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15 East Bay Restaurants Great for Gluten-Free Dining

by Janelle Bitker@JanelleBitker Aug 29, 2018, 12:53pm PDT

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by Janelle Bitker@JanelleBitker Aug 29, 2018, 12:53pm PDT

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Most restaurants these days can accommodate gluten-free eaters, but it’s still a bummer when you only have one viable option on a lengthy menu. These 15 East Bay restaurants deliver lots of gluten-free options — and often gluten-filled options as well — so everyone can dine together happily. They also go beyond the gluten-free mainstays of Mexican, sushi, and Ethiopian restaurants, so you can mix things up more often.

Note: Most of these kitchens aren’t entirely gluten-free, so you should always talk to the staff about the severity of your allergy or sensitivity first.

If you’re looking for the best gluten-free restaurants in San Francisco, we have a guide for that, too.

Read More

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Brazilian Breads

This petite Brazilian cafe specializes in pão de quijo, small chewy rolls made with tapioca flour and cheese. Brazilian Breads makes a few variations — injected with guava jelly, for example, or garlic and rosemary — but doesn’t stop there with the gluten-free offerings. There are also meaty sliders using pão de quijo, yucca-based dishes, and both sweet and savory tapioca crepes.

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2216, 1707 Solano Ave, Berkeley, CA 94707

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Mariposa Baking Company

Perhaps the Bay Area’s best known gluten-free bakery, Mariposa also serves a wide array of breakfast and lunch sandwiches using their gluten-free bread. You’ll also find bagels, pizzas, and chicken pot pie.

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5427 Telegraph Avenue D3, Oakland, CA 94609

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Lucia's Berkeley

A lot of East Bay pizza spots offer gluten-free crusts, but few actually make them in-house. Lucia’s tops the list with its unique blend of flours and high-hydration dough, which gets cooked in a 900-degree Neapolitan wood oven. It arrives blistered, soft, chewy, and looking remarkably similar to its standard, gluten-y pies. While pizza is the main draw, Lucia’s also serves gluten-free pasta, and its salads, sides, and other dishes are clearly marked for dietary needs.

2016 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704

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Hawking Bird

James Syhabout was careful to make his fast-casual Hawker Fare spin-off remarkably gluten-free friendly considering its tight menu. Choose from poached chicken, fried chicken, and fried curried tofu — some notably slathered with charred chili jam — over rice or salad.

4901 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA 94609

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Also featured in:

Homeroom

Temescal’s perennially-packed restaurant devoted to mac ‘n’ cheese churns out a variety of spins on the classic, including seasonal specials such as pesto mac, crab mac, and Hawaiian bacon mac. And any mac can be made with gluten-free pasta for $3 extra.

400 40th St, Oakland, CA 94609

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Dyafa

While Reem Assil’s namesake bakery in Fruitvale revolves around mana’eesh, a pillowy Middle Eastern bread, her more upscale restaurant Dyafa offers plenty for gluten-free folks. There’s no need to miss out on Dyafa’s dips — lebneh with favas or charred eggplant with tahini, for example — as they can be paired with gluten-free chickpea pancakes. Many of the large-format dishes can be made gluten-free, too. Note: Dyafa isn’t so gluten-free friendly for lunch.

44 Webster St, Oakland, CA 94607

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Also featured in:

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dosa By DOSA

Indian restaurants are usually good bets for gluten-free diners, who can feast on curries over basmati rice. But Oakland’s dosa By DOSA takes it up a notch with clearly labeled salads, desserts, and dosas (South Indian savory rice and lentil crepes) in addition to rice bowls. Don’t miss the crispy, chewy idli fries dipped with chutney.

Open in Google Maps

2301 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94612

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Teni East Kitchen

Tiyo Shibabaw’s Teni East Kitchen serves Burmese dishes through a Californian lens, mixing fermented tea leaves with kale and incorporating crisp pea shoots into a standout salad. While the menu doesn’t state it, almost everything on it is gluten-free, including a range of aromatic curries.

4015 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94611

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Aburaya

Oakland’s rock ‘n’ roll-themed Japanese fried chicken shop dishes out a daily changing menu of izakaya-style small plates. Their friendliness to dietary restrictions varies, but the main attraction — the fried chicken as well as the fried substitutes for vegans — contains no gluten.

Open in Google Maps

362 17th St, Oakland, CA 94612

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Also featured in:

Grand Lake Kitchen

Oakland deli, restaurant, and market Grand Lake Kitchen has gluten-free diners covered all day. Brunch is particularly popular, and egg dishes and sandwiches are available with gluten-free bread by request. More elegant plates arrive in the evenings, and many of these are also designated gluten-free.

