Breadsmith

Awesome fresh bread, friendly staff.

Ordered every type of cake they make, several danish and chocolate chip cookies for our daughter’s bat mitzvah luncheon. Everything was delicious. We were very pleased.

Excellent moist, dense, tasty bread that is reasonably priced and great even without being toasted. This bakery excels in both the dessert breads and normal breads. The store itself isn’t flashy but the quality of the product speaks for itself.

Breadsmith is still quite good, but this location seems a tad threadbare these days. I liked what I bought (including home made moon pies, but shopping here isn’t exactly exciting. I like going into bakeries and feeling like a kid. Not at this place for sure.

Best challah! For those of you who need portion control or whose kids like their own challahs the mini muffin ones are great. Get there early on Fridays though because they sell out of things fast.

I’ve always known there was a breadsmith bakery on Dempster avenue though I always remembered it being closer to McCormick. I guess this is where the new location has moved too? Before visiting the store I looked them up on Google and read through the menu’s found online. Skipping the obvious detail of the in-​store menu PDF. I mention this because I was let down, my hopes were to find that they offered the jalapeño cornbread. Which they do not. Look at the main website and see a listing of all breads that could be prepared at this company. However, each location chooses to make different ones. This one makes a whole lot of Challah breads. Being the neighborhood its in, is the reason. By the way, baked, alcohol infused French toast is pretty rad with Challah.
I stopped in the other afternoon. There were a couple tall, aluminum colored racks behind their counter with a few types of breads and multiple types of Challah. The doors are always opening and closing every few minutes with all ages of customers coming and going. I wasn’t sure what to get. I had a lamb stew in the crock pot for over sixteen hours and I was really looking forward to some good corn bread. An older lady saw me idling and offered «don’t worry, everything is very good, just pick one.» and so I did. The everything Challah. It stayed fresh for over four days in which time I slammed every last bit. A little less than four dollars is what I remember paying.
Also in the store are other bakery treats, cookies and more. Most treats are sold in multi packs. Makes it hard for a single like me to know what their cookie is like. I’m the kind that likes to hand play the cookie to find out if its soft or hard. I gotta feel out if I want to try it. They also carry some refrigerated items as well likes cakes. Breadsmith mentions on their website that they also offer pizza dough. You’d have to call here to find out for certain. There used to be a time when pizza joints would sell their prepared pizza dough to the public. Long gone are those times but good to know one can possibly get it here rather than some pre-​made crap sold at the supermarket chains. No offense Boboli.

I came here looking for a really good loaf of challah. I love challah and grew up in Jewish neighborhoods to have access to good challah bread all my life. The challah here was a little disappointing to me. First of all, when I asked for challah, the clerk immediately assumed I want sliced challah bread. Huh? What is this? This doesn’t look like challah bread. Turns out I needed to request braided challah, which was in the back. The challah bread is freshly baked everyday, which I appreciate in a bakery. But it just wasn’t right. First of all, it was missing its egg wash on top, which contributed to the dryness of the bread. Inside wasn’t as fluffy or eggy as it should have been. Plus, it was way too sweet. I realize they use vanilla in it, but it almost tasted dessert like. I’m still looking for a good classic challah bread in Chicago. Please message me if you know of one.

Another reviewer said you need to know what you’re getting into before coming here. Buying a Breadsmith challah is a commitment, because you’re never going to be satisfied with any other challah ever again. You should see how my kid’s faces drop if we pull away the challah cover on Shabbat and it’s not a Breadsmith challah. Their challahs are soft, doughy, with only a light crust — no need for my kids to hollow out the middle of the challah to get the best parts — the whole thing is the best part!
You can get Breadsmith challahs at local grocery stores, but if you walk into the Breadsmith store itself, you’re going to walk out with more than just a challah. The dessert breads are amazing (they’re actually coffee cake loaves, not «bread») — the chocolate banana bread is my favorite, but all the flavors are great. And Breadsmith has perfected the pareve brownie — after many years of disappointing kosher bakery brownies, finally one that is thick and moist. This is easily the best kosher bakery in the Chicago area.

Very fresh wonderful product. Challahs are fantastic! Cookies to dream about. Really great stuff. One complaint is that certain product is only available at certain times. Store should promote when product is available and when it’s not. I highly recommend this great store. I think a personal touch about the ownership would bring a warm feel to the place unless it’s owned by a corporation!

