Erin McKenna’s Bakery

Who would’ve known that I would fall completely and totally in love with a vegan and gluten bakery!!!
My friend recently switched to a gluten and dairy free diet — we were on the search for desserts she could eat and stumbled upon this place on Unilocal.Upon getting there, we weren’t too impressed. The desserts looked glazed over, stale, and not very mouthwatering. But we decided to give it a try anyway and boy we were proven SO wrong!
/​/​BROWNIE (⁵⁄₅): More of a dense cupcake than a brownie but it was amazing all the same… I can’t believe they don’t use dairy in it because it was so milky with a strong taste of slightly bittersweet cacao. There were little chocolate chips inside that really completed the experience.
/​/​CHOCOLATE GLAZED DONUT (⁴⁄₅): The actual dough of the donut was just okay, but the chocolate glaze was something else… So dense and packed with flavor, it felt like nutella+dark chocolate +donut glaze. I liked how dense the donut is — definitely no air holes and it doesn’t disappear in 5 seconds like Krispy Crème.
/​/​CINNAMON DONUT (⁴⁄₅): This is a hard one for me because I don’t like cinnamon. But my friend seemed to really enjoy it. Less dense than the others but I would say the dough was better than that for the chocolate glazed donut.
/​/​ICED LEMON TEA CAKE (⁵⁄₅): This one was definitely the winner — it’s expensive for one slice of cake but it’s packed with tons of flavor and not overwhelmingly sugary.
Overall I’m extremely happy with this place. Even though it’s expensive, the desserts are actually pretty filling and worth the splurge once in awhile! I’m nowhere close to vegan, gluten free, or dairy free but I will be coming back here again.

Yay for a gluten free and vegan bakery!
Walk-​in and you’ll get a whiff smell of sweetness. Does the mind play on the sweetness cos the interior is pink? Maybe so. Guess it depends on how sensitive your senses are to sugar.
There’s an entire display of all their baked goods, from donuts, cupcakes to a small amount of savory goods.
As an ice-​cream /​gelato lover, I opted for the soft-​serve. I ordered the vanilla soft serve topped with donut crumbs @$ 4.95.
Vanilla soft serve is smooth and made from coconut milk. Flavour is neutral — not stronger in coconut nor vanilla flavour. Coconut crumbs are baked and soft, like cake. Their sweetness overpowers the flavour of the entire dessert into sugar-​tasting sweet.
Overall, sweet, smooth, soft and crumbly.

Omg dairy free, gluten free, yolk free! Vegan desserts that taste awesome! Thin mints $ 1.75, cookie sandwiches $ 5.25, cupcakes, donuts, coffee cakes etc. So many choices!
I feel like a normal being able to eat desserts like everyone else without getting sick. Dairy gives me fevers, yolk makes gives me stomach aches and makes me tired, gluten makes me tired and bloated… basically all lowers my immunity and makes me feel horribly sick. Tk you McKenna!
Parking in larchmont area can get difficult, but it’s mostly meter parking spots or a lot.

Came here to buy dessert for a dinner party and we hit the Celiac’s jackpot! They have a wide variety to offer and everything is gluten-​free. We bought an assortment and even the non-​gluten free folks were genuinely impressed.
I will now make it my mission in life to try everything this place makes.
As I write this, I’m craving their incredible thin-​mint cookie. Yes, we celiacs can enjoy the best Girl Scout cookie once again thanks to this wonderful place; Their re-​creation is an absolute slam dunk. I wonder if it will stay my favorite as I work my way through their menu.
If you’re gluten-​free and you haven’t eaten here yet, you owe it to yourself to go sooner rather than later.
Five very enthusiastic stars!

Late post: The husb and I tried their pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving and they were so delicious! You could not even tell the crust was gluten-​free. Initially, I was hesitant to buy them because they are not cheap, but it was completely worth the price… we will definitely be back here for Christmas. And as usual the customer service was on point.

I am a gluten-​free vegan and long-​time fan of Erin McKenna’s (formerly known as Babycakes). Baked goods here are incredible, and the bakery itself is charming. Consider a stroll around Larchmont with a coffee and pastry. My birthdays are always well-​celebrated with an assortment of cakes, cupcakes, and cookies. This past Thanksliving, I ordered apple pie and corn bread (both were phenomenal). I have yet to try bagels and breads, but look forward to doing so soon.
Note that nothing here tastes gluten-​free or vegan. Great if you’re bringing dessert to an omnivorous dinner and want to represent cruelty-​free options.
Thanks so much for making a reliable source of gluten-​free and vegan treats!

