I used to frequent pastry house hippo at Mitsuwa around once a week for a few years. This place I went to once pretty early on after going to crescent bakery to give them a try their chocolate cake didn't hold up to house hippo, so I wrote them off. I revisited when I had a bad experience with house hippo not sure if they changed their chefs or recipe but it was a bad experience across several slices I purchased that day. Long story short I enjoyed the slices here quite a bit and even found their matcha cake tasting better than house hippo's the grade of matcha is higher quality as well. I would say the Kahlua, Tiramisu and the Matcha are among my favorite slices so far, they are glorious with a nice cup of tea and not so sweet that I regret eating a slice and can even consider going for a 2nd. Their crepe I would say is better than Hippo's also, but pastry house hippo had the best chocolate and unique cheese cake I have ever tried. This place does offer unique slices I can't find elsewhere in their own right and will find me as a repeat customer for those slices and the lack of crowds at mitsuwa is another bonus. Cons: When boxed wax paper for each individual cake is not present, which helps when taking the cake out of the box without having to grab the cake. read more

See all

This is a small pastry shop. Parking lot is sufficient but kind of limited. We tried a couple slices. One was raspberry mousse and the other was moka coffee cream. They tasted kind of average, nothing extraordinary. The owner was very kind and helpful. It's about $5-6 for one slice. read more

See all

Cakes are fresh. Seasonal flavors. Fresh cream. Super delicious. We got them for a small birthday.

We got a whole chocolate cake from this bakery. It tasted like it had been frozen as the inside had that texture. I was disappointed that it didn't have much flavor. read more

Mont Blanc - Chocolate cake - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

Mont Blanc has now become our go-to Asian bakery for special occasions. So far we have tried the green tea and mango mousse. We had both in 6 inch for about $29 plus an extra $1 for a message on a piece of white chocolate. The green tea flavor is a bit too subtle for our liking but the mango mousse was a hit. We look forward to trying their signature mont blanc cake as well as their other mousse and crepe cakes. Telephone orders and pickup are simple and seamless. Simply let them know of the cake flavor, size, message, and pickup time. They're very punctual with pickup times. I arrived early for mine and they said the cake was not ready because it had to be set for a set amount of time first. It was not an issue for us since Mitsuwa was just down the street and we needed to pickup groceries anyway. read more

See all

My family enjoys the cakes from here. Limited variety of cakes but you can taste the quality! Service is excellent. read more

I love how the employees handle each order like it's special. Even when the line was long, they kept the space organized and clean. The cashier wiped the counter before serving the next customer. I ordered a banana walnut loaf and it was dense flavorful and felt homemade. It came in a clean kraft paper bag. They really pay attention to every detail read more

I've decide to try this place solely based on the reviews but very quickly realized it's not to my liking. Ordered Mont Blanc and peach mousse. Cake felt little dry and consistency is off. I've decided to buy pastries for a special occasion and I was disappointed I chose this place. read more

Mont Blanc - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

If you can't speak, Japanese, don't go here. This woman doesn't understand what she's doing as good as this Bakery used to be. They're not anymore. They couldn't even get a simple holiday cake order right for the holidays. I called her to try to straighten it out and all she did was argue with me that I had some unknown name! Not happy... they would not refund my $70.00. read more

Mont Blanc is just a block or so from Mitsuwa. It offers beautiful and delicious cakes. Perfect cute store to buy treats for ourselves or for special occasions. All their cakes are eye candy, so pretty and light , and not overly sweetened (perfect for Asian's palate ) Highly recommended this cute bakery if you like desserts read more

Mont Blanc - Adorable and delicious mocha cake - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

See all

I love this place!!!! I drive over 30 miles to get here. The best cake place is super clean. I have tasted all The different cakes, and oh my God, it is so light it melts in your mouth, absolutely delicious. read more

Mont Blanc - Strawberry shortcake - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

See all

Creative European dessert. Wish they have all the dessert choices online. Love their passion fruit and Mont Blanc deserts.

awesome cheesecake! a nice little place with great vibes, service was awesome and the lady was so sweet

I was looking for something sweet while I was visiting Chicago for my son's bootcamp graduation. Found this super cute bakery with yummy cakes. Hopefully I can try the others when I come visit again from California! read more

See all

Finally tried this bakery and ordered slices of chocolate mousse and strawberry cake. They were very fresh and delicious. I will go back to try some other flavors. The green matcha cake looks interesting. read more

You can't imagine how awesome this cake store is! I am ordering a birthday cake for my son's first birthday. I got an idea from pin interest and want to try my luck here. It turned out to be the Dream Cake. Every guest coming is complement it. On top of that, the cake is so tasting. If you are looking for a healthy smooth and light sweet cake. Bingo, find the right place. We order a strawberry shortcake. Turned out to be favorite for both adult and babies too. The service is also very good. I was double and tropes confirmed for all the details. Would def go with it read more

Mont Blanc - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

See all

The baker is really friendly and the cakes are very delicious. I recommend the Mont Blanc with chestnut cream. They also have cupcake sized versions of cakes for a quick takeaway for one. read more

I am a true fan of Mont Blanc, a fine quality chestnut cake you can easily find in Taipei, Japan and France. Unfortunately it's not very common in the great Chicago area until I found this place named Mont Blanc!! This place didn't disappoint me at all. Their chestnut cake is amazing! I don't think this place is pricy considering both of the quality of the cake and the skills they have to make such an artwork. I haven't tried many other cakes but I'm definitely going to go back! The owners are very very nice! They carefully wrap your dessert and give you all the possible welcoming feelings for your visit. I will be happy to support their business because they bring back a lot of memories of visiting bakeries in Asia! read more

Mont Blanc - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

A lovely "gender reveal" cake from this bakery last fall was the perfect way to celebrate our baby girl!  Mont Blanc's sweet baker accommodated our request by frosting the cake with a similar design as our wedding cake. He used pink sponge cake and strawberry mousse (boy would have been blue with blueberry mousse) inside a lovely white frosting, and the cake held up great all day so our surprise was not spoiled.  The cake itself was light and flavorful and everyone loved it!  Thank you Mont Blanc! read more

Mont Blanc - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

See all

We used to order our birthday cakes from here twice a year. We love the Japanese style French pastries. We just order one a few days ago. I sensed the changes in the store. The Japanese pastry chef I used in the back were not there and the mint blanc seemed the same but a bit different in the taste. I wonder if the owner has changed in 2019. read more

So, I'm big into Asian bakeries this Labor Day weekend. Only two days in and I've already got three under my belt and in my tummy. Best labor day ever? I'll wait to see how the rest of the weekend plays out, before calling it, but so far so (baked)good. I walked in to see a case full of so beautiful that I thought they were fake display only treats. They woman behind the counter, was a friggin peach and helped me out when i ordered up one of their pear tarts and a raisin sable. Initially, I'd only asked for one pear tart and raisin sable and did think the $9 price tag was a bit steep, but then as I opened the little bakery box in my car and looked inside while rifling around my purse for one of two camping sporks I keep handy for times like these, and saw that my order may have gotten a tad lost in translation and she'd actually given me 2 pear tarts and the raisin sable... which turns out, was what I did actually want as just one pear tart is simple not enough. Next time, which will probably be tomorrow, I'm getting the plum tart, the Kahlua and at least 2 of everything else based on the the mega Mont Blanc win that our first visit consisted of. read more

Mont Blanc - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

The tiramisu cake was delicious. The cakes are expensive, but worth it for special occasions. The tiramisu cake can be ordered one day in advance. read more

Mont Blanc - 9 inch Tiramisu cake (the fruits are propping up the chocolate sign) - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

*Photos I'm glad this place is not out of business. I miss a great presentation on cakes. Here, the simple tastfulness of decoration smacks of classy Japanese. And the flavors are subtle and light. I recently bought a 6" Tiramisu cake for my department and they were bowled over by the glazed fruits and elegance. While small, the cakes make up in height. About 2 layers of moist sponge cake and 2 layers of mousse filling. The cake is a mere $20. No credit cards, but checks and cash acceptable. read more

Mont Blanc - Green Tea - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

See all

I've been going here since I was 3 years old with my parents. They have the best strawberry shortcake I have ever had in my life. Softest texture and perfect amount of sweetness. Their green tea cake and green tea crepe cake are also one of a kind. Also, the head baker is super talented and I've ordered multiple birthday cakes from them. Highly recommend, Just across from Mitsuwa -- and yes, I'd choose this over Hippo (which is amazing too) read more

My family has been buying birthday cakes from here since I was.. maybe 7 or 8 years old - so nearly 10 years now. We get them for my sister, my mother, and now my niece and nephew (my dad is partial to banana cream pies, so his birthday 'cake' is purchased elsewhere). The bakery is in a small strip mall of sorts, sandwiched between a sushi restaurant (Nikko's - also a great greeeaaat place) and a tavern. The owners are a couple - they are SOOOO nice. A Japanese man and a woman from... eastern Europe... maybe? Regardless, the wife typically runs the counter while the husband is baking and crafting miracles in the back. They are both adorable and super friendly. Everything I've had from here is super light, moist, and obviously made with a lot of skill and love for the craft of baking. I must admit, maybe 98% of the cakes we get from here are the strawberry delice - it's a wonderland of incredibly, impossibly light chocolate cake (with just a hint of sweetness), layered with perfectly macerated strawberries and a fluffy light chocolate mousse. The whole thing is dusted with semi-sweet cocoa powder and topped with big plump glazed fresh strawberries. It's like eating light, delicious bites of heaven. I will admit this place is a little on the pricier side, the aforementioned heavenly cake serving 6 people being about $28. But TRUST ME, it is SOOOOO worth it. Another perk is they've started accepting credit cards in the last few years (MasterCard, Visa, and Discover only I believe). I remember once maybe four or five years ago, I forgot they were cash only (at the time), and they totally let me bring the cake home and come back the next day and pay for it! It heartens me to see small business owners who have such a passion for what they do. I will return to Mont Blanc for birthday and special occasion cakes again and again - I've told the owners they are never allowed to close or relocate. read more

Mont Blanc - strawberry delice cake - SOOO good - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

I came to this place specifically looking for a Japanese run bakery that makes Viennese style cakes. I was looking for a Satura cakes (http://www.yelp.com/biz/satura-cakes-los-altos) in the Chicagoland area. The bar has been set and it's high. I love Japanese run European bakeries because they make everything way less sweet/heavy -- everything is airy, delicate and delicious. They do not have a lot of options. Instead they fill the other 2 cases with random displays of who knows what. The case that does have the cakes, though, has about 10 different kinds of cakes. They were all about $3.50 a piece (they only take cash!). The green tea cake I had was dry. As in, might be a few days old. That was a huge disappointment. The flavor was really quite good though in spite of that. The cassis mousse cake was dead on -- airy, a little tart, and delicious. The chisbout? (something like this, sorry) cake has pear or plum liqueur soaked into the cake. And the strawberry shortcake is of course an easy win -- and sure to be a crowd pleaser for all. Tasty but it did not wow me. The hunt for a Chicago version of Satura continues.... read more

See all

I've ordered cakes from here for almost every family member's birthday-they're amazing! My favorite is the strawberry shortcake but most recently we got the mocha cake which was also good. It has a strong coffee flavor and I think the cake part is actually soaked in a little coffee which is fantastic. The lady who took my order was nice enough to ask if I wanted a message written on the top and even though I didn't they did a beautiful job decorating the top with a whole pile of white chocolate shavings, cocoa powder, and some beautifully arranged glazed fruits. Overall they pay very close attention to detail and you're absolutely getting your money's worth from here. I recommend this place for anyone who doesn't like super sweet cakes but rather very flavorful ones. read more

