Hendrickx Belgian Bread Crafter

Today was the grand opening of Hendrickx Belgian Bread Crafter at 100 East Walton (across from Bloomingdale's between Michigan and Rush). You'll note its striking black and orange decor. They're currently offering croissants, a white chocolate bread that uses a specific type of Belgian sugar, large round loaves that can be bought in various portions, another bread with dark chocolate, and Belgian coffee. I don't remember the specifics as I just popped in and out on my way to work, but it is certainly worth a visit.

(100 E. Walton)

Thanks for pointing this out. I had not read anything about it and would likely not have discovered it on my own. I appreciate the head's-up and look forward to checking it out in person soon.

I stopped into Hendrickx Belgian Bread Center this morning and was rather blown away. In talking with the owners (I'm not sure the relation, but they struck me as husband and wife, maybe), peaking in the kitchen and trying a couple baked goods, it really struck me as an authentic little gem in the Gold Coast. Seems to do for Belgium what Pasticceria Natalina does for Sicily.

Firstly, the shop is teeny tiny, tucked off Walton in a store front with no seating inside and just a couple chairs out front. They offer a small selection of artisan crafted baked goods, like bread loaves, a few kinds of croissants, muffins, etc. Plus strong Belgian coffee and rich-as-heck Belgian hot chocolate.

In asking the woman for recommendations, we seemed to share an affinity for white chocolate. I tried a gigantic slice of white chocolate bread, which had the consistency of a dense brioche and a hint of orange flavor. The buttery white chocolate scattered throughout, along with Belgian pearl sugar, made for an explosion of sweet flavor.

I also tried a white chocolate Belgian muffin. Apparently "Belgian muffin" means petite, cause Hendrickx muffins are all much tinier than your usual cafe/bakery fare, with no discernible muffin top. The uniform cakes have a dense cornmeal-like body, with an ethereally moist interior. My muffin oozed melted white chocolate in the center. Handheld perfection. I'm fairly confident this is the best muffin I've ever had.

I look forward to going back to Hendrickx for more muffins and breads, as well to try some of their afternoon offerings. The owners told me they offer cakes and croissant sandwiches, which I feel I MUST try.

I’ve been meaning to stop by Hendrickx since they opened about five months ago; I finally made it there this morning. Not good at remembering exact locations, I’ve scanned for it when I’ve been in the area but only spotted it the other night. I have an inkling why (aside from me usually being distracted and confounded by the consistently long line at Sprinkles down the block). Large, bright letters announce that it is a bakery, but the spotlit window case says, "jewelry store." Actually, my first thought on seeing the orange uppercase "H" was that I had come upon a shabby Hermès outpost, maybe a teaser for the French fashion house's new digs around the corner on Rush at Oak.





Hendrickx is definitely a boutique bakery, which makes sense given the neighborhood. The orange and black interior is both chic and inviting.



It didn't hurt that Co-owner Dominique Schewebach greeted me very warmly the moment I walked in. Actually, in the same breath that she said "hello," she opened the door to the kitchen and invited me to examine the operation.



She explained emphatically that they make their croissants from scratch, an 18-hour process, which made me worried for a moment that she knew I had started this thread--just a coincidence, I think.

My mission on this visit was to purchase snacks for some relatives I was about to pick up from O'Hare. I bought a dark chocolate muffin, almond croissant and a 1/8 slice of the Belgian country bread, all of which went over really well with my family.





The muffin was a finer crumb, drier variety--cornmeal-like, as Mattkrc described above--with minimal chocolate, which I admire. Light as a feather overall, the almond croissant was also very delicately filled. The slice of bread I took away looks (above) denser than it was. In reality, the texture more closely resembled that of the larger loaf from which my piece was cut--with more air and pull, excellent for enveloping good butter:



I didn't think my relatives would like the white chocolate brioche, so I didn't buy any, but I inquired about its history, since I'd never heard of this kind of bread in Belgium. Apparently, it's an invention of Renaud Hendrickx, the bakery's namesake and other co-owner.