How do U speLL GLuten-​Free «GF» Bakery Goddess? ERIN McKenna’s BAKERY!
The artist formerLy known as Baby Cakes NYC captivated the JOYfuL3 paLets during our annuaL visit to AnimaL Kingdom in OrLando, FLorida (November ’14) where we were mesmerized by the GLuten-​Free Cinnamon + ChocoLate Donuts by Erin McKenna’s Bakery.
Fast-​Forward: On four separate occasions, my 2-​Heartbeats + I had the deLicious pLeasure of sinking our teeth into GLuten-​Free Yumminess during our JOYfuL3 CaLi adventure this past June ’15. So, without faiL, I had to return twice during my October ’15 birthDAY ceLebration to recapture the Savory Ooh’s + Aah’s!
EVERYthang is DeLicious, however, our favorites iLLuminate the SoLar System:
1. PLain BageLs
2. EVERYthang BageLs (Caraway Seeds. GarLic. Onions. Poppy Seeds. SaLt + Pepper)
3. Coconut Donuts
4. Iced Lemon Tea Cakes
5. Brownies (ReguLar) or «U» can Choose Agave FiLLed
Don’t Hesitate 2 Participate + CeLebrate aLL Thangs GLuten-​FREE 4 «U» + Meeeeee!

After a less than stellar experience with Babycakes Bakery three years ago, I decided to give Babycakes created Erin McKenna a second chance at the newly branded shop. I’m glad I did, because I was pleasantly surprised.
Knowledgable staff with an attentive attitude. Endless variety made it hard to choose one, so I chose four. A bit on the oily side, but delicious nonetheless.

Larchmont Village, Los Angeles, CA: moist!
The sign says Erin McKenna’s BAKERY! The young staff member at «Crumbs» up the street referred me here when I had stopped to see if he had any gluten free products. Erin McKenna is the author of the cookbook, BABYCAKES, offering delicious, mostly gluten free, vegan, and no refined sugar recipes for baked goodies.
The cookies, cupcakes, and dessert breads all looked quite delicious. Trying to keep as much as possible to a gluten free diet by choice, yet have a baked treat, and watch our sugar intake, we settled on sharing a slice of banana bread sweetened with agave low glycemic sweetener. One bite, and WOW! Ms. McKenna sought moistness when she was seeking recipes for gluten free products and WOW! If all her products are as moist as this slice of crunchy crusted, tasty moist, tender banana bread, I need to get her recipe book, AND make a few return trips back to her LA bakery. That banana bread tasted better than a gluten ladened slice!
Parking can be a challenge on Larchmont. There is plenty of street parking in the surrounding residential neighborhood, but do watch for any time restrictions.

I come here too often. When I discovered this VEGAN GLUTEN FREE AND SOMETIMES SOY FREE OR SUGAR FREE I obviously came way too often and probably gained a few pounds BUT worth it. Still my favorite allergy friendly bakery in Los Angeles.
My favorites:
–crumb cake (they have it as a special but they have had it a lot recently)
–everything bagel heated with Onion cream cheese
–cookie sandwich OR what I like to do is get 1 chocolate chip cookie and a frosting «shot» and spread the frosting on myself –it is half the cookies so half the price and half the calories!
–cake toppers or cake tips, inexpensive and just enough cupcake to satisfy your craving.

I had been craving doughnuts for quite a while when a friend told me about this bakery. I stopped by on a Saturday morning and purchased a sugar and a coffee crunch doughnut. Now, although the staff was not particularly friendly, the doughnuts were absolutely delicious!
Too many vegan doughnuts that I have tried have been dry or crumbly, but these were perfect! I would definitely come back.
The doughnuts are about $ 4 each and the other sweets fall some place close to that price range.

