You'd think that gluten sensitivity and celiac disease would greatly diminish the enjoyment of eating out here in New Orleans. No beignets! No fried oyster poboy on french bread! No bread pudding! But honestly, there are a number of places in the city that make it very easy to eat gluten-free.
First of all, a number of fine dining restaurants, from Commander's Palace to Patois to Coquette and many more, are more than happy to accommodate food sensitivities and allergies. Just ask your server politely about options and you may just end up getting a special dish that all the gluten gluttons at your table will openly covet.
Second, the diversity of styles of cuisine helps enormously. Obviously, Vietnamese dishes with rice, rice noodles, or rice paper are great for the gluten-free. The increasing number of Mexican restaurants in the area offer corn tortillas instead of flour. If you skip the pita, Mediterranean food relies on chickpea flour instead of wheat.
It's important to note that for people with severe celiac disease and allergies, these restaurants (with the exception of The Peacebaker) will and do have cross-contamination risks, since they work with gluten in the same kitchen.
Honestly, almost everything on this maize/corn (with yucca and plantain also sharing the spotlight) focused menu is gluten free. Including the eponymous specialty, the arepa. So enjoy the wide gluten free variety of those filled with all manner of skirt steak, pork, chicken, shrimp, and chorizo, as well as the brochetas - steak and chicken skewers - and their to die for shrimp ceviche.
This LGD coffee shop caters to folks who have dietary restrictions (as well as anyone who enjoys eating food) with well-labeled vegan and gluten-free menu items. Menu suggestions: the daily selection of gluten free bakery items; The Serenity Now!, quinoa bowl with tofu, roasted broccoli, chick peas, carrots, radishes, sprouts, sesame seeds, and tahini sauce; The Shrimp Pimp salad with Gulf shrimp in a lemon/dill sauce served with avocado, corn, cucumber, red peppers, and hard boiled egg served over arugula.
This falafel-forward eatery is almost completely gluten-free if one avoids the flatbread and sandwich options. Menu suggestion: roasted beet salad with herb pesto and feta; french fries with toum (Lebanese garlic dipping sauce; falafel platter.
This Cajun focused eatery is ALL about the protein bounty of the land (pork, duck, sausage, etc.) and the sea. The charcuterie plate is always awesome, but also give the black drum on the half shell tacos with corn tortillas, collard green chimichurri, citrus slaw, green tomato chow chow and Sriracha aioli. Or the sweet tea brined pork chop with dirty rice, bacon braised collard greens, and vidalia onion gravy.
This CBD restaurant is a great place to stop by before or after any event downtown, and the focused preparation on local seafood means most dishes aren't battered or otherwise gluten'd. Menu suggestions: Gulf oysters on the half shell; grilled octopus; black drum a la plancha with brown butter, pecans, and jumbo lump crab. Dessert alert! Chocolate hazelnut pudding with condensed milk sorbet.
Breakfast at Brennan's is often All About The Eggs, which are delicious and of course, gloriously gluten free. Just avoid the toast and english muffins! Menu suggestions: Eggs Cardinale (crispy lobster and shrimp boudin, spinach, and Creole mustard hollandaise); grapefruit brulee with Luxardo cherries and rosemary creme anglaise; egg yolk carpaccio with grilled shrimp, crispy sweet potato, and andouille vinaigrette.
Although not open in the summer, this is a good place to keep on the radar, because the seafood is coated and fried in a cornmeal mixture with no wheat flour. Score! Go crazy with the fried oyster, catfish, shrimp, or trout plates served with french fries and cole slaw.
This French Quarter classic overlooks Jackson Square and has its own special gluten free menu with deliciousness like blackened Mississippi catfish with roasted new potatoes, dill and red onions, laced with a crystal hot sauce butter. Or how about a Louisiana duck and chaurice hash for brunch? You can see the expansive menu online to plan your attack.
Superior also has a gluten free specific menu for perusal online. Tons of awesome stuff on there, like shrimp pesto risotto, mussels & frites, and seared scallops. Dessert alert! Three GF dessert items on the list: flourless chocolate cake, crème brûlée, and strawberry panna cotta.
The vast majority if the entrees here are gluten-free, eschewing wheat products for starchy vegetables and rice. Menu suggestions: "Scalibut," halibut, sea scallops, lobster risotto, snow peas, and pea shoot butter; wood grilled Scottish salmon with smoked jalapeño glaze, thin bean succotash, mashed potatoes, corn butter; and for apps, Pompano crudo with Kaffir lime, mint, Fresno chili, and Meyer lemon.
Besides the sandwiches and desserts, the menu here is by and large free of gluten, focusing instead on charcuterie and other smoked meats, and fresh seafood. Menu suggestions: steamed mussels with collard greens and grit crackers; pan seared duck breast with wood-grilled pepper maque choux and charred peach sabayon.
Spring rolls, bún, rice bowls, and pho are all gluten free at any of the amazing Vietnamese restaurants in and around New Orleans. But Pho Cam Ly also has Phở Bò Kho, a thicker beef stew with brisket and carrot.
Sure, eggs, bacon, breakfast potatoes, and grits are all gluten free and can be found at any breakfast/brunch joint worth its salt. But Surrey's has a bit more of a wider variety for GF folks, with the Costa Rican breakfast, eggs over white or brown rice and topped with cheddar cheese, pico de gallo, and fresh avocado slices. Or try the corned beef hash, which also includes boudin and andouille.
