I am surprised that I never wrote a review about Lutz - a little foretaste of Heaven, however, today reminded me that it is indeed, not Heaven. While the food is great, the desserts are unbelievable, and the coffee with real whipped cream are all scrumptious, I was taken by surprise by the cost, (I was there just this past summer and it wasn't that much). I would have asked for a doggy bag for the small amount of crust from the quiche I left behind and the last bite of dessert I left on my plate. My bill was $18.49.
I have been known to treat my friends to a treat, but not today. There were four of us and that would have put the total bill at nearly 80.00. I would have fainted, (so would my husband).
What happened?
Everything was great, but .... My friends can enjoy a taste of Heaven, enjoying each others company sitting at the Garfield Park Conservatory and save on the calories.
September 2006. Ordered a wedding cake, made a slight change 10 days before. The changes were estimated at a maximum of $75. I told him, "well, you have my credit card info, just charge me for the balance so I don't have to stop in again". They charge me over twice as much as quoted. . Ridiculous. I thought their cafe area was nice, and I may have stopped in again and again, but no- I don't think I'll ever go back now.
The cake wasn't spectacular either.
I'm with some of the other reviewers who grew up going here, as did I. I want it to be so much better. I've now had two exceptionally grumpy experiences here due to lippy/can't-be-bothered service. First time, I wanted to order a large amount of butter cookies in a certain way they USED to make them (white frosting, not white chocolate, sandwiched cookies with multicolored sprinkles on one end -- if you know of somewhere that serves those, please tell me). It was like beyond hard to explain to the person what I wanted, so I gave up.
Then I decided on a whim a few weeks ago to get butter cookies again. First of all, barely any selection. But the woman was sooooo rude I felt like I was majorly annoying her by just wanting to buy something.
Lutz get some new staff, get some reinvigorated marketing/products, and stage a comeback. Otherwise I predict you will be a goner quite soon.
I've been a fan of Lutz for a long time. I love their hazelnut pastries especially. This morning Partner and I decided to hop on the bikes and head over to Lutz for brunch using a Groupon I had purchased. We each ordered the Quiche Lorraine and the coffee service. The adorable yet unassuming savory pie was simply fantastic. The crust was buttery; the custard was rich with cream and cheese. The coffee service took me back to breakfast in Europe. The service was friendly. The space is cozy and welcoming. I had forgotten about the patio; next summer we'll make it a point to visit for lunching outside. We were both so full we couldn't even think about a pastry. The server brought us each a cookie " just a little treat if you change your mind" (which we wrapped and put in the back pack to bring home.)
Review Source:I'd really want to give Lutz an extra half star here, especially for nostalgia sake. This was of course the go-to bakery for my Austrian/German family throughout my adolesence. My mom and grandma still talk about it 20 years later.
This is my second visit in two years. The first experience was rather disappointing. This time, so much better. Both different than I remember it. The most recent visit, I purchased 5 of the $5 cake slices. They are a fair portion for the price. Here was my order of preference:
#1 Black Forest
#2 Sachre Torte
#3 Marzipan
#4 Strawberry Mousse
#5 Chocolate Mousse
I'd come back and I would be very interested in trying the coffee service. In the meantime, I would say that the owner was very friendly and personable. The cookie I sampled did bring me right back to childhood and that's gotta count for something!
Additionally, I have been on a bakery kick and tried just about all the major cupcake venues as well as purchasing a couple of birthday cakes from my very bakery heavy neighborhood and Lutzs surpasses just about all of them.
I love this place! This bakery has been here my entire life, and is always really good. This is the only true German bakery/cafe' left in the Lincoln Square neighborhood. (Actually, a little outside the neighborhood - but worth walking an extra 2 blocks!) During the warmer months, enjoy a delicate lunch, coffee and pastry in the pretty outdoor garden; otherwise, nice tables indoors. Pricy - but - worth it for the best butter cream frosting and best-ingredients/best cake you will ever eat.
Review Source:Went here again for my sisters wedding shower brunch and the pastries were better. It is a quiet, clean, friendly, place in the area to enjoy coffee and conversations.
Food was okay, we did like the individual quiche style instead of a slice. Wished their tomato bisque tasted like a bisque and not just tomato soap however.
I really want to love this place, maybe third times a charm?
We went to this place on a summer morning and had coffee and food out on the back patio. Â The coffee was really delicious and came with whipped cream on the side. Â Unfortunately, the rest of the meal was not as good. Â My boyfriend had a quiche: the eggs were fluffy but the pastry was really thick all the way around and overly buttery. Â It really needed to be thinner on the bottom and perhaps a smaller portion size. Â I had a cherry danish, which was ok: good, flaky pastry but the filling was not fresh. Â
The service was alright. Â Our waitress was very, very nice but it took forever to get served at first. Â The decor is pretty bad. Â All I kept thinking was, "what if Robert Irvine from Restaurant: Impossible saw this?!" Â The inside is way too dated and feels like a retirement home and the outside is inexplicably done in astroturf. Â It all needs a little updating and freshening and maybe more young people will want to stop in.
I really like supporting small local businesses, especially bakeries, but I just couldn't give this a good review. Â Hopefully, since they've been around forever, they can make a few changes and revive this place. Â It's really very cute and they seem to love serving the community.
Many pastry options, almost all of it looks delicious.
I got the apple strudel for work and everyone loved it. Â It had a great taste without being overtly too sweet. Â The Kolachkies were also well received.
That being said, Lutz wouldn't be my go to bakery since its a little outside of my neighborhood. Â But luckily, I have Julius Meinl to quell my pastry needs :-)
DO NOT buy a strudel here thinking that you will get a real strudel.  It's amazing to find a, supposedly, Austrian bakery that has no clue what strudel dough is.  Certainly, not the thick, gluey, dough that they use here.  Strudel  should be made of multiple layers of  very thin, crispy and flaky dough.  More like the phyllo dough that baklava is made of.  The cherry filling was just okay -- canned pie filling, not fresh.  (The apple filling also looked canned). This is NOT what a strudel is, and not what I expected or wanted to serve for dessert.  Considering the pedestrian quality, the prices here are high .  If you want cakes that taste like they're made from a commercial mix, you can go to the Jewel and get this quality for a lot less money. Â
Although the bakery was spotless, the cafe looked tired and a bit run down, not at all inviting. Â I should mention that I used a Groupon so the pastry was discounted, and I still feel that it was overpriced for the quality. Â Based on the "strudel", I wouldn't bother trying anything else here.
My parents have been ordering birthday cakes from Lutz for over 30+ years and they used to order a Rum Cake (they don't make anymore unless you special order it) Â
It's not the same cake like it used to be:(
"Rum Cake" yellow sponge cake layers, first filling was a rum/almond with maraschino cherries & juice (it gave it like an almond & rum taste), 2nd filling was white cream with a layer of marzipan and frosted with chocolate buttercream and decorated with chocolate pieces.
I'm not sure if there's a second owner or not but the taste has changed.
Does anyone know more information about this cake?
Strawberry Cake, black forest & the mandarin orange cake slices were also so good!
On one of our neighborhood walks, we stumbled across this Austrian bakery/cafe. From the outside, it looked like a place that only specialized in wedding cakes, but once we walked in, the pastry case stole the show filled with cupcakes, cake slices, fruit tarts and then an entire case of cookies and one filled with chocolates.
I cannot resist a red velvet cupcake so I opted for that - it was good, but not great. It was a little stale and the frosting lacked in flavor; by no means competition for cupcake purveyors Sprinkles or Crumbles (and was as expensive!). I also had them put together a box of assorted cookies to take to a birthday party & those were also OK - they were fresh and tasty, but nothing too memorable.
We were a bit bummed we got there almost when they were closing, so we had to take our sweets to go & skipped out on the coffee (we were the only ones there and felt like we were being rushed (the girl said they were getting ready for an event)).
The seating area is really cute & elegant - very European & something you wouldn't expect at a bakery (think table cloths, candles, cloth napkins, etc.). We also peeked into the back and they had a great little patio with small tables and even a little pond.
Overall, we are really glad to have stumbled upon this place in the neighborhood. Â We look forward to coming back here and sipping some Viennese coffee and tasting some chocolates out on the patio.
