The Bread Essentials

I’ve shopped at The Bread Essentials for years now, but last weekend they prepared ALL of the food for my 50th birthday celebration. They were so flexible, when I realized a few friends were vegan, they added some goodies for them. I was the only celiac - everyone expected cardboard, styrofoam, the jokes were endless. At the end of the afternoon, all of the custard tarts, cake, spanakopita, croissants, pogo sticks, the list goes on, were gone. Clearly for the non celiac, gluten free can be fabulous! I can’t say enough about how they contributed to a really straightforward experience (and hey, I’m 50 now too!).

My husband has food sensitivities including no wheat, no dairy, no preservatives and no/low sugar. This place is perfect and met his needs with great tasting baked goods. I tried the brownie and the zucchini muffins - VERY good. We will definitely be back!

I’m going to share my reviews of the individual products I purchased.Vegan Patty- 4/5 delicious but a bit dryWontons-5/5 for taste but 3/5 overall since they had hardly any filling in them. I don’t know if this was made by the bakery or another company however.Muffins- 3.5/5 They were decent but not worth the price imo.Croissants- 5/5 absolutely delicious especially the chocolate one. Definitely recommend, however they want you to buy 6 of them apparently so that's something to keep in mind.Vegan butter tart- 2/5 the pastry was not that flaky texture of a butter tart. The taste was overly sweet. The filling didn't have the texture of a butter tart. It had oats in it, and the sugar wasn't melted down so it was I was biting down on pieces of sugar.Update for bakery-I found the pastry itself dry on the patty. The muffins were carrot & pumpkin chocolate chip.

I have never seen a gluten free bakery/specialty store with such variety or quality. I was incredibly impressed by the many dinner/lunch options and absolutely blown away by their pastries. I can’t tell you the last time I had a true gluten free pastry that wasn’t a very basic cupcake or macaron. My husband, who is not gluten free, said he could not tell the difference between their pastry items and what he would get at a French patisserie. I can’t wait to go back and try more!

BEST gluten free bakery in the city.GREAT HUGE SELECTION!People who are criticizing don't even mention the gluten free aspect and that makes their critiques suspect. I loved finding delicious freshly baked gluten free:- Spanakopita (Vegan too),- BEEF Patties- Chicken Patties- Tarts- Bread- Tourtière- Pies- Butter tartsThe pastries are flaky and wonderful, the whole family loves them. Everything is perfect for sending with kids to school for lunch.The grocery selection is amazing, varied, and high quality. We loved the steak pies, cabbage rolls, chicken fingers, quiches, so far.There's a huge variety of pastas, jams and sauces that have also been a hit with our gluten free family.Thank you to this bakery and store for being so wonderful!

Excellent variety of products, fresh and frozen. Only complaint is fresh baked goods are quite pricey. Some items not the best (ie. a bit dry or hard) the cinnamon roll I had last week would not get again. However, some items are stand out like their muffins, I appreciate the no sugar banana bread, and, of course their breads ($10 a loaf ish)

I’ve been gluten free since long before it was cool, so I have very high standards for gluten free bakeries, and I almost never leave reviews. The spanakopita is amazing, it blows my mind I can have that fresh at lunch. The selection is incredible, and prices are more than fair. The service is personal and friendly. Highly recommended!!

Overpriced, low quality sourdough bread! 11$ for a small loaf of bread which is not cooked properly! The dough is wet and somewhat raw! Would never buy again.

I didn't know it was humanly possible to make gluten free baked this good. This is by one of my favorite gluten free bakeries. Wow this place is next level. Thank you for allowing my gluten free soul to enjoy the beauty of baked good with peace in my stomach. Bless you and thank you.

Absolutely delicious gluten free baked products....nut free also...breads baguettes buns and galettes gotta come back for doughnuts butter tarts and brownies next time. Such knowledgeable and friendly staff and owner... always a pleasure.