Astoria Café & Bakery

First: I’ve never had Balkan food before. But the item I got was so flavorful though simple. Personally I thought it was a wee bit on the saltier side yet delicious all the while . I’m completely satisfied. And then there was this cream cake, so light and fluffy, reminiscent of like a dense whipped cream situation with light fluffy layered dough. You won’t regret eating here.

Don’t order the custom letter and number cakes and don’t Zelle the payment because you can’t dispute it. They look so pretty and I was so excited to get one. Spent $115 on a 6-8 person size cake. The cake layers were dry and flavorless besides a faint stale taste. The frosting was bland. And the only dessert flavor was the jam thinly spread. The toppings were a variety of flavors that were completely inconsistent, some spicy jaw breakers, old strawberries with edible pearls, sour watermelon gummies, jaw breakers gum, disgusting pink chocolates, and inedible flowers. I was told to not eat the flowers before I left the shop but expected to be able to eat and enjoy the other edible decorations. When I called the shop and shared how utterly disappointed I was with the cake quality I was told they’ve never have had a complaint in 8 years (a lie, there are many complaints right here on Google) and that I should just scrap off the top layer of the cake including the decorations and eat the rest (throwing away 30% of what I paid for) and that she did not know what we did with cake. I told her the cake was 95% uneaten and sitting in front of me. And she said she wouldn’t reimburse me for anything. It was my 38th bday cake, my 20th anniversary from home visit, and a complete waste of money.

Purchased a napoleon cake for my wedding. It was delicious, and even my mother (who’s hard to please) liked it. The non-edible decorations make the cake aesthetically pleasing and beautiful. But what’s most important to me is that there was a confusion about the due date and Tanja made it work! Mistakes happen, but not all businesses find a way to resolve them. Thank you, Astoria Café & Bakery, for making the end of the most important day for me so memorable.

2/27/25 update: I ordered a pizza burek and hurmasica to go. Pizza burek was a great size, and you can easily break it into two meals for lunch. Tastes just like real pizza, it has cheese, mushrooms, looks like ham, and pizza sauce. Breading was flaky, careful because it is very hot. The hurmasica came from the display, it is a Bosnian dessert. It is not sweet, very moist, and you can definitely taste that syrupy flavor. I should have ordered more of those. I recommend people order their food and the Balkan desserts. —————————————————— I finally got to try this place out since it’s so close to me. I would say this place is great for lunch and snacks. Most women come here for the desserts and for ordering cakes. I wanted to try their Balkan menu. This is probably the 6th Balkan place that I have been to. Balkan food portions are always generous for the prices. Prices are more than reasonable. You order the food at the counter, then find a seat if you choose to dine in. I ordered komplet lepinja and euro crepe. This is the only place that I have found that has a variety of different bureks. The other place I went to only has cheese and meat. Service was good. The owner was very pleasant. It did not take long to receive my food. Seating can be limited, about 8 tables. Parking is shared and it’s not a huge parking lot. -komplet lepinja 5 - I like the presentation of the bun with the top, with eggs and roast pork. There is kajmak mixture. Eggs were cooked well. Roast pork was tender and soft. The bun itself was crunchy and easy to cut. It’s a very unique dish. -euro crepe 5 - it has eurocrem (hazelnut and sweet milk chocolate) and plazma (biscuit). It’s not sweet. It’s well balanced. Aesthetically pleasing.

Before starting, I'm well aware 5s across the board is suspicious due to bots. This place deserves nothing less though, so I have to. Lisle is a more remote town, despite the highways around it. Me and my wife were here looking at houses for that reason. We love local businesses, especially places that boldly profess the origin place of their food. So we decided to stop for lunch here. Folks. THIS is a café. Comfy furniture, fresh made light desserts in a fridge-display, fresh in-house coffee. The owner-operator greeted us with a spring in their step as we walked in, and suggested the Komplet Lepinja, a family recipe. And it was simply divine. Crunchy crust, soft interior, savory cheese sauce and pork cooked to perfection. It looks modest, but it will fill you to the brim!! Me and my wife split one, and barely finished it. If I get the opportunity, this will be my main project shop from here on. Though the 1 hr drive from where I live makes that unlikely. Everyone, come here and enjoy!!!

