Astoria Cafe and Bakery

Having recently moved, exploring my new neighborhood has been rewarding. All sorts of places I'd never heard of/been to, with this one @ the top of my list @ the moment. Their back story a common one for anyone from another country. Ingenuity, resilience and tenacity being key ingredients to surviving.

Originally from the Balkans, when both parents lost their jobs in the car industry in Detroit, Chicago was a logical move. Years later, Mama's in back cooking, while daughter Tanja runs the front. And God damn is this good... and cheap. Komplet Lepina aka flatbread w/everything, is like an eggs benedict on steroids, sub Serbian cream cheese for eggs, w/pork fat and trimmings involved, stuffed into flatbread and baked to supreme gooeyness. I saw someone eating it and asked about it. Apparently, it’s from his village and they’re the only ones that make it in a restaurant. Sarma was filled w/meat and rice in thick tomato sauce and garnished w/well smoked pork ribs; and the Pusulj, a formidable bean soup w/more aforementioned ribs, which as you can see, are a bit of a motif. There's burek baked to order (30 min wait time) a dozen crepes, brunch on the wkend, and a bakery.

I've concentrated more on the savory side, as I go for lunch and is less than a minute from my door. What sweets I've had though have been well balanced, fruity but not overly sweet. Nice texture, crumb or creaminess... They're known for their Moskva šnit torta which is what I'm describing here. Nutella is big as well w/a few items containing it.

All and all (for me @ least) the embodiment of what LTH is about and why I've kept active on it for over a decade. For places like this and people like you.

Astoria Cafe and Bakery
2954 Irving Pk
773.654.1033
10-6, closed Mondays

Komplet Lepina is calling my name!

Astoria Café & Bakery one visit and I’m in love, mom in the kitchen has a way with dough, crisp flaky Burek, rich Komplet Lepina filled with Kajmak, pork fat and eggs. Plus baked Mantije which are evocative of knish.

Tanja Jeftenić (daughter) personable front of the house. Soups, sweets, salads in a spotless cheery space. Four hearty eaters were deliciously felled for $53. Thanks Jazzfood / Alan Lake for introducing us to this neighborhood gem.





Astoria Cafe and Bakery, Count me a Fan!

Sula says go: https://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/astoria-cafe-irving-park-serbian-bakery-komplet-lepinja/Content?oid=46402072

Finally made it in for a lunch and really enjoyed it. We had several of the dishes pictured upthread, some of which appear to have changed a bit, mostly notably the Sarma, which didn't have any ribs but did have some very smoky hunks of meat served with it. It was solid, as was the bean soup, which did include 3 very meaty pork ribs. But the highlights were the Meat Burek and the Komplet Lapina which was a show-stopper and heart-stopper all at once . . .


Sarma (Stuffed Cabbage)
Very tasty. No ribs here but some nice chunks of cured, smoked meat riding shotgun.


Pusulj (Bean Soup with Pork Ribs)
In spite of all the cured and smoked meat in this tasty and very generous bowl, maybe it could have used a touch of salt. There was none on the table and I felt bad asking for it. It could have been a touch warmer, too.


Komplet Lepina
The star of the show. We just loved this rich and unctuous dish. From the top of the crispy, pork-covered lid to the bottom of the bread bowl, this was terrific. Note that the cured meat on the side was fairly chewy and bacon-like, not the thinner, ham-like stuff shown upthread, and described in Sula's piece. I guess this simply changes based on what's in-house at the time one orders it.


Komplet Lepina, open
The glorious innards!


Meat Burek
Super crispy and flavorful dough


Meat Burek
Tasty, savory meat filling

We also saw a very nice club sandwich and ham & cheese crepe heading to other tables, so there's clearly a lot more to try here. Plus there are bureks with other fillings, like spinach, cheese and potato. Service was casual and extremely friendly. We'll be back sooner than later.

=R=

Finally made it here. Komplet lapina (very flavorful), Serbian Village crepe (crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, with many flavors from smoked meat and cheese), delightful light cabbage salad, and not-too-sweet creampuff at the end. Everything's already been said in this thread, so let's just say I need to return for the sarma, sausages, and the tiramisu made with nutella, among other things. Tanja is as personable as you'd imagine, and the whole experience was relaxing and pleasant, not to mention delicious. The pictures in this thread are back up by taste, so this is a recommended place.

