Pip’s Place

So depressing to see a speciality bakery like Pip’s shutter-​up. I patronized the store twice and they had really solid gluten free cupcakes and biscuits. Dropping a line on Unilocal to encourage the owners to take special orders, especially for cakes. Friend of mine was very excited to purchase a birthday cake for their gluten free child and was disappointed to hear such a solid good place had closed!

Best gluten-​free bakery I’ve been to and trust me I’ve been to almost all of them across the country (I’ve even worked in one!) Reasonable prices for portion sizes, delicious and moist treats, no yucky aftertastes. My husband who isn’t gluten-​free can’t even tell the difference. They also do custom gorgeous cakes at very comparable prices to regular non-​gluten-​free cake places. Don’t judge this place by their coffee — that’s not their primary business! Their special offerings rotate and they sell out of certain items sometimes, so be flexible with expectations unless you place a special order specifically for that!
They have a small bar area to sit and eat but not really a place to hang out for an extended period of time.

I been to this gf bakery many times now as I try to try as may gf things possible. I’ve had all the gf tarts, the gf cheesecake, gf danish, gf empanadas, gf savory scones, a few more but forgot the name…
Gf Tart get 5stars as the crust is delicious and taste of the real pastry crust. The custard is really good, which not many gluten free places make sweets with custard.
The cheesecake and the danish get 0 stars!!!
They where both blueberry filling, as u look at it it looks amazing but I was extremely mislead by the look of it, at first bite I wanted to trow up! The most disgusting cheesecake and danish !! Awful awful awful! It tasted of a extremely processes filling. Nothing fresh… And it’s so easy to make a good cheesecake. Therefore I will never buy it again and will only go to «Elaine cheesecake in downtown nyc they have by far the best best real tasting cheesecake. It so goofy can’t stop eating it! And also people that are not gluten free love it…
The savory scone was really really good! I’ll definitely buy again.
The empanadas was terrible too. Now when I bought it they didn’t tell me I had the option to heat it up so I ate it cold and maybe that’s why it was disgusting??? Not sure I may have to try it again…
As for now I may go back to taste the gf cupcakes…

It is a very pretty and cute place. I love the gluten free. Just perfect place for me. Whenever I have temptation for sweets, I had to struggle to resist myself from temptation because the wheat bothers my system. This place solved my conflict.
I enjoyed most of their cookies and cakes. Especially, I like almond apricot cakes, mini apple pie, raspberry pin wheel and oatmeal raisin cookie. I am so glad to find this place.

Pip’s is just not what it used to be like when they first opened :-(
When Pip’s first came to the area over at the First Avenue location the staff was so upbeat & friendly & Denise had a young lady names Mila (if I spelled that correct) who was just as pleasant & helpful as ever! Now when I enter Pip’s (usually in the evening) no one there is friendly. They seem annoyed to help & Denise really needs to bring that happy upbeat & cheery place back…

The absolute best gluten free goodies I have ever had! If you are in the area, you HAVE to stop by. Try the red velvet cupcake and g-​free dairy free brownie :) the best thing they have is the Heath Bar and Magic Bar!!!

I recently quit gluten and I came to accept that I no longer can enjoy desserts as gluten-​free desserts are terrible. Desserts should not be gluten-​free.
So when I found Pip’s Place out of desperation and an emergency need to feed my sweet tooth, I was very skeptical.
Place was darling and everything seemed so enticing, BUT, due to many unsatisfying experiences, I held my cool.
I got banana chip muffin, blueberry muffin, cranberry muffin, banana layer cake, and an oatmeal raisin cookie. This is why you shouldn’t neglect your sweet tooth too long. You will order everything on the menu. Anyhow, some were dairy free as well. I took a bite of the blueberry muffin and was anticipating the dryness and unpleasant crumminess of non dairy muffin, followed by a sense of disappointment, but to no avail. I tasted moist, buttery, sweet and über delicious blueberry muffin! The way blueberry muffin is supposed to taste! I was so excited so I did the same with the banana layer cake covered in chocolate. To my surprise, the same thing happened! It was condensed, semi sweet and delicious! I was so happy that I found this place! My group who were normal eaters agreed that they were delicious! My favorite though, would be the oatmeal raisin cookie. That was probably the best I’ve had. Pretty amazing considering it was gluten free.
When in New York, this will always be my go-​to place from now on.