However, I'd probably pass on getting any cupcakes or cookies though - you'd have better luck at other neighborhood bakeries.
I actually can't believe I haven't reviewed Lutz before- we go all the time, either to eat brunch or to pick up treats. Â The service is always friendly and the food is always delicious. Â And on Saturday's, there is never a wait for dine in service. Â
It's tempting to stick with the sweets here given that they are a bakery, and if you do you won't be disappointed. Â But if you can, make yourself order a quiche or the goulash. Â Both are fantastic. Â Usually I hate paying for quiche, because I know I can make one just as good or better at home. Â Lutz's quiche is the exception to my rule, though. Â Their crust is so buttery and flaky, and instead of being served a slice from a larger dish, each quiche here is a large individual portion. Â This means more perimeter for wrapping in pie crust!
My favorite thing about Lutz, though, is the Viennese coffee service. Â Every order comes with it's own service tray, complete with individual pot of coffee and dish of whipped cream. Â The coffee is strong enough to make my heart race after a second cup, but that doesn't mean that you can't request refills of both the coffee and the cream to your heart's content.
As for the desserts, I haven't had one yet that I didn't like. Â And while they go perfectly with the coffee service, they're also great for take away. Â The boxes of cookies make a great hostess gift for a dinner party, or to bring home for an afternoon snack.
If you want and need a brownie fix, this is the place to go. They are usually in the jars near the cashier, one for nuts and one for without.
Pretty decent pastries at good prices. I always seem to find the seasonal items or a new baker's concoction that is never around the next time I come in. Last year I tried this raspberry pastry with cream and fresh raspberries that was the most wonderful thing I have ever tried. I went in again soon after, and it was no longer on the menu. Sigh.
The staff are very nice. The bakery itself is very open and airy, and there is a nice little sit-in area in the back and also in their cute little garden outside! A perfect place to sit down with a nice coffee from the coffee area and read and relax.
Grandma's bday cake!
I came in the pick up my grandmother's birthday cake and I was quickly greeted as I walked in!
I ended up going for the traditional yellow cake with strawberries and whipped cream frosting...The texture was fluffy and taste rich..but it didn't wow me! Perhaps they could have added more fresh strawberries as opposed to the strawberry filling....
Another negative was during the transaction when my card was swiped...Some how on my statement it showed to charges for the cake and i had to wait 3-5 business days for the pending transaction to be returned to my account...Not sure how I feel about that...
Eh...all in all I'll stick to Rosers or Jewel.
I am going to provide you with four scenarios:
1) You and a friend are looking for a place to have some good coffee and a delicious treat with friendly service. For the love of God and Baby Jesus, get off of Yelp, power down the computer and go here. Now!
2) You are doing some entertaining and want a good variety of reasonable priced, delicious desserts. For the love of God and Baby Jesus, get off of Yelp, power down the computer and go here. Now!
3) You just have a sweet tooth that needs to be satisfied. For the love of God and Baby Jesus, get off of Yelp, power down the computer and go here. Now!
4) ]Insert your own scenario here] For the love of... Oh you know the drill already!
Just do it... Now!
I have family in Vienna, and the sweets at Lutz makes me feel like I'm back in Austria. With their silver platter coffee and hot chocolate service, and the delicious Viennese-style cakes and pastries, at Lutz I feel as close to Vienna as I can in Chicago. I can honestly say I've never had a bad cake here, and everything is always fresh and delicious. I have been enjoying Lutz's delicious and authentic cakes and pastries since I was a kid. My parents ordered their wedding cake from Lutz 35 years ago, and so did my brother last month. Hopefully, within a year or two, my fiance and I will as well.
Despite the fact that I love pretty much everything they have, I do have some staples:  the Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte (black forest cake), and also the Marzipan Torte (marzipan cake). I have basically insisted on eating these cakes for every one of my 30 birthdays. They are SO delcious. No dry, tasteless cakes here. The pastries and tortes  are always so moist and full of fresh fruit and flavors. The Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte is packed with plump cherries! Also, their strawberry whipped cream cake is pretty much like heaven in your mouth. My sister-in-law got this cake last week for her birthday and it was AH-MAZ-ING. PACKED with strawberries, the cake so moist, and the whipped cream was like a light and fluffy wonderland.
