Krown Bakery & Eatery — Restaurant in Anoka

I have been meaning to make a trip to Krown Bakery for a while because of the good reviews and the online promise of a variety of gluten free items. Today I finally made it and let me just say, I was NOT disappointed. Truly the definition of a “hole in the wall” place (you might actually miss it if you are driving and don’t know what your looking for), but upon entering there was an array of exquisite looking European style desserts and (oh joy) almost an entire case of gluten free treats! The owner was very friendly and knowledgeable and explained that they try to use the best ingredients in all their items (organic whipped cream anyone?). I picked up a Budapest roll, a tiramisu, a thumbprint cookie, a package of two meringue cookies and a coffee. The coffee was warm and toasty with little-to-no bitterness but let me just tell you, the star here is the pastry! The Budapest roll didn’t even survive long enough to make the picture. Most gluten free desserts tend to be dry, overly dense, a weird texture, and way too sweet to compensate. This was light, airy, and a perfectly balanced dessert. The thumbprint cookie was soft, melt-in-your mouth perfection (you’d NEVER guess it was gluten free) and the meringue cookies were exceptional. Not overly sweet like most meringues here. More like a soft marshmallow flavor with a meringue crispness and the perfect compliment with coffee. Try it people. They may not be the showiest thing in the case, but they really are amazing. But I have saved the best for last. That first bite of Tiramisu BLEW MY MIND! I am the kind of person who drives all the way to Chicago to go to my favorite family-owned celiac Italian restaurant for their house-made-from-scratch pasta and tiramisu (Da Lucianos, I still love you), but let me just tell you, this was BETTER! Like WAY BETTER! Possibly the best treat I have ever had in my entire life. And that’s saying something considering my love of desserts.. If you are a tiramisu lover, TRY IT! Regardless of whether you eat gluten free or not, you will not be disappointed! We will definitely be coming back! Thank you for a beautiful experience...

I have been to Krown on a few occasions, mostly getting their desserts. They have a wide variety of Northern European buns and pastries, which is a rarity even in Minnesota, especially when you consider the quality (their cardamom, vanilla and almond buns are amazing). But the two occasions on which I tried their lunch specialties left me incredibly disappointed:

Last fall I went there specifically for the Finnish rice pie and lohikeitto (salmon soup). The pie was fine (despite being cold), but the soup was nothing short of disgusting. The base looked and tasted like a puddle of grease. And there were more onions in the soup than salmon.

Earlier today I stopped by to grab a quick bite and the Danish hot dog grabbed my attention. I've had hot dogs in Copenhagen before and they were great. This...was not even a halfway decent imitation. A tough, giant, salt-laden beef sausage (vs. a delicate, thinner Vienna-style one in a proper Danish hot dog) on a stale bun would have been halfway tolerable from a street vendor for five bucks, but I paid (by the way, the countertop menu doesn't list a price) over three times as much, $16! If you're going to charge that much for a hot dog, you've got to at least make a little bit of effort at authenticity.

I'm all about supporting the local guys, but this is ridiculous. Taste-wise, it's no better than IKEA's hot dog that costs 1/10th of what this thing did and no amount of "Danish-style remoulade" (otherwise known as flavored mayo) makes up the difference. And, of course, the point-of-sale iPad asked for a tip on top of that.

I'll keep coming back for the pastries, but I'm not even going to make an attempt to try anything else at Krown from now on. Fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice, I'm not going to try...

I honestly can’t believe I haven’t reviewed them sooner! I thought I had and could have added a dozen more pictures. I discovered this amazing bakery about 5 years ago when up here for hockey. We have since gone out of our way every time we are back in MN for hockey. We have gone before and after their renovations. Each time we go it’s better than the last and I honestly don’t know how that is even possible. This trip I walked out with over a dozen pastries, bread, cookies and even grabbed soup for later! Be careful, it is hard to control yourself in there!! They use only the finest and most fresh ingredients, you will never find anything as amazing as their baked goods. The staff is always so friendly and they are so patient as I go through slowly picking our treats. I wish we had anything even remotely as delicious as this in Chicago. Good news for us, we have three trips to MN this hockey season!! Addendum: just wanted to confirm that after all theses years, Krown bakery is still the best bakery in MN and still just as amazing as the first time I tried them. Each hockey trip demands a stop here and today didn’t disappoint! Places come and go or lose their luster. Not Krown, they stand by their ingredients and mission....