This story has been updated.

Decatur, GA — Gluten-free doesn’t have to suck, according to Hell Yeah Gluten Free. The bakery, which offers a variety of gluten-free donuts, pop tarts, cakes, and other pastries, celebrated its grand opening on Friday, Feb. 2, in downtown Decatur.

Hell Yeah Gluten Free offers a mix of sweet and savory flavors that have a slight twist.

“We have funfetti donut, which is as vanilla as you can get, but then we have things like a strawberry pop tart, which you’d think is pretty boring and plain, but we make it with a grapefruit zest and champagne vinegar,” Hell Yeah Gluten Free Founder and Owner Alejandra Luaces said. “We try to defy people’s expectations of gluten-free.”

The bakery opened on Jan. 11 and celebrated its ribbon cutting on Friday morning. Hell Yeah Gluten Free was established in 2018 in Luaces home. She and her business partners opened the first location in Inman Park in 2019 and have another location in Adair Park in the works as well.

“I opened Hell Yeah because I am gluten-free, and I love to pig out and there wasn’t really any place where I could do that reliably and safely,” Luaces said.

Luaces finds adventure through trying new foods. If there’s a unique item on a menu, that’s what Luaces will order.

“I want to eat. I want to go somewhere else. I want to be transported,” she said. “This was my way of how can I bring these transportive experiences to people who can’t actually eat most of the stuff. [For] people who can’t eat dairy or gluten, it’s tough. You go out, and you’re so limited by what you can eat and what you can experience.”

 

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She previously worked at Mailchimp and helped small businesses with software, marketing, and developing their niche and values.

“I came into this project with that in mind, of what’s our secret sauce. For me, what I’d observed is the secret sauce is making something for yourself and there are people like you who want it too,” Luaces said. “Hell Yeah, we exist to provide adventure and fun and similar experiences to people who can’t have those similar experiences.”

Owner Julia Schneider came in to help with the production and operations when Luaces was looking to expand. Tony Riffel and Perry King are also owners of the bakery.

Schneider encourages the community to visit the bakery “because I think that we have delicious food.”

“I think all of our flavors are rich and strong,” Schneider said. “Even if you don’t have dietary restrictions, you should just try it and see if you like it.”

Hell Yeah Gluten Free is located at 308 W. Ponce de Leon Ave., suite G in Decatur, next to Inner Voice Brewing. The bakery is open from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday through Monday, and closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Hell Yeah Gluten Free celebrated its ribbon cutting on Friday, Feb. 2, with city of Decatur officials and members of the Decatur Business Association. Photo by Zoe Seiler.

Hell Yeah Gluten Free is located at 308 W. Ponce de Leon Ave. in Decatur. Photo by Zoe Seiler.

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