My boyfriend is celiac so I really want to like Pip’s. Unfortunately, the staff is under trained and repeatedly messed up my coffee order. I go in at least once a week to buy gluten free bread/​rolls and sadly, I usually get a snarky remark like «we don’t have them today» with very little context or other information.
Also, it has an illegal credit card minimum of $ 10, which is annoying.

As someone who does eat gluten, I have to unfortunately report that I did not enjoy the red velvet cupcake I ordered today. I found it to be really dry.
In reading some of the other reviews on here, I see that I am not alone in that opinion. Otherwise the cupcake was good. Nice frosting, etc… Staff was really nice as well.
For those out there who have to be gluten free — I’m really glad Pip’s exists. They appear to do a good business. However, as someone who could care less about the gluten in my diet, I doubt I’ll be making a return visit.

Such a cute place with absolutely delicious pastries! The lady manning the store was super friendly and kind. We had a nice conversation about her experience being gluten-​free (:
I’ve never had anything gluten-​free in my life, so I was curious to see how it could be tasty, considering the stereotype. The Heath bar being my favorite chocolate bar, I HAD to try Pip’s version, especially after reading the reviews for it… and I’m SO glad I did! It was so so so delicious and even better than the original bar! I couldn’t believe how amazing it was — it bigger than the size of my palm and it tasted like a soft shortbread base with harder shortbread in the middle (awesome texture) and topped with chocolate and chunks of toffee.
My mouth is watering as I type this but it’s okay because I’m going back tomorrow with my boyfriend haha. He’s so excited to try yummy gluten-​free food and I can’t wait to try more!

I got the most amazing birthday cake from this place. Tasted just as good as a «regular» (non-​gluten-​free) cake; my wife and I loved it. It was a vanilla layer cake that had the perfect combination of flavors.
When I came to pick it up I also had an amazing eggnog latte and éclair. This is a really cute shop with a lot of pastries on offer, all gluten free!

I’ve tried coming here a few times, but disappointed every time. Staff seems under trained and confused about their job.
The place is SO cute on the outside and seems to offer a great environment, but the service is horrible. When I explained the drink order I wanted, I was corrected for using the wrong name. When the barista provided me the drink (which was not what I wanted) I was further scolded for leading her wrong.
It’s a shame the staff isn’t trained better. The whole package is almost there: cute ambiance, fun gluten-​free treats, but that doesn’t make up for terrible service.

Friendly and full of gluten free goodies.
It was extremely convenient as we were on the upper east side and they have a location off 1^st Ave.
They have an open kitchen so you can see them making the various options (probably 15−20+).
In addition to gluten-​free many of their cookies are dairy free.
My girlfriend tried the coconut cake, brownie and blondie bar. She really liked all of them. I tried the coconut cake and thought it was very comparable to a regular piece of cake.

We were staying at the hotel across the street and wanted some coffee in the morning. We walked out and were pleasantly surprised to see a gluten free bakery right across the street. We got two coffees, a ginger cookie and a red velvet cupcake.
The coffee was good and strong. The ginger cookie was ginger-​y and soft. The red velvet cupcake was pretty horrible. It was everything bad that people say about gluten free. Dry, brittle, pretty tasteless.
If they could move their cupcakes to taste more like their cookies, this place might be a winner.