I ordered a birthday cake from Erin McKenna’s for my friend who is gluten and dairy intolerant. From our first conversation on the phone to the time I picked it up, all staff members were extremely friendly, helpful and I never felt pressured. Also good to note, sometimes you get that certain aloofness at healthier food option restaurants… never felt that for a second here.
The cake I ordered was a 6 inch brownie chocolate on the inside and vanilla on the outside with a birthday message. It cost $ 54, which in the world of custom made birthday cakes is actually a decent deal. The male employee talked me into getting the brownie cake, as he said that people typically like it better than their normal chocolate. GREAT recommendation. I am sitting here writing this Unilocal review, savoring the last remnants of the leftover cake in a Gladware container from the weekend. Holy smokes it was so good. Not like normal glutenous cake… different…but still delicious. It almost has a fudge consistency.
Also important were the instructions to keep the cake cold. Apparently you’ll have a sad cake if it gets warm, so special attention was paid to keeping this babycake cool from here to Palm Springs.
All in all, would most definitely order desserts here again and would recommend to all friends, glutenphobes or not!

Everything is Gluten free and Vegan.
I got a lemon cupcake (was super good just the sprinkles on it were sort of unpleasant and hard to bite, I’d prefer a different topping)
Also got the brownie vanilla and brownie coffee. And the coffee was so good.
I can’t wait to go back.

I love this cute little bakery, the service was exceptional.
Small selection of vegan, gluten free, sugar free, «healthy» desserts.
While I appreciate that this is offered for those who need to want to improve their diet, I did think their goodies were better than most other places like this, it still tasted no where as good as the real thing.
Prices are pretty high, but given all of the special ingredients they have to buy, I think the prices are worth it.
The desserts don’t look quite as pretty as regular sugar laden ones, but again if you cannot eat sugar or gluten this is a great substitution and well appreciated!
Genius idea, I wish them nothing but the best!

So I really wanted to go to salt and straw but the line was outrageous so I ended up going here… cuz there was NO LINE. I’m not sure if that was a good thing but at that moment in time, no line sounded good to me.
So being on a gluten-​free diet, I was a bit hesitant that I would find something but to my surprise, the guy at the counter told me all their items are gluten-​free.
I ended up getting the brownie cupcake with coffee frosting and it was put in a brown box. They also told me that if I was not going to eat it soon, I should go home and put it in the fridge.
Compared to non-​gluten free desserts, yes… I can taste the difference… and it is not AS delicious. But while on this diet… it is nice to know that I live in a time where I have options. And it’s another plus that I am not restricted to a few GF items like most other places.
If you are on GF diet, and have a sweet tooth, this is a great place to check out.

***VEGAN and GLUTEN-​FREE TREATS*** Cupcakes n donuts Larchmont, L.A.
I cannot give a fair review for this place because it used to be the famous Babycakes NYC but it’s changed to Erin McKenna’s. Why?! I have a very difficult time trying to remember the name of this bakery. Luckily for Unilocal, I just Unilocal Vegan cupcakes to find it again. They probably changed owner but could you have picked a more easier name to remember? Like VEGAN YUMMY TREATS or something. Anyhoo, everything is vegan and gluten-​free. At least it was when I last went but since the name change, I think some things are different. So I’ll have to go back and check it out again. This place is located right next to SALT n STRAW. So definitely worth coming out this way.
But everything is vegan. So don’t expect to compare it to non-​vegan treats plus it’s gluten-​free. I was shockingly surprised that I actually liked the donuts and cupcakes. It is pretty pricey though. Average $ 5 but worth it if you have allergies to foods or if you’re vegan. I’d go for the cupcake toppers. They are cheaper and you get the top of the cupcakes and less cake. Normally, I don’t like cupcake frosting. Lots of cupcake places like Sprinkles put a ton of frosting and I don’t care for it too much. Hapa Cupcakes in Fullerton puts way less frosting and it’s just enough to make the cupcake taste yummy. The donuts here are pretty good. But again, I’d have to come back to give an update. They do use high quality ingredients here which is good. I am definitely coming back here to check out any changes since the name change, plus Salt n Straw is next door. :)
Thanks for reading!
~*kenzie*~
P. S. Parking is not great. But they do have meters and lots nearby. Expect to circle around for parking.

