Sarima

Calamansi, ube and pandan lead the case

The calamansi donut is the fastest way to understand this counter: light, filled with sweet and sharp calamansi and a shrikhand cream, putting a Filipino citrus next to an Indian yoghurt sweet in one bite. Sarima works that seam across the whole case. Ube anchors the signatures, in the ube latte and the ube crinkle cookie above all, while pandan turns up in an oatmeal cookie and the wider cookie line runs to turon and kaju katli. Other sweets include an ensaymada donut, a chai donut and a food of the gods bar. Savoury items are just as specific, with a spiced potato and egg dosa and a chicken tocino breakfast sandwich carrying the same Filipino and Indian frame. The Infatuation listed it in its 2025 bakery guide.

A small Bucktown room

Sarima opened in 2025 in Chicago, on the edge of Bucktown and Wicker Park, and it is counter driven and small format rather than full service. The house line, where culture and cravings meet, is a fair description of the programme, which is built from ube, calamansi, pandan, shrikhand, kaju, chai and cardamom rather than from a standard bakery repertoire with a few specials attached. Seating is limited and turnover is quick, with food coming out fast and queues moving even when demand builds on a Sunday. The room is pleasant and the counter flow is organised, which suits both a two minute stop and a table for a slower start to the day. The case, not the seating, is what drives the visit.

Order the ube latte with a calamansi donut

Start with the ube latte and a calamansi donut. Together they capture the two signals the cafe sends most clearly: ube leading the drinks, citrus and shrikhand leading the pastry. To stay with drinks while changing register, the kaju latte, the cardamom caramel latte and the chai pudding all pull from the same pantry. For a second sweet, the ube crinkle cookie distils the ube identity, while the pandan oatmeal, turon or kaju katli cookie shows how far the case travels between Filipino and Indian references. If you want more substance, the chicken tocino breakfast sandwich or the spiced potato and egg dosa moves past dessert without leaving the concept behind.