Best gluten-​free bakery I’ve come across in NYC (and that’s saying a lot from someone who can have gluten!).
While I am lucky that I can eat gluten, I have many friends that aren’t so lucky. Pip’s bakery is my go-​to spot for gluten-​free treats for birthdays. I find myself here whenever I have a GF friend or coworker in need of a tasty cupcake, cookie or dessert, without having to worry about the ingredients hurting their tummies!
The staff is friendly, the bakery is spotless, their logo and their take-​away bags are so cutely decorated and very pretty-​in-​pink. Great design.
My friend recently had a birthday and her BF ordered her a cake from Pip’s. It was a red velvet cake with vanilla frosting, and it was — by far — one of the best cakes I’ve ever had (gluten or gluten-​free). The cake was moist, icing was so tasty and just a beautifully made cake. We all enjoyed it so much!
Open more Pip’s bakeries, please!

I was in the biggest mood for a cupcake and wanted to try a new spot. I do not follow the gluten-​free diet nor do I know anyone who does. I don’t know much about the «hype» or conditions/​allergies but personally, who cares what people eat? I don’t understand why people are all «I don’t understand the gluten free stuff». WHO CARES? If there wasn’t a customer base, establishments like this would not exist.
Since I never carry cash, I had to buy three cupcakes to make the credit card minimum. I chose the dairy-​free chocolate (which was cool because I am lactose intolerant), the vanilla, and red velvet.
The red velvet: Not a fan. The cake was very very dry and broke apart into many pieces while trying to eat it. The taste itself was rather odd. Frosting was ok and when I bit the cake with the frosting it did help.
Dairy-​free chocolate: I liked this one. When I visited, someone told me they use coconut milk which makes the cake moist. I hate coconut and was happy to find that this cupcake tasted perfectly chocolate-​like. The cake really was moist and the frosting was pretty dense.
Vanilla: This one fell in the middle for me. To me it tasted a bit oatmeal like and wasn’t a nice soft cake.
Overall — the dairy-​free chocolate wins my vote. I wonder what would happen if they modeled the other flavors with these ingredients? Isn’t red velvet just chocolate cake with red coloring? I really think that cupcake has something going for it.
The rest of the selections looked very cute but they were very small. Some of the prices were a bit hard to justify but I’m not the one doing the costing.
I did notice the comments about the staff. My experience with the guy at the register was a bit off but to me it seemed the guy just didn’t know any better about customer service etiquette. For example, when I asked what the dairy free cupcake tastes like, he responded: «I don’t know, I’ve never tried it.» Which to any judgmental person, they would think: «how can a person sell something without knowing what the product tastes like?» A simple tweaking of the answer to: «Well, let me get you the baker as she/​he can best explain it to you.» It’s just the simple things.
I won’t completely right-​off pips as they do have some positives things going for them. I’m not dying to return but I’m sure one day I’ll pop back in for a nice dairy-​free chocolate cupcake.

Gluten free bakery, we had passed by and the smell wafting through the air lured us in like a siren calling to us to partake in the deliciousness.
We ordered a few different delights to share. Cookies, cupcakes and the like.
I loved my raspberry pinwheel and stole half of my child’s Toll House bar, you don’t miss the gluten at all. The only thing that none of us liked was the corn muffin.
Service was super nice, prices a little high but again, gluten free and delicious is worth it.

I’m not a fan of gluten free cakes, but this place has some serious cakes. A friend of mine once got me a pineapple and coconut cake from this birthday and I found it kind of interesting when he told me that it was completely gluten free and was from this place.
So the very next day i went to this bakery and asked for the same cake as I didn’t have enough the earlier day. They told me that it was not on the menu. so decided to take the take the sour cream cake and I was absolutely delighted with taste and texture of the cake.
Will definitely give this place a 5 star in my next visit, if their product and service stays consistent.

