Il Giardino del Dolce

Great litte bistro for a pannini and or pizza slice. Feels very reminiscent of little bistros in Rome. They have an outstanding bakery with a huge selection of cookies bonbons éclairs danishes etc. Baked fresh daily. Gelato is pretty good too. Very convenient to Fox River Trail in a nice scenic part of downtown St Charles. .right on the river.

It’s been almost a year since we left Illinois and this is the place I am missing the most.
Me and my wife used to live in Westmont but every weekend we made a habit of choosing a different small town to walk around and see what it has to offer. After we discovered Il Giardino Bakery, St. Charles became a very frequent destination. We just couldn’t stay away from all the goodies in there.
The gelato was great but my most favorites were the cookies. Man, the kolatchy are amazing, especially the cheese, apricot and the Nutella filled ones. The turtles though are probably my weakness because they have the right amount of caramel and chocolate and they are never too sweet. Along those treats I have to mention the double-​chocolate and the S-​sandwich (if I remember correctly the name) cookies which were always s fresh and, again, the perfect amount of sweet.
We ordered some of their cakes on a few occasions and they were all very good and fresh. They have one called atomic cake which has lots of layers of goodness and it’s crazy good.
I can’t wait for our next vacation in the Midwest so we can revisit this spot.

Gelato is delicious. So many different and unique flavors. I had a scoop of pear and a scoop of blood orange. The pear was so tasty! Other flavors that day included cannoli, pistachio, chocolate hazelnut, mango, vanilla, chocolate, and many other original flavors. My sister had her wedding cake made there and it was pretty good. But I definitely suggest the gelato.

Food is good but the service is hit or miss, pray you dont get the clueless teenager or he is early 20’s .he made a sandwitch I had before and was great, from him smaller than display. pastrys are good, but to me service makes or breaks a place this one is broke, wont be back again

I was very excited to try this place after reading such stellar reviews on Unilocal,particularly those referring to the cupcakes. Imagine my disappointment then, when we walked in one Thursday afternoon and discovered Il Giardino del Dolce did not have any cupcakes. Not one. So much for that idea.
But we were not to be deterred. We selected an entire box-​full of goodies, including cannoli, cheesecake, tiramisu, cartocci and fruit tarts and took them home where we immediately began sampling. Unfortunately, it wasn’t much of a treat. The custard filling inside many of the pastries was average and the many of the desserts were a bit soggy (hard to imagine this occurred in the 15 minutes it took us to get home). The Cheesecake Factory makes a better cheesecake. Simply put, Il Giardino del Dolce failed to impress.
The shop itself is really not that cute, as other Unilocalers have suggested. It actually resembles the bakery at Jewel-​Osco, with tile floors, dull cream-​colored paint on the walls, and an overwhelming number of refrigerated cases and counters along three of the four main walls. It lacks the intimacy of a cozy little bakery.

Ohhhhh man.
Just across the river from my office is this divine little shop.
I’ve yet to sample the pastries, but from the looks of things, I’m DEFINITELY missing out. I am enamored with their paninis though. so So SO good! The bread is fresh and tastes awesome. The focaccia bread! Oh yes please. Yum Yum Yum!
The fresh salads? Give me a pound of bruschetta salad, and I’ll probably eat the whole dang thing. Lots of choice. Lots of flavors. Lots of happiness.
The sandwiches are made to order. The prices are pretty standard fare. The quaint atmosphere really brings a little something extra to the table.
The only thing that brings the rating to 4 stars is the fact that the meat and cheese inside the gargantuan paninis doesn’t get warm enough. I’m really not entirely sure how to combat this, other than to pre-​heat the meat and cheese before placing it on sandwich and pressing it.

Wonderful Italian pastries. I had a chocolate-​covered canolli that was divine. The homemade pasta and foccacia also looked tempting. Definitely will return.

I was really excited when I saw this place. Canoli were good, other baked stuff was good, pizelles were just ok, breakfast was meh.
I think I hyped this place up more in my mind when we discovered it the night before and expectations were set high for breakfast the next morning.
Good pastries if you are in the area. The potato and egg breakfast, I like my potatoes darker and there were not many eggs but the spice was great! Staff was awesome too.

Delicious food, quaint atmosphere, friendly staff. I like this place a lot, but I wish they’d bake on site. Unfortunately, their cookies and cakes are baked elsewhere and brought in, so although they’re very good, the store lacks that unbelievable smell that knocks you over when you walk in the door of a great bakery.

The best! Everything here is authentic and amazing. Best gelato for miles around. Very welcoming and friendly service. A local treasure.

I really wanted to like this place because it’s extremely cute, conveniently located in downtown St. Charles and full of such seemingly yummy treats but unfortunately, I don’t. The Napoleon was good, but my tiramisu was strange to say the least. The top of the treat had a ton of cocoa powder which led to a massive cough-​up-​a-​lung embarrassing hack attack after I believe I almost breathed some in. Also, I think I tasted some lemon cream in there somewhere instead of the mascarpone/​custard-​like spread… am I crazy, or does traditional tiramisu have a lemony taste? Have I been horribly deceived my entire sweets-​lovin’ life into thinking that it should have a mocha flavor? The main reason for me coming in here was because I wanted to try their Tiramisu, since it’s my fave, and I was really bummed that I wasn’t impressed afterwards (mostly, because the Olive Garden’s Tiramisu is 10X better. Sad, I know). I may come back and try their gelato since I’ve heard it’s delicious, but I think if I’m going to splurge on treats a little classier than a box of twinkies, I’ll go to Blue Goose instead. I would have thought that a bakery that seems to be very traditional would cook up a perfect Italian staple, no questions asked.

