may find (as I did at 11:00) that some items weren't available yet (another customer was asking for donuts), while others were already sold out (like rugelach varieties other than chocolate). They had quite a wide variety of items, so you may very well find things you enjoy no matter what time you go there!

HTH!

I'm not going to wait 90+ minutes in line to try someone's kouign amann, no matter how good it is, so I left. Are waiting times like this typical there? I'm guessing you can bypass the line if you order in advance, correct?

Advanced ordering makes all the difference at Kasama - I think it’s mentioned in that thread as well. Their online order and pick up system works incredibly well with the food ready in under 30min. The line to eat in, on the other hand, I can’t understand. I guess I remember being young and full of wonder, where standing in a line was, in itself, an activity.

You could online order, pick up, and eat a meal there 3x over in the time it takes to get through that line on weekends

Thanks. Good information!

DClose wrote:Their online order and pick up system works incredibly well with the food ready in under 30min. The line to eat in, on the other hand, I can’t understand.

So just to clarify - that long line was for dining in, not for carryout orders? (At 10:40 in the morning??? ) And you can order food to carry out in less than 30 minutes, but only by ordering it online?

Thanks again!

I meant to post about Daisies Cafe which I tried last weekend.

I thought the kouign amman was very good. As nxstasy mentioned, it isn't as sweet which I appreciated. I also got the regular croissant and I thought it was also very good. The flake on both pastries was top notch.

Incidentally, I ended up at dinner there tonight and enjoyed it as well - but that's a topic for another thread.

The last couple of times I peeked into Loaf Lounge, I didn't see kouign amman on display (even when I went quite early), so I wonder if they are not doing them (or not doing them every day like they seemed to do at one time).

I just joined so I hope this is not a repeat. Cocoa Bean (out on Geneva) has some of the best pastries in the area. They have kouign-amann that are very good. And their chocolate croissants are some of the best I have had.

nsxtasy wrote:Thanks. Good information!

DClose wrote:Their online order and pick up system works incredibly well with the food ready in under 30min. The line to eat in, on the other hand, I can’t understand.

So just to clarify - that long line was for dining in, not for carryout orders? (At 10:40 in the morning??? ) And you can order food to carry out in less than 30 minutes, but only by ordering it online?

Thanks again!

Exactly - they have a sign on the front door (or at least they did last time I was there) instructing pick up orders to walk right past the line, enter through the front door, and head to the pick up counter where someone is waiting to grab your to-go bag. It takes maybe 15 seconds. All those sweet souls were waiting to dine in

Mindy's does have a kouign amann. It's giant and spiral-y, not the squished baked in a form type. It's tasty, but not dark and caramelized enough for me.

Marmish wrote:Mindy's does have a kouign amann. It's giant and spiral-y, not the squished baked in a form type. It's tasty, but not dark and caramelized enough for me.

Are you referring to their spiral-y morning bun, pictured above (which as I mentioned is similar), or do they have something else they are actually calling a kouign amann? If the latter, they don't show it on their website menu and they didn't have any when I was there on Thursday (although, as I mentioned, availability of specific items varies throughout the day).

I was there today. They have a morning bun and a kouign amann. There's a pic here. (not mine) https://www.lemon8-app.com/erikas_eatz/ ... ?region=us

gastro gnome wrote:The last couple of times I peeked into Loaf Lounge, I didn't see kouign amman on display (even when I went quite early), so I wonder if they are not doing them (or not doing them every day like they seemed to do at one time).

I asked them about the kouign amanns this morning when I didn't see any. They said they haven't been making them on weekdays, but they often do on weekends, and should have some this coming weekend.

nsxtasy wrote:Eater's latest listing of new brunches notes that Pompette, in Bucktown, has kouign amanns on their brunch menu.

I called Pompette this morning and they told me that they are no longer making kouign amanns.

DClose wrote:Exactly - they have a sign on the front door (or at least they did last time I was there) instructing pick up orders to walk right past the line, enter through the front door, and head to the pick up counter where someone is waiting to grab your to-go bag. It takes maybe 15 seconds. All those sweet souls were waiting to dine in

Thank you again! This was great information. Thanks to you, this morning I placed an online order at Kasama and picked it up without any waiting. (The line at the same 10:30 a.m. time was twice as long as previously pictured above!)

A couple of additional notes regarding ordering... There is no option on the Toasttab website for specifying a time in advance; the only choice is to pick up 20-25 minutes after placing the order. Also, as you mentioned, there is indeed a note on the door about pre-ordered pickups not having to wait. But the note also says that the line is not just for dine-in; carryouts must wait too. So if you want to look at the pastries in the counter and then buy them, you have to either wait in that long line, or order on their website and wait a more reasonable 20-25 minutes.