Obviously people giving this place more than 4 stars have NEVER stepped foot into a real bakery and believe everything in their hood or city is the best when really, it’s not always true.
GLUTEN-​FREE? LMAO I laugh as hard as I can. So what is it about Gluten-​Free that makes it so expensive and exclusive??! ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY nothing. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate Vegans and all types of Vegeterians and Fruitarians but people who follow a Gluten-​Free diet (excludes those with diseases or allergies, etc) are just one pretentious wannabes wanting to show the world that they’re…uhm…WEIRD! Yeap, that’s right! Go to any country outside the U. S or even NYC and ask for a Gluten-​Free product in a restaurant or supermarket and YOU MIGHT BE DOOMED!
I digress, anyways, came to check this place out after dropping off my laundry. Place is tiny with few high-​chair seats (2 – 3) but the exterior looked promising as well as the baked items on display. Walked in, NO GREETING NO CUSTOMER ACKNOWLEDGEMENT by staff, strike one. Took a while to browse through the items and the Dominican girl (yes I know she is because she has an accent and if they’re Black and speak Spanish they’re 99.99% Dominican) looked pissed off or something as I made my decision (despite NO other customer other than a mid-​aged White lady having her coffee and writing things on her agenda) and when I asked if everything was Gluten Free, her cold reply was simply «YES GLUTEN-​FREE» with the stereotypical NYC-​raised Dominican bitch attitude. Strike 2
They had some samples out to try: the Heath Bar and the Brownie which I had to ask what they were. Heath Bar wasn’t that memorable nor was the brownie. I was quite surprised to see the prices of these small things. $ 4.50 for a small slice of «Sour Cream Cake» the size of a twinkie? Wow~ Despite the expensive price, decided to get the Sour Cream Cake and an Iced Coffee. I literally finished the Sour Cream Cake in 2 bites and my small Iced Coffee was HORRIBLE!!! Total was like $ 6.50 and was probably the worst money I’ve spent on tasteless pieces of crap and there was not even a «Goodbye» or «Have a nice day» by staff either. Strike 3. And why are all the kitchen staff messing around in the open kitchen speaking Dominican Spanish which simply does NOT fit into the overall interior and atmosphere of this place? ***GHETTO STAFF ALERT****
AVOID, you’re better off going to DTUT for coffee or a deli nearby for a pastry or a baked item to go with your Java. Will NOT return for boring overpriced tiny pastries that aren’t even French lol

I don’t have a gluten-​allergy but that didn’t stop me from visiting Pip’s.
Cupcakes, cookies, picturesque slices of cake, macarons, coffee, OH MY!
I’ve had:
Red velvet cupcake: REALLY bad. hence, the three star rating. Super, super dry & a mealy consistency. Definitely one of the worst cupcakes I’ve ever had– especially a red velvet that’s suppose to be moist with a fluffy cream cheese frosting. What’s the opposite of that? This Pip’s red velvet cupcake. Ehhh. Too expensive for it’s size too. BUMMER.
However, did that disappointment stop me from trying some other baked goods? I’m a fat-​ass so no.
Macaron: MEH. Actually, I’m normally not a fan of macarons anyway (I’m an alien, I know) but this macaron was too cute. It’s tiny, pink (like the entire freaking store), and cost $ 1. Now, $ 1 is WAY too much for this one-​bite macaron but I coughed it up anyway. Was it worth it? Definitely NOT. It was overly sweet and left me feeling robbed. I hate that feeling.
Chocolate cookie: BLEH. It was dry and once again: had that dreadful mealy consistency with NOT enough chocolate. When I want chocolate, I expect chocolate especially from a «chocolate chunk cookie.» At this point you’re probably thinking «damn, what the heck DOES she like?»
I LOVED:
Raspberry pin-​swirl, or whatever cookie! Absolutely delicious: moist, sweet but not overly so, yum yum yum! And only $ 1.40. Not THAT bad, I mean again I don’t think it’s worth that but I’ve seen worst (*COUGH* Insomnia cookies!* COUGH*) Paired great with my iced coffee (that I didn’t buy here). I think this is the only thing I’ll be coming back here for.
Overall this place is your grab & go kind of place. It’s ridiculously girly looking and more attractive to a female clientele. A guy needs to be real confident in his sexuality to stroll into a SUPER light all-​pink store to purchase gluten-​free baked goods. That or he has a PMSING girlfriend or pregnant wife at home forcing him to. Would I go back? Yeah it’s a mere 3 blocks away from my house but only if I’m craving one of their pin-​swirl cookies.
And now you know!