Really liked it. I believe it's mostly, if not all, vegan. I know they were experimenting with some items with dairy a while ago but I did not notice any non-vegan items while I was there, so not sure if that's still a thing. Anyway, it is a little out of the way. It's walkable from downtown but not really in the downtown core. Pretty quiet when I was there, but the atmosphere felt approachable. Some of the chairs were like school desk chairs (adult-sized, of course) that I haven't seen since I was in primary school which was kind of funny. The guy at the counter was cheerful and friendly. They looked like they had run out of some of the hot savory items by Saturday mid-afternoon, but there was still a wide variety of sweets. I believe the current owners are Indian, and you see some of those flavours featured. I got: Samosa handpie: Good, not mind-blowing, but good. Nice flavours. If you like a flaky crust, this is not it, but I liked the rustic pastry crust. Pistachio cardamom donut: Loved it. Before I moved to Bloomington, there were a few bakeries that offered vegan-GF cake donuts that I loved, and this was the first thing I've gotten here that reminded me of that. Pleasant texture and strong cardamom flavour, not too sweet. I think these are baked donuts, so they're a little different from regular fried donuts, but in a good way IMO. Rose dream latte: Milk with rose syrup topped with coconut whip and nuts, no espresso. Tasted great, but more of a dessert drink than I was expecting. The coconut whip was quite thick. The concept could probably use some refinement, because the whip was too thick and rigid to drink without a straw, but the nut pieces were too big to go through a straw, and so I couldn't figure out the best way to drink it. From what I understand, there are some longtime fans of this place who feel like the quality has dropped since the most recent change in ownership, but as someone who had never been here before, I really had a good experience. I get why people would be upset when something changes, but if you are considering trying this place for the first time, I wouldn't be too put off by the negativity around the change in ownership. There's no other place specialized in vegan baking in Bloomington, so I think it's good to support what they are continuing to do here, and even though I am partial to vegan food I wouldn't say that if it wasn't also GOOD. They also had some refreshingly unique options for baked goods. read more

Rainbow Bakery - Samosa handpie, pistachio cardamom donut, rose dream latte - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Rainbow Bakery sits off of 4th street west of the IU campus. It's all vegan, and we had a chance to stop by and get two donuts and a cookie. The inside is cute and whimsical. The owners, a Sikh family, gave us their cardamom donut for free. The samosa hand pies were out. I would rate it 4/5. The decor was nice, and the owners were friendly. We were told that the staff is limited, and the owners themselves are thinking of selling this location and hoping to restart it in Greenwood, where they currently live and actually drive down to Bloomington every day. The matcha latte was fine. Everything was fine but not great. The vegan chocolate chip cookie was good, but could've used more chocolate chips. read more

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Nice selection of items - always fresh. Off the beaten path so it's less bustle, can always get parking, and if desired, just sit for a while and enjoy a coffee and cookie. read more

Great food. Nice people. Loved the doughnuts. Will definitely go back. The breakfast handpie was good too

Stopped here on a road trip for some pastries. The samosa was the best samosa of my life, not even kidding. Order a few and you won't be disappointed. So delicious and affordable. read more

This is a neat little bakery/coffee shop. There is metered street parking in front of the bakery and within a reasonable walking distance. It is a very nice low key bakery with a decent sized dining area with a few tables and chairs and bar seating that looks out of the window. The woman that was working the bakery was very friendly and helpful. The bakery has cake donuts, and other baked goods. Total disclosure. I am not a huge fan of cake doughnuts. I am more a yeast donut kind of guy. But they do carry some exotic varieties of donuts. I ended up getting a half dozen (Blueberry Lemon, Pumpkin, Sweet Coconut Curry Pistachio, Chocolate Frosted w/ Sprinkles, and Cider). And they were all surprisingly good. I really liked them. They were fresh and very tasty. I also got a Apricot raspberry coffee cake that was out of this world. I highly recommend it. They also have a small selection of coffees available to go with your pastry treat. I love supporting small businesses and this one is more than worthy of yours. I highly recommend giving this place a shot. read more

