Sept. 13 was a big day in the lives of queer couple Katrina and Mharloe Requiron.
That was the day they brought their dreams to life by opening Crumbs.nd.Creams, a Filipino bakery at 4825 N. Pulaski Rd. that offers silvanas/sylvanas—sandwich cookies that are essentially meringue wafers filled with buttercream.
“I was extremely nervous,” said Mharloe (he/him).
But thanks to the following the the couple had built locally for themselves in recent years, not to mention the quality of the their products, there was no reason to be nervous that day. Mharloe said, “There was a line out the door and down the block.”
Mharloe himself had never tried the Filipino treats until Katrina (she/her) made them one day. From there, it was a love affair with the treats, although Mharloe would be the first to admit that making sylvanas “can sometimes be tedious because it’s such a process,” with everything from constructing the items to freezing them. But the passion outweighs the tedium, with Mharloe saying, “I can’t imagine someone being crazy enough to do something they don’t love.”
The silvanas are practically addictive. And they come in at least 11 flavors, including butter pecan (Mharloe’s favorite), blueberry, mocha, matcha, buko pandan and ube/purple yam (which has a taste reminiscent of cereal milk). Moreover, there are seasonal offerings, such as pumpkin, apple, for now; and maybe eggnog and peppermint for Christmas. And if that’s not enough, Crumbs.nd.Creams (which got the name after it turned out someone else already owned “Crumbs and Creams”) also sells flan, in traditional and ube/purple yam varieties.
However, the couple said that the treats might be tricky to store, primarily during the summer. “When it’s hot, it’s harder to keep them on the way home,” Mharloe shared, adding that they had to get a transparent cooler for summertime pop-ups and displays. “But when you get home, just be sure to put them in the refrigerator if you don’t want them as crunchy or the freezer if you like them really crunchy.”
And the Requirons believe in helping whoever they can. That extends to even displaying a book such as Modern Asian Baking, which doesn’t feature their sylvanas—although maybe the treats will be featured in a subsequent work. They also believe in helping various causes, ranging from those connected with women to those involving Alzheimer’s disease, which has affected the family.
“We want to show that there’s more to Filipino cuisine than the traditional items, like halo halo,” Katrina said. “There are so many people who haven’t tried silvanas.” And the couple would like to expand to at least one Chicago suburb as well as another city, “like New York City or Los Angeles.”
One thing is for sure: Wherever Crumbs.nd.Creamsgoes, there will be two groups of people: those who will be reminded of their childhood and those who haven’t tried silvanas—but will love them.
Despite the success the couple and their employees have seen—including everything fromsteady streams of customers to television appearances—the Requirons remain humble and grateful. “We are so thankful for all our customers, including our LGBTQ customers,” said Katrina. “Everybody’s welcome here.”