576 Grand Ave, Oakland, CA 94610

Visit Website

Also featured in:

CORE Kitchen

Folks with celiac will be safe at CORE Kitchen, which is 100 percent gluten-free — and organic and vegan. This is a weekday-only, breakfast-and-lunch spot geared toward takeout. Mornings see standards like chia seed pudding and granola, while office workers pile in at lunch for zucchini noodles, salads, and jackfruit sandwiches.

Open in Google Maps

499 14th St #119, Oakland, CA 94612

Visit Website

Maison Bleue

French crepes aren’t typically options for gluten-free diners, but Maison Bleue specializes in Breton-style savory galettes made with buckwheat. Naturally gluten-free fillings include grilled chicken, pesto, and mascarpone or ham, gruyere, and a runny egg.

Open in Google Maps

2020 Kittredge St c, Berkeley, CA 94704

Visit Website

Sanctuary Bistro

An entirely vegan and gluten-free restaurant, Sanctuary Bistro changes its menu regularly to reflect the seasons — but diners are sure to find dishes that are normally off limits. Past options include lasagna, broccoli soufflé, and tiramisu.

Open in Google Maps

1019 Camelia St, Berkeley, CA 94710

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Easy Creole

Funky, oh-so-Berkeley restaurant Easy Creole offers about a dozen Louisiana-inspired stews every day. The options change regularly but half are always vegan and many of them are made with a gluten-free roux. Served over brown or white rice, some stews taste traditional and others go to surprising places. If you aren’t so sure you’d like a Thai peanut etouffee, you can also sample any of the stews before committing. Skip the baguette and opt for gluten-free cornbread instead.

1761 Alcatraz Ave, Berkeley, CA 94703

Visit Website

Also featured in:

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Saha

Gluten-free diners — and even vegetarian gluten-free diners — will find a lot to love at Mohamed Aboghanem’s creative and elegant Middle Eastern restaurant. The menu is labeled well, allowing you to choose between a nightly prix-fixe menu for up to $45 or order a la carte. In addition to naturally gluten-free dishes, Aboghanem offers a gluten-free bread to swap in for pita.

Open in Google Maps

2451 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704

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Also featured in:

Where to Eat and Drink in Downtown Berkeley

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Brazilian Breads

2216, 1707 Solano Ave, Berkeley, CA 94707

This petite Brazilian cafe specializes in pão de quijo, small chewy rolls made with tapioca flour and cheese. Brazilian Breads makes a few variations — injected with guava jelly, for example, or garlic and rosemary — but doesn’t stop there with the gluten-free offerings. There are also meaty sliders using pão de quijo, yucca-based dishes, and both sweet and savory tapioca crepes.

Open in Google Maps

2216, 1707 Solano Ave, Berkeley, CA 94707

Visit Website

Mariposa Baking Company

5427 Telegraph Avenue D3, Oakland, CA 94609

Perhaps the Bay Area’s best known gluten-free bakery, Mariposa also serves a wide array of breakfast and lunch sandwiches using their gluten-free bread. You’ll also find bagels, pizzas, and chicken pot pie.

Open in Google Maps

5427 Telegraph Avenue D3, Oakland, CA 94609

Visit Website

Lucia's Berkeley

2016 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704

A lot of East Bay pizza spots offer gluten-free crusts, but few actually make them in-house. Lucia’s tops the list with its unique blend of flours and high-hydration dough, which gets cooked in a 900-degree Neapolitan wood oven. It arrives blistered, soft, chewy, and looking remarkably similar to its standard, gluten-y pies. While pizza is the main draw, Lucia’s also serves gluten-free pasta, and its salads, sides, and other dishes are clearly marked for dietary needs.

2016 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704

Visit Website

Hawking Bird

4901 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA 94609

James Syhabout was careful to make his fast-casual Hawker Fare spin-off remarkably gluten-free friendly considering its tight menu. Choose from poached chicken, fried chicken, and fried curried tofu — some notably slathered with charred chili jam — over rice or salad.

4901 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA 94609

Visit Website

Homeroom

400 40th St, Oakland, CA 94609

Temescal’s perennially-packed restaurant devoted to mac ‘n’ cheese churns out a variety of spins on the classic, including seasonal specials such as pesto mac, crab mac, and Hawaiian bacon mac. And any mac can be made with gluten-free pasta for $3 extra.

