Violette Gluten Free Bakery

Ok so this bakery is great. Everything we tried (cookies, cakes and cake-​a-​roons) was delicious. The owner is gluten free and dairy free. She is very knowledgable and they mill their flours on site. I have been gluten free for 15+ years and am very very sensitive to gluten as a result of autoimmune gastritis. Highly recommended to anyone who has to avoid gluten and to others who just like tasty treats.

If Viiolette doesn’t have the best gluten-​free baked goods I’ve ever had, I’m drawing a blank on where I’ve had better. Just amazing stuff.
My husband eats gluten but Violette’s chocolate chip pecan cookies are one of the cookies I’ve seen him most excited about, anywhere. I think the chocolate chip pecan are pretty great but that the chocolate covered peanut butter are in strong competition with them. The fruit brioches are the kind of thing you just don’t get much of without gluten. The orange almond cake is elegant and special (and delicious). Seriously, everything is so good.

the lemon cookies were pasty. Truly gross. I tried several different things none of which tasted fresh. She says they’re best known for their bread. But I’m pretty much of the opinion that everything you sell should taste good! If you can’t make a non-​pasty product then don’t bother. Also super expensive. Well we mill our own flours yada yada yada. I don’t care if you laid the eggs yourself it still has to taste good in order to merit the big price tag. If I want to eat something that is good for me I’ll have some kale.
I got some blueberry bread it was okay. gummy as expected but edible.
Do I have to do everything myself? I guess so… Going to make myself some very tasty Cherry pecan chocolate chunk cookies. Gluten-​free.
I need to get the pasty taste out of my mouth.

I was so looking forward to trying this place and I almost never will post a bad review. However, from service to the actual cake itself, I was very very disappointed.
I had placed an order for a small chocolate flourless cake for pickup on Friday at 2:30pm. I had asked for «Happy Birthday _​_​» to be written on it. I get there right at 2:30pm and the lady says she’s almost ready. However, 5 minutes later the writing is all messed up and I have the choice of a) having no writing at all b) having to wait 15minutes for her to try again… I was driving to NH and couldn’t wait much longer so I asked if just «26» could be written on it. Yes! 5minutes later I’m in the car with the cake.
All would be forgiven if the cake was great, or even good… Unfortunately, when we had it the next day, neither one of us even finished one slice. I have had great flourless cakes before (they’re my favorite!!) and this one was pretty epically bad. I threw out the rest of the cake :(
Hopefully, this is not a typical experience, but I will definitely not be back.

Disorganized, badly decorated, and badly executed. Owner has no business sense. Treats are below average. Service is abysmal. Plenty of better gf options.

Lovely bakery, but this location is now closed. They are opening up a new one — location not yet announced (as of 9÷26÷2014).

Violette Bakery might be my favorite dedicated gluten free spot that I have found. It is fairly new and located right outside Harvard Square in Cambridge and boasts using «fresh, local, organic» ingredients. Although I’ve only ever enjoyed Violette Bakery at their basement level café, they also are seen at farmer’s markets around the area. Like some of the other allergy friendly bakeries, they also offer many dairy free and vegan desserts and baked goods as well. They also do not use refined sugars in any of their items! This place is definitely safe for the most sensitive of celiacs and gluten intolerances.
One of my favorite things about Violette Bakery is their variety of goods and treats. Although they have many chocolaty and rich desserts (like their locally famous cakerons and cupcakes), many of their items are lighter treats. If you like fruit flavors, try the orange almond cake, the lemon-​blueberry almond cake (personal favorite!), or the berry crumb bars. If you’re in the mood for something more savory, they offer empanadas (tasted great when I heated it up later in the day), quiche, and soups.
They also have a wide variety of breads available which seemed to be made with a blend of gluten free flours. I especially loved the vegan english muffins which come in a 4 pack that I used throughout the week. I noticed that the bakery offers cooking classes you can sign up for– one of them being a milling and mixing gluten free grains class. Although I have never tried a class I would definitely be interested in learning how to mix different flour sources and utilize these baking strategies into some of my favorite recipes.
They serve coffee with alternative milk choices which is always nice, even coconut milk! You can buy or order cakes for special occasions too. I could ramble on about Violette Bakery but really you should head down to Harvard Sq and help a local company out while enjoying some top-​notch gluten free goodies!

I had high expectations after reading all these great Unilocal reviews, and was pretty disappointed with what I got — a vanilla cupcake with basil buttercream frosting. The cupcake itself was pretty good, if not particularly notable, but the frosting was bizarre and frankly, gross.
Before GF became so trendy, I would have said this was pretty decent for gluten free; but these days you can find much yummier GF baked goods elsewhere. I would skip this place and head to Sweet in nearby Harvard Square instead — they now sell gluten-​free cupcakes from Glutenus Minimus that are literally to die for.

My mom called Violette Bakery and ordered an amazing gluten-​free, dairy-​free chocolate nutella cake for my birthday all the way from California. I picked it up last minute on my bike, not thinking about what a delicately crafted, painstakingly decorate work of art this confection would end up being. I mean, we’re talking hand-​candied violet petals and meticulously piped dark chocolate frosting with my name on it!
The owner kindly offered to drop the cake off at my house (!!) and gave me a vegan, gluten-​free chocolate walnut bread for my birthday too. Ended up biking it home because I was in a bit of a rush, but the cake made it back to my pad in prime condition and the first slice was unbelievable! Rich dark chocolate frosting, fluffy cake, and homemade nutella filling. So impressed with both the level of customer service and the baked goods that Violette Bakery is lovingly producing.

I went in here recently with a friend of mine who can eat absolutely anything (and does). We were headed somewhere together, and I asked her to accompany me as I «ran some errands.» This, hardly an errand at all, happened to be one of my stops along the journey. My friend had a few samples, and she really enjoyed them. She even asked if they sold cookbooks, because of how much she enjoyed their samples.
I am not usually a big fan of gluten-​free treats, because they taste gluten-​free. The only gluten-​free pastry that I ever enjoyed was the short-​lived Starbucks Valencia Orange cake (you fad-​dieters missed out). Besides, they’re loaded with unnatural ingredients and more sugar than any human should consume in a single sitting.
I bought the almond chocolate cake (dairy free too!!) and it was very, very good. Full disclosure: I hate chocolate in pastries. I never enjoyed chocolate cupcakes, chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies. Although I didn’t love the cake, I enjoyed the sample enough to buy a full slice, which I ate quickly. It was delicious. I also had a sample of a delicious cupcake: vanilla with vanilla (?) frosting. It was pretty good. I know I limit my palate by not eating chocolate, but I have a right to *some* level of choice, even with food allergies and intolerances. The non-​chocolatey options were very good. My gluten-​full friend had a sample of something with homemade nutella, and she absolutely loved it.
So, obviously, there are a lot of sugary treats here, but it’s not Violette’s Natural Foods Store; it’s Violette’s Gluten Free Bakery. I’m impressed by their ability to find their niche market and their ability to find such an appropriate location for a gluten-​free bakery. I don’t know how profitable it is, but I’m willing to bet they went into the business thinking about the desperate need for a space like this one.
It was the least anxiety-​provoking experience re: food that I have had in the last 8 or so years. I’m sure gluten-​full foods taste different, but I’m not looking to replicate something I know I can’t have. I’m looking to be a celiac who gets to be happy eating, no matter where she goes.
Of course it opened up in Cambridge first… OF COURSE; I expect nothing less from the crunchy-​granola-​bar people I happen to call neighbors. I bet all the fad dieters are happy, too. Keep buying, you guys, because your money helps keep businesses like this open for people like me. I mean, it would be cool if you enjoyed eating it too.

So expensive but so good. It’s in the cut though which kind of freaks me out but the nutella brownie made up for it. I felt like I was resurrected after eating it on a day of walking for 10+ miles.

I’m no expert in gluten free baked goods, but compared to regular pastries these were delicious. I will definitely return to get some for myself and friends.
The only con was the layout/​location. This place is a little awkward to find and enter (it’s below ground and there are two doors one must traverse to actually get inside).
The layout also isn’t conducive for work or studying (although they do provide wi-​fi) and the display table with all the pastries, has no clearly defined cash register I. e beginning or end to the line.