And their cardamom kouign amann is indeed excellent! The sweetness level is moderate, but definitely there. I was curious about how intense the cardamom taste would be - I actually like cardamom, as it happens - and it was quite subtle. It's also larger than most. Overall, I liked theirs a lot! I also got a piece of their basque cake, and it too is excellent.

I saw a write-up in Block Club for a new bakery in Roscoe Village that is also making kouign-amman. The name is Sweet Rabbit and here is the site.

Looks intriguing. I'll try to stop by one of these days.

Sweet Rabbit
2159 W Belmont Ave
Chicago, 60618

gastro gnome wrote:I saw a write-up in Block Club for a new bakery in Roscoe Village that is also making kouign-amman. The name is Sweet Rabbit and here is the site.

Looks intriguing. I'll try to stop by one of these days.

Me too. The menu sounds enticing. One problem already though: Ordering online only lets you order one of their four breads, nothing else.

The first date for picking up online orders is Wednesday July 12 so I'm guessing maybe they might not be open before then...?

nsxtasy wrote:My quest to try kouign amanns around town continues!

The first place I went... TRIED to go, anyway... was Kasama.And this is the slow-moving line out front of Kasama at 10:40 this morning (a weekday), which doesn't even show the additional line of people waiting just inside the door:
I'm not going to wait 90+ minutes in line to try someone's kouign amann, no matter how good it is, so I left. Are waiting times like this typical there?

Kasama was lovingly featured in S2 E. 3 of the Bear-- Sundae so everyone featured is probably getting a bit of a push even beyond normal.

Just be there for opening bell and place your order in advance. Grab a table and eat something different than your take out if you like.

Southern France, in Lakeview, is my favorite bakery in the whole Chicago area, with perhaps the best quiche, croissants, and biscuits I've ever had in my life. This morning I got (among other items) a bacon kouign amann:

Adding two more spots to the list. The first is Dan the Baker. He does pre-orders for pickup at the Emily Hotel (West Loop) coffee shop. Orders open Mondays for Fri/Sat/Sun pickup. I must say this is one of the best KA I've had. I'm not usually a big fan of fillings but I've had the sour cherry and the black sesame/yuzu (pictured) and both were phenomenal (slight nod to the cherry). The sugary caramelization on the bottom has an amazing crunch and it's buttery without being too buttery. Flavors change about once a month. The second is Sweet Rabbit Bakery on West Belmont. They use buckwheat in their KA and also black sesame. The buckwheat gives it a unique, nutty flavor but overall it was a bit dry and lacked a good caramel outside. Still worth trying if you're in the area. We did a side by side taste test (which was probably unfair) so we may have thought better of it if we weren't eating it right after Dan the Baker.

(btw - I wasn't able to upload my pictures so linking to the ordering sites for both bakeries. Not sure the pictures will remain if they change their flavor)

gastro gnome wrote:I saw a write-up in Block Club for a new bakery in Roscoe Village that is also making kouign-amman. The name is Sweet Rabbit and here is the site.

Looks intriguing. I'll try to stop by one of these days.

Sweet Rabbit
2159 W Belmont Ave
Chicago, 60618

Thanks to you and to bon2mic for the suggestion! I went there yesterday and tried a bunch of things, including the black sesame kouign amann. I thought it was pretty good, although I generally prefer fairly sweet kouign amanns, and theirs isn't particularly sweet. The black sesame flavor was rather mild. This is a good choice for those who prefer a less sweet KA.

Those who prefer a sweeter KA might enjoy their "Morning Cardi-O", a sweet morning bun which seemed very much like a sweeter KA. It has cardamom but I didn't taste it at all (which was too bad, since I like cardamom).

Oh, and they have a website: sweet-rabbit.com

Thanks for the reminder about Sweet Rabbit.

I stopped in today:

I grabbed what a savory square (I think it was a curried butternut squash) and one of the buckwheat kouign amman.

I thought both pastries were really good. The texture/flake was great on both. The savory square was especially flavorful. I will say that I think the kouign amman was unlike some of the others I've tried because it lacked the carmelization/crackly sugared side that I have usually seen. As a result, it also felt lighter than some others. I did not think it tasted all that much of the black sesame it contained, but the buckwheat leant a nutty flavor that I think worked well.

In sum, I thought they were both quite tasty and made with clear skill. I look forward to stopping in to try some more items.

As noted, in the title, this topic is about kouign amann in the Chicago area. However, if I could go off-topic for just a moment... In addition to trying them in Chicagoland, I've been doing so in cities all across the country. Tuesday morning I had the very best kouign amann in my entire life. It was at Leviathan Bakehouse in Indianapolis, on my way back from eclipse viewing. It may have been helped by the fact that I was there shortly after they opened at 8 a.m. so it was still warm. But still, my best ever. I tried numerous other items, and they too were uniformly outstanding.

In this photo, the kouign amanns are just to the left of the strawberry-guava croissants: