Last week I was in Philly, visiting family and friends, when I found this great gluten-free bakery in the Italian Market, Taffets (previously Tote). My dad and I were driving on Washington Ave. and pulled over right before 9th street. I was looking for some delicious fruit for my flight back to San Francisco, which I found, but wanted to take a little walk around, because I love the Italian market. Not more than 1/4 of the block in I saw a sign for a gluten-free bakery. Always curious about a gluten-free bakery I headed over.
Just like many shops in the Italian market it was small, but packed with goodies. I saw freshly baked breads, cookies, biscotti and brownies, frozen pizza shells in a small freezer, and some Schar products. The gentlemen behind the counter (who as it turns out are the owners) were friendly and helpful. Since I was traveling and had very little room for carry on items I wanted to be particular about what I was buying. I grabbed a brownie, because I love sweets, but wasn’t sure what else to buy. I saw that there were two different kinds of sandwich breads that had been portioned out in to baggies with four slices each. One of the breads was made with teff flour (an Ethiopian grain) and the other with quinoa flour (the ancient grain). Both were regular sized slices, as opposed to the smaller slices I’m used to finding. I asked what the difference in flavor was before I made my decision. One was suppose to taste like a whole wheat bread and the other like white bread. A woman shopping in the bakery chimed in saying she liked the teff bread. Good enough for me since I’d had neither, and I bought a baggie’s worth.
When I got back to my dad’s car I pulled out my purchases and started snapping pictures on the dashboard before diving in to the brownie. It was decent, but not to die for.
It was a few hours later that my delayed flight finally took off and I knew it wouldn’t be much longer that I would be hungry again. Midway through the almost six-hour flight I ordered some cheese from Virgin’s in-flight menu (not bad I might add). I took out my bread, which was the PERFECT consistency, and tasted it with some cheese. I’m not sure how they did it, but this bread was fantastic! It had great flavor without the strange aftertaste some gluten-free breads have, the texture in my mouth was spot on, it held together and it was normal size. This was THE BEST gluten-free bread I have ever eaten, EVER! Not once did I wish I had a toaster.
I arrived home with two slices left so I could enjoy them the following day. When I opened the bag they were still gorgeous and I was still excited about my find. So excited that I took a couple more pictures to really show them off. 
I really like the bay area, but they don’t have a bread here that even comes close to the bread at Tote Gluten Free Bakery & Store. I highly recommend this place to all Philly residents and visitors alike. The Italian Market is filled with great stores and this place is a perfect addition.
Taffets Bakery and Store
1024 South 9th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19147
(215) 551-5511
Pingback: Gluten free bread heaven: Taffets gluten free bakery, Philadelphia | my journey thru M.E.