Gluten-free restaurants don’t have to be filled with rice noodles, lettuce wraps and chain restaurants that don’t really understand your needs.
There is a whole world of gluten-free entrees that push the limits on what you thought you knew about gluten-free buns, and our restaurants list is ready to prove it.
Please remember, we are not doctors and this is not medical advice. I’ve simply done the research, interviewed the restaurant employees and founds some of the best gluten-free restaurants near me in the United States.
Celiac-Friendly, Gluten-Free Restaurants in DC
Chaia Tacos
- Address: 3207 Grace Street NW, Washington DC, 20007
- Telephone: (202)-333-5222
- Dining Options: Limited indoor seating, delivery, pick-up
- Celiac Risk: Low
Interspersed between the many Georgetown ‘cupcakeries’ sits Chaia Tacos, serving up a completely gluten-free and nut-free menu.
This female-led business started as a food-stand at a DC farmer’s market and eventually opened a permanent location in Northwest DC.
Vegetables are the star at Chaia, with tacos, enchiladas, quesadillas, tostadas and sides all highlighting beautiful and sustainable local produce.
La Casita Pupuseria
- Address: 1280 4th Street NE, Washington DC, 20002 (La Cosecha)
- Telephone: (202)-921-9150
- Dining Options: Limited indoor dining, pick-up, delivery
- Celiac Risk: Low
At almost 20 years old, La Casita Pupuseria is now filling a much-needed demand for authentic Salvadoran pupusas in Washington DC’s Union Market district.
The original storefront opened in 2002 in Silver Spring, but when the Union Market ‘sister space’ opened a few years ago, La Casita Pupuseria joined other Latino food vendors at La Cosecha market and brought their epic pupusas to the party.
The pupusa dough is made with corn masa and the team at La Casita have a protocol in place to ensure no cross-contamination with just a few non-GF menu items (they use separate utensils, storage, and cookware for foods coming in contact with gluten).
La Casita also has a stall at Nationals Ballpark, so when baseball attendance reopens to everyone, keep an eye out for some delicious pupusas!
Seoul Spice
- Address: multiple locations
- NOMA: 145 N Street NE, Suite 400, Washington DC, 20002 (202-817-6927)
- Tenleytown: 4600 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington DC, 20016 (202-830-9351)
- Dining Options: Curbside pick-up, contactless delivery, dine-in
- Celiac Risk: Low
Seoul Spice is nailing their attempt at fast-casual, allergy-inclusive, delicious Korean food. The fast food menu is set up for customization, with a break-down of bowl components—the base, proteins, veggies, house-made sauces, and toppings/extras.
Even the sweet potato starch noodle base and gochujang sauce are gluten-free. If the long list of options is overwhelming, they also have ‘signature combinations’ to take some of the guesswork out of the ordering process.
Modena
- Address: 1199 H Street NW, Washington DC, 20005
- Telephone: (202)-216-9550
- Dining Options: Delivery, pick-up, dine-in
- Celiac Risk: Low
Gluten-free pasta can be very tricky. Easily overcooked, the texture can get too mushy and the pasta sauce overly starchy or gummy.
Modena is on a quest to change that, taking gluten-free pasta to the next level with a gluten-free flour blend that is milled in-house to produce stunning gluten-free fresh pasta for their gluten-free menu.
Upon request, all pasta dishes can be substituted with this fresh and delicious gluten-free pasta. Modena chefs also take special care to cook the GF pasta in separate pots of boiling water to ensure no cross-contamination for diners with Celiac disease and other severe gluten allergies.
They also make a homemade GF focaccia with the same milled flour blend, so all pasta and bread needs are covered.
Zatinya and Jaleo
Zatinya
- Address: 701 9th Street NW, Washington DC, 20001
- Telephone: (202)-638-0800
- Dining Options: Dine-in, take out, delivery
- Celiac Risk: Low
Jaleo
- Address: 480 7th Street NW, Washington DC, 20004
- Telephone: (202)-628-7949
- Dining Options: Dine-in, take out, delivery
- Celiac Risk: Low
José Andrés is nothing short of a local culinary and philanthropic god. Zatinya and Jaleo are just two of his restaurant children, but they never fail to impress, both with the food and the ambience.
Whether you fancy Mediterranean bites inspired by the flavors of Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon, or Spanish tapas curated from Andrés’ home country of Spain, the food is always incredible and the staff extremely kind and personable.
Make sure to ask for a gluten-free version of the menu and let your waiter know if you have any severe gluten allergies.
From personal experience, they are always extremely knowledgeable about gluten allergies and cross-contamination issues, so be sure to talk openly with your waiter about your personal dietary requirements so they can help in any way possible to ensure you have a great dining experience.
Best Gluten-free Restaurants in DC
Restaurants and bakeries marked ‘higher risk of cross-contamination’ indicate that the staff do NOT recommend their products for customers with Celiac disease.
Please read the ‘notes’ at the end of each write-up for any other information about cross-contamination, gluten-free menus and how food allergies are handled.
Unconventional Diner
- Address: 1207 9th Street NW, Washington DC, 20001
- Telephone: (202)-847-0122
- Dining Options: Dine-in, delivery, pick-up
- Celiac Risk: Higher risk of cross-contamination
Food critic Tom Sietsema of The Washington Post describes the Unconventional Diner eating experience as ‘comfort food with flair’ and this perfectly encapsulates the food and ambience at this 9th street gem.
