Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (2024)

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The lines form about an hour before the 9 a.m. opening time, with customers waiting outside Fat Peach Bakery hoping to grab a treat like a strawberry milk croissant. Owners David Castillo and Kerrie Breuer opened their small bakery on August 31 at 2907 S. Archer Avenue, replacing the former Bridgeport Bakery, a neighborhood icon for nearly five decades.

Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (1)

Judging by the long weekend lines, the neighborhood has embraced the change. Fat Peach specializes in laminated pastries, and they’ve quickly sold out of croissants and Danishes while open three days a week — Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Breuer’s strawberry milk-filled croissants, a play on Strawberry Quik, has been one of the stars. Another highlight is a mushroom Danish which uses a paste made of sous vide mushrooms and English cheddar mornay sauce. It’s then twice-baked with an enoki mushroom conserva.

“It takes me forever to make all of that — I don’t know of any place that does that,” Castillo says.

Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (2)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (3)

There’s no online ordering option, for now. Castillo and Breuer have thought about opening on more days, but they want to ease into any expansion plans. Castillo’s resume includes working for Sodexo at the Shedd Aquarium and with Hogsalt, working at Restoration Hardware in Gold Coast. He worked for Rich Labriola and at White Oak Tavern in Lincoln Park. Breuer moved to Chicago in June 2019 from North Dakota. Her background is in cake decorating and she appeared on Amazon Studios’ Dr. Seuss Baking Challenge. The two met while working together at a Chicago bakery. Castillo, a Mexican American, grew up in suburban Blue Island. Breuer grew up in North Dakota after being adopted from South Korea.

Castillo visited Mexico City as a child, and the bakeries there — using simple ingredients and techniques — left an impression. He wondered why he couldn’t find similar pastries in Chicago. He credits White Oak’s opening chef, John Asbaty, with sharing a similar philosophy in using the best ingredients in his dishes. That showed Castillo that bringing those memories of Mexico City to Chicago was possible. But not everything is hyperlocal and they’ll source from all over. Sourcing tropical fruits, for example, is a challenge during midwestern winters.

Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (4)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (5)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (6)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (7)

“This place is kind of a mishmash of the best flour, local flour, butter we can get,” Castillo says. “But we also we also like to use fruit in our pastry — because who doesn’t want that? It’s a nice reminder of, you know, how sweet life can be.”

They’re using Four Letter Word Coffee, and for Fat Peach’s mocha, they’re mixing chocolate and cinnamon from Mexico in their syrups. They’re looking for ways to incorporate more Mexican flavors into their pastries, waiting to see what their customers toward.

Breuer left Korea when she was 6 and grew up with a white military family in America. As a teen, she spent a year in South Korea, familiarizing herself with the culture (she jokes that she sometimes considers herself a banana). Flavors like red bean, sesame, and matcha could be incorporated into future pastries. There have been tasty experiments like a kimchi-pimento Danish with English cheddar, and roasted potatoes with rosemary. Breuer wants balanced flavors that work versus gimmickery.

The couple looked at spaces for six months and had targeted a location in suburban La Grange, but that deal fell through. The two are Bridgeport residents and pounded after Castillo noticed a “for lease” sign. It wasn’t exactly a turnkey operation. Beyond cleanup, the couple needed to purchase some new equipment which they found via Facebook Marketplace.

Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (8)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (9)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (10)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (11)

Kerrie Breuer fills pastries.

Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (12)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (13)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (14)
Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (15)

As Chicago’s demographics change and tastes continue to evolve, Fat Peach has a different bent compared to its European-focused predecessor. Customers won’t find Bridgeport Bakery’s sausage and bacon buns (the bakery officially closed in October 2021). They might not find paczkis either. Castillo says he doesn’t want to lean on the Polish doughnuts to sustain business. He’d rather Fat Peach be busy with unique offerings regularly.

As far as the name? Yes, it’s no longer stonefruit season, but nothing on the menu ever contained peaches. The couple just loves puns.

“I feel like everyone, like, wants to have a fat peach nowadays — especially the ladies,” Breuer says with a laugh.

Fat Peach Bakery, 2907 S. Archer Avenue, open 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Inside Bridgeport’s Smash-Hit Bakery With Long Lines Fueled by Strawberry Milk Croissants and Mexican Mochas (2024)
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