This place is a gem! I really enjoyed everything I tried here. The bakery has a lot of unique sweets. There was plenty of seating and it was a lovely place to stop and meet up with family while I was passing through the area. The owner was there and she was very nice and chatted with us. Would absolutely recommend and I hope to come back soon.

A rare instance where I ate before my camera hahaha! Couldn’t resist. The crepes and coffee tasted excellent. This is a lovely family run place; the owner was delightful to talk to and is super knowledgeable about her products, incredible service overall:)

Stumbled upon this place just looking for a quick bite. The owner is so sweet. We had a big group and she accommodated us quickly and with great service. We had tea, coffee and some crepes. everything tasted so delicious. Will definitely be back to try some of those amazing looking desserts

I went into here to get an apple danish but they didn't have it. I told them my wife was in rehab and requested one. The wonderful staff came up with a solution and when I went to pay for it I was told no charges. I will be coming back here what great customer service and they are a great business. I should add I am a Vietnam Combat Vet. I am a Marine that was in Vietnam in 1965-66.

2/27/25 update: I ordered a pizza burek and hurmasica to go. Pizza burek was a great size, and you can easily break it into two meals for lunch. Tastes just like real pizza, it has cheese, mushrooms, looks like ham, and pizza sauce. Breading was flaky, careful because it is very hot. The hurmasica came from the display, it is a Bosnian dessert. It is not sweet, very moist, and you can definitely taste that syrupy flavor. I should have ordered more of those. I recommend people order their food and the Balkan desserts.

DONT ORDER FROM HERE!!! Just kidding, but proceed with caution!! Why you ask? Because everything we got from here is sooo addicting! We bought 2 medium sized trays with European biscuits and tarts and literally got so many compliments on the desserts. I thought I'd only eat 2 pieces but ended up eating like 10. Cannot wait until we have another event so we can order from here again. Recommend wholeheartedly!

Small, boutique bakery cafe but mighty in quality and character! This family owned and operated, Balkan/Eastern European based bakery cafe, is clean, light, white, bright, and inviting letting the artisanal mastery be the feature--all the decoration that's needed (though the walls filled with business pics are very cool. Some of the movie star looking ones are actually the owners!). Small very euro-feeling cafe tables invite you to sit and dive into a little piece of heaven--just for a minute, from your hectic schedule. I purchased several items. Their signature, luxurious cake slices, like everything, are worth the visit! Everything is beautifully made with the kind of attention to detail only love of the art and craft can yield. If you are looking for an indulgent few minutes of escape or that perfect edible gift for your next party host, or just something for you to enjoy later with the ones you love, check this place out.

Amazing food and desserts,komplet lepina is so delicious.Tanja and her mom are so friendly.

Tried pastries from here and they were both unique and great. Will go back to try other food items from their menu. Owner is very personable.

Out of this world amazing! Like a cake from a fairytale! I ordered this for a baby shower and while I always knew it would look beautiful- the taste was incredible as well. (In my experience it's difficult to find a cake that is both) I am still getting emails and texts asking about the cake. We did the standard vanilla w strawberry for the shower. I also had a slice of a chocolate with kind of layered wafers or something in it which will be my birthday cake flavor in 6 mos for sure. This shop was a dream to work with. I wish I could give more than 5 starts bc I would. Look at the photo!!! It tasted even better than it looked if you can believe that!!!! Btw cleanest bakery I think I've ever been in. Check them out on TT as well. Great content.

The very finest of old wold European desserts. This place is truly a treasure. You will be transported to being Balkan Royalty while you eat their desserts. The quality of ingredients and the execution are of such high standards!

The best custom cakes. We've ordered the Nutella cake for a few birthdays and it's always a hit.

Great tasty little cakes and amazing almond cookies . Cookies are under a dollar each which is a steal compared to other bakeries. They often have bargain day old little cakes too. I haven't had the hot food but plan on soon!