The best Japanese/French style cakes in USA. The creations are beautiful, tasteful, and delicious. They are not overly sweet like American cakes. I love it. read more

I got the green tea cake for my birthday and it was just amazing . I love my sweets but this was the perfect blend of being sweet but not too sweet and it had a soft texture as well. Everyone else who tried the cake also loved it and i even grabbed a second slice because it was so yummy! Would love to go back and try their other cakes as well! read more

Mont Blanc - Green tea cake. So goood!! - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

Mont Blanc... You are my saviour!! I forgot to order my sister's baby shower cake (I know, I know... How could I do that, right but it happens sometimes :/) anyways, with less than 24 hrs left for the party, I went to 3 other bakeries before reaching Mont Blanc and everyone said no or to come later (Really??).. I asked for a simple round boy cake with cute little drawings of baby clothes and whatever they could think of. The lady behind the counter was nice enough to say that they will try to do whatever they can, they had a wedding cake to be delivered the same time I wanted my cake. And she suggested that I should order the strawbery shortcake (their famous cake). I'm more than glad, that I listened to her and she listened to me and delivered a perfectly delicious cake with nice colors and cute little drawings and details(shorts had a cute bow made of chocolate and so on) Just what I asked for. Thank you Mont Blanc!! read more

Mont Blanc - Yummy, beautiful, and just right.. Not too much or not too less!!! - Bakeries Near Me - Arlington Heights, Illinois

I grew up with whipped cream and fresh strawberry cakes from Chinatown my entire life. Given that I now live in the suburbs and cannot stand Chicago traffic or untimely construction, I have searched for similar cakes in the suburbs. For the past few years, I had been frequenting a Korean bakery for their cakes; however, now that I've found Mont Blanc, this will be my new go-to! I've ordered 2 large whipped cream and fresh strawberry cakes from here in the last week. Delicious! Not too sweet, but tasty! The Mont Blanc cupcake is so light and fluffy. The chestnut flavor is apparent and delicious! The mango mousse cake is the best mango dessert I have had in my lifetime! I have tried a mango cake from a bakery in wheeling and another from Greek Town... this is 1,000,000 times better. Creamy, light with a top layer of what seems to be the actual fruit... YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! Vanilla creme brûlée was amazing... we fought over it! Crepe cake was also good, but I probably wouldn't order it again since I enjoyed the other items so much more! Other reviewers mentioned the impeccable service here. It ain't no lie - the wife and husband team here are so accommodating. Willing to help you out to no end! The last time I went, an overbearing customer was being nit picky about all of her choices. She had finally paid and was about to walk out when she saw the cookie assortment. She picked one of the boxes up and stated that she "hated" all of the cookies except one. (Mind you, I bought this cookie assortment during my 1st trip here and we ate them all that day!) The wife said she could have a batch of that specific cookie made just for her that day. So patient, willing to listen, and thoughtful! read more

It's one of the best cake place in the Chicagoland! Highly recommended. You should order your customized cakes 1-2 days prior to your events. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSPlUKZylXo read more

Delicious. This is *not* the heavy, sugary gunk you get at the grocery store -- it is heavenly! Light, flavorful, absolutely wonderful. Bought two cakes and a variety of pastries; all were stunning. Worth the drive, worth the money. read more

