MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - The smell of freshly baked bread filled the room, a few customers sat at a table located inside Guidos Pizza, but what they were eating wasn't Guido's pizza.

"It taste like normal pizza, it doesn't taste like fake food, its really good," said one of the clients, they were eating Gluten Free pizza from WOW Kitchen.

With Out Wheat Gluten Free Kitchen is connected to Guido's Pizza by an open door and an owner, both are owned by Steve Polard.

It was the first gluten free deli in the United States when Polard opened the doors around 5 years ago. Today, there may be other gluten free kitchens in the area but few that offer a menu as expansive as the one at WOW kitchen.

Pizza, hamburgers, hot dogs, baked goods, onion rings, even ice cream; Polard says he started off as just gluten free but soon changed to offering food friendly to those with all sorts of food allergies.

" It's gluten free dairy free soy free msg free corn free so i cover the top five food allergies," he says.

His passion for specialized foods stems from growing up with a mother who has had multiple food allergies. Knowing how difficult it can be for those with allergies to dine out, he set out to make WOW a delicious safe haven.

"I have an entire kitchen dedicated to Gluten Free, I have celiac employees that work here that are gluten free and they only make my gluten free food, were totally dedicated to try to help anybody overcome food allergens and they can dine out safely," he says.

Polard calls WOW Gluten Free his "very expensive hobby," he bought the Guido's Pizza next door partly because of an ex-girlfriend.

" I had it in the back of my head and it was kind of a dream to separate both businesses," Polard says.

What gave him the kick was that Guido's the franchise told him he was no longer allowed to make Gluten free Pizza under their name.

" I went for a pizza challenge, the first ever Gluten free down in Orlando, Florida and I got national attention out of it, and next thing you know all the Guido's stores in Detroit started ringing off the hook and they got pretty upset," he explains.

He was allowed to keep his Guido's license but had to stop selling gluten free food under the franchise name. From that WOW was born and Polard has only expanded the food allergies he caters to since.

Polard says, "I have more people asking about food allergy related items than they are about just gluten free so we quickly started custom making food for all food allergens."

This is how Polard expanded his menu, and his store, to turn what started as an expensive hobby into a staple for eating in the world of food allergies and gluten free.