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The absolute best service! The worker behind the counter have always been sweet and seem happy to serve customers. They answer specific dietary restriction questions in menu items. The menu is very customizable and they offer the best gluten free and vegan donuts I have had in the state so far (more like dense coffee cake but some of the only sweet treats I am able to tolerate and thus, savor). I can only think of one con and that is the location, it is some-what of a hidden gem in the middle, but at the same time, the south west side of town? Wish they offered free-wifi so I could work at the coffee shop! But has always been worth the drive. read more

Great people! They were able to put together an order of 4 dozen cookies for me in about 40 minutes, without any notice. They baked them fresh and made sure they transported well for me. They were very kind and accommodating and the cookies were GREAT. Huge cookies too! Was so excited I forgot to take a picture. read more

We got donuts and a scone, the donuts were yummy, the scone had good flavor but was dry. Very friendly service! I will be back when in the area. read more

Let's just say I'm glad I don't live nearby because I would be here every day! Wow! What can I say! What a gem!! I had a day old donut which was tasty and my daughter had a strawberry chocolate muffin. Everything we tried was delicious and so I had to order more to take with us. The coffee isn't super fancy but the baked goods are terrific. Street metered parking and great location downtown. Super helpful and friendly staff. I have also ordered cupcakes from this business in the past and everyone loved them! Plenty of indoor seating, a little chilly in January so keep your jacket on! read more

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if you have CELIACS DO NOT TRUST Rainbow Bakery. We bought the gluten free oatmeal cream pies and they made my daughter as sick as a dog (both ends) . She was on the floor of the bathroom all Mother's Day. They must have been cross contaminated. Terrible!!! read more

We found this gem today and had to give it a try! I didn't get any pics but Rainbow Bakery is a cute place. Me and my two year old son tried the vegan donuts and were not disappointed. Pink with Sprinkles and Lemon Blueberry were both delicious! We can't wait to go back and try the gluten free options. read more

Rainbow Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

The gluten-free donuts are AMAZING. This is the place to go if you have special dietary needs, but still enjoy a sugary treat. Also 100% vegan. Cute 1950s style inside if you have time to linger. Custom orders are great for birthdays and other special occasions. read more

Rainbow Bakery - Custom order of gluten-free donuts... beet, chocolate sprinkles, and the Homer (my favorite) - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Great hospitality and the best samosas and also the spiced tea and apple pie. The customer service is excellent.

Great customer service. Great ambience. Delicious pastries! I truly enjoy visiting with the staff @ Rainbow Bakery! read more

Cute vegan bakery with gluten free options! We liked the maple bacon donut. You can order a custom cookie cake but they need 4-5 days notice. read more

A really great business with delicious baked goods. My favorite part is that they are on too good to go to limit food waste. I believe other businesses in the area should do the same. read more

Really like the food, it's very good and has Good vegan options. Very nice and considerate staff. Overall would highly recommend!

I discovered this place during my senior year at IU. Every time I went, I would get an oatmeal cream pie and try a new item. Every time the oatmeal cream pie was amazing while the other item wasn't. Now coming back after such a long hiatus I knew I only needed one thing. I went ahead and bought three out of the six pies (crazy they only make so few). I'm not sure if the owner or the recipe changed, but the pies looked different. I remember the cookies being thinner and smaller, but I could be wrong. The edges were crispier than the softer inside, but overall a good tasting cookie. The cream in the middle was fantastic, but a little less creamy then I remember. Good amount of sweetness, but would have loved a better ratio of cream to cookie. Even though they are vegan you would never be able to tell except for in the prices ($7 each). Highly recommend checking this place out and trying their oatmeal cream pie and anything else that looks appealing. read more

Rainbow Bakery - Oatmeal cream pie - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