Happened to find this NEW Lisle area gem in passing near the Route 53/Maple Avenue intersection. Astoria offers unique Balkan and Eastern European sweets like cookies, cakes, crepes and more. Tanja, the owner was super sweet (no pun intended) and took time to answer our questions and explain what to expect out of each item. They all look so tasty, I couldn't wait to get my hands on them! We had the Lemon Cookie (ball) and Hazelnut Russian Head (cylinder) and were impressed by the dry but sweet texture and taste. Side note: Unlike American sweets, Astoria's Sweets are drier and not overly sweet. They are mildly sweet and have a satisfying textures, that actually won't melt in the bright sun! Other notes: - Store Ph#: 630-395-9634 - Website: www.astoria-cafe.com - Payment: Accepts Cash, Debit and Credit - Services: Walk-in, Catering, occasional Brunch - Cuisine: Balkan, Eastern European - This Location: Sandwiched between Dunkin' and Shell Gas on Maple Ave & Route 53. - Other Location: Irving Park Chicago - Socials: Instagram @astoriachicago TL;DR: Astoria Sweets is a new Balkan and Eastern European sweet shop located in the heart of Lisle. They have yet to hang up their Business sign, but are open for business and accepts walk-ins!

I LOVE Astoria Bakery!! They have awesome desserts - try the Nutella cake, it's life-changing. Their main dishes - the burek, crepes, and goulash - are fantastic. Try the burek if you haven't already, it's delicious. The bakery is family-owned, which I love, too. We ordered a number cake for my in-law's 52nd anniversary. It was BEAUTIFUL, and so delicious! Very tasty and light. Everyone enjoyed looking at it, then eating it. :) Tanja and her Mom are so good at what they do, and very easy to work with. We will be back again and again!!

The Goulash was delicious, the beef was perfectly tender and the sauce had so much flavor. It paired perfectly with the mashed potatoes and fresh baked bread provided. We also go the cheese burek (not pictured because we scarfed it down). I believe they use Bulgarian feta or something similar it was extra tangy and creamy and had a wonderful texture that contrasted the crunchy and flaky phyllo dough it's filled in. The proportions were generous and definitely worth the price. We also enjoyed slices of the mocha cake and pastry crème cake with a domestic coffee on the side which was similar to Turkish coffee and well balanced out the sweets. Overall, highly recommend this place, looking forward to further exploring the menu.

A delightful little bakery that does cakes and cookies; also does some Serbian savory dishes; pizza (some of it looks sweet?) and crepes. If you're coming from the 53, after turning onto Maple turn immediately into the first strip mall (look for the "Apolis" sign) - if you get to Lenox, you've gone too far. They have several savory vegan / vegetarian options, all of which they were out of when I went (vegan posni; stuffed cabbage; cheese and spinach/cheese burek - call ahead as those take 25 minutes), so I got cake and cookies instead, all of them beautiful. The chocolate lace cookies, chocolate covered rusks and chocolate-dipped coconut macaroons were very tasty, as were the nutty Serbian Christmas cookies (which could have been dry but weren't). I do love Eastern European layers of cake / flavored cream. The giant chocolate cake slice (could easily serve 3 or 4) was good and less sweet than the small frosted cakes; I got the last slice but it was still nice and moist. I found the individual cakes (got the almond and the caramel) a bit sweet but my spouse thought they were about perfect. The tiramisu was on point and the Nutella cake was like tiramisu plus. I'm definitely coming back after calling to check on the savories, and I think the cookies/cake slices and I have a future.

The boyfriend and I wanted some special holiday desserts for NYE. We called Astoria to find out their holiday hours, and we're pleasantly surprised to find a great selection of delicious cookies and more! I got a cannoli, and my boyfriend got an eclair. SO GOOD! Just as good as I've had at any authentic Italian place. We want to go back at try the baklava, sadly, they had just sold out before we got there!! Def try this place!!