Lutz is a classic bakery that has been around for over 40 years. It makes me sad to see people get their desserts at all these trendy new cupcake joints that will surely come and go. The people that gave Lutz three or four star reviews don't know what the hell they are talking about. Go to Lutz and get some bakery that makes you reminisce about sitting in a European cafe, sipping a coffee, and nibbling at some rich, wonderful, sweet delicacy that you think will never hit your lips again once you go back across the pond.
You can also sit in their awesome, unchanged patio area and have a nice sit down meal, or even better, order the hot chocolate! It comes out on a silver tray and is thick and creamy and wonderful.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. I'm drooling just writing this.
I knew I was in trouble as soon as I walked into Lutz's. Â I was the only customer in the shop. Â I have been going to Lutz's for 30 years and never have been the only customer in the shop. Â I will admit that it has been several years since I have been there, but had a groupon and needed to buy several cofffeecakes for a retirement party. Â The number of pastries has decreased. Â I Â cannot recall alot of buttercream pastries, as I saw today. Â They still have the cookies and candy, but no longer bake bread. Â Wow, their croissants used to be to die for...now, no longer...man, what a disappointment. The Cafe menu has changed.
I bought my coffeecakes. Â Bur, I think I will not be back.
Oh, I forgot to tell you that Lutz's has been under new ownership for several years.
So, I live a block or so away and came here when I first moved in because I needed the internet and ComSUCK could not seem to get it together and hook up my cable...
Anyway, I ordered a coffee, and was utterly astonished. Â It was great and they have beautiful silver service. Â They also serve the coffee with cream and whipped cream on the side. Â (Check out the picture) It was fabulous, so what did I do? Â
I felt compelled to buy pastries :-/ Â So, I got some cakes and a strudel and shared it with some family and friends. Â HOLY COW STRUDEL! Â Absolutely gorgeous and perfect! Â There is a reason they have been in business so long!
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I've known of Lutz since I was a kid, but I never knew about their outdoor garden until a few years ago. Â It's peaceful and cozy, and the service was quite nice. Â The desserts are why you go...and Lutz doesn't disappoint.
I've been to the famous Demel Cafe in Vienna, and I'll say Lutz is the closest thing you'll find along those lines in Chicago. Â Check it out for coffee and sweets, or even to get something to go for the family.
The Conditorei is a faithful transplant of a German shop. The ingredients, quality of finished product, and recipes, are all authentic.
My sole disappointment has been the removal of German sandwiches and bar type lunch items from the Café menu. The Café is much simplified now, which, I suppose, makes quality easier to control. I enjoy the café for its ambience, which is one of unparalleled quiet and class (think Ritz-Carlton with no ambient noise), and its German coffee served with real cream, which makes it perfect for consumption of that pastry. The lunch menu does not appeal to me personally, but, never having tried it, I can't comment on the dishes.
I marked this as $$ (two signs) only because a typical lunch with pastry and coffee would be well over $20. I usually order a pot of Viennese coffee and a pastry. The bill comes to around $10.
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6-14-12
After several return visits, I can see that Lutz's offerings are much smaller than they were in 1975-1982, when I was a regular patron. (The café is much older than 1975.) I have to mark Lutz as 4 1/2 stars for this downgrade.
Positive changes since 1970's: The patio is open and available. It is one of those rare outdoor seating areas that is not on a busy street. Also, Lutz offers Groupons ($5 off) fairly regularly. I am waiting to use the last one of three that I purchased earlier this year.
I hadn't been to lunch here since 1993, so I thought it was time to come back. I took a senior friend  on a weekday. There is the choice of the "tea room" indoors or the outdoor patio. Because the flimsy plastic furniture on the patio,would not work for my friend, we opted to eat indoors. The cafe menu is brief, European and kind of retro. For instance, it has that "Chef's Salad" which in my youth was supposed to be diet food, with it's massive chunks of meat and cheese and a creamy dressing. Whose diet food, I'm not sure. There's the standard Caesar with or without chicken, fresh soups, crepes, goulash, and a nice selection of sandwiches, available on their bakery bread. I remember having soup and sandwich back in "93.
