Back in August I visited my friends in their new home in North Carolina. It was the first time in months I saw them and I was so excited. In the week I was there we did a lot, including eating some good gluten-free food.
The one evening we were driving up to Raleigh for a night out. As we are driving I see a billboard for a gluten-free pastry shop. In shock I wondered if I read the sign right. And then my friend asked me if I saw it. A few miles down the road we saw another sign for the same gluten-free pastry shop. In my mind I knew they had to be good because as a gluten-free bakery they somehow paid for not one, but two highway billboards. Unfortunately we did not stop that night. But a few days later I unfortunately had to say see ya later to my friends. And one of our last stops before heading to the airport was JP’s Pastry.
Also p.s. get you some friends that go out of their way to get you gluten-free pastries from a dedicated gluten-free bakery. I mean come on, how did I get so lucky? Ok now back to the content you’re here for…
Environment
Based on the sign I thought this would be like a cafe where they would have tables and the pastries nicely on display. That is not how they have the brick and mortar shop set up. After going in I realized most of their business is through wholesale. They sell many of their products to both local restaurants as well as some big grocery chains.
Despite that they will sell to you in the store. In the storefront in North Carolina they have multiple freezers full of products. Some pre-cooked and others are frozen and you cook them at home.
When I walked in nobody was in the front portion where guests are allowed. Not too long after an employee came through a door that divided the building. Beyond that door the employees were preparing more gluten-free goodies. I felt a bit bad for the lady because I was very indecisive and she seemed to be getting a bit impatient. But there were so many good options to choose from and only limited space in my luggage. In all reality I did not take too long deciding and I paid for my items and we left.
Food
I was highly eager to try my fun treats that I bought as soon as I got to the car. Unfortunately they were all stored in a freezer and I just had to wait until they were thawed enough to try. Sometimes being patient when you have delicious looking gluten-free treats in your lap is difficult.
I bought three treats to take with me to the airport. A red velvet cupcake, sticky bun, and a brookie, which is a brownie and cookie in one.
As soon as I was able to bite through the red velvet cupcake I devoured it. It was the first of my treats that I decided to eat. It was good, but not as flavorful as I hoped. Most of the flavor was coming from the icing and not the cake. The icing was tasty though. I just think cupcakes from my gluten-free hometown restaurant are a bit better. Nonetheless I enjoyed it.
I ate the brookie next which is what I mainly ate at the airports and while I was on the airplanes.
I also preemptively visited Jersey Mike’s before heading to the airport. After looking up the Raleigh-Durham Airport food options bringing food with me seemed like the smartest decision. The worst thing ever is to get stuck in an airport with no safe food.
But now back to talking about this brookie. Personally I do not often get gluten-free brownies because it is a very popular gluten-free option. Because of that it is not as special and usually I just am not too interested in them. But the brownie cookie combination piqued my interest. The brownie part was so rich that it was nice having the not so intense cookie part alongside it. I was thoroughly impressed by this combination and 100% would enjoy again.
And lastly the sticky bun. I bought the sticky bun hoping it would be more like a cinnamon roll. I absolutely love cinnamon rolls. Even more than cinnamon rolls I used to love orange rolls. Unfortunately this sticky bun was neither a cinnamon nor an orange roll. It tasted good though, not exactly what I wanted it to be. The pastry itself was well made and flavorful which is crucial.
Overall
All in all I was impressed with JP’s Pastry. Although it was different than expected they seem to be doing well as a business and sell some great product. AKA gluten-free goodies!
There are many awesome things about this company. The first being you do not have to be in North Carolina to find their product. They sell to big name grocery chains to get their product to us gluten-free folk around the states. So look for them next time you are at Whole Foods. They also are sold in local shops too, which is awesome. Anytime small businesses can work together to build one another up just warms my heart.
Another awesome thing in my opinion is the pricing. Gluten-free products are naturally more expensive. But they seem to give you a bang for your buck. The pastries I received were pretty large in my opinion. But do be aware that this may just be because I went into their location. At a grocery chain, or coffee shop that their product is sold in they may be more expensive. A business does need to profit to stay in business.
Lastly and probably my favorite part of all is how well the pastries stayed together. We all know the inevitable truth that most gluten-free products are likely to fall apart. But these were some of the least crumbly gluten-free pastries I have had to date. I was impressed. And as an individual who likes to keep things clean I appreciated the minuscule amount of crumbs these pastries made.
I definitely recommend giving JP’s Pastries a try. Whether that means buying their products at your local grocery or going into their bakery/storefront when in NC. They produce so many products everyone is sure to find something they will enjoy!
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