So much of this menu is gluten free! (and/or soy free and/or vegan.) It's all marked clearly on the menu. Suggestions: Creole zucchini wraps with shaved zucchini, creole cashew cheese, spinach, sprouts, seasonal greens, guacamole, toasted pumpkin seeds, and sriracha sauce; veggie "noodles" with puttanesca sauce; or the chili cheese fries with cashew queso.
Honestly, almost everything on this maize/corn (with yucca and plantain also sharing the spotlight) focused menu is gluten free. Including the eponymous specialty, the arepa. So enjoy the wide gluten free variety of those filled with all manner of skirt steak, pork, chicken, shrimp, and chorizo, as well as the brochetas - steak and chicken skewers - and their to die for shrimp ceviche.
This LGD coffee shop caters to folks who have dietary restrictions (as well as anyone who enjoys eating food) with well-labeled vegan and gluten-free menu items. Menu suggestions: the daily selection of gluten free bakery items; The Serenity Now!, quinoa bowl with tofu, roasted broccoli, chick peas, carrots, radishes, sprouts, sesame seeds, and tahini sauce; The Shrimp Pimp salad with Gulf shrimp in a lemon/dill sauce served with avocado, corn, cucumber, red peppers, and hard boiled egg served over arugula.
This falafel-forward eatery is almost completely gluten-free if one avoids the flatbread and sandwich options. Menu suggestion: roasted beet salad with herb pesto and feta; french fries with toum (Lebanese garlic dipping sauce; falafel platter.
This Cajun focused eatery is ALL about the protein bounty of the land (pork, duck, sausage, etc.) and the sea. The charcuterie plate is always awesome, but also give the black drum on the half shell tacos with corn tortillas, collard green chimichurri, citrus slaw, green tomato chow chow and Sriracha aioli. Or the sweet tea brined pork chop with dirty rice, bacon braised collard greens, and vidalia onion gravy.
This CBD restaurant is a great place to stop by before or after any event downtown, and the focused preparation on local seafood means most dishes aren't battered or otherwise gluten'd. Menu suggestions: Gulf oysters on the half shell; grilled octopus; black drum a la plancha with brown butter, pecans, and jumbo lump crab. Dessert alert! Chocolate hazelnut pudding with condensed milk sorbet.
Breakfast at Brennan's is often All About The Eggs, which are delicious and of course, gloriously gluten free. Just avoid the toast and english muffins! Menu suggestions: Eggs Cardinale (crispy lobster and shrimp boudin, spinach, and Creole mustard hollandaise); grapefruit brulee with Luxardo cherries and rosemary creme anglaise; egg yolk carpaccio with grilled shrimp, crispy sweet potato, and andouille vinaigrette.
Although not open in the summer, this is a good place to keep on the radar, because the seafood is coated and fried in a cornmeal mixture with no wheat flour. Score! Go crazy with the fried oyster, catfish, shrimp, or trout plates served with french fries and cole slaw.
This French Quarter classic overlooks Jackson Square and has its own special gluten free menu with deliciousness like blackened Mississippi catfish with roasted new potatoes, dill and red onions, laced with a crystal hot sauce butter. Or how about a Louisiana duck and chaurice hash for brunch? You can see the expansive menu online to plan your attack.
Superior also has a gluten free specific menu for perusal online. Tons of awesome stuff on there, like shrimp pesto risotto, mussels & frites, and seared scallops. Dessert alert! Three GF dessert items on the list: flourless chocolate cake, crème brûlée, and strawberry panna cotta.
The vast majority if the entrees here are gluten-free, eschewing wheat products for starchy vegetables and rice. Menu suggestions: "Scalibut," halibut, sea scallops, lobster risotto, snow peas, and pea shoot butter; wood grilled Scottish salmon with smoked jalapeño glaze, thin bean succotash, mashed potatoes, corn butter; and for apps, Pompano crudo with Kaffir lime, mint, Fresno chili, and Meyer lemon.
Besides the sandwiches and desserts, the menu here is by and large free of gluten, focusing instead on charcuterie and other smoked meats, and fresh seafood. Menu suggestions: steamed mussels with collard greens and grit crackers; pan seared duck breast with wood-grilled pepper maque choux and charred peach sabayon.
Spring rolls, bún, rice bowls, and pho are all gluten free at any of the amazing Vietnamese restaurants in and around New Orleans. But Pho Cam Ly also has Phở Bò Kho, a thicker beef stew with brisket and carrot.
Sure, eggs, bacon, breakfast potatoes, and grits are all gluten free and can be found at any breakfast/brunch joint worth its salt. But Surrey's has a bit more of a wider variety for GF folks, with the Costa Rican breakfast, eggs over white or brown rice and topped with cheddar cheese, pico de gallo, and fresh avocado slices. Or try the corned beef hash, which also includes boudin and andouille.
So much of this menu is gluten free! (and/or soy free and/or vegan.) It's all marked clearly on the menu. Suggestions: Creole zucchini wraps with shaved zucchini, creole cashew cheese, spinach, sprouts, seasonal greens, guacamole, toasted pumpkin seeds, and sriracha sauce; veggie "noodles" with puttanesca sauce; or the chili cheese fries with cashew queso.
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