My wife and I are quite perplexed by the high ratings this place has received. We had a pretty sub-​par experience there a few weeks ago. From the staff to the execution, we left the place pretty annoyed and regretting our decision to set foot in this place to begin with.
We went there on a weekday, in the middle of the afternoon after finding street parking a block or two away and walked over. It took us a second to find the entrance, which happens to be below street level, under a yoga studio. We proceeded inside and found a fairly busy place. They were a few people scattered in front of the counter and a few other sitting at various tables by the window.
We proceeded to get into what seemed like a line but quickly realized that there isn’t such a thing there. It’s complete chaos, and there’s a complete lack of organization from the staff. They were overwhelmed, slow and not all that friendly. There was only one woman behind the counter, and there were about 5 – 6 people in front of us. It took nearly 25 minutes for us to be able to finally get to select our treats.
Speaking of treats, their disorganized counter also has a self-​serve portion where they’ll have the patrons to stick their hands into the various glass cake domes to select our treats. Not very sanitary all things considered…
While we were waiting for our turn in the incredibly slow line, another staff member was pulling one of those wheeled carts and rammed it right into me. They came from behind me and pretty much never said ‘excuse me’ or anything else and just decided to sneak up and I’m guessing assumed I was going to move over even though I had no idea where they were going or that they were behind me. I almost fell over and heard no apology. This almost happened again a few minutes later, but they, this time around, muttered a ‘coming through’ sentence which was barely audible. I was baffled…
Eventually our turn came, and the very slow, nonchalant and unapologetic staff member took care of my wife’s order. We asked for recommendations and when asked if they had anything that they were famous for or that would be a highlight the said that ‘everything was good’. How helpful. We settled on getting 4 – 5 items including a congo bar, a couple of cupcakes and a few other things and paid.
The layout of the counter, which is awkwardly packed with items, makes it very hard to easily dodge people and pay, while trying not to knock over anything. We eventually managed and left. Upon getting to the car, we broke open our box and tried a couple of things and saved the rest for later. Everything we had was very forgettable and borderline dry. We were far from impressed and liked the items over at Glutenus Minimus in Belmont much better. We would be hard pressed to return here as the quality of the customer service and the baked good were both very underwhelming. Especially the former. A bad experience overall.

Oh, I was so happy to find this little place. It is a nice treat every once and awhile but you should prepare yourself for some SUGAR! The desserts are very, very sweet. I really like the snickerdoodle and would probably get one again the next time I visit. Give it a try! Make your own opinion.

I almost feel guilty about taking these delicious treats away from people who really can’t eat gluten.
But I don’t. The raspberry squares and curry empanadas are too good to let go.
Full ingredient lists on everything. And the help really is helpful, even if they’re not speedy.

Delicious treats. Cookies. Cupcakes. Cake. Cake pops. Brownies. You know.
No gluten.
I was a little surprised that some reviewers complained about the speed of service. This isn’t your morning coffee, it’s GF baked goods. If you’re buying treats and your biggest concern is that you have to wait five minutes, well…

1001 mass ave is the new address FYI. Delicious gluten free baked goods. My favorite was the dairy free gluten free orange almond cake with chocolate on the outside. Also got a cupcake, cake pops and pumpkin cake… had to stock up. Will be going back here frequently! Glad I found a good GF bakery.

This place is wonderful, but growing, and growing means learning. Much of the food is delicious — the brioche is buttery and soft, the cookies always lovely (albeit a bit fragile).
I was convinced one day to buy a cupcake, being promised that it would be the best cupcake I’ve ever had. You should never make that promise, it wasn’t. The macaron are also far too large and cakey for macaron. They’re beautiful and truly GF, which is nice, but I’m a diehard so I’m picky.
Their service is what needs a bit of help — it takes FOREVER to get anything in their store, and not necessarily because you’re chatting pleasantly with them (that happens sometimes, other times not), but because people are still learning how to put things in bags and box (and when you put things in a box, don’t then put it sideways in a bag — it breaks all the cookies).
they’re growing and learning but the bulk of their products are good, and they’re open to adding other things to their store (e.g. fresh GF pasta). If we could just sharpen up the flighty service, that would be awesome.

I have two friends with celiac and just got diagnosed with a gluten intolerance myself. This bakery is so good, I could weep tears of joy. Everything I’ve tried has been unbelievable: spice cookies, chocolate chip cookies, macarons, tarts, even a lemon blueberry tea bread I brought to a brunch. No one could believe it was gluten-​free!
Violette is not in the farmer’s markets as much since they opened a storefront, but I’m so happy there is a place now to find them most days of the week. They are not just «good for gluten-​free» but hands-​down AMAZING. Thank you, Violette!

as of August 1, 2013 there is a store located at 1001 Mass Ave in Cambridge. Wondrous breads and other gluten free treats in a dedicated gluten/​peanut/​soy free facility. not only is everything made fresh but she doesnt use preservatives and uses less sugar in her products making all other gluten free treats pale in comparison. I had the teff bread, english muffins and an empanada