Sweet Cakes may be one of a dozen tasty-as-pie bakeries defining Chicago's sugary scene these days, but it has its confectionary competitors beat on at least one front: There's something delightfully magical about the gated entry and large, leaf-shadowed patio that fronts the tucked-away shop. If you're hoping a cookie will take some of the sag out of your world-weary shoulders, you'll find yourself calmed sometime between spotting the courtyard's giant horse statue and teetering tower of toy trucks and actually spying the sweets.

But at the end of the day, it's those sweets that matter, and Sweet Cakes produces memorable ones. Its signature treat, a corn muffin flecked with asiago cheese, tucks a hardboiled egg inside; it's a joy to cut into and even better to eat. Large, flaky croissants, brioche au tete and unusual scone flavors like lemon basil and chive with cracked black pepper cover the savory side of things. On the flip side sit plenty of chocolate chip cookies, tarts and iced goodies: cupcakes with batter exploding well beyond their paper liners and petite cakes in flavors like vanilla peach and chocolate coconut.

Run by baker Emily Smith and her father, Vernon, Sweet Cakes resembles a well-frosted cupcake: plenty of cake with just the right flourish. You'll find locally roasted Casteel Coffee, daily vegan options, cakes that start at a perfect-for-two four-inch size, tables with scads of elbow room and free wi-fi.

Average cost: <$10

Centerstage Reviewer: Kate Schwartz