Protein Bar Review: GFB Bar
it's better than paper.
Gluten-free brands are doing the lord’s work. It isn’t easy to make a tasty protein bar with an appealing texture without the help of gluten. I’ve learned this truth up close and personal since my daughter was diagnosed with celiac disease a few years ago.
GFB (formerly Gluten Free Bars and recently rebranded Gluten Free Brothers) was created by brothers Marshall and Elliott Rader after Marshall was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2008. I am a regular consumer of their snack balls, which are tasty and the perfect size for a quick snack. Can I say the same for the protein bars?
GLOVES OFF TASTE TEST
Brand: GFB
Flavor: Cranberry + Toasted Almond.
Price: $2.75 (at my Massachusetts Wegmans)
Repeat customer? First time protein bar taster. Big fan of their protein balls.
First bite reaction: This is very dense, but cranberry is coming through and not in a bad way.
Second Bite thoughts: I’m not that excited.
Texture: Soft but thick. Feels like eating a skinny brick.
Final Thoughts: Flavor is totally serviceable, and it’s clearly a healthy option. I guess that’s a win?
Did I finish it? I’m a human vacuum.
My uninformed one-sentence elevator pitch: A healthy protein bar that is a quality, if not slightly sad, snack.
BRAND BACKGROUND
Elliott and Marshall were unhappy with the existing GF options (processed ingredients and overly sweet flavors) and wanted to do better. Both living in Chicago at the time, they tried to create their own formulations. In a 2017 profile about the company, Elliott called that experience “a total disaster.” Things really turned around when they found Jeremy Sher, a Chicago-area cupcake baker, on Craigslist. Together, they developed a few flavor profiles, and the brothers rented a small kitchen space. In 2010, they began by selling door-to-door, and a year later, they received their first big wholesale order from a store in their hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan. That store, Meijer, is part of a larger Midwest grocery chain, and soon the brothers were heading back home. Now they’re in all 230 Meijer stores as well as many others across the country.
Take care of your hearts.