Jarosch Bakery merging in a move owners say will preserve business for generations

Jarosch Bakery, a Northwest suburban institution for lovers of coffee cake, butter cookies and other sweets for more than six decades, is merging with a Chicago bakery in a move its owners say will preserve its future for generations to come.

Ken and Kathy Jarosch, whose family has owned the Elk Grove Village bakery since it opened in 1959, wrote in a letter to customers that the merger with Ideal Bakery comes as they begin to ponder retirement.

“Some bakeries decide to simply close the shop and walk away. The Jarosch’s did not want to see that happen,” the letter states. “After 64 years of baking, approaching 65 in October, and four generations of bakers going back to Germany, closing, and walking away was their last choice.”

In an interview Sunday, Ken Jarosch said Ideal’s operators intend to keep the Jarosch name on the Elk Grove bakery and continue producing its most popular items.

“I’m pretty sure they will also add to our product line,” he said.

According to the letter, Ideal Bakery was founded in the 1930s as a retail bakery and has since evolved to become a prominent Eastern European wholesale bakery throughout the Chicago area. It’s now owned by the Kowal and Klimek family, which the Jarosch’s describe as a tight-knit group who are young, eager, motivated and innovative in the bakery world.

“It is the Kowal/Klimek family’s goal to keep Jarosch Bakery the same, including the name,” the letter states. “They value the current staff, Jarosch customers, and the community. They look forward to making Elk Grove Village their new home.”

Ken Jarosch said he and Kathy are not yet retiring, and will work with the Kowal/Klimek family ahead of a planned move in late 2025 or early 2026 to a new 26,000-square-foot retail building along Higgins Road.

“We’ll be there every day, showing them how we do things,” he said.

The new building is part of Wingspan Development Group’s plan to redevelop the 10-acre Elk Grove Woods Plaza shopping center on the southeast corner of Arlington Heights and Higgins roads. Other existing tenants, including Tensuke Market and Vini's Pizza, also are expected to have new homes within the redevelopment.

“It is important to state that all the families involved appreciate the opportunity created by … Elk Grove Village to continue operating Jarosch Bakery at the current corner,” the letter states. “Without the foresight of the mayor, village manager, and the (village) board, Jarosch Bakery, as well as all the tenants of Elk Grove Woods Plaza, would not have the opportunity for a fresh look, fresh start, and the option of continuing their businesses.”