The number of people with food allergies is quickly increasing nowadays, which is often blamed on the urban lifestyle and unhealthy eating habits. We don’t want to dwell upon this fact too much, but we are happy to say that the number of stores offering gluten-free goods is growing in Budapest just as fast as the amount of people with dietary intolerances. A new bakery recently opened on Budapest’s Ráday Street, and they have experimented with pastries so much, that now all of their products are pretty much perfect.

Manióka opened only a few months ago on Ráday Street, aiming at making the lives of people with gluten intolerance easier. Unfortunately, the owner personally suffers from the same problem as well, providing the idea of a gluten-free bakery. This is important to mention, because for this reason the team does not lack empathy, and understands the problem perfectly, so they aim to find perfect alternatives for everyone.

The shop only offers pastries; their selection stretches from breads through cottage-cheese pogácsa scones, and croissants to milk loaves, which is extremely exciting, as most people with gluten intolerance cannot necessarily enjoy a fresh cheese croissant (that is also vegan) for breakfast every day.

We tasted their goods as “outsiders”, and we conclude that a well-thought-out and experimented recipe results in breads that are almost the same as loaves made of “regular” flour; the only characteristics differentiating them are that gluten-free breads are a bit more filling, and a bit pricier, too: one loaf of white bread costs 550 forints, a baguette is 300 forints, and brown breads start at 600 forints, while rolls are 150 forints and croissants cost 450 forints.

We found out that all recipes are based on tapioca flour, to which they add flours derived from other gluten-free plants. This is where the store’s name derives from, as South American tapioca is called manioca.

The shop aims to provide alternative products for all possible wishes, so they also take pre-orders if you’d like to pile up goods, as their frozen products last for about a week. Upon our visit they served a lady with allergies to yeast, histamine, gluten, lactose, and all kinds of nuts – which, let’s just say, is really not easy.

Not all of their customers have actual allergies; there are more and more people who chose to leave gluten behind to promote a healthy lifestyle. Regardless of whether customers actually need gluten-free products, it is certain that Manióka’s products are high-quality and truly tasty, so we recommend dropping by if you’re ever nearby.