Budapest Bakeshop​ · Brand Story
Meet the Founders:
Todd & Anett Kane
There’s a moment that happens to almost everyone who walks into a Budapest Bakeshop for the first time. They watch the dough being hand-rolled and wrapped around a dowel. They see the cakes slowly turning in the oven, the outside crisping into a deep golden crust.
And then they take a bite. And they stop.
Whatever they were about to say, whatever they were thinking about, it can wait.
That moment is not an accident. It is the result of years of work, a 300-year-old tradition taken seriously, and two people who refused to cut corners on something they believed in completely.
This is the story of how Budapest Bakeshop came to be, and why it keeps selling out everywhere it opens.
ANETT DIDN’T DISCOVER CHIMNEY CAKES. SHE GREW UP ON THEM.
Anett Kane grew up in Hungary, where chimney cakes aren’t a novelty or a special occasion treat. They’re just part of life. Known as kürtőskalács, they’ve been baked in Hungary for over 300 years. You find them at holiday markets and street festivals and corner stalls. You grow up knowing your favourite spot, your favourite flavour, the specific smell of the sugar catching on the heat as you walk by.
For Anett, chimney cake wasn’t something she discovered. It was something she carried with her. When she moved to North America, she brought those memories along. But the taste of home wasn’t something you could find here. Not the real thing. Not made the way she remembered it.
She knew what it was supposed to feel like. And she knew it wasn’t here yet.
TODD KNEW THE POTENTIAL THIS HAD FROM THE START.
Todd Kane didn’t grow up with chimney cakes. He came to them the same way most people in North America do, with no context and no expectation. He tasted one and understood immediately what Anett had been talking about.
This wasn’t just a family recipe worth keeping. It was something worth building.
“Niagara-on-the-Lake felt like the right place from the start,” Todd has said. “It’s a town that appreciates craftsmanship, slowing down, and things made with care. That’s exactly what we wanted Budapest Bakeshop to be.”
Together, they decided to prove it.
 BUILT TOGETHER. BAKED FROM SCRATCH. EVERY DAY.
Budapest Bakeshop was founded in 2019 by Anett and Todd Kane in historic Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. From the beginning, the standard was simple: make everything from scratch, by hand, the traditional way. No shortcuts. No day-old pastries. No compromises on the process that makes chimney cake what it is.
The dough is hand-rolled and wrapped around a dowel. Each cake turns slowly in the oven until the outside reaches that perfect golden crust. Every chimney cake is finished fresh, to order, while you wait.
That’s not a marketing line. That’s just how they do it. Every single day. But Anett and Todd didn’t stop at tradition. They built on it.
First came their proprietary homemade cheesecake icing, transforming the sweet chimney into something distinctly Budapest Bakeshop. Not fusion. Not a shortcut. An evolution of something that was already great.
Then came the breakthrough nobody else had tried: the world’s first savoury chimney sandwich. Warm, crispy chimney cake wrapped around savoury fillings. The same 300-year-old Hungarian dough, taken somewhere it had never been. She knew the dough. He knew what it could handle. Turns out it could handle a lot more than anyone had tried.
THE RECOGNITION FOLLOWED.
When you do something right and keep doing it right, people notice.
Budapest Bakeshop has been voted #1 Bakery and #1 Quick Bites on TripAdvisor for Niagara-on-the-Lake, earning the Award of Excellence. They have taken home the Niagara Readers’ Choice award five consecutive years running: 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.
That’s not luck. That’s what happens when a business refuses to let its standards slip as it grows.
A FAMILY LEGACY.
Todd and Anett’s daughters have never known a life without this bakery. From the very first shop in Niagara-on-the-Lake through every chapter since, they’ve been part of it. The long days, the busy seasons, the grand openings, and all the in-between moments that don’t make it into any highlight reel.
This isn’t just Anett and Todd’s life’s work. It’s what their family is made of.
PORT DALHOUSIE: THE NATURAL NEXT STEP.
When Budapest Bakeshop expanded to Port Dalhousie, it wasn’t a calculated market move. It was a natural one.
“NOTL showed us what this brand could be,” Todd and Anett have said. “Port Dalhousie felt like the community that deserved it next. Same craft, same care, new home.”
Port Dalhousie is a town that slows down, takes pride in what it buys, and shows up for the things worth showing up for. Same kitchen standards. Same team. Same obsession with getting it right.
The response was the same as Niagara-on-the-Lake. Lines before doors opened. Sold out from day one. A new community finding something they didn’t know they’d been missing.Â
 WHAT HAPPENS WHEN SOMEONE TASTES THIS FOR THE FIRST TIME.
Every single location. Every single time. The first few locations didn’t just open, they exploded.