The decor inside is modern and edgy, with playful food that is both exciting and satisfying.
The menu is very allergy-friendly, with easy to identify abbreviations that indicate gluten-free options, vegan, vegetarian, and dairy-free options.
NOTE: Unconventional Diner staff take allergens, gluten-free diets and safety very seriously, but while they can modify and accommodate requests on the menu, they are unable to fully guarantee no risk of cross-contamination.
GCDC Grilled Cheese
- Address: 1730 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC, 20006
- Telephone: (202)-393-4232
- Dining Options: Pick-up, delivery, indoor and outdoor dining
- Celiac Risk: Higher risk of cross-contamination
In simple terms, grilled cheese is a sandwich, made with generously buttered bread and toasted until the cheesy inside melts to gooey perfection. But growing up, grilled cheese was our official family ‘mood booster’, the PINNACLE of comfort food often served with canned tomato soup.
The team at GCDC is broadening the reach of grilled cheese’s mood boosting qualities with a GF bread option from nearby Rise Bakery. All grilled cheese sandwiches can be substituted with gluten-free bread upon request for those with gluten sensitive diners.
NOTE: Gluten-free sandwiches are warmed in the same oven as regular grilled cheese sandwiches, so a small chance of cross-contamination is possible.
South Block
- Address: multiple locations
- Logan Circle—1418 14th Street NW, Washington DC, 20005
- Georgetown—3210 Grace Street NW, Washington DC, 20007
- Union Market—1309 5th Street NE, Washington DC, 20002
- Dining Options: Takeout and delivery available at all locations
- Celiac Risk: Higher risk of cross-contamination
Washington DC summers can be compared to living in a city-wide sauna for nearly 6 months of the year. My appetite can get a little wonky in the heat, but South Block’s acai bowls are one item I outright crave when the temperatures are depressingly high.
Their smoothies and bowls are perfectly fruity, refreshing, and cooling, with an array of yummy toppings that add some serious height to the already tall acai bowl containers.
All smoothies and acai bowls are naturally gluten-free, including their sweet and crunchy granola topper (although the granola is not specifically Gluten-Free Certified).
My most recent favorite is the ‘Mermaid bowl’, featuring antioxidant-rich blue majik that turns the creamy fruit blend a striking blue color.
NOTE: South Block is eager and excited to welcome ALL eaters with every kind of dietary requirement and will do their best to accommodate your gluten-free needs.
For people with severe gluten allergies like Celiac disease, it’s best to check with on-site staff about the possibility of cross-contamination. (Some locations have regular bread on site, while others have NONE and therefore have no risk of cross-contamination.)
A few locations have a gluten-free bread substitute for regular toast.
Frankly…Pizza
- Address: 10417 Armory Ave, Kensington Maryland, 20895
- Telephone: (301)-832-1065
- Dining Options: Carryout only
- Celiac Risk: Higher risk of cross-contamination
Just like pasta, gluten-free pizza can be tricky to get just right. For those of us who take cauliflower pizza crust at face value—a uniquely satisfying base for pizza toppings, made with the very trendy blank-slate vegetable—a craving for traditional chewy, crispy, and charred pizza crust is sometimes all that will satisfy.
Frankly…Pizza in Kensington, Maryland is attempting to broaden the gluten-free pizza crust game with their unique recipe that elevates GF pizza enough to make the drive to nearby Maryland worth every mile.
The team at Frankly…Pizza is one of a few who do not treat gluten-free pizza near me as an afterthought to the rest of the menu. They take their GF pizza crust so seriously, a 24-hour advance reservation is required to ensure your gluten-free pizza has all the thought and care it needs to wow you after that first bite.
To order your gluten-free pizza, visit their website at least 24-hours in advance to place an order. From there you can select a day, indicate your desired pizza toppings and specify a time for pick-up.
NOTE: The team at Frankly…Pizza ‘strives to avoid cross contamination’ but cannot guarantee it. They do use the same brick oven to cook all pizzas.
I’ve heard great things about how they handle severe allergies like Celiac disease, but it’s ultimately a personal decision for you to make, taking into account your personal dining comfort level.
Jetties
- Address: multiple locations
- Foxhall—1609 Foxhall Road NW, Washington DC, 20007 (202) 891-7690
- Chevy Chase—5632 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington DC, 20015 (202) 364-2465
- Macomb—3708 Macomb St NW, Washington DC, 20016 (202) 891-7685
- Downtown—1921 Eye Street NW, Washington DC, 20006 (202) 381-7459
- Dining Options: Delivery, pick-up, dine-in
- Celiac Risk: Higher risk of cross-contamination
Sandwiches are an American staple that is beholden to one of the best carb-loaded foods…bread.
But at Jetties, a simple swap for gluten-free bread or sub rolls will open up an entire menu of creative and satisfying sandwiches.
All locations have GF bread available to build your own mighty sandwich combo.
DC Dosa
DC Dosa is temporarily closed, but all of Capitol Hill is awaiting a return to their original Union Market stall location.
The South Indian dosa are composed of a thin rice and lentil flour pancake stuffed with deliciously spiced veggie fillings.