Super disappointed :(I have been dying to try this place for years, since back before it changed name. I have been diagnosed celiac for about 4 years now, and was so excited to go to a bakery and be able to order absolutely anything!
When I walked in, they had tons of different options, and I was super excited. Everything is gluten free and vegan. They had about ten different donut flavors, quite a few cupcakes, some biscuits, scones, cornbread and breads, bagels… All gluten free and vegan, and some sweetened only with agave.
However, the taste and texture are horrible.
We got the coconut donut and the coffee crunch donut, and a coffee. The coconut donut was bitter and gross, with a bad aftertaste. The coffee crunch donut was so crumbly you couldn’t even pick it up, and I was having to scoop up the crumbles of it with a spoon. Sorry, but you can’t call a bunch of crumbs gathered together in an «O» shape a «donut». The breads looked dense and stale, so we didn’t even try any of those.
Honestly? I can make much better gluten free treats at home, and for way less than the $ 4 – 8 price point of each item at Erin mckenna’s.

Jesus Christ and Lent inspired my trip to this Vegan shop today… As I am practicing self-​denial with desserts! What?!? (Are you scratching your head thinking, huh?!? The heck?!?) –I am giving up animal products (practicing Veganism) and making an effort w/​reducing refined sugars … So, this bake shop was perfect for my current needs.
Gotta first mention the service! FABULOUS! The hipster-​looking guy behind the register was so friendly, informative, and nice! Forgive me, I don’t recall names well… but he happily educated me on all the products and it’s contents.
I got the coffee crunch doughnut ($ 3.95) and mint chocolate cupcake ($ 4.95). The coffee crunch doughnut probably consist of fine coffee grounds, hint of lemon & coconut –has to be in the cake or glaze… not sure, but I could taste it all and it works! Delicious! Crumbly texture –but I am guessing that’s how brown rice flour, and garbanzo/​fava bean flour bakes.
The mint chocolate cupcake was good. Presentation wise– could have been frosted prettier or decorated a bit more fancy (They should maybe take pointers from bakers at Crumbs & Sprinkles –if ya ask moi! Just sayin!) …It’ll compensate for the price and smaller overall portion in comparison to competitors. But I guess, if one is trying to eat healthier-​a bigger portion wouldn’t be a good idea. Anyhoo, does taste good, texture: again crumbly.
One can’t go wrong with vegan, gluten-​free, Kosher, Non-​GMO, un-​refined sugar –Oh, shops like this make it easy for me to practice self-​denial! ;) …I’d be back to try other items.

The best gluten-​free bakery in LA. And they’re able to make delicious pastries with all natural ingredients, such as using agave nectar. I had their toasted-​coconut donut, and it was delicious! Moist and flavorful, and best of all, it wasn’t overly sweet like most donuts. I also liked their rye toast crackers for only $ 1.25! It’s so good to dip in soup. I buy gluten-​free crackers from the store for $ 5 so theirs is definitely a bargain (plus you know it’s all natural ingredients).
Staff are also informative, welcoming, and happy which makes the experience even better! I didn’t feel a burden when asking about ingredients because I have a lot of allergies, and they were patient when I took a while to choose which goodies I wanted! This is definitely my go-​to bakery because everything offered here is gluten-​free :)

If I didn’t read the reviews beforehand I would’ve never known the donuts here are vegan and gluten free. I can usually detect gluten free stuff because they taste pretty awful but these donuts were really tasty. They’re actually more like cake donuts, similar in texture to a blueberry donut at a regular donut shop. I really liked the coffee crunch donut, which is a rather unique flavor for a donut. Salted caramel donut was fine too but didn’t really taste like salted caramel. Jam Donut Holes were similarly good but thought was rather pricey at $ 2 a pop.
Cupcake, on the other hand, was a letdown. I got the gingerbread cupcake which was really dry. The frosting was really weird too. I guess it’s hard to get the right texture when you are gluten free, vegan, egg free, dairy free, and soy free. I did like the flavor of the frosting because it wasn’t too sweet but the texture was unappealing. It had soft gum-​like texture. I tried to wipe off a small portion of the frosting but the whole frosting came off in one piece. Cupcakes are also pricey at almost $ 5.
I initially wanted to give this place 3 stars but I decided to bump it up to a 4 because I appreciate everything here being gluten-​free, vegan, wheat-​free, soy-​free, dairy-​free, egg-​free, non-​GMO, and refined sugar-​free. This place uses agave nectar or unrefined sugar to sweeten its goods. The website lists ingredients and nutritional values for most of the products so take some time to check it out if you have food allergies.
I’m actually trying to cut down on sweets these days but will make exceptions for places like this. Will definitely come back here if I have a sweet craving but will stick with donuts and skip the cupcakes.