The menu today also included two sandwiches (chicken curry and goat cheese-honey-pistachio-thyme), and Dominique said they would have new items for holidays, including Halloween. There was one two-top inside, which made the space feel even more friendly. Given my enthusiasm for food- and drink-related images from the Low Countries, the one change I would make to the Hendrickx space is to swap out the reproduction of Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring (1665) and give pride of place to any one of the multitude of delicious Baroque paintings that feature bread, an "Other Culinary Chat" thread for another time.

Thanks for the thorough review and beautiful photos - I will surely have to stop in next time I'm in the Gold Coast! I've passed it a couple times on my way to Sprinkles, and honestly, these treats look tastier and more sophisticated than a cupcake

Hurdler4eva wrote:Thanks for the thorough review and beautiful photos - I will surely have to stop in next time I'm in the Gold Coast! I've passed it a couple times on my way to Sprinkles, and honestly, these treats look tastier and more sophisticated than a cupcake

My visit to Hendrickx did make me realize how glad I am that boutique bakeries--especially the super cool minimalist ones selling “sophistication” as much as carbs--haven’t taken hold in Chicago the way they have in NYC, L.A., Paris, Tokyo, etc. While I love shops like Panscape in Osaka as aesthetic projects, I don’t necessarily want them in my neighborhood.




Photos by Hiroki Kawata

It seems cupcakes have brought more boutiques to Chicago than any other type of food, which is unfortunate since I don’t like cupcakes and (maybe as a result) find the majority of these shops garish.

Yours,
Captain Cupcake Curmudgeon
(sometimes also known as happy_stomach)

I had to try Hendrickx at least once, so I did a while back. My memory, it seems, centers on the price. I guess boutique and all, and they wrap the bread like it's a Tiffany gift, but the price was just exceedingly high. You know the scene in Pulp Fiction where they talk about the five dollar milkshake. Well, I sometimes a milkshake, or some bread is really worth it. With Hendrickx, I found it pretty good bread, but not revelatory bread, not as good as say Fox & Obel's levain. I mean do you all realize how expense? I believe a whole loaf of that bread pictured above is $35. One really has to buy only a small bit unless they have unloaded the cash on their debit card. Having said all that, I wish the place the best of luck, and am actually rooting for people who are less cost conscience than I. I DO think we have to pay more for our food.

Great pics by the way, Happy.

Vital Information wrote:I had to try Hendrickx at least once, so I did a while back. My memory, it seems, centers on the price. I guess boutique and all, and they wrap the bread like it's a Tiffany gift, but the price was just exceedingly high. You know the scene in Pulp Fiction where they talk about the five dollar milkshake. Well, I sometimes a milkshake, or some bread is really worth it. With Hendrickx, I found it pretty good bread, but not revelatory bread, not as good as say Fox & Obel's levain.

I'm with you, though they dropped my items in two very un-Tiffany-like paper bags (maybe because I had just rolled out of bed, zipped over there on my bike and was going to throw my purchases in my pannier...and looked like it). Hendrickx definitely won't be any kind of regular stop, but an almond croissant there costs the same as a Sprinkles cupcake ($3.25) and, well, the bread is expensive but not any more offensive than I sometimes find the cost of a good baguette around town. It's a more complex product, but on the same morning errands yesterday, I also picked up for my visitors a fruit & nut loaf from Fox & Obel, which cost I think $5.99 and which I could eat in about 1.1 sittings.

I'm one of those suckers that spent over $50 here. I have a soft spot for these ma-and-pa places, where these people work long hours and work six-seven days to pour their hearts into their passion. In theory they usually offer better quality, but their prices are often a bit higher, and sometimes you're paying a bit more for equivalent, or even slightly inferior, quality. They can't sell bread as cheap as other places and make enough to stay in business. I was talking to someone in the suburbs the other day who complained that pizza is more expensive in the city. The same beer is cheaper at Binny's than Pastoral or your corner shop. Apples cost less at Wal-Mart than Green City Market, and I've paid more than I intended to for fresh basil in July.

