Lost Larson

Bobby Schaffer named his Andersonville bakery for the surname his family lost: his grandfather, born a Larson, took the name of the man he worked for, Schaffer. Before opening his own shop, Schaffer led the pastry programs at two of the country's most demanding restaurants, Grace in Chicago and Blue Hill at Stone Barns outside New York, experience he brought to bear on a very different kind of project.

Lost Larson opened in June 2018, the same year Andersonville's Swedish Bakery closed after an 88-year run in the neighborhood, a coincidence that read, to longtime residents, like a torch being passed. Schaffer and his sister Bree spent time visiting three or four bakeries a day on research trips through Sweden, gathering technique and inspiration for a menu built around limpa loaves, yeasted cardamom buns, and a version of the Swedish princess cake.

The bakery's best sellers are its cinnamon rolls and cardamom buns, alongside smörrebrød, the open-faced Scandinavian sandwich, and whole-grain breads made from flour milled in front of customers. What started as a single Andersonville storefront has since added a Wicker Park location, extending a Scandinavian baking tradition that Chicago had, for a moment, nearly lost along with the name.