Courtesy of the Ferry Building Marketplace — **A love letter to my favorite bakery**

Mariposa Baking Company

I was originally going to feature Mariposa Baking Co. in an article about the best spots in San Francisco for gluten-free food. However, I love this place so much that it deserves an article on its own. So please enjoy this love letter to Mariposa Baking Company.

This humble gluten-free bakery is all intertwined with the love that Mikayla and I have for San Francisco. We came here for the first time to run the San Francisco Marathon and as such, we stayed in a hotel close to the ferry building, where one of Mariposa’s retail stores is located. It was a new city for us at the time which presents some challenges for dining because of Mikayla’s dietary restriction. We wandered into the ferry building early on and stumbled upon Mariposa Baking Company. Mikayla had recently realized that she had a problem with gluten so finding a whole store dedicated to gluten-free food was incredible, not to mention when it’s as good as the food Mariposa makes. Mikayla ordered the smoked salmon bagel and a pain au chocolat while I wandered off to find some gluten-full food. Let me tell you that I made a big mistake, the food from Mariposa isn’t just good for being gluten-free, it is delicious full stop.

It’s funny that a totally accidental encounter with this bakery has had such an impact on me. It pops into my mind on a regular basis and has been the entire inspiration for a road trip to San Francisco. I’ve since stopped buying anything else from the ferry building because nothing is as good as that smoked salmon bagel.

So, here’s to Mariposa Baking Company, the best bakery in San Francisco.