This time we both ordered the chicken and mushroom crepes. I had a fresh tomato soup which was very flavorful, Kind of sweet and spicy with something like cinnamon. Wilda's salad was ever so standard dinner salad, with a mix of iceberg and romaine lettuces. The crepes were like big mushy, tasty mouthfuls of cream of mushroom soup with large chunks of chicken and mushrooms. A little hollandaise on the side to make them even richer, and a garnish of those little canned mandarin oranges for more retro appeal. But I love stuff like this. I had a roommate from Indiana once whose mom used to make the best mushy entrees and desserts. Terre Haute Cuisine, I called it.
The service here is not particulary attentive, but European in the sense that they leave you alone, nothing is rushed, but they skip skip the American obsequiousness, which is OK. Wish they would have shown a little more sensitivity to a special needs person, (not to mention the lady with the walker.) It's great to be able to pick and choose cookies from the bakery case on your way out, as if it were an old neighborhood candy store. Both the bakery items and the cafe items are a good value. And great if you're looking for that old time elegance.
It took an offer from Groupon to get me, a lifetime member of Weight Watchers, back to the Lutz bakery.
I had the bright idea that I would use the two groupons I bought to buy treats to share with my students. I did do that, but not without first making sure that the various cookies were safe to eat.
Oh boy oh boy . . . those cookies were good enough to make me abandon Weight Watchers and dive into a bucket of buttery cookie goodness. And the few cookies that I did not eat were greatly appreciated by starving (you would think they were starving) massage therapists.
I think I understand, now, why some businesses go the Groupon route. At least three or four of my cookie consumers said, "Oh my God, Lutz! I haven't been there since I was a kid!" Well, Groupon helped them remember Lutz, and reminded them why they had liked Lutz so much.
I would definitely go to Lutz again, and eagerly consume more than just the cookies. And I encourage you to do the same.
The place looks pretty old and outdated and it was cold outside (the patio area looks pretty interesting) so their was no joy in actually sitting in to enjoy our treats so we got them to go. We tried the strawberry mousse cake and the hazelnut cake. Strawberry mousse was delicious, light, fluffy and exactly what I expected.
The hazelnut was just ok and in fact a little to heavy on the hazelnut. After a bite or two the overpowering flavor is almost too much. It's possible that i would stop in for another treat on the go but I wouldn't go out of my way to make it happen.
I would have loved to give Lutz five stars--ten years ago it would've been a no-brainer but today, not so much.
Like many other Lutz yelpers, my family has been frequenting Lutz since well before I was born, for more than 30 years! Â Lutz's cakes, especially the marzipan torte, used to be the benchmark by which every other cake, even those from bakeries in Vienna and Paris, would be compared. Â Alas, no longer.
The change in ownership has really affected the quality of the cakes, cookies, and candies. Â Gone are the displays of charming marzipan animals. Â Gone is the rotating cake display that would keep my little eyes occupied for the 20 minutes or so that it took for my mom to place her order. Â Today, Lutz stoops to the lowest common denominator. Â Mediocre-looking red velvet cake? Â Check. Â Unexciting whipped cream cakes? Â Check. Â
Their fabulous black forest cake, the best I'd ever had anywhere in the world, is now dry and unremarkable. Â Put back the cherry-rum filling! Â Bring back the chocolate mousse! Â What a disappointment. Â The marzipan torte is no longer crafted with the same amount of care. Â (The slices we bought this past weekend were sweating from being crafted days before, frozen, and defrosted, and the marzipan layer looked limp and was falling off.) Â Bring back that marzipan roll cake, with the apricot and whipped cream filling! Â Most importantly, honor the gorgeous, unique quality of years before!!
Lutz used to be the best I'd ever had. Â Today, it's just another bakery. Â I am heartbroken.
We were having some people over for dinner and stopped by Lutz earlier this week to pick up some dessert. Â Got there at 7:00, right when they were closing. Â The owner was walking out/closing up, but accomodated us and allowed us to come in which we greatly appreciated.
He was extremely helpful when we were making our decisions, had zero issue with us coming in after hours and taking our time looking everything over and threw in a cookie for our daughter and a brownie for us to try, which was pretty damn good!
