About Wildflour

The Owners and Pastry Chefs at Wildflour Bakery & Cafe are Ann Sorlie-Fisher and Kristi Loucks.  They come from different professional backgrounds, but they share a common ground with their love of pastry and all around great food.  They met in the early Spring of 2007 when Kristi was invited to interview at Westmoreland Country Club for an internship upon completion of her Pastry Degree at The Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago.  Ann was the Executive Pastry Chef at the time, and a member favorite.  At the end of that internship, Kristi was offered a full time position as the Assistant Pastry Chef alongside Ann who had a wealth of knowledge and experience.  The two became fast friends from that very first interview. While there, they began considering the possibilities of a little bakery and cafe in the future....though at the time it was thought to be in the distant future.  

While this idea was entertained, they also continued to work and create new and exciting things for the club.  But, after a year at the club it was time for Kristi to move on to be the Production Manager at Das Foods, a small caramel manufacturer in Wauconda, IL...Ann continued to work at Westmoreland.  The two stayed in close contact and continued to talk and dream about the day when they might be able to open a place of their own, but behind the scenes fate was beginning to take it's own course.

After several months of working apart, Ann had an injury that put her on the sidelines for a bit.  In that time, she had a chance to evaluate the circumstances that had led her there, and realized that her current position was no longer as fulfilling as it once was.  So, the two revisited the idea of opening a bakery even though both had other obligations for the time being.  It was tough to focus a lot of energy on the task of finding the right location, but they searched on and off for the better part of a year, knowing that they would "know" the right place when they found it.  Ann returned to work after her surgery and their venture was once again placed on the back burner.

Finally after 18 months of searching for a location, they landed in Lake Bluff.  Then, all of a sudden a thought that had been pushed back many times was beginning to take flight.  There was some life to this dream after all, and very quickly it was rolling along as if it had charted its own course.  Eventually it led them right to the location at 14 East Scranton Avenue in Lake Bluff, Illinois. Within weeks of finding the location, the menus began to come together.  With backgrounds in both sweet and savory, the menu began to straddle the line between Bakery and Cafe.  Upon finalizing the menu, Ann and Kristi turned to a trusted friend to help with the savory items.  And so, Miguel Wong was added to the mix to lend his skills to the savory side of the kitchen.  He has quickly become known for his phenomenal soups and salad dressings just to name a few.  He is frequently the mastermind behind the daily specials.   Miguel previously worked at Westmoreland along with both Ann and Kristi.

In the end, they might tell you it was hard work, or determination that got them to this point...and it did.  But, somewhere along the way they would have to agree that fate stepped in to open the doors that led them to where they are today.  And, that is how Wildflour came to be.....