As most of you know by now, we are a wheat-free family.

Each of us have a different reason for staying away from it. But, the reality is that lovely, comfort-food baked goods like breads, cakes and cookies baked by someone other than me have long been off the snack list.

Until lately.

I hadn’t even dared to venture to the “other side” when wandering through Hot Chocolates in downtown Courtenay until one day in October, when I had let myself drift in order to score some seriously delicious organic bread for my dad, who is diabetic. I had heard that Cakebread Artisan Bakery carries a perfect blend of multigrains and low-sugar that works perfect for him. That’s when I discovered that not only do they carry diabetic-friendly bread, they also carry Spelt bread – which we CAN eat.

One taste of that delicious goodness and we were sold, forever, on Cakebread.

I remember that first day distinctly because the gal behind the counter (I feel so bad that I don’t know her name) told me how excited she was about it too. Her little girls, adopted from Asia, also have a wheat allergy and it is definitely a struggle in a small town to find allergy-friendly food to go. She hooked us up – two loaves every Friday (it’s only baked once a week). We now celebrate delicious bread day in our house on a weekly basis.

As time rolled on, our helpful Cakebread friends let us know about their ever-expanding line of non-wheat goodies including coconut crisps (chocolate and coconut cookies) and meringues that now mean whenever the tiny person and I are in the mood for a cookie-type snack we head straight in the direction of downtown Courtenay.

I cannot say enough good things about Cakebread and Hot Chocolates. While there are many wonderful spots to snack, have a coffee and eat a meal downtown, I do not think it’s a stretch to say that they are the gem of Fifth Street, drawing throngs of people from all over the place to experience wonderful treats and breads in an atmosphere that is modern, comfortable and very big-city.

The fact that they also cater to folks who wouldn’t otherwise be able to enjoy all these two shops have to offer makes them tops on my list for sure.

If you haven’t dropped by Cakebread lately, I highly recommend a visit as soon as you can get yourselves out the door today.:)

It’s a great place to meet, snack and stock up on special treats of all kinds.

Cakebread is in the same space as Hot Chocolates on Fifth Street just east of England.