Finding gluten free restaurants nearby can be tricky at times, especially depending on where you are located. In cities, it is often easier to find expansive lists with the most recommended gf spots, but what do you do when you’re in a place with less?
We have some tips to help you spot the best places where you can safely eat gluten free!
1. Find Me Gluten Free
Photo: Find Me Gluten Free Facebook page
Find Me Gluten Free is the all time best app for finding highly-vetted gluten free restaurants, and other establishments that offer gf options safe for people with Celiac Disease. Download the app for iPhone or Android so you can find gf places and Celiac friendly spots wherever you go.
2. Gluten Free Follow Me
Gluten Free Follow Me is a popular food blog started by Jackie McEwan that is all about living with Celiac Disease and navigating a gluten free life. It’s a great blog overall, but one amazing feature is their gluten-free friendly restaurant search. It features tons and tons of places where you can find gluten free options, and has a bunch of cool search functions. Filter by state, city/neighborhood, cuisine, diet type, ratings, and more!
3. Apple or Google Maps
Photo: henry perks
When in a pinch, you can always open up Apple or Google Maps to filter out gluten free options near you. Typically a search for ‘gluten free’ or ‘gluten free restaurants’ will help find anything with a related review or menu in the area. You can also search for ‘Celiac’ or ‘Celiac Disease’ to get even better results, but you may miss some options this way if they don’t have reviews mentioning CD.
4. GlutenBee
You know we had to shout out our own site! 🙂 GlutenBee has a wealth of information about gluten free restaurants, fast food, cafes, bakeries, and other places we’ve found that are great for finding gluten free food. You can find gluten free menus for popular restaurants here, and you can easily search the blog to find lesser known places.
We also recommend checking out the GlutenBee YouTube channel where you can find 1000s of videos from our travels. We have playlists full of gluten free options for New York City, Boston, Chicago, Paris, London, and the island of Bermuda! More playlists are coming soon for other top cities and travel destinations. Which city do you want us to cover next?
5. Influencers
Influencers on social media are another great resource for finding restaurants with gluten free food. They are really good for specific regions or locations too, because you can find gluten free bloggers from all over the country you’re in, and even the world! Check out this list of the top gluten free YouTube channels we made.
Wondering how to start? Use Instagram, it’s the best place to find this type of information.
Search for gluten free and then filter by accounts. There you can find tons of people who are sharing gluten free recipes, restaurants and food finds, and much more. Then when you find people you can check their highlights on their page to often find lists of food spots with gf options. For example, check out @saltlakecityglutenfree, a page run by a couple who both travel and find gluten free restaurants in Salt Lake City, Utah and beyond!
6. Food Delivery Apps
Apps like Uber Eats, Grubhub, and Doordash have amazing lists and filtering options for finding gluten free within the exact location you are at. You can search using the app functions and you can also find restaurants tagged with these labels. I have found a few really cool spots, especially ghost kitchens, on these apps. So don’t knock it until you try it.
Do keep in mind though, that cross-contamination is an issue and sometimes it’s harder to find dedicated gluten free restaurants on food delivery apps. Always mention your allergy or disease when you place your order!
7. Google Search Parameters
Using Google Search Parameters is extremely powerful when searching for gluten free food. Here’s the easy way to do it.
How to Use Google Advanced Search to Find Gluten Free Food in Your City
- Go to Google Advanced Search.
- Type in ‘gluten free restaurants’ and ‘your city’ in the ‘all these words’ input box. Replace ‘your city’ with the city or specific town/region of your choice. 🙂
- Type any negative words in the ‘none of these words’ input box. Like maybe you want to exclude the delivery apps from a search or avoid sites like Yelp/Trip Advisor.
- Filter by your region.
- Boom, you have highly targeted results related to gluten free restaurants near you!
8. Yelp, Tripadvisor, and other Travel Related Sites
Another decent option is searching for gluten free on sites like Yelp, Tripadvisor, and other travel review sites. They can definitely be useful at times and often have the largest sets of data available with hundreds, and sometimes even thousands of results!
Here is where I would advise caution though. These sites are not dedicated to allergy or diet related specific restaurants, so they can often have sub-par results. Always exercise caution when finding a gluten free restaurant on these platforms. It’s smart to double check with Find Me Gluten Free or other gluten free bloggers to ensure it’s actually a safe restaurant you might want to go to.
I’ve had a few experiences where I went to a restaurant based off these sites and found it to be either not gluten free at all, or very lacking in safety precautions.
Conclusion
Finding gluten free spots doesn’t have to be hard! But it’s helpful to have a list of resources that can aid in your searches. Use the roundup above to find the best gluten free near me options for restaurants, cafes, bakeries, even breweries!
Have another piece of advice for someone with Celiac Disease or a gluten intolerance who is looking for food/take-out near them? Leave a comment below to share your tips!
Related:Â Long Haul Flights: 8 Tips for Gluten Free Travellers
