This new Danforth bakery sells gluten-free bread, doughnuts and brunch

This new Danforth bakery sells gluten-free bread, doughnuts and brunch

(Image: Valerie Howes)

Since early July, Spanish-born baker Tia Vazquez has quietly been selling gluten- and dairy-free goods at Tia’s Bakery, a new store just steps from Pape subway station. Vazquez started her business in Guelph before opening shop in Cambridge. Her first Toronto location has robin’s-egg-blue walls, a small patio and a counter loaded with trays of cookies, cakes and warm, sugared pumpkin doughnuts. (In addition to sweets, Vazquez sells three types of bread: a crusty Italian loaf, a multigrain and an “un-rye,” which gets its flavour from caraway seeds.) Most exciting, though, is the Saturday brunch menu, which carries the kind of carb-loaded dishes most gluten-shy diners only dream of: Belgian waffles, huevos rancheros and house-made bagels with smoked salmon and faux cream cheese.

Tia’s Bakery, 761 Pape Avenue, 416-462-9777, facebook.com