Toluca Bakery — Restaurant in Los Angeles

ou have got to be kidding me. This completely vegan bakery has been around since 2019, and I've only just NOW heard of it? What have I even been doing the last few years?

My wife found Toluca Bakery on IG and wanted to take a little field trip. A 20 minute drive from Pasadena, not bad, going just for a cookie or two. Do you know what we actually left with? Danish, coffee cake, cookies, empanadas, tamales, a cupcake, and a few other sweet treats I don't even know the name of.

We just kept ordering, the cases and shelves beaming their hypnotic deliciousness vibes into our brains. At one point I just looked at my wife like, "We have to stop. There's no way we can eat all this..." So, we didn't get around to the conchas, muffins, or turnovers. We declined the cakes, fruit tarts, and breads. We looked away from the cheesecakes, puerquitos, and pies. A couple more visits should do the trick, though. If you partake in the savory, ask for the hot sauce along with the empanadas and tamales. It's flavor packed with just a little heat. I think the jalapeño and cheese empanada was my favorite, and the hot sauce bumped it up to the next level.

What an absolute gem. Toluca doesn't sell in stores, so you're going to have to get your ass over here. This is a no-frills spot. A big bakery with some cases in the front, but do you really need more? When the product is top-notch, bougie art or house plants everywhere are unnecessary. The woman who helped us was awesome, very knowledgeable about ingredients, giving us flawless recommendations left and right. And the prices are more than fair. Some places I'll drop nearly $10 for a single vegan pastry, but we left here with a pile of goodies, for like $45.

Hot damn. Matter of fact, I just polished off some apple and cheese stuffed coffee cake and half a raspberry danish ten minutes ago with my morning latte. Absolutely sublime. Probably for the best we don't live next to this bakery. Ain't nobody trying to...

UPDATE: Yes, whatever the source of the noise was, it was too loud to have a conversation from 20 feet away. There won't be a next time, because as I said, there are other vegan bakeries to choose from. I was trying to be respectful by not bringing my dog in. The weirdo is the owner expecting a customer to shout a conversation from so far away.

Last night, I was walking my dog. I had been meaning to stop in and check out the Vegan Bakery. My boss wanted me to find a vegan bakery she can use on a regular basis for our mostly vegan staff at work. Because I had my dog with me, I stepped in with her on the leash just outside the door. It took a bit for anyone to even acknowledge me. A woman with glasses walked up and stood about 15 BEHIND the counter. I wanted to ask her if they made Ezekiel Bread. The fans were so loud, I would have had to scream at her to have a conversation. A gestured my hand as if to say, "Are you coming closer so I can speak to you?" She just shrugged as if she didn't care. I wasn't going to SCREAM my question to her over the loud fans from at least 20 feet away. This was my first impression of the Vegan Bakery and my last, as this was a bullshit way of conducting business by this woman, whether she's an employee, manager or owner. I wouldn't know because I didn't hear a single word out of her indifferent, unprofessional mouth. There are other vegan bakeries I can patronize. Unfortunately, because its location is more convenient for me because I live nearby, this vegan bakery will not be one of them. In this day and age where customer service is sorely lacking everywhere, a good first impression can truly set a business apart. This...

STSY CLEAR!! Terrible experience at this bakery! They made a cake for my wife's baby shower and completely messed up the directions on how she wanted the cake decorated. When she confronted the manager (when she picked up the cake) he said he was confused about her message on IG so rather than check with her first to confirm he decided to make what he thought instead of clarifying. He offered a refund told my wife it was processed and then days later when she didn't see the refund appear on her credit card she called and then was told the owner would not be giving any refund even though the MGR said it was already processed. Complete amateur hour at this place. I will never go back and encourage others to be aware! The cake itself was just average tasting at best. A shame we tried this location for the first time on such a special location. Hopefully this helps someone else not male the...