Don't get me wrong--I do like Fox and Obel's bread, and Fox and Obel is in and of itself an expensive place to shop, but I don't mind paying a bit more to support a small business run by artisans. Chicago desperately needs bakeries, as we're forced to go to places like Treasure Island and Whole Foods and eat mediocre bread. I did like Hendrickx's bread--their croissants were much denser, softer, and fresher than many of the airy varieties, and you could actually see the layers of dough rather than one merged-together mess, as many mass-produced croissants tend to be. The owner told me it takes him eighteen hours to make, and I believe him. I loved the Belgian country bread, and I would even put it against Bennison's, and while I thought their cranberry and marzipan brioche was pricey and just a wee bit dry, I would be ordering them again. Their tuna salad sandwich, served with homemade mayonnaise, was also delicious and you do get less than what you'd get for your money at Jimmy John's.

I just found this place and loved it. Excellent strong but smooth coffee and flaky, delicious croissant. The owners were warm and interesting to talk with. I plan to go back to try their sandwiches and regret not buying some of the bread to bring home. Next time! This place is a real find!

OK, that's it. I MUST go to this place. I started reading from the top down, and I grew more and more worried that the last (current) post might have said they went out of business. (Based on no reason, just my concern that these small places are vulnerable). Glad they're going strong! I'll get there asap.

Hendrickx occupies a sentimental place in my food memory because it is the first place that I trudged after the birth of our daughter to pick up some non-Prentice food - in this case a croissant and pain au chocolat. My wife really had a taste for a pastry, and Floriole - our go to for croissants - not being within walking distance, I decided to check Hendrickx out. I had remembered a dinner party conversation with a woman raving about a great Belgian bakery with curiously large loaves of bread that you could buy by the eighth because they were so massive. I couldn't remember the name but did recall her saying across from 900 N, so I walked over and right down Walton between Michigan and Rush without seeing it. I checked Oak, thinking I may have misremembered, before returning to Walton and finally finding it behind a column in a residential building. Perhaps it was my new father glow, but the owners were super friendly and invited me back in the bakery to check out how the proverbial sausage was being made. Nice people and really good pastries. I didn't get the coffee because I was worried about it staying hot on the walk back - and didn't have any use for even an eighth of a loaf of bread - and have been meaning to go back for more stuff ever since. This thread has reminded me to do so.

I've visited Hendrickx a couple of times now. The first time, I had a chocolate croissant and a cup of coffee (individual drip -- small, strong.) I loved the croissant and realized that frequent stops for a breakfast treat would be detrimental to my waistline. I noticed they had a Groupon Now for 50% off a sandwich, so my lunch plans were determined. I failed to grab a menu so my memory of the offerings is incomplete. The sandwich options included: Belgian egg salad, Belgian chicken curry salad, Belgian tuna salad, goat cheese/honey/pistachio/thyme and a few others I can't remember. I asked what made the first three Belgian and was told they mix the primary ingredient with homemade mayo. I love a good egg salad sandwich and thought the one from Hendrickx was right up there. It oozes simplicity: egg, homemade mayo, bread. Of course it helps that it was on their excellent bread. In addition to the sandwich, I got a dark chocolate muffin for breakfast tomorrow. The sandwich was too big for me to finish in one sitting so I hope it's as good the next day. The muffin didn't make it until tomorrow. It was darn good, although I think heating it up would be better. Even at full price ($7+tax for most), I would go back to Hendrickx for a sandwich since it could be two lunches for me. Not bad for North Michigan Avenue!

Best croissant in the city! The waffle is also delicious.

They aren't open yet for the day but they are answering their phone now.

I didn't see it up thread so here are the details.