400 40th St, Oakland, CA 94609

Visit Website

Dyafa

44 Webster St, Oakland, CA 94607

While Reem Assil’s namesake bakery in Fruitvale revolves around mana’eesh, a pillowy Middle Eastern bread, her more upscale restaurant Dyafa offers plenty for gluten-free folks. There’s no need to miss out on Dyafa’s dips — lebneh with favas or charred eggplant with tahini, for example — as they can be paired with gluten-free chickpea pancakes. Many of the large-format dishes can be made gluten-free, too. Note: Dyafa isn’t so gluten-free friendly for lunch.

44 Webster St, Oakland, CA 94607

Visit Website

dosa By DOSA

2301 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94612

Indian restaurants are usually good bets for gluten-free diners, who can feast on curries over basmati rice. But Oakland’s dosa By DOSA takes it up a notch with clearly labeled salads, desserts, and dosas (South Indian savory rice and lentil crepes) in addition to rice bowls. Don’t miss the crispy, chewy idli fries dipped with chutney.

Open in Google Maps

2301 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94612

Visit Website

Teni East Kitchen

4015 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94611

Tiyo Shibabaw’s Teni East Kitchen serves Burmese dishes through a Californian lens, mixing fermented tea leaves with kale and incorporating crisp pea shoots into a standout salad. While the menu doesn’t state it, almost everything on it is gluten-free, including a range of aromatic curries.

4015 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94611

Visit Website

Aburaya

362 17th St, Oakland, CA 94612

Oakland’s rock ‘n’ roll-themed Japanese fried chicken shop dishes out a daily changing menu of izakaya-style small plates. Their friendliness to dietary restrictions varies, but the main attraction — the fried chicken as well as the fried substitutes for vegans — contains no gluten.

Open in Google Maps

362 17th St, Oakland, CA 94612

Visit Website

Grand Lake Kitchen

576 Grand Ave, Oakland, CA 94610

Oakland deli, restaurant, and market Grand Lake Kitchen has gluten-free diners covered all day. Brunch is particularly popular, and egg dishes and sandwiches are available with gluten-free bread by request. More elegant plates arrive in the evenings, and many of these are also designated gluten-free.

576 Grand Ave, Oakland, CA 94610

Visit Website

CORE Kitchen

499 14th St #119, Oakland, CA 94612

Folks with celiac will be safe at CORE Kitchen, which is 100 percent gluten-free — and organic and vegan. This is a weekday-only, breakfast-and-lunch spot geared toward takeout. Mornings see standards like chia seed pudding and granola, while office workers pile in at lunch for zucchini noodles, salads, and jackfruit sandwiches.

Open in Google Maps

499 14th St #119, Oakland, CA 94612

Visit Website

Maison Bleue

2020 Kittredge St c, Berkeley, CA 94704

French crepes aren’t typically options for gluten-free diners, but Maison Bleue specializes in Breton-style savory galettes made with buckwheat. Naturally gluten-free fillings include grilled chicken, pesto, and mascarpone or ham, gruyere, and a runny egg.

Open in Google Maps

2020 Kittredge St c, Berkeley, CA 94704

Visit Website

Sanctuary Bistro

1019 Camelia St, Berkeley, CA 94710

An entirely vegan and gluten-free restaurant, Sanctuary Bistro changes its menu regularly to reflect the seasons — but diners are sure to find dishes that are normally off limits. Past options include lasagna, broccoli soufflé, and tiramisu.

Open in Google Maps

1019 Camelia St, Berkeley, CA 94710

Visit Website

Easy Creole

1761 Alcatraz Ave, Berkeley, CA 94703

Funky, oh-so-Berkeley restaurant Easy Creole offers about a dozen Louisiana-inspired stews every day. The options change regularly but half are always vegan and many of them are made with a gluten-free roux. Served over brown or white rice, some stews taste traditional and others go to surprising places. If you aren’t so sure you’d like a Thai peanut etouffee, you can also sample any of the stews before committing. Skip the baguette and opt for gluten-free cornbread instead.

1761 Alcatraz Ave, Berkeley, CA 94703

Visit Website

Saha

2451 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704

Gluten-free diners — and even vegetarian gluten-free diners — will find a lot to love at Mohamed Aboghanem’s creative and elegant Middle Eastern restaurant. The menu is labeled well, allowing you to choose between a nightly prix-fixe menu for up to $45 or order a la carte. In addition to naturally gluten-free dishes, Aboghanem offers a gluten-free bread to swap in for pita.

Open in Google Maps

2451 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704

Visit Website

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