The best vegan bakery in Bloomington, probably the state of Indiana, because, let's be honest, there aren't that many vegan bakeries here. The donuts are good, the hand pies/pasties are always a big hit. The service is always friendly, and it is a great place to spend an afternoon working, or just to bop into on your way home if you want to pick up some cupcakes (highly recommend the Mexican hot chocolate ones). Cute retro aesthetic that is great if you like that sort of thing. read more

Highly recommend this Bloomington staple. My favorite items include the samosas and cinnamon rolls. Staff is so friendly and welcoming. Highly highly recommend for vegans and non-vegans alike. read more

Definitely did not realize this place was largely vegan. Given that, yummy. But if you're not vegan or super appreciative of vegan cuisine, you may not be wowed. read more

This is my favorite bakery in the world. I no longer live in Bloomington but I still dream of Rainbow Bakery donuts! They have unique flavors and they are always delicious. They are also simply BEAUTIFUL to look at. I wish I lived closer; I would go here so often. You would honestly never know their treats are vegan or gluten free. They are the best!! read more

Rainbow Bakery - Donuts, vote cookie - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Rainbow Bakery is a Bloomington gem! I'm not going to lie - a vegan donut is not quite the same, but Rainbow Bakery's effort deserves an A+. We ordered the entire donut flavor selection available: *Sweet Beet: Woah, this tasted just like eating a beet/drinking beet juice. I didn't hate it, but I didn't expect such a veggie forward taste! Creative. *Cinnamon Sugar: The texture on this was a bit dry. Kind of reminded me of dry coffee cake *Blueberry Lemon: This one was fantastic! It was like a lemon poppyseed muffin. Texture was great too. *Vanilla Rose: This one was my favorite. Disclaimer: I'm a bit obsessed with rose right now. But, they executed this one flawlessly. The texture was lovely. The rose was a lovely scent on your nose, but it wasn't overwhelming. That in itself is a feat because I've had many a rose-flavored things that taste like eating rose lotion. *Coconut Curry: Definitely could taste both the coconut & curry, but I didn't dislike it like I thought I would. The sweet coconut reminded me of the coconut on mango sticky rice. *Cookies and Cream: Tasted like cookies & cream. Texture was also a little bit better on this one compared to dry ones like the cinnamon sugar. *Chocolate Frosted: I really liked this one. It tasted pretty true to a chocolate frosted donut. I joked that this one looked like a barbie donut; the pastel sprinkles looked so perfectly placed. *Maple: Nothing to write home about unfortunately, but I did like that it wasn't too sweet & wasn't too dry. The other treats looked tasty too. The presentation is on point here! 93/365 read more

Rainbow Bakery - Vegan donuts! Ordered the entire selection available today! - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Such nice people! I wish there was a larger selection but I think it was because I went later in the day. Love the atmosphere though!

Can't believe this is my first review of Rainbow Bakery. I visited Rainbow for the first time back in 2015 when I was considering moving to Bloomington. I remember being sadly underwhelmed with their coffee, their doughnuts and their counterperson. Fast forward to 2017. I have been living in Bloomington (and in the same neighborhood as Rainbow) for about 15 months. Had not been back to Rainbow since that initial visit. Dropped by today while out for a walk and was glad I did. We chose the Fall flavors, Pumpkin, Maple Bacon and Apple Cider doughnuts. SO delicious. Much better than our first visit. The ambiance seems to have improved, and certainly the person behind the counter was more friendly than our previous visit. Not sure if the changes are due to the new ownership or maybe Rainbow has just improved with age. Whatever it is, it made us very happy. Looking forward to more frequent visits and will definitely try the coffee next time. read more

Rainbow Bakery - Clockwise from top left: Maple bacon, pumpkin and apple cider doughnuts. Delicious! - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

Surprised by joy in the form of a donut! My favorite? Hibiscus! I didn't know that was a flavor, or, that I would like it;) read more