100 East Walton St, Chicago, IL IL 60611

312.649.6717
Tue - Sat: 8:00 am-7:00 pm
Sun: 9:00 am-3:00 pm

And free wi-fi. Not much seating, especially now that it's too cold to sit outdoors, but a pleasant place to sit nonetheless.

happy_stomach wrote:And free wi-fi. Not much seating, especially now that it's too cold to sit outdoors, but a pleasant place to sit nonetheless.

Those croissants are flawless with my preserves and a cup of coffee we roasted at home. Flawless.

There was space to sit when I landed this morning.

You have to order them in advance but they are doing savory eclairs, including smoked salmon and chicken curry salad.

Wow! About to go get my 2nd sandwich, and those of you who know me, know I'm not a big lover of sandwiches, with this delicious brioche I purchased there today.

I'm in love with this place!

Can anyone tell me if the place is still open? I was in the neighborhood recently and couldn't see it (of course I didn't have the sense to bust open my phone and figure it out.) Nice couple who run the place - I hope they succeed; I'd go there more but I don't get down to the Gold Coast often.

brianzee wrote:Can anyone tell me if the place is still open? I was in the neighborhood recently and couldn't see it (of course I didn't have the sense to bust open my phone and figure it out.) Nice couple who run the place - I hope they succeed; I'd go there more but I don't get down to the Gold Coast often.

Closed on Monday's. I was there last Sunday.

brianzee wrote:Can anyone tell me if the place is still open? I was in the neighborhood recently and couldn't see it (of course I didn't have the sense to bust open my phone and figure it out.) Nice couple who run the place - I hope they succeed; I'd go there more but I don't get down to the Gold Coast often.

It's also not easy to see from the street.

Motivated by pairs4life, I stopped by Hendrickx this morning before work. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, you can get a free 12-oz French roast coffee with a $5 purchase. A chocolate croissant, a muffin with Belgian dark chocolate and coffee for $6. The croissant was flaky and delicious. Much bigger than I remembered -- it was at least 10 inches from end to end. The muffin is being saved for later.

Along with the three small tables in the main shop, they have additional space with more tables that is accessible through the kitchen.

My struggle to find a decent lunch around the North Michigan Avenue area is ongoing. I'm frugal and generally target an under-$6 lunch. That rules out a lot, so I don't eat out much. Sometimes I'm willing to exceed my budget, espeically if it's supporting a smaller shop versus the Lettuce Entertain You juggernaut that often becomes my default. Hendrickx has a small variety of sandwiches, salads and soup available. The mayonnaise is homemade in the egg, chicken curry and tuna salads. Sandwiches come on croissants or their wonderful bread. They have soup and 1/2 sandwich option for $8.95, which is what I enjoyed today. Soup choices were garden vegetable and split pea. I had the split pea, which was really nice. I went with the goat cheese-honey-pistachio-thyme sandwich -- a terrific way to have their bread. The soup comes with a piece of bread, so I have more to enjoy later. It was nice to see they were doing a brisk business when I picked up my lunch.

Finally got to try this place and purchased a plain, almond and pistachio croissant, plus a bag of madeleines. Unfortunately, it was all quite poor. The croissant had no buttery flavor nor anything resembling a flaky texture. The cookies were below average for a bakery. I know that I bought the croissants in the afternoon, and they may have been baked much earlier, but they were, unfortunately, little better than store bought. These were the poorest croissants I've had from a Chicago bakery. By contrast, as I've reported in another thread, the almond croissants I had from the Penny's Pastry stand at the Evanston Winter's Farmer's market leave me longing to go back each week.

Jonah

Jonah wrote:Finally got to try this place and purchased a plain, almond and pistachio croissant, plus a bag of madeleines. Unfortunately, it was all quite poor. The croissant had no buttery flavor nor anything resembling a flaky texture. The cookies were below average for a bakery. I know that I bought the croissants in the afternoon, and they may have been baked much earlier, but they were, unfortunately, little better than store bought. These were the poorest croissants I've had from a Chicago bakery. By contrast, as I've reported in another thread, the almond croissants I had from the Penny's Pastry stand at the Evanston Winter's Farmer's market leave me longing to go back each week.

