The Best Gluten-Free Restaurants & Menus In London

Coeliac? Gluten intolerant? While in the past eating out with an allergy was notoriously difficult, these days restauranteurs and chefs are far more clued up. The free-from scene in London has never been better, with many eateries adding gluten-free menus to their repertoire – and others removing gluten entirely. From bakeries to pizza joints, high-end eateries to creperies, here’s our guide to gluten-free London…

The Best Gluten-Free Restaurants & Menus In London

Indigo at One Aldwych

Gluten-free dining can be fancy too, proves the plush Indigo restaurant at Covent Garden hotel One Aldwych. Fully accredited by Coeliac UK since late 2015, Indigo’s Head Chef Dominic Teague curates a high-end menu featuring some of the finest seasonal ingredients from around the country, with all dishes free from both gluten and dairy. There’s a focus on meat, fish and vegetables here, with highlights including smoked salmon with terrine and potato salad; Cotswold white chiken breast served on a bed of girolles, peas and broadbeans; and a crispy battered fish and chips, which comes with all the familiar trimmings.

BOOK: onealdwych.com | 1 Aldwych, London WC2B 4BZ

Arancina

Chances are, you’ve  heard of Arancina – or at least seen it pop off on TikTok. This Notting Hill staple is home to some of the best arancini in London, but what sets it apart is its fresh selection of gluten-free goodies. You can get giant handmade balls of arancini in a huge selection of flavours – and rest assured knowing that all of them are made, kept, heated and handled separately from the small restaurant’s foodie wares.

BOOK: arancina.co.uk | 19 Pembridge Road, London W11 3HG

Akira Back

The snazziest new hotel on Hanover Square, the Mandarin Oriental Mayfair, is also home a stunning restaurant: Akira Back. Taking on Japanese fare with modern flair, the menu was also influenced by head chef Akira Back’s childhood memories in Korea, combined with his love of travel and global cuisines. Several of the dishes on the menu can be made gluten-free, including Aira Back’s signature tuna pizza and jidori chicken – although you won’t want to miss out on the fresh selection of sushi and sashimi, prepared in front of hungry eyes at an open counter. All this, plus gluten-free soy sauce? We’re in.

BOOK: mandarinoriental.com | 22 Hanover Square, Mayfair, London W1S 1JP

Après Food Co

‘Make friends with food’ is the motto for this quaint little café in Clerkenwell. Uninspired by the quinoa and goji berry-centric health food market, founders Catherine Sharman and business partner Danny set out to redefine comfort food with a nutritious spin. Everything is organic and free of both gluten and refined sugar – but magically, still tastes delicious.

Aprés Food Co is open from breakfast through to dinner, with everything on the menu also available to take away. Brunches range from the light to the indulgent: maple roasted granola, American-style pancakes and bruschetta all feature, alongside the Aprés take on a cooked breakfast. Evening delights, meanwhile, include an aubergine, sweet potato and spinach Thai curry with cauliflower pilau rice; a roast chicken and butternut squash risotto; and steak with a Portobello mushroom and blue cheese pastry pie. Despite their free-from accolades, sweet treats are heavenly too – their freshly baked offering includes chocolate fondants, brownies, scones and fudge. Turns out you really can have your cake and eat it…

BOOK: apresfood.com | Unit 203, Dephna House, 7 Coronation Road, London NW10 7PQ

Zia Lucia

Zia Lucia translates as ‘Aunt Lucie’ in Italian, and there’s certainly a family feel at this charming Highbury pizzeria – which also has branches in Kensington and Wembley, with another soon to open in Aldgate East. A delicious 48-hour fermented gluten-free dough option sits alongside their traditional pizza base, with a striking vegetable charcoal version also available to order. It’s important to note there’s only one pizza oven, meaning cross contamination is a possibility and making it unsuitable for coeliacs, but the gluten-free base is a good option for those on a gluten-free diet for health reasons or simply looking for a more light-weight pizza.

BOOK: zialucia.com | Multiple locations

Niche

Back in the summer of 2013, Marc Wade and his business partner Adrian Morgan set out to serve British food with a modern twist. They opened Niche in Islington, just down the road from Sadler’s Wells Theatre, with a focus on bakery products. Not long afterwards, however, Marc was diagnosed as Coeliac, leading the pair to turn the restaurant totally gluten-free. Niche became London’s first Coeliac UK-accredited restaurant – though the principles stayed the same: great food, all made fresh on site. A far cry from some of the dry, tasteless gluten-free food on the market, here you can tuck into everything from buttermilk fried chicken to parmesan beignets to burgers to pies. Their strap-line is ‘gluten free but you wouldn’t know it’ – and many people who visit are oblivious of its wheat-free merits, a sign that it’s a top-class restaurant in its own right.

BOOK: nichefoodanddrink.com | 197-199 Rosebery Avenue, London EC1R 4TJ

Berto

The team behind the aforementioned Zia Lucia also has a sister venue, this one focused on pasta. It’s named after expert pasta maker Piero – nicknamed Berto by restaurant owners Claudio Vescovo and Gianluca D’Angelo – who owns a pasta shop in his home town of Ronciglione, just north of Rome. Similar to Zia Lucia, Berto offers a range of different pasta doughs, one being made from gluten-free flours. All pasta is made on site daily, from fresh egg tagliatelle to pappardelle to ravioli, then dressed with sauces created using the finest Italian produce.

BOOK: berto.co.uk | 155 Holloway Road, London N7 8LX

Featured image: Akira Back