Is this the best gluten-free bakery in London?
Let me guess: since going gluten-free you miss great bread. You miss decent cakes. And let's not even get started on pastries.
But what if I told you there was a place that did all this and more? That's right: the whole shebang! No gluten EVER! Not only that but they're easy to find, open on Sundays and the nicest people you could hope to meet.
Allow me to introduce you to Ma Ma Boutique Bakery in Chiswick, west London.
I went there on Saturday with my children. We'd decided to have a day out in London and do 2 things: go to a gluten-free bakery (for me) and visit the London Transport Museum (for them...and if I'm honest, for me again).
But choosing a gluten-free bakery was hard. There were so many options! (And I wouldn't have been able to say that when I was diagnosed coeliac.)
Just as I was deliberating over one in Kensington, I saw a post from Morgan (How To Coeliac) on social media about Ma Ma Boutique Bakery that made it look amazing. I checked out the tube map. It was easy to get to. Sold!
So we started our 4 hour journey to get there. (Hey, Bristol's not a hop, skip and a jump from London.)
Daddy drove us to our bus (which I'd accidentally booked from UWE, not town...for those of you who don't know Bristol this was a bit of a schoolgirl error but Daddy was very good about it). We then climbed aboard the National Express to Earl's Court, which was a pretty speedy ride thanks to a portable dvd player, 2 sets of kiddy earphones and Frozen II.
We then hopped onto a District Line tube to Stamford Brook, which the children loved because they could count the stations down (but obviously still asked at every stop if it was "our stop, Mummy?"). 6 stops later we walked over to the bakery.
Talk about gorgeous! The decor is stunning and the display counter has endless gluten-free options. We looked goggle-eyed at the delicious treats and basically bought half the shop.
The tables were adorned with beautiful fresh flowers (seating capacity: 16) and even though we'd arrived at lunchtime there was still space for us (most people coming in seemed to buy items to go).
I started off with a cheese & tomato pastry while the children had fresh bread rolls with butter and their own pot of jam each.
We followed with a selection of cakes, my favourite being the rhubarb and meringue slice.
I quizzed the owner (Nigel) about why he began the bakery. It turned out both he, his wife and multiple members of their family have medical reasons to be gluten-free (including Hasimoto's, coeliac disease and more). He said they started baking for friends and family but then it got so vast they decided opening a bakery was the answer.
I noted how quite a bit of stock had clearly shifted that morning and wasn't surprised. But just as I thought how lucky we were to have arrived before they'd sold out, trays of more cakes arrived! We couldn't help but go back and purchase more, including a divine cinnamon swirl which was SO GOOD!
I have to say, it was difficult to be restrained, but I didn't really want to be in a cake coma for the rest of the day so we didn't purchase the carrot cake (mental note: must get it next time) and wrapped up some things to go.
And thank goodness we did because The London Transport Museum required a lot of energy! We drove buses...
...(and more buses)...
....and then sank into some 1930s chairs.
...which we then found hard to leave...
So back to those "leftovers"... They got demolished on the train home that evening (just in case you worried what had happened to them).
If we were nearer, we'd definitely be regular customers at Ma Ma Boutique, and I wouldn't hesitate to go there again the next time I'm in London.
Want to find out more? Owner Nigel will be all too happy to help! Check out their website here. (N.B. This is not gifted or an ad. I paid for all the food featured here and it was worth every penny!)
Have you been? I'd love you to share your thoughts below!
