Chimney Cake Island - Novel!

I've been driving by this place for months, always thinking "What the hell is a chimney cake?" but never having the time to stop. Today's nice weather put me in the mood for a walk, though, that ended up here.

Turns out the eponymous cake is a traditional one from Romania, and is dough wrapped around a wooden dowel, baked, then rolled in toppings like coconut or chocolate. It's a bit like the outside part of a cinnamon roll, which of course is not the best part (I think most would agree that the tender gooey inside is the real money there) but even so, it's very good. Tender inside with a bit of crunch to the outside. At $4.99 apiece they're a little steep, but I think it's worth it to try this little bit of Eastern European exotica. They also have some other standard pastries, croissants and the like. No idea if those are baked onsite.

Chimney Cake Island
1445 W Devon Ave
Chicago, IL 60660
(773) 875-8035

This SkyFullOfBacon.com video illustrates a Chimney cake.

Had them this weekend; pretty darn good. Picked up a few but cinnamon was my favorite. Great accompaniment for their Lavazza coffee.

I run a volunteer kitchen in Rogers Park. Yesterday, one of my volunteers was a pastry chef, which means that: 1) we spent three hours talking about our favorite desserts in the city and 2) by the time we were done with our work, I badly needed a piece of cake. And so I voyaged to Chimney Cake Island. It was somewhat less magical than it sounds, though a very friendly place.

I had a walnut chimney cake. It struck me as a rather large dessert for one person to eat by herself, but the owner reminded me that the pastry is hollow and there "not too much." I enjoyed the crunchy outside with crushed walnuts stuck with caramel. The inside of the cake was pale and doughy and much less palatable. The novelty of the chimney cake held my attention for a few bites, but then I remembered how long it's been since I've eaten at La Unica, and off I went, for a more substantial lunch.

I'd say a chimney cake would make a pretty great street festival find, but, for me, it wasn't entirely worth seeking out.

Stopped by Chimney Cake Island the other day to check it out. A nice small storefront on Devon.



Rack of cake dowels and rotisserie oven.



Proprietor showing me one of the dowels on which she wraps the dough to bake the cakes.



Some fresh cakes waiting to be sold. I believe there's chocolate chip, coconut, and walnut.



A close up shot of one of the walnut cakes.

Overall pretty tasty with a nice crunchy outside and soft doughy inside. I agree with happy_stomach that it's a bit more than one person should take on for a dessert. Not sure it's something I'll go out of my way for again but if I'm in the area I could see grabbing another one.

I pick up an assortment for the office every now and then. It's a great coffee cake.

happy_stomach wrote:The novelty of the chimney cake held my attention for a few bites . . .

I'd say a chimney cake would make a pretty great street festival find, but, for me, it wasn't entirely worth seeking out.

I finally tried this place and had a coconut chimney cake and I agree with you completely. The dough is a lot like your typical egg (challah) dough. I was hoping to find a flaky, perhaps cracking exterior, but that's not what this was. And after a few bites, I entered a disinterested mode. No, there's absolutely nothing wrong with it, but there's also nothing that will have me running back.

I think it can be an enjoyable snack if you have three friends to split it with. That's three more than I have, but maybe you're more fortunate. I do want to point out that it's something that absolutely must be consumed shortly after being made -- there's just no comparison. So if you've only had one after it's sat around for a couple of hours, try to get there right when they open or else around 3-3:30 in the afternoon.

cilantro wrote:I do want to point out that it's something that absolutely must be consumed shortly after being made -- there's just no comparison.

This is exactly correct. I live close by and stop in every now and then on a weekend morning. If you get a chimney cake just out of the oven, it is excellent. A very light outer crust, that crackles when you bite into it, is followed by a moist warm interior. It goes very well with a cup of the Illy that they carry.

A good analogy would be trying to compare a Krispy Kreme donut 5 minutes out of the assembly line with one that has been sitting around for a few hours.

Recently, it sounds like business is not going so well. I hope things turn around for her, as she is a very nice person.

I didn't have one that was hot and freshly made, so I'll accept that I didn't experience what you guys obviously did. Not sure I'll be back, but good to know anyway.