Everyone will find something to love at Tacoma’s new gluten-free bakery. Try the pretzel

The cookie at Wren’s Nest Baking Co. is big, thin, chewy, crunchy, rich and salty all at once. It’s also entirely gluten-free, a hallmark of the ambitious new bakery in Ruston that, quietly since October, has been testing Tacoma’s taste for sweet and savory treats crafted without that particular protein.

On Dec. 9, Wren’s Nest celebrates its official grand opening, replete with a full case of scones, muffins, pretzels, breads, kolaches and the aforementioned cookies. Seeing as it’s a Saturday, staff also will bake off hundreds of cinnamon rolls — a surprise smash. From 10 a.m.-2 p.m., guests can snap a complimentary photo with Santa.

The bakery, several years in the making, is a project of Wren & Willow, an interior design and architecture firm that also constructed the red-brick building at 5121 N. Pearl St. Owner Laureen Skrivan was inspired to create a wholly gluten-free bakery after witnessing family members’ struggle to find sweets, especially, that they could eat. Gluten intolerance and its more severe relative, Celiac disease, together affect more than 2 million Americans, with some studies pinning that number even higher.

“We have been unbelievably busy since we opened, and it doesn’t seem to be slowing down,” said Adam Skrivan, Laureen’s son and the firm’s business manager and now bakery marketer.

Word of this gluten-exempt enterprise on the border of Tacoma and Ruston spread quickly on local social media channels and Find Me Gluten Free, an online resource and mobile app with a trove of crowd-sourced eateries offering options that satisfy the dietary restriction.

What started as a staff of just a few, led by Erin Walter, has grown to about 15 people, most in the kitchen. Coco Kislinger-Macaluso, who made a name in the gluten-free (and dairy-free) sphere with her Los Angeles-based Coco Bakes, has consulted on recipe development and training.

Wren’s Nest is more than a gluten-free haven, though. It’s a full-service bakery, with everything from sandwich bread to a soft pretzel that should convince you that every such twist you’ve had before was an abomination.

“That one we just can’t keep on the shelves,” said Skrivan, who admitted that it remains his personal favorite, too.

Other go-getters in the first few weeks have been the kolaches, the traditionally sweet, jam-stuffed Czech pastry that, in the United States, are rarely spotted outside of Texas. They can also be savory (then called klobasnek), and the sausage or ham and cheese-stuffed versions at Wren’s Nest have amassed many fans.

Maybe 1 in 10 customers are familiar, but there’s something about “a bun filled with meat and cheese” that most people love, joked Skrivan.

Fixings so far have included the “cheeseburger” (ground beef and onions), a dairy-free spinach and egg as well as a sun-dried tomato pesto.

Buttery empanadas and hand pies also fit the savory bill, along with quiches — recent examples include ham with rosemary Asiago and mushroom with Gruyère — and garlic rolls.

On the sweeter side, the selection varies somewhat day to day but always features fun flavors — as in the lemon-blueberry or orange-currant scones, a pillowy cardamom-peach or quintessential lemon-poppyseed muffin. The coffee cake is a must-try, usually available with a customary cinnamon crumble or raspberry cream.

Beyond that chocolate-chip, cookies come in flavors like snickerdoodle, peanut butter and molasses. From the fridge, sample pudding and trifles.

Like I said, this bakery is ambitious. It just so happens to be gluten-free.

The decision to exclude the descriptor in the name was intentional, noted Skrivan.

“We want the people who stumble upon us to give us a shot,” he said after a busy Thanksgiving week of pumpkin cheesecakes and apple pies. A few customers recounted their imploring a skeptical relative to have a slice, only for them to deem it undeniably delicious.

While Wren’s Nest has accepted some special orders, it anticipates being able to handle them regularly in the near future. The proprietors are listening intently to customer feedback, most of which Skrivan said has been positive, from gluten-free and gluten-loving palates alike. In addition to soon adding a sourdough loaf, the team of bakers — who arrive around 4:30 a.m. each morning — have set their sights on bagels and doughnuts.

WREN’S NEST BAKING CO.

▪ 5121 N. Pearl St., Ruston, wrensnestbaking.com

▪ Tuesday-Saturday 8 a.m.-3 p.m.; grand opening party Dec. 9 with giveaways first then Santa photos starting at 10 a.m.

▪ Details: gluten-free bakery (growing dairy-free selection, with some nut-free options), plus drip coffee and espresso drinks

▪ Recommended: pretzel, coffee cake, cookies, peach-cardamom muffin, kolaches

▪ What to expect: order at the counter, seating in “stable room” with dual-sided fireplace and spacious dining area; rooftop access expected in spring

This story was originally published November 30, 2023 at 5:15 AM.