VEGANS REJOICE! Was craving donuts late in the day and this place was one of very few that still had donuts available. I got the matcha donut while my husband got the chocolate glazed. we also grabbed a cosmic brownie to split because it just looked so good. Little did we know this place was a vegan bakery! The donuts were really good considering they were vegan. My husband and I are not vegan, but we would go back to this place for the donuts! The cosmic brownie wasn't quite what we expected after having the donuts. it was really dry and tough. I would t call it stale, but something along those lines. I'm sure if you're used to the way vegan food is supposed to taste like, then you may enjoy the brownie more than we did. Overall, definitely recommend for all my vegan friends out there. We'll definitely come back for the donuts! read more

I am always so amazed by this place! How do they make their icing so good?! Vegan and gluten free (but you would never know it) and they have rotating pastries that are new and exciting! I always bring my friends from out of town here and it's in such a walkable area! Go support your local bakery! You won't regret it! read more

This was my first time trying this place out, had been meaning to for awhile. The place is very cozy and inviting from the moment you see it. They have a wide variety of goodies to chow down on, doughnuts, cookies, hand pies(pizza), cupcakes almost all of which are gluten free and all are vegan(this is a vegan bakery). I am not a vegan but still wanted to give it go. All the food looked delicious!!! I ended up with a pistachio doughnut and a bacon doughnut. Both were good but anyone who tells you vegan bacon and real piggy bacon are definitely lying or their taste buds are dead. It actually tasted nothing like real bacon but was still yummy. Would definitely eat here again and will be getting on of those HUGE oatmeal creme pies. read more

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Nice gluten free selection of baked goods--donuts, cupcakes, and oatmeal cream pies!!! Go early before they sell out.

I had always wanted to visit an all-vegan bakery so I was thrilled when I found out Bloomington had one! I made it in a little past 9 on Sunday morning for breakfast. I'm not vegan by any means, though I am a strict vegetarian, but I would occasionally eat vegan baked goods. It would couple as my morning exercise since I would be walking the 20 minutes or so from IU. On the way, I was told by a man peering out from his van to "stay safe" which consequently made me feel less safe. Should I not have walked over? The good thing: I made it safely! Reading though the reviews, I was most intrigued by the "bacon" flavored stuff (there were bacon donuts when I visited). However, I found out that their faux bacon was seasoned with garlic powder, so I passed. After much humming and hawing, I decided upon the Pumpkin Ginger Muffin and the Strawberry Lime Donut. I later heard they had cinnamon rolls in the oven, but I didn't want to overdo it. For something to wash it down, I was thinking about some good ole milk, but she mentioned the Laura Palmer (lavender lemonade) and I decided, "why not?" You also have the choice of ordering day old items with a discount, so my muffin was a day old. The muffin wasn't bad. It was still moist and had little chunks of crystallized ginger throughout, which I loved. A whole almond was stuck in the center. I could definitely taste the strawberry in the donut and there was a hint of citrus. The drink tasted mainly like lemonade. I think there might have been a hint of lavender. I'm still thinking about it. None of them were overly sweet in my opinion, so a major plus. They get pretty good and steady business, most of them getting items to-go and appear to be regulars, since some knew each other by name. There is metered parking in the front but no one I saw parking there put any coins in. Is it free on Sunday mornings or just there for show? There isn't a lot of parking but many people also came by bike and/or left with their purchases in a fairly short period of time. The place is in a cute little corner shop with lots of windows and natural lighting. There is also window seating in a counter style, allowing you to people watch (or in my case, bee watching) while enjoying your treats. The free wifi is a plus, especially if you're there to study. The lady behind the counter was really nice and patient, even while I was going through their offerings, trying to make up my mind. Yay for breakfast! read more

Rainbow Bakery - Day old Pumpkin Ginger Muffin, Strawberry Lime Donut, and a Laura Palmer (lavender lemonade). - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

