La Mexicana Bakery

This place is a little hard to find. It’s in a strip mall, set back from the road, southeast of St. Charles and Schmale Roads. There is not much else in the shopping center, a small Asian market, a salon, and a suspicious looking doctor’s office that looks more like a currency exchange. Once you’ve pulled into the right parking lot, you’ll see flashing blue lights — like a strip club. The lights are obnoxiously bright.
What’s inside doesn’t look impressive, but what’s inside the pastry cases is delicious. La Mexicana is what you would expect from a panaderia: grab a tray and some tongs, and pick your treats out of the three pastry cases. Some items had descriptions and prices, others did not.
I spent about $ 7 on some treats to share with friends after dinner. Everything is about $ 1, some a little more or less.
The Pan de Queso (literally, bread of cheese), a cream filled horn-​shaped croissant thing, and a «Bolillo» — a fried dough sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, were the best things of the bunch. The giant pink cookie was a bit chalky, but that’s a Mexican bakery for you… probably quite good for a pink cookie, just not my favorite.
The empanadas were not very good. It’s usually a solid choice for a panaderia, but the last one went in the garbage. Some were practically void of any filling.
The one mystery item was the pig-​shaped bread. I couldn’t resist the only animal-​shaped treat in the shop. I thought maybe it would taste like bacon. It was just plain, flavorless bread. I don’t know why it was shaped like a pig.
La Mexicana is a cheap way to get a sugar fix and a decent panaderia overall. Worth a visit if you’re nearby.

It’s like a best kept secret. Staff is great and selection is vast. Get in and enjoy all the amazing treats! Every time I go they’re super busy and you’ll soon see why!

Huge selection of treats here! This is located in a strip mall at the corner of St. Charles road and Schmale. It has some empty storefronts but art the other end is an oriental mart.
I got several things here and brought them home for the men in my life to try. The cookies were great! Other treats were tasty but the donut was lacking. You can get those anywhere so I don’t consider it a big deal.
Stop in and check this place out!

La Mexicana Bakery is tucked away in a strip mall in what could best be described as the most out-​of-​the-​way corner of Carol Stream. It’s also tiny, but if you like your cookies less sweet, this is the place for you.
I picked some random baked goods, including a strawberry-​filled pastry, a pineapple-​filled pastry, as well as a chocolate chip M&M cookie. They were all fresh, but what stood out was that they weren’t altogether sweet. I don’t mind the occasional change of pace every now and then.
The thing you have to get here is a giant pancake-​sized cracker-​crisp (called, I believe, buñonsuelos). Think of it like a deep-​fried crêpe with churro seasonings. The pastry becomes very bubbly, and so when you bite into it it’s thin and crispy. Yum.
There’s also a whole lot of Jell-​O in plastic cups. Whatever floats your boat.
Overall, a good contribution to the neighborhood!