With coolness in the air, I've begun to crave the slightly more substantial food this place delivers quite well. With mama in back cooking and daughter in front serving it's an LTH kinda place. Suggest giving it a try and supporting their efforts. No doubt you'll leave full and happy.

I almost u-turned when I saw Carnitas La Esquinita heading eastbound on Irving Park on my way here today, but I was very glad that I did not.

What a bright, cute space, especially gussied up for the holidays! Tanja was sweet too.

We ordered three things for two– the komplet lepinja, of course, a spinach burek, and the pasulj bean soup.

The komplet lepinja was almost as confusing to eat as it looks. Today it was not served with pršuta on the side. Tanja mentioned many vegan specials for what I'm guessing would be nativity fasting, so maybe they're restraining. I can't say if it was missing, anticipating this dish, I wasn't certain how it fit into the whole puzzle anyway. But who doesn't want extra cured meat?

There was plenty of rich, crispy-in-parts pork. I'm left wondering if the dish is a sum of its parts though. The bread was crustier than what I imagined (requiring a lot of serrated knife work. Is that okay with you Gary?) and the filling was pretty soupy. I was eating with a rather on-the-offense dining companion, so maybe we didn't let it soak and congeal enough. Delicious flavors and textures though.

The soup was simple, rich, and delicious. The one thing we had that I can imagine eating on the regular without ~too much~ cardiac anxiety.

The burek was also superb. Dining companion chose spinach and I worried it would be full of stringy frozen spinach, but true to form for this place it was an amalgam of maybe two types of cheese- one gooey, one tangy, and egg (and spinach.) Flaky, but not Deta's flaky but a nice interplay of chewy and crisp. Oh, and we only got through half of this.

This place is a gem. I wish I'd had room for dessert!

Lepinja fresh out of the oven all warm and toasty and perfect on a day like today

Jefe wrote:The bread was crustier than what I imagined (requiring a lot of serrated knife work. Is that okay with you Gary?)

IMHO serrated knives are perfect for bread.

Jefe wrote:I was eating with a rather on-the-offense dining companion

Funny, and all together better than an offensive dining companion.

Astoria Cafe is a gem and perfect for our recent weather or, for that matter, any weather.

Astoria Cafe and Bakery, Count me a Fan!

G Wiv wrote:Komplet Lepina is calling my name!

Komplet Lepina has been calling my name ever since this thread was created, amazing/sadly it has taken me until today to try!!

This morning Mrs Willie & I were a bit early to Astoria which on a beautiful day like today isn't an issue, just hang out until 9am when Astoria opens on Sat & Sun. Normally there is a bit of movement, perhaps some lights turning on prior to a restaurant opening, at 9:05 when seeing no "action" I decided to call. Tanja answered and stated they were going to arrive in 15 minutes. Ah well, soak up some more sun. The wait was well worth it.

Like Jefe, our Komplet Lepina today was not served with pršuta on the side. I can't say for certain but I don't think we missed it. Komplet Lepina was delicious and more than enough for two people.

That didn't stop us for ordering meat burek. Flaky dough, savory meat, another tasty item.

In a nice but not necessary move, Tanja came out with two pieces of very light, spongy chocolate cake with coconut on the outside, while stuffed, we did finish one and took the other home. Quite tasty and not overly sweet.

Tanja also mentioned that she & chef were taking the next week off for vacation, so anyone wanting to go, take note.

G Wiv wrote:Thanks Jazzfood / Alan Lake for introducing us to this neighborhood gem.

Agreed, thanks Alan

I've found posted hours here to be more of a notion than a reality. You're making a mistake if you don't call before making the trek, especially with Irving Park undergoing major construction right now.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:I've found posted hours here to be more of a notion than a reality. You're making a mistake if you don't call before making the trek, especially with Irving Park undergoing major construction right now.

=R=

I have also twice made the mistake of placing an order on Grubhub from them only to find out that they were actually closed (once because they were out of town and gone for several days) and having to deal with Grubhub customer service to cancel.

Overcast and rainy provide a perfect backdrop to savory goulash w/fresh made warm bread

eieileen wrote:I have also twice made the mistake of placing an order on Grubhub from them only to find out that they were actually closed (once because they were out of town and gone for several days) and having to deal with Grubhub customer service to cancel.

Spoke w/Tanja about this. Eieileen- contact her, explain who you are and lunch for 2 is on her. If you're shy about it, pm me and I'll do it for you.

Started to drive here this morning but remembered this thread.

No answer on the phone, saved myself an hour of frustration.