I appreciated how cool he was with letting us come in rather than telling us sorry, they're closed up and to come back the next day. Â Places like this are exactly why we like to support the small business owner in the Lincoln Square area.
The cakes have always been consistant and great over the years, but we tried the marzipan this time and it was awesome!
I'm a klutz for Lutz! I stumbled in here on a Saturday afternoon searching for some treats to take to my mom's hospital room. The ladies were very glad to help me select an appropriate item and were honest about which choices were the best. We left with a 2lb box of cookies. The nurses and mom were thrilled with it. Lutz is a bit on the expensive side but well worth it. Next time I want some of the pastries that are on display. Yummy.
There's also a cafe in the other room of the bakery, I'll have to come back for that too, even though the view is probably just the Aldi parking lot, who cares, as long as the foods good right?!
I very badly wanted to like this place. I do love the sign- for whatever reason it screams "my childhood". But with so many other pastry focused bakeries to choose from Lutz ranks a solid meh.
There was nothing wrong with the almond roll ($13.00 I think). It was fresh. There was plenty of almond paste inside. The presentation of their products was beautiful in the clean, well lit cases. But I didn't care for how it was wrapped in plastic wrap and tossed in a bag. Like I said, I really wanted to like it.
The young girl behind the counter was very nice although she had to call someone from the back to find out if they had anything with almonds. The not-as-young woman (longish brown hair, mid/ late 20's) who came out from the back was awful. By the way, belated apology, I'm sorry I asked you how sweet the almond roll was. I could tell it really put you out to answer the question of the only customer in the store. Even if your frustration was with the inexperienced, super cute Asian counter girl there's no reason for you to be short with me.
The cafe is spacious and, from what I can tell, often empty. The coffee smelled delicious. But then again I can make delicious coffee at home.
I truly wanted to love Lutz's but it just fell flat. There were definitely parts that made me feel warm and fuzzy, but overall I was not overly impressed.
Things that they are doing great: coffee, tomato bisque soup (be prepared for it to come with an orange slice and dollop of whip cream), turkey sandwich, and hands down the best was....quiche lorraine. It should be obvious that any combination of egg, cheese, pastry crust, and bacon would be a success, but Lutz completely nailed this one. There was probably an entire stick of butter involved, but in the most glorious way.
The shop itself has charm, very Mom & Pop with a definite Euro vibe. You walk into seeing glass counters displaying 50 feet of old school bake shop goodies. The back patio is covered with AstroTurf and law furniture. There are curtains inside that don't cover any actual windows, and classical music is quietly played in the background.
Things that were misses: stale rolls, "kettle chips" that were really just classic Lays (which I love), baumkuchen, and the service.
First off, the reason we came here was for the baumkuchen. After seeing Kid in a Candy Store we were immediately convinced that we would love the thinly layered cake coated with chocolate. In fact, there wasn't any available while we were enjoying our food so we placed an order and came back for our slice an hour later. Problem #1 it costs $7 for a small slice. Problem #2 it doesn't taste very good.
The service has potential to improve. They had about 5 women working as servers from what I could tell, yet they seemed completely unorganized. There was one sweet young girl who just kept filling our water every five minutes but could not answer any of our questions and seemed terrified as she went from table to table (have some confidence darling!). We waited 10 minutes at a table before we finally got up to help ourselves to menus, and then were acknowledged. The service was slow and they seemed overwhelmed. I will say that I appreciated the owner coming over to see how we were doing and making conversation.
This may not be my favorite place in the city, but I have a feeling it holds a special place in a few old time Lincoln Square inhabitants (i.e. not 30 something NPR supporters).
Nothing arty-farty or "eclectic" about Lutz or its pastries and candies, which in this bakery's case is a beautiful thing. Rows and rows of perfectly-made old-school goodies as pleasing to the eye as they are to the palate.