This place encapsulates my childhood and reminds me of the times when I'd tell my parents as a little girl, "When I grow up, I want to be a baker and have my own cake shop." Mont Blanc is an authentic Japanese-Parisian bakery and is the closest thing you'll find to a bakery reminiscent of one you can find in the basement of a chic department store in central Tokyo. Japanese cakes (made in the style of Parisian cakes) are European in concept but Japanese in taste, if such a concept can be adequately expressed to the unseasoned cake-lover. The sweetness is mild (unlike American cakes which are heavy in butter, cream, frosting/sugar, woefully lacking in delicacy) and each cake is made with TLC and meticulous attention to detail. Since we are long-time customers and know the owners, we sometimes get a couple of extra cakes included in our cake box if we pay a visit in the evening (near closing time). There is Crescent Bakery next door which sells tasty sweet snack breads and sandwich bread, though my family still gets shokupan or white sandwich bread from Hippo inside Mitsuwa Marketplace across the street. I am a fan of this place and always will be. If I get married, I'll order my wedding cake from this place :) The owners bake a number of "classic" cakes which are constantly on the menu, but some seasonal cakes (e.g., black forest cake, apple tart, etc.) come in from time to time and others disappear from the menu. The following are my favorites (I've probably tried everything at least once): -Classic mont-blanc cake (chestnut cream cake) -Strawberry shortcake -Kahlua cake -Delice (chocolate) cake -Tiramisu -Orange mousse The cookies and raisin sables make for a perfect edible gift for teachers or family friends. The latter are delicate, buttery, and crumbly and would go perfectly with a dark roast cup of piping hot coffee. I also really just love the ambiance of the store and the pretty wrapping paper that the owner's wife uses to wrap the cookie boxes in. The glass display cases in the interior are decorated with beautiful porcelain teapots and on sale are other teatime items (darjeeling, earl gray and other varieties of black teas, gourmet lemonades in pretty bottles, etc.) The quaint little shop reminds me of Tokyo and is the closest thing to a similar cake shop I can find in the city I call my "home away from home." I can still hear the bell ringing in my head that chimes whenever a customer enters the store. read more

These are the only cakes I'd feel comfortable telling someone to get that aren't made by someone I know. Actually, these are the only cakes I'd feel comfortable buying for someone I cared about. (You see, I usually bake the cakes for those around me. Or my head chef, who is a mad pastry genius with years of experience, does that cake baking. This is the basis for my opinion.) If you're unfamiliar with Japanese baked goods, there's an entire school of baking that employs high French pastry techniques with Japanese flavor profiles. Montblanc is, hands down, the best example of this I've seen around here. Yes, I know, Pastry House Hippo is just up the street. They're great for breads and other pastries; don't get me wrong. But their cakes, while good, are not as good as these. You can buy them by the slice or order specialty cakes ahead. Oh -- it's cash only. Bring cash when you visit. They also sell Lupicia loose and bagged teas (to take home and brew, not to drink there), if you're a tea person. AFAIK, they're the only shop around here that carries Lupicia, and keeps me from having to order those wonderful teas from the intarwebs. read more

I love cakes from this shop. The taste is really elegant. Not too sweet. The balance of cream and sponge are very good and they use good quality of fruits. read more

Best cakes ever. I have loved their cakes so much that I decided to have them bake my wedding cake years ago. Their strawberry shortcake is DELICIOUS! read more

There is always a debate to which of the two Japanese Bakery is better: Mont Blanc or Pastry House Hippo (http://www.yelp.com/biz/QkAMmMg0vm4jm1xHi9rffA) located inside Mitsuwa. A decade ago, Mont Blanc's cakes were far better than Hippo, but today they are at an equal level. Ever since Koyama Shoten, a Japanese grocery store, closed their doors at this small strip mall, traffic decreased and I'm sure Mont Blanc is struggling. Therefore, I wouldn't be surprised if this place goes out of business. read more

Must try green tea cake. Light yet flavorful. Served by the sweetest shopkeep. Wish there was seating though. Also loved Sicily (pista)! This is fast becoming my fav pastry haunt. read more

First rate pastry shop tucked away in the suburbs, and run by an amazing family. My favorites are the chiboust and their fruit tarts, especially the plum. The pastries are gorgeous, intricate and yummy. read more