Imagine hopping inside an easy bake oven, rolling around in yummy smells and bouncing off bubble gum colored walls. That’s the feeling you get when entering The Angel Food Bakery on Montrose. It’s a melting pot of bright, lime green walls, colorful plastic tablecloths, and wide-eyed teenagers on their way home from school.

Evoking childhood memories with goodies like s’mores (toasted to order), airstreams (homemade Twinkies wrapped in foil), chocolate marshmallow igloos, big bowls of sour cherry rice pudding and the house favorite, "The Barthelona," a Spanish-style hot chocolate with homemade whipped cream, this delightful corner bakery is the perfect addition to the burgeoning bakery scene in Chicago.

Upon returning from her honeymoon in Barcelona, owner and self-taught pastry chef Stephanie Samuels happily recreates the tidy meat and cheese sandwiches that make up the common European’s breakfast fare. A savory treat made with rustic ciabiatta bread and stuffed with diverse ingredients like proscuitto, creamy brie and fig jam, neatly wrapped up in wax paper, it’s a nice alternative to a dry bagel when you’re rushing by on the way to the train. You can’t beat the 75-cent day-old muffins, either.

Offering a selection of tasty sandwiches on house made rolls, a delicious homemade soup that changes several times a week, and a cooler full of the increasingly popular Izze sparkling fruit juices (try the Pear), this bakery succeeds at a tough corner location that’s seen more than one speedy demise.

Average cost: <$10

Centerstage Reviewer: Misty Tosh