So excited about this new location of Astoria Cafe in Lisle, IL! I love the city, but when you live in the 'burbs, sometimes you don't want to deal with the traffic and parking issues in the city of Chicago. This cute little bakery-Cafe offers savory dishes and delicious desserts and is an extension of its primary location in Chicago. The Serbian selection of desserts and layered cakes are beautiful and delicious. As recommended by the beautiful owner Tanja (pronounces like Tanya) I tried the Balkan sweet of fried dough soaked in lemon and honey syrup. Also tried their most popular layer cake, the kinder cake. A cake paying homage to the kinder chocolate egg treat, this layer cake is filled with kinder pieces, sponge cake and chocolate mousse. My favorite treat from Astoria was the fruit layer cake, filled with fluffy layers of sponge cake, whipped cream, pastry cream and fruit. Filled with fresh apricots, kiwi and strawberry, this cake was a yummy treat that was delicious! Tanja and her mom are so friendly and personable! So knowledgeable about their sweets and willing to describe each and every item in the bakery case so you can make a great choice. The space is small, but it is perfect for this area. If you are looking for traditional Turkish coffees and other imported items from the Balkan area, stop by and check it out for easy grab and go items! This place is new and I can see them growing and expanding their offerings as they settle into their second location!

We used Astoria bakery for my bridal shower back in June. My mom placed the order, and it was supposed to be 2 letters (Our initials) With a heart in between. The letters were supposed to be vanilla with strawberry filling and fresh strawberries. The tops were supposed to be white, with white flowers/candies. The heart was supposed to be chocolate, with chocolate fudge in the middle. The top frosting was supposed to be pink (not strawberry, just the color pink) with pink flowers/candies. Astoria bakery sent a confirmation email to make sure it was correct, which it was. See Below. Come my shower, it was all wrong. All 3 cakes had white frosting and white flowers/candies on top, making it all blur together. However, they did add green and yellow macaroons even though toppings were supposed to be white or pink. The Chocolate heart cake did not have chocolate fudge, but instead strawberry cream. The chocolate fudge was not anywhere instead, just missing. Unfortunately the combination of chocolate cake and artificial strawberry frosting was not good at all, and it was barely touched. My issue is that after the shower, my mom (the one who paid for the cake) emailed the owner to let the her that mistakes had been made. We were not looking for a refund, compensation, or anything in return- just an acknowledgment. She completely ignored the email and never responded, which is incredibly rude and unprofessional. We spent over $300 on a cake that was not correct, for an important wedding event, and were not only disappointed with the cake, but with the customer service that followed their mistake. We will not be wasting our money here again.

beautiful array of baked goods. Only sampled a meal of stuffed cabbage (excellent mashed potatoes, sauce and cabbage and even carrots were full of flavor but much saltier than I'm used to), lovely roll and dessert. Mexican wedding cookie had good flavor and somewhat tender.

This place is a such a gem! Women-owned and operated by a mother daughter team. I stopped in for lunch while I was in town visiting family and had the vegan stuffed cabbage (a special they have during lent). It was SO GOOD. The bakery is beautifully decorated and has a great vibe. I highly recommend you stop in and try it for yourself!

Delicious Burek!! The homemade phyllo dough made me remember my grandmother's strudel. I highly recommend trying the euro cream and plazma burek, it was like eating creamy raw cookie dough wrapped in a crispy layered shell. The pizza burek was great as well like a deep dish pizza, but instead of bland dough you get crispy buttery layers of phyllo. All made to order hot and fresh. I also bought two cupcakes which the kids devoured, I only got one bite and it was very yummy. I will be back!

delicious homemade food! i loved everything I tried! Great service too! everything is always piping hot & fresh!

I can't say enough nice things about this place. The decor is cute and quaint. The burek is amazing and the people there are so kind. It's definitely become my new favorite place.

loved the stuffed cabbage, the cabbage itself is a bit sour which compliment the stuffing really well, the mashed potato is very creamy. we also loved the goulash, the beef is very tender. The portion is huge! we order two dishes to share amongst 3 adults. They also have an amazing bakery selections

Astoria Cafe made an absolutely beautiful cake my mom's 75th birthday. Tte cake was very moist, fresh with delicious flavor. I highly recommend this bakery!

