European bread bakery heats up in Wheeling

A new family-operated bakery in Wheeling features a blend of fresh European and American items including breads, coffee cakes and strudel.

The House of Bread opened last week at 1762 W. Hintz Road. It offers more than a dozen all-natural breads to walk-in customers as well as wholesale clients. The bakery has the capability of making more than 300 loaves a day.

The baking business is not new to owners Savely Barkan and his parents, Yevgeniya and Zak. The family, originally from Russia, operated a bakery in Wheeling for years before they sold it four years ago.

The Barkans missed the business. They say their customers also missed the fresh bread.

"We want people to enjoy the European products without having to leave the country," said Savely, 37.

The bakers say they use very little yeast in the breads and no preservatives. Instead, they use a rye starter to give the bread better texture and increase the shelf life. Instead of butter and sugars, olive oil or sunflower oils are often used. The master baker for the business comes from Germany.

There is a wide variety of breads at the shop. Cranberry walnut bread, which is 1.6 pounds and sells for $5.75, is a favorite in addition to the numerous rye varieties, including Lithuanian rye, farmers rye, 100 percent rye and 60 percent rye. The owners say they blend their own grain mix for the multigrain breads. Another popular pick are the gluten free breads.

Sunflower-seed bread has also been going over well. The 1.5-pound loaf sells for $3.90. "It's very high in fiber. It's out of this world," said Savely Barkan, who resides in Chicago. He immigrated from Russia when he was 16. His parents live in Arlington Heights.

Barkan also works as a real estate developer, traveling to Poland and the Czech Republic several times a year.

He said his family is glad to be back in the bakery business. Customers have also been appreciative of the fresh-baked breads that have returned to the neighborhood.

The shop is open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. six days a week. It's closed on Mondays.

For more information, call (847) 253-6300.