I was in Bloomington this morning and happened to be a block away from Rainbow Bakery, so when I saw the good rating on Yelp, I decided to check them out. Turns out they are a vegan bakery in a small shop on the corner of 4th and Rogers. The counter is on the west end of the shop and has some display cases with a variety of options, ones that I don't usually see in other bakeries or donut shops. Of the options they had, I decided to try the Cider Donut and the Oatmeal Cream Pie. Both had really good flavor and the texture was pretty close to what I would expect in a standard bakery. Good job! The Cider donuts had a nice depth of flavor that tasted more like pumpkin than apple on my first bite and the glaze on top was super sweet without being too much. Really good. The Oatmeal Cream pie was a large selection and had a nice chew factor from the oatmeal. I noticed a strong spice flavor to the giant cookie that I would guess was either pumpkin spice or maybe nutmeg. It wasn't expected, but was very appropriate for an Autumn offering. Both items were good and were worth trying, even if you aren't a vegan. Review #1563 read more

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Gluten Free heaven! Found this bakery via yelp during recent visit. Place was quiet and comforting. I had the GF savory scone. Wonderful taste and hit the spot after late night out. Took home GF peanut butter cookie and GF ginger muffin. All delicious. Next time will be buying more to take home and freeze. read more

Wow! This small cafe sized place is a true vegan paradise. The desserts were so good I can say with complete confidence that its better tasting than many bakeries non vegan bakeries. I had a chocolate chip cookie, a maple donut. read more

Such a lovely locally owned vegan bakery! I adore all things unhealthy, including meat, and was skeptical that I would enjoy vegan treats. However, they are quite good! The lavender cupcake is my favorite! I also like the mallow and chocolate chip cookie. Very soft. The decor is cute and it has a hipster vibe. read more

Rainbow Bakery - Lavender cupcake and mallow choc chip cookie! - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

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To be honest, I think that Rainbow Bakery gets by more on hype than actual quality of donut. I will say that they do a great job of caring for people with allergies of all kinds--their website has a detailed listing of all the ingredients for each flavor of donut, and information on which donuts are friendly to certain allergies. There is a lot of appeal here to people with gluten intolerance, lactose intolerance, or vegan dietary restrictions. I've been to Rainbow Bakery several times, though, and I have to say--if you don't have any allergies or aversions, then I would stick with a more traditional bakery. Cresent Donut, Square Donut, and even the food courts on campus produce a tastier donut for cheaper. If you're looking for a great taste-price ratio, maybe look elsewhere. But if you do dietary considerations, Rainbow's a great place to check out. read more

I somehow didn't check out rainbow bakery until this year and I wish I'd made the decision earlier! Rainbow Bakery is an all vegan and mostly gluten-free bakery that is known for their ever-rotating donut selection and welcoming environment. I do not have much of a sweet tooth, but I end up grabbing breakfast at Rainbow at least a couple times a week. They have a great selection of savory items (scones, hand pies, breakfast sandwiches) that gets switched up every day. My go-to items are the spinach-tomato scone and the Indian Greens hand-pie (Yum, served w/ mango chutney). I've also gotten their bfast sandwich several times, and I've been shocked with the quality. Despite being vegan, it may be the best breakfast sandwich in town. I don't know what cheese substitute they use for it but it is so melty and flavorful that I thought it was dairy the first time! The biscuit is also absolutely perfect. I also get their sweet treats to share with friends because they have the best GF selection in town! The donuts are yummy and the oatmeal cream pies are always a hit. Oh yeah! Also, I'm cursed with a cashew allergy and can confirm that NONE of the dairy free cheese substitutes they use are nut-based. So awesome! read more

This was the best cake I have ever eaten! I ordered a strawberry layer cake for my daughters bridal shower in August! It was a little more than I wanted to pay but since I had heard good reviews i figured I needed to do this for such a special occassion! It was the most moist, delicious cake! I had 3 pieces! Everyone raved about it! I can't wait to try your muffins! read more

Rainbow Bakery - Bakeries Near Me - Bloomington, Indiana

The freshest, most flavorful vegan donuts I've ever had. Their breakfast sandwiches are tasty too. This business was conscious of their employees' and customers' well-being during the pandemic, and they continue to thrive due to their responsiveness to change. Hopscotch coffee is served here, as well! You have to stop in! read more