Families discovered chimney cakes, then came back the next day for the sandwiches, amazed that the same dough could deliver something so completely different. They turned Budapest Bakeshop into their new tradition. Sunday mornings for sweet. Weekday lunches for savoury. Celebrations for both.
That is what happens when someone tastes this for the first time. The look on their face. The pause mid-conversation. The immediate need to tell someone else about it.
It’s the kind of thing you don’t forget.
GROWING ACROSS NORTH AMERICA, WITHOUT LOSING WHAT MAKES IT SPECIAL.
The idea was always simple: keep it that way.
Bring a 300-year-old Hungarian tradition to more people. Make everything from scratch. Never cut corners. Stay a family operation no matter how big it gets.
As Budapest Bakeshop grows across North America, that hasn’t changed. Every location opens the same way the first one did. Fresh dough, a family behind the counter, and people tasting something for the very first time.
The franchisees Todd and Anett choose reflect that. People who are already connected to the communities they’re opening in. People who believed in the product before they ever signed anything. People who understand that 300 years of tradition and pushing boundaries aren’t opposites.
Every location has had lines out the door before it even unlocked. The demand doesn’t wait. And it keeps showing up because the quality does too.
From Us, to You
The promise.
When you hold a chimney cake from Budapest Bakeshop, whether it’s a sweet one finished with our signature icing or a Famous Savoury Chimney Sandwich still warm from the oven, you’re holding more than a pastry. You’re holding Anett’s childhood memories reimagined. You’re holding 300 years of Hungarian baking wisdom, honoured and evolved, made fresh just for you.
You’re holding a tradition that dared to become something more.
One chimney cake at a time. Sweet or savoury. Traditional or revolutionary. Made to order. Always both.
_____________________
Find your nearest location and taste it for yourself.
Or if you’ve already been, you know someone who needs to go. Bring them.
With love, or as they say in Hungary: szeretettel.
Bring Budapest Bakeshop to Your City
Bring this to your community.
We’re franchising and starting small, on purpose.
We’re looking for partners who get it. People who refuse to cut corners on craft. People who understand that 300 years of tradition and pushing boundaries aren’t opposites.
This isn’t just a business opportunity. It’s the only chimney cake franchise doing what we do.
Recognized. Repeatedly.
Voted #1 by locals and visitors alike — five years running
FAQ
Everything you want to know before you visit
What is a chimney cake?
A chimney cake is a traditional Hungarian pastry called Kürtőskalács, made by wrapping hand-rolled dough around a cylindrical dowel and baking it until the outside caramelizes to golden perfection while the inside stays soft and layered. Budapest Bakeshop makes them fresh daily in small batches using authentic Hungarian techniques refined over 300 years.
What is a savoury chimney sandwich?
The Savoury Chimney Sandwich is Budapest Bakeshop’s signature invention and the world’s first. It takes the same hand-rolled, freshly baked chimney cake dough and fills it with bold savoury ingredients like Hungarian sausage and aged cheddar. Warm, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and completely unlike anything else in North America.
What flavours does Budapest Bakeshop have?
Budapest Bakeshop offers both sweet and savoury chimney cakes. Permanent sweet staples include Cinnamon Sugar and Nutella Walnut. On the savoury side, the Classic Aged Cheddar Chimney Sandwich is always available. Seasonal specials rotate regularly so there is always something new to try.
Are Budapest Bakeshop chimney cakes made fresh daily?
Does Budapest Bakeshop sell out?
Can I order Budapest Bakeshop online?
Yes. Budapest Bakeshop accepts online orders. Visit our website or call your nearest location to place an order. Online ordering is especially recommended during peak season when we sell out regularly.
Does Budapest Bakeshop offer catering?
Does Budapest Bakeshop have gift cards?
Who founded Budapest Bakeshop?
Budapest Bakeshop was founded by Todd and Anett Kane. Anett grew up in Hungary where chimney cakes were part of everyday life at holiday markets and celebrations. After moving to North America, she and Todd built Budapest Bakeshop to bring authentic Hungarian chimney cakes to North American communities, with Anett developing all recipes entirely from scratch. The first location opened in 2019 in Niagara on the Lake, Ontario.
Is Budapest Bakeshop a franchise?
Yes. Budapest Bakeshop is now franchising across the United States, Canada, and select international markets. It is a founder-led brand built on authentic recipes, proprietary systems, and a commitment to quality over rapid expansion. Visit our Franchise page to learn more about bringing Budapest Bakeshop to your community.
Authentic Hungarian chimney cakes. Home of the world's first savoury chimney sandwich. Hand-rolled, baked fresh daily. Franchising across North America.
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