One of my new favs delicious food and desserts beautiful location fun people great positive vibes love it!

You should pick up dinner here. I brought home a goulash dinner and a cabbage roll dinner. So delectable. I'm going to go earlier and try some more of their savory items. I've bought cookies and sweets to serve guests, their pastaries are excellent.

This place is amazing! The first time we tried it was super good. The flavors are so good. Today we did the creeps and was cloudy go good and fluffy! You have to try this place! The staff is super friendly and can recommend anything

Delicious desserts and visually appealing, nice small place to enjoy a sweet. I hope to try more.

Ordered the pizza and meat burek, it was delicious! Also got a walnut cake that was so tasty and fresh. Owner was very friendly. Can't wait to go back and try more items from here.

I love this place. Cute cafe attached to a beautifully stocked bakery. We started with Cabbage slaw which was generous. We had the Burek, flaky pastry surrounding feta cheese and spinach that melted in your mouth. For dessert, the Berrydelicious crepe with vegan or regular Nutella and berries was plated attractively with berries and whipped cream. Two of us shared one order each making a very affordable lunch with leftovers. Vegetarian and vegan friendly although mostly non-vegetarian bakery. I'll be back to try the other vegan items.They also had baked apples and baklava that looked fresh and appealing. Call before going to check hours. It' s a winner!

WOW! Not only are the cakes (and other treats!) stunning but they are delicious, too! And make sure to order a burek while you are there - you will not be disappointed!

Such a great addition to Lisle! We've only tried their sweets and everything has been delicious so far. The Ferrero Rocher cake is AMAZING. Not too sweet and absolutely delicious. The owner is so nice and took the time to explain what everything was to my kids. You won't be disappointed with anything you get from here.

Where to begin? Astoria's cakes are a dream, beautiful, delicious, and unique. One may think at first glance that they are pricey but not really. When you see the quality of ingredients and effort that goes into these edible pieces of art, it is truly tremendous and not to mention the cakes weigh a substantial amount and did I say they are DELICIOUS. Hands down the best bakery we've ever patronized. After our last cake order, everyone said that is what they want for their next birthday cake. The burek flavors are to die for, my kid's fight over which one they are going to try the next time we order. Tanja and Suzi put out such high-quality products. This mom and daughter duo is extremely welcoming, inviting, and genuine. I have no need to go back to other Balkan specialty bakeries or cafes. This is how accomodating Astoria bakery is: I asked if they could do a specialty pastry that no one makes in Chicago and the surrounding area, I mean NO ONE makes this pastry, and Tanja said we make everything and it was AMAZING. This is the type of business that everyone should be supporting because they go the extra mile for their customers. The inside of the cafe/bakery is extremely charming and clean, you really feel like you are in a cafe in Europe. Looking forward to the warm weather and their beautiful patio. Do not walk, run to Astoria!

I ordered the fruit cake for Easter from here (and purchased an assortment of slices to try, which were also delicious). The fruit cake, which was not very sweet, was a big hit with my family and guests. The ingredients were all TOP quality, unlike other bakeries who substitute inferior products in their cakes and pastries. Thank you, Tanja and your mom, for your absolutely pleasant and warm welcome. I will definitely be going back to Astoria again.

The best burek in Chicago land area especially the one with the cheese. All made from scratch in their own kitchen. You bring back memories from back home. And for your sweet tooth get some breskvice, they are amazing!

Very nice location and owner, and an absolutely beautiful cake!! I would definately recommend this bakery to anyone looking for something unique and different from the average bakery selection at most places.

Today was my second visit to this place! Everything we purchased both times was absolutely delicious! Plus the staff is super friendly and welcoming. Highly recommend this place!! So happy they moved to Lisle!

Tried 2 cake slices today and they were to totally die for! Amazing flavor and taste! Going back soon for some tasty cookies. The lady that helped us today was super sweet and patient about explaining what each pastry was. This place is my new favorite spot for trying new desserts!