After more than three months of dieting — and probably many more months to go – I have to say I was nearly moved to tears last night when we stopped in at this bakery… On a Thursday evening, the display cases in this place were BURSTING with all sorts of delicious looking pastries, cookies, biscotti, cakes, gelato.
My God, it was kind of a Willy Wonka moment for me! Thankfully, my ever-​reasonable wife was along, so we settled for a few cookies and a couple of biscotti. The pinolas were outstanding, the almond cookie was great and the $ 20/​pound Amaretto cookie was worth every penny.
The only downside, we weren’t real thrilled with gelato taste we had, but maybe that was because of the sensory overload.
in any event, I’ve redoubled my dieting efforts and I’ll be back to bury my face in some kind of creamy Neapolitan something or other. I promise!

Mi piace il gelato! That’s as far as my limited recollection of high school Italian class will allow me to go in expressing my love for the gelato at this Italian bakery /​gelateria. My daughter and I were wandering past Il Giardino a few weks ago when curiosity pulled us inside. We were soon handed two sample spoons of Snickers gelato and were immediately hooked (classic crack dealer marketing model). Since then, have been back with the family twice, sampling a number of flavors. My favorites are typically in the fruit flavors — the blood orange and a sweet/​tart lime were particularly good. The family goes more into the chocolate end of the spectrum, with equally pleasing results.
As of yet, we have not sampled the bakery, but there was plenty of traffic in front of their large display case this past Saturday, and it at least looked delicious. We were intrigued by the cannoli cake on display — a giant cannoli filled with what looked to be forty or fifty normal sized cannoli, wondering about the sugar coma that might result from trying to take that bad boy down in one sitting.
Friendly staff, great gelato, wide variety of baked goods — well worth a try if you are in the nieghborhood!

Stumbled across this wonderful bakery/​gelatery after it had been there for a year. My brother has been learning Italian for the past 4 years, and he found out he can get the Italian newspaper here. Bonus! :D
AWESOME PLACE! My family loves gelato, and their baked goods are as good as it gets! They are always coming up with new gelato flavors. My favorites are the Limoncello and Chocolate. The Chocolate is made with REAL chocolate, so it’s really rich and has chocolate flecks/​slivers all in it… oooo! So good! You won’t regret it! The cannolis and cakes are also excellent! All in all, if you stop here you will not regret it. In fact, you may make up excuses to come here! :)
The staff there is AWESOME also!!! Always very friendly and willing to assist you, whether it’s getting a taste of the gelato or putting together a box of goodies to take home. I’ve never had a problem getting service pretty much immediately.
The only kinda ‘meh’ side is that the parking is a little challenging. HOWEVER, they ARE built into a parking garage, so you can typically find something. :) It’s really worth the walk from wherever you park :) The walk will help you drop the calories of what you’ve just eaten), one of the TOP best bakeries and gelateries around! So nice to have something this awesome so far into the suburbs.
They also have a location in downtown Chicago. We feel so lucky that they chose St. Charles as their second home!

I tried the tiramisu, which was adequate (way too much cocoa powder on top; not that rich) and a «triangle» layered cake dipped in chocolate. Also had one of the folded-​over pizzas; it was OK. The gelato is good; even the smallest portion size is a bit much as the flavors are very intense. The mango gelato tasted like I expected; the strawberry was good but tasted more like an ice cream.
Pre-​made lasagne available; they also sell ciabatta and some other types of breads in addition to doing sandwiches, Italian cookies, etc.

After going to various Unilocal events and gobbling up their cannolis, I had to go to the bakery itself. Driving around on a Sunday, I was taking a shot that the store would be open and thankfully, they were. I was surrounded by Italian treat goodness. Cannolis, tiramisu, butter cookies and gelato… oh my.
It was complete sugar sensory overload. I didn’t know where to begin. But I played it safe and went with the cannolis and my mom had the tiramisu. Both of our treats were equally delicious. I love the fact that there is a sitting area to enjoy the goodies, just in case you can’t wait to get home. Definitely worth the trip and I’ll be returning, hopefully, soon.

chocolate covered cannoli is delicious. I’m actually eating it as I’m typing this review. mmm.
they have a huge array of cookies and tiny pastries. I was pretty overwhelmed but the staff seemed more than willing to go over the many, many choices with me (even though I rushed in 10 minutes before closing time).
I also had this gingerbread-​ish cookie that was frosted and a shell cookie sandwich deal with some sort of fruity filling. All scrumptious.
they serve illy coffee so I asked for a cup as well. … it wasn’t good, pretty burned and bitter tasting. it’s probably because it was closing-​time coffee so it most likely was sitting on the warmer for a while.
luckily, the deliciousness of the treats easily made up for it. =)

I have been a fan of Il Giardino del Dolce since I was young, growing up near the Chicago location.
The new St. Charles location is just as amazing and delicious as the Chicago location! All the same great pastries, cakes & cookies (my favorite) are here! Easy to get to, convenient parking (next to the new downtown St. Charles parking garage) and awesome atmosphere inside!
I have yet to try a pastry or cookie I did not like! You MUST try the «Horseshoe Sandwich» cookies! Without a doubt, the best cookie I have ever had in my life! Two of their signature horseshoe butter cookies with butter cream in the middle! Mmmmm…
Another recommendation is the Double Chocolate cake! AWESOME!

Sadly, St. Charles recently lost its wonderful downtown British bakery, but I’m pleased to see this new place opening just around the corner. It was hard to choose what to try first – there are dozens of beautifully designed pastries, ten or so flavors of gelato, and many lucious breakfast rolls and breads. Small tables make this a cool place for breakfast or for a midday coffee and «something sweet» break.

This is the new St. Charles version of the Il Giardino on Harlem Ave. in Chicago. unbelievable bakery goods, cookies, fresh bread, gelato, etc. It just opened (May, 2009) and is absolutely outstanding.