I visited Lutz when I had some time to kill and hadn't eaten breakfast yet. I chose to not get my food and coffee to go, because the dining area was clean and quiet and equipped with wi-fi. Â I had a cappucino and a breakfast quiche that was...well...how do I describe it? Because, see, I've had bacon, and I've had cheese, and I've had pastry - sometimes all at once - but Lutz's breakast quiche? Sweet tap-dancing Jesus. I think they used magic eggs to bind everything together, because that quiche was out of this world. Of course, afterward I felt all greasy and guilty about it but man was it good while it lasted.
I'm taking one star off for the service, though. While polite, it was extremely slow, especially in light of the fact that I was pretty much their only customer that AM. Oh, well.
Lutz has been a staple for celebrations in my family for years. Â From birthdays to graduations, we would drive over an hour from the IL/WI border, where we lived, to Lutz to pick up the heavenly dessert that we ordered. Â
Thankfully, I live only minutes away and can still pop in every now and then. Â As a German bakery, their delights aren't too sugary like most places and their whipped cream cakes are so light and fresh-tasting.
Staff-members have always been so kind and friendly and they never make you feel rushed to order. Â I've been to some really good bakeries in Chicago, but none will ever live up to the high quality of Lutz's.
I soooo want a cupcake now...
Dear Lutz,
I have high hopes of any baked goods and pastries coming from a Chicago bakery. Â These hopes were crushed by your overpriced goods. Â
$3.90 for a slice of fresh Bavarian cake is acceptable. Â $3.90 for a huge chunk of orange flavored sponge cake is acceptable if you like that kind of flavor flav. Â $3.90 for a slice of hazelnut cake filled mostly with cream makes me feel ripped off. Â I guess more cream and less cake makes it more profitable for you. Â But $3.90 for a dinky eclair that tastes like stale cream on a gritty, nutty pastry puff is redonkulous.
See you never,
Tricia
Back when I was a kid, and into my teenage years, I'd very often get their German Chocolate cakes for my birthday parties. This place never disappointed, and I loved those cakes very much. It's funny E. V. mentioned the marzipan tops on their cakes, as I got into the same fights over eating those!
I can't remember some of the other non-cake pastries I've had here in the past, the very handful of times I made trips here outside of getting cakes. But I remember some of them were good, and some weren't. Still though, I'm hoping soon that I can make it here again for the first time in years. (and hopeful it hasn't declined in quality, like some think has occurred) Especially since for whatever reason, I've never been able to check out their outdoor patio, and would like to check it out before it closes for the year. *crosses fingers that I achieve said goal soon*
All I can ask is what happened? Lutz for at least the last twenty years has been a reliable and consistent standby.
About six months ago I came up with a new food plan, "if it has a lot of calories, it has to be very good." I love me a sweet treat. Cookies are a big favorite for me. Lutz's always had real tasty butter cookies.
Well "had" is the operative word, these were dry and tasteless. The ones that are supposed to have raspberry filling had been filled barely. There was so little filling that most of them came apart in the box.
I also did get two of the little cake slices, these also were very dry. Just a big disappointment.
One star for the very friendly and smiling girl behind the counter.
I really do wonder, what happened? Did they change ownership, management, something?
This is quite possibly the ABSOLUTE MOST AMAZING European cafe and bakery in the entire Chicago area
 (this may come as shock for all you devoted Swedish Bakery Fans)
Lutz's has the most uh-mazing marzipan, all of their pastries are to die for, and i can't say enough about their swiss chocolates (which are handmade).
If you're looking for the perfect gift, way to say i love you, or even I'm sorry, then this is the place to go.
The even have a very old world European cafe that does full tea and coffee services (hello, what better way to celebrate a special occasion) and you don't even need a reservation!!
 I can't say enough about this place other than you have to see it to believe it!!
Very, very expensive! Â This keeps Lutz from becoming too habit-forming. Â Their work with marzipan is incredible, probably the best in the city. Â My husband and I had them do a custom-order marzipan cake topper for us that was very weird (a robot and Wendy from Peter Pan) and they did it perfectly.
I recommend that if you want a cake, but can't decide, get the cake slice sampler, it's a little cheaper than a whole cake and you can try all different types of flavors, fillings, and frostings. Â A big hit for birthday parties! Â Their coffee cakes are also excellent.
The four stars are for pricing, service (sometimes not so great,) and cookies (not as good as Rudy's, Dinkel's, or Swedish.)
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