New Bakery Called Umaga Bakehouse Introducing Filipino Breads and Pastries to the Northwest Side of Chicago

ABC7 honors Asian American and Pacific Islander Month and we are highlighting a popular new bakery.

Umaga Bakehouse is called “the Filipino bakery reimagined” and for good reason.

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We are here to honor courageous decisions, deep-rooted customs, and the tastes that unite communities. Let’s enter Umaga Bakehouse in the Northwest Side of Chicago – a contemporary Filipino bakery that originated from a vision, a gamble, and a profound passion for heritage.

“Not a lot of people what Filipino bakeries were,” Kissell Santiago said.

Kissell and her husband set out to change that.

After relocating from California to Chicago for employment reasons, they eventually answered a long-standing desire by taking a bold step and establishing a bakery that offers Filipino delicacies crafted from cherished family recipes.

“This is called pancit malabon,” Kissell said. “This is my dad’s super super secret recipe only my husband and I know it.”

The response? Overwhelming.

On day one, they sold out in two hours. Since then, they’ve built not just a customer base-but a community.

The weekend lines are long, the recipes are sacred and the vibe is always morning sunshine-fitting for a bakery named Umaga, which means “morning.”

“Initially, we thought we’d be just a small, family-run business… However, the overwhelming support we received from the people of Chicago made me adore this city even more,” Kissell expressed gratefully.

Kissell says the pan de sal is “a traditional Filipino dinner roll, you can use it for anything.”

They perfected each recipe in their home kitchen first, their goal was to recreate the taste of home.

“This is what started everything,” Kissell said. “So this is ensaymada, it’s a brioche style pastry in the Philippines, the classic one is usually just butter on top cheese and that’s it – from there we did the classic and just made other flavors around it,”

Another wildly popular item… their Senorita Bread- It’s a secret menu item, made to order, and you can only get in person.

“It’s these little rolls with sweet, melted butter inside,” Kissell said.

At every turn there is another traditional Filipino bread, pastry or to-go meal and every bite has a backstory, full of tradition and heart. Kissell still can’t believe their big risk turned in to such a big reward.

“It’s like a pinch me moment still,” she said.

Kissell and her team are working with other companies that use their bread, plus they have started a shipping program for folks who can’t access Filipino bread.

Kissell says her team feels ‘everyone deserves to have access to a snack that feels like home -no matter where you are.