You need to know what you’re getting into before you pick up a loaf from Breadsmith. I first did so about three years ago, and I don’t think I’ve made a sandwich without it since then.
Before this starts reading like an inside job, it should be said that it’s a little more expensive than what you normally might pay for a loaf. But it’s worth it every time. Fresh, chewy, and spectacular. The French Peasant bread is the stuff of dreams. If you have access to a toaster, then you’ll wonder how you ever did without it.
This is a chain, but a great one.

On Friday pre-​Shabbat a few weeks ago my girlfriend and I schlepped around Skokie a bit. We decided to check out Breadsmith and see what they had to offer. Being a Friday around 1 or 2 the place was mobbed with people picking up a challah for Shabbat.
The girlfriend got us a couple of Challah muffins (with chocolate chips). These were incredibly delicious. They were consumed during Shabbat lunch and were probably some of the best challah I had ever had. Although they were a day old they still tasted very fresh. Too bad the Breadsmith is so far away.
In addition we were blown away by their wall of peanut butter varieties. They probably had a dozen different kinds. We decided to go with the cookie dough peanut butter. At first we thought maybe we could bake something with it, but I am now inclined to say no. It was so sweet and delicious I cannot imagine it being baked into something, it would be too much. It is however great to keep in the cabinet and once in a while just grabbing a spoon fall and snacking it.

This place is HOPPING pre-​Shabbos — women in sheitls (wigs) and ladies with babies in strollers hound this joint in order to pick up some challot before Shabbat begins, and the hustle and bustle was so much fun to be a part of.
They have water challah, egg challah, everything challah (my new-​found favorite), even Chocolate Chip challah! So I opted for two chocolate chip challah muffins, and while standing around noticed jars of specialty peanut butter that I just HAD to buy.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Peanut Butter? Yes, please! Even though it was $ 5 something for the jar, it was so worth it. They had a half-​dozen other flavors, too, which I highly recommend.
So with my Chocolate Chip Challah Muffins and the PB, I left, happy, and ready to take on Shabbos. We ate the muffins the next day and they were still fresh and moist, hitting the spot on a Shabbos afternoon.
I highly recommend this joint, whether you’re Jewish or not, for some delicious, freshly made breads. They make things with heart!

The latest chapter in my ongoing quest to eat healthily (vs. my other ongoing quest, to eat cheaply). I eat a lot of bread, and around a year ago, I kicked the HFCS-​laden breads to the curb. But now I want fresh-​baked taste along with healthiness.
I’d bake it myself but recipes deter me: none gives exact measurements for flour; it all depends on «the humidity in the air.» Say what? Yes, my breadbaking pursuits are doomed for failure, as I lack that alchemy.
Thus my trip to Breadsmith. Here’s the deal: go early. Be prepared to circle the parking lot. Don’t expect to get coffee (they don’t sell it) or sit down to eat (no seating). I didn’t find any free samples when I went. No prices are listed, in the store or on the website. That’s all right. Trust me: go, stand in line, pay your money, grab the goods and run back to your double parked car.
They sell baked goods, in addition to breads/​rolls. I’ve sampled some cookies and muffins and they’re good, but not spectacular. But the bread? It’s outta sight. Honey Oat is popular and rightfully so. Delicious fresh taste, rich texture… it makes a great sandwich. The way bread is meant to be.
As soon as I clear some space in the freezer, I’m going back for a couple more loaves. What else to try? They have a huge selection. I’m drawn to the herbed breads, like Tuscan Herb Formaggio and Rosemary Garlic Ciabatta. The sweet breads smell enticing, too — pumpkin, chocolate cherry…
Great Harvest Bread is the main competitor, it seems, but I think Breadsmith has the price advantage. I called the store and a loaf of Honey Oat is $ 4.50 — not much more than you’d pay at the grocery store for inferior bread (and it’s buy 12, get one loaf free). If you haven’t, you must try it. Then you’ll be hooked.

Came in here today since we are big fans of carbs. We were greeted by a pleasant aroma as we stepped into the store. There was a good selection of breads and so it was difficult for us to choose… everything looked so good! However, we settled upon the banana chocolate chip poundcake, which was heavy, moist, and delicious! The lady behind the counter also let us try the lemon poppyseed poundcake and that was amazing. I am definitely coming back here again to try something else. They also sell muffins and cookies.