Nashville
Who are you and where are you?
Dana, living in Music City USA – Nashville, TN
Tell me about your relationship with gluten..
I suspected that gluten was causing my GI issues, so I cut it out about 3 months ago, and really notice a difference.
Why should gluten free travellers visit your town?
Southern food is not known to be very gluten free-friendly, but there are a handful of restaurants that offer separate gluten free menus.
Tell me something fun about your town..
The Nashville music scene is great, and there are tons of festivals and fun things to do!
Where is your favourite place to eat out in your town and why?
Amerigo’s has a really great gluten free menu, the staff are very knowledgeable about gluten free food, and identify everything they bring to the table as the gluten free version.
- Cantina Laredo: Clearly marks items on their menu that are gluten free. Their corn tortilla chips are not fried with anything else, so they’re gluten free too!!
- Taziki’s: A great little Greek/Mediterranean place that has a separate gluten free menu. Â The Lamb Feast is my favorite!
- For gluten free pizza: MAFIAoZA’s and Mellow Mushroom. Porta Via does the best gluten free pizza I’ve had yet!
- For gluten free pancakes: The Pfunky Griddle, and supposedly the famous Pancake Pantry has gluten free pancakes, but I can’t find it listed on their menu. This place always has lines out the door and around the corner, but supposedly it’s an “institution”. I haven’t been yet.
- Merchants: we ate downstairs at the Bistro. Â So many things on their menu are gluten free and they have a version marked with the safe options. Â I had the Sweet Tea Pork Loin with Pimento Grits…SO good!
Do you live in Nashville or have you travelled there? Where is your favourite place to eat gluten free?
April Grave
Feb 4th, 2013I have been living in Nashville almost all my life, and have been gluten free for the last 6-7 years. There are actually TONS of gluten free friendly restaurants in Nashville. It seems the writer has listed some good places, but what if you don’t have $50-$80 to drop on dinner for two?
There are some great places in East Nashville, which is becoming well known for a “farm to table” movement. This means everything is made in house, so there is less of a risk of cross contamination. The Wild Cow (vegetarian) is a great, affordable place for lunch or dinner. Most Mexican restaurants can be safe, you just have to tell someone that can translate to the kitchen staff. We have tons of Bar-B-Cue places. They usually make their own sauces and sides, so there are less additives and preservatives.
There is also a great place north of Nashville called Butterbean Bakery and Bistro. Everything made in house is gluten free, and they currently offer lunch and sweets. They will be moving soon to their own farm where they will be growing their own vegetables and raising their own chickens.
Nashville has really “stepped it up” in the last few years when it comes to gluten free options. I personally would choose locally owned options, since they are more likely to care about regular business.
April Grave
Feb 4th, 2013Also, the Phunky Griddle is a “cook your own” pancake place where all the pancakes are cooked on “community grills”. I probably would ask about cleanliness of the grills and how they avoid cross contamination. They do offer a gluten free pancake batter.
The Pancake Pantry no longer offers gluten free pancakes. They had too much trouble with cross contamination. Not surprising, this place is always packed!
Laura
Feb 4th, 2013Thanks for sharing your tips on Nashville, April! I like the idea of a farm to table movement, lots of really fresh food and as you say, less threat of cross contamination. 🙂
Nashville sounds like it’s a pretty gluten free friendly city! I visited once with my family years ago before I was diagnosed and I look forward to returning to try all these great gluten free places! 🙂
Kim Jorgensen Gane
Feb 11th, 2013Just wanted to add that I have enjoyed the gluten free pizza at Porta Via, and it is absolutely the BEST gf pizza I’ve ever had from a restaurant. They also had buffalo mozzarella, which made my son very happy because he can’t have cow dairy, but he does fine with buffalo. Highly recommend Porta Via! And next time I’m in Nashville, I’ll be sure to check out some of the others. Nice to know that Music City is pretty hip on the gf bandwagon.
Kelly
Feb 20th, 2013I’ve been living in Nashville for about 8 months now, and there are some good gluten free places, although we could definitely use more! Just FYI, the Pancake Pantry stopped offering gluten free pancakes about a year ago. The first time I went I was so excited to eat some pancakes, and the waitress told me that they hadn’t offered them for a while. My roommate and I are both Celiac, and we LOVE Chago’s Cantina. They have a designated gluten free menu and their food is delicious and very affordable! For cheap food on the run, you can’t beat SATCO.
Meesha
Aug 6th, 2015I discovered a 100% gluten free restaurant when we visited Nashville earlier this year. It is called Amot Eatery. Everything we tried was excellent, next time we’re in Nashville I will definitely try the fried chicken (we were running short on time last trip). http://amoteatery.com/