Jonah

I must say that I'm shocked, since I've never had this experience with the croissants at Hendrickx, and the butter issue should not have existed since they're not cutting corners. Also, they're not just fresh in the morning . . . they often make them multiple times per day. I don't doubt you received one that was not up to par and made hours earlier, but I would strongly suggest you try their croissants again. In my opinion, they're on par with many of the finer ones you'll find in Paris.

I've never been all that impressed with Hendrickx in my several visits there. I just don't understand the attraction. Not that it's bad, but I just don't find it all that impressive.

For example, in my most recent visit, I got three items. One was an almond-chocolate croissant, which was okay, but not anything special; the biggest flaw was that it wasn't at all flaky, but instead was quite... chewy. The second was a mango-flavored French macaroon, which too was okay but not anything special; the nut-based layers were rather tasteless and slightly salty. The third was a Liege-style waffle. I really love Liege-style waffles; these are the ones made with pearl sugar, designed so that the pearls of sugar melt and caramelize while cooking. You can find superb ones served warm at Baladoche in Lincoln Park, and the ones sold in grocery stores under the Julian's brand name are okay. The ones at Hendricks, not good. The pearls of sugar were oversized (about 1/4 inch in diameter) and never melted or caramelized, so there were little rocks of sugar in them. Plus it was covered with a hardened sugar syrup (like some sticky buns). The overall effect was WAY too sweet and cloying, and not at all appealing.

I guess Hendrickx is okay if you happen to be in the immediate vicinity, but I wouldn't go out of my way to go there. We have other bakeries that are much, much better and worth traveling for, such as Floriole and Vanille Patisserie.

Dare I say this, but I had a sub-par experience at Hendrickx today - my first ever. But a friend and I (both big fans of Hendrickx) agreed that the croissant was not nearly up to its usual standards. It wasn't very flaky, it was quite heavy and denser than usual (you can't roll them too tight or this happens), indeed it didn't seem as buttery as usual, and they were a bit dry and over-baked. This was my first 2013 visit to Hendrickx but this croissant was very disappointing, especially given how much I've enjoyed them up to now.

On the plus side, the filling in the pistachio croissant was delicious and the texture at least a little better than the plain croissant.

BR wrote:Dare I say this, but I had a sub-par experience at Hendrickx today - my first ever. But a friend and I (both big fans of Hendrickx) agreed that the croissant was not nearly up to its usual standards. It wasn't very flaky, it was quite heavy and denser than usual (you can't roll them too tight or this happens), indeed it didn't seem as buttery as usual, and they were a bit dry and over-baked. This was my first 2013 visit to Hendrickx but this croissant was very disappointing, especially given how much I've enjoyed them up to now.

On the plus side, the filling in the pistachio croissant was delicious and the texture at least a little better than the plain croissant.

Nooooooo. I guess it's a good thing I've spent the better part of the day finally trying my hand at croissants. Lamination is done and they are now in fridge for final rest before being shaped.

I will have to get back to Hendrickx soon. I can't imagine a sub-par Hendrickx croissant.

Croissants don't seem like the kind of thing that one should expect to emerge from the oven exactly the same in every way every single time.

Twinkies, yes. Croissants ...

Roger Ramjet wrote:Twinkies, yes.

You know where I can get some, emerging from the oven or otherwise???

Roger Ramjet wrote:Croissants don't seem like the kind of thing that one should expect to emerge from the oven exactly the same in every way every single time.

Very true, but the heavy handedness is a problem in the prep and rolling, not in the baking. It could be as simple as one inexperienced baker in the kitchen so I'm not going to go crazy here, particularly since this is the only sub-par experience I've had at Hendrickx.