The streets of Sullivan, Illinois are routinely filled with sweet smells coming from Harrison Street. Serving the community since 2015, Traditional Sullivan Bakery is an anchor of this small town. It has become a go-to spot for locals wanting to pick up a sweet treat before work or order a custom cake to celebrate a special occasion. As a self-proclaimed pie enthusiast, Traditional Sullivan Bakery is now bookmarked on my list of “must-try pie spots” in Illinois. If you are passing through Sullivan, you must stop in to try Traditional Sullivan Bakery’s rotating selection of pies, donuts, pastries, and cakes.
Located near the intersection of Harrison Street and Madison Street, Traditional Sullivan Bakery is right in the middle of the action in Sullivan.
Traditional Sullivan Bakery is surrounded by retail shops and restaurants. If wandering through a small town’s shops is how you like to spend a morning, Traditional Sullivan Bakery is the perfect place to start or end your journey.
Once inside, you will see whatever confections and sweet treats are still available in the cases by the register.
Traditional Sullivan Bakery is open Tuesday through Saturday starting at 6 a.m. It closes most days at 2 p.m. except on Saturdays when its doors close at noon. If you spot a new creation on the bakery's Facebook page, it is best to hurry in as fast as you can as people tend to flock in to try new pastries.
The contents of Traditional Sullivan Bakery’s display case is always changing.
The bakery’s menu often includes seasonal flavors. In the past, items such as bread pudding, scones, cinnamon rolls, apple fritters, and pies have delighted customers. Insiders know to try the maple squares if they are an offer.
Over the years, the bakery has served countless pies, including fruit pies with decorative toppings.
Other pie flavors that have been featured include coconut cream pie with marshmallow meringue, blueberry cheesecake, old fashioned coconut pie, and no-sugar-added apple and cherry pies. I have my fingers crossed that the pistachio cheesecake will be offered when I stop in to visit.
In addition to the snacks you can pick up in-store, Traditional Sullivan Bakery creates custom cakes for birthdays, retirements, weddings and other special occasions.
When guests work with Traditional Sullivan Bakery, they can create something one-of-a-kind that works with their flavor platte, aesthetic, and budget. This tower of treats combines two of the bakery’s specialties: cakes and donuts.
Traditional Sullivan Bakery is known for its donuts as well as its pies and cakes.
I would be remiss not to mention Traditional Sullivan Bakery’s donuts. They fry their donuts on-site and often experiment with new flavors and shapes. For Pi Day, rather than making pies as many other bakeries did, Traditional Sullivan Bakery made Pi-shaped donuts.
The bakers go all out making customers’ visions come to life.
Take, for example, this chocolate cake made to look like a bar of soap. I love the creative touches Traditional Sullivan Bakery put into this. They made similarly playful creations to celebrate new movie releases as well.
While Traditional Sullivan Bakery offers everything you can ask for from a traditional bakery, some of their untraditional creations are their most well known.
Their Girl Scout cookie cupcakes and maple squares are known far and wide. If you haven’t given them a chance yet, be sure to stop by.
Next time you are in the mood to pick up a freshly made pie, cake, or donut, head to Traditional Sullivan Bakery to try their incredible creations. As you roam around Sullivan, be sure to stop by The Little Theater on the Square, the only professional theater between Chicago and St. Louis.
If you are building your own list of pie shops to visit, see The Ultimate Pie Shop Road Trip for a few suggestions on where to start! Or if you are more of a donut person, check out 7 of the Best Donut Shops in Illinois.
Which do you prefer: pies or donuts?
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