A vegan and gluten-free bakery with a Food Network trophy to its name is setting up shop in Hoboken. Papa Ganache has signed a lease at 509 Washington Street, taking over the former Washington General Store space, with plans to bring its cakes, croissants, and cupcakes to the Mile Square City within the next few months.
The bakery signed its lease in early November, according to Hoboken Girl, which reports that signage has already gone up in the storefront windows at the address. An exact opening date has not been announced, but the outlet notes the bakery is anticipating a debut within the next few months. Once open, the Hoboken shop is expected to include indoor seating and a back outdoor garden area, along with decorative tin walls designed by owner Lisa Siroti.
Siroti told Hoboken Girl that customers can expect the same selection of sweet and savory treats available at the bakery’s other locations, with plans for the Hoboken menu to include yodels, cheesecakes, cupcakes, custom cakes, croissants, rainbow cookies, and brownies. The bakery also plans new weekly surprises from its team of bakers, per the same report.
From a Keyport Storefront to a Cupcake Wars Win
Papa Ganache’s roots trace back to 2010, when Siroti opened the bakery in Keyport with a business partner who was a vegan baker, according to Hoboken Girl. That 2,100-square-foot Keyport shop specialized in gluten-free cookies and cakes alongside cupcakes, special-order cakes, muffins, cookies, and pies, per New Jersey Monthly. Siroti continued running the business on her own after her partner left during the bakery’s first year, Hoboken Girl reports.
The bakery later moved to 106 Main Street in Matawan and expanded to 3620 NJ-35 in Lavallette, according to Hoboken Girl. In 2013, Papa Ganache was invited to compete on Food Network’s Cupcake Wars, a reality cooking competition with a grand prize of $10,000 and the chance to showcase the winner’s cupcakes at a celebrity event. The bakery won, earning the $10,000 prize, and brought 1,000 cupcakes to that year’s People’s Choice Awards after-party in Los Angeles.
A Menu Built Without Animal Products
Papa Ganache makes its treats without trans fats, dairy, eggs, preservatives, or other animal products, according to Hoboken Girl. Beyond the items planned for Hoboken, the bakery’s broader lineup includes brownies, cakes, empanadas, and quiches, as well as double chocolate brownies and apple turnovers. Other offerings include cannolis, rainbow cookies, cinnamon buns, and specialty cupcakes in flavors like cookies ’n cream, chocolate raspberry, and strawberry shortcake, along with savory soups, pastas, and pot pies.
Seasonal items have included pumpkin swirl cheesecake, apple cider donut cake, Star of David sugar cookies, and Thanksgiving tres leches cupcakes, the outlet notes. The bakery’s footprint has shifted some this year at the Jersey Shore: its Manasquan location closed on May 10, with owner Lisa Siroti citing a significant rent increase at the end of the lease as well as a less than anticipated sales projection, according to NJ.com. Papa Ganache then opened a vegan and gluten-free bakery at 3620 Route 35 North in Normandy Beach on May 22, with the outlet reporting that sweet and savory treats are made at the business’s Matawan location and transported daily, and that customers there can sit indoors or outdoors.
More Than a Bakery
Siroti, a psychotherapist, built the business into something beyond baked goods. Papa Ganache is a bakery and also a place where we provide therapy and behavioral assistance to children and families in need, Siroti said, according to NJ.com, which reported in April 2025 that the bakery operated locations in Cranford, Matawan, and Manasquan at the time.
Siroti developed the Papa Ganache Strengths Development Project, a community program focused on personal growth and support, using bakery activities to help children build social and life skills. Children in those activities learn patience, teamwork, communication, and how to work through disagreements, according to the report, with the program supporting kids dealing with low self-esteem, anger management, and difficulty staying productive.
