Gluten Free Vancouver, BC: A Complete Guide for Celiacs

Iki Japanese (100% GF)

Japanese food is one of the cuisines that is hardest to find gluten free, at least at home in the United States. Especially when you’re talking about Japanese food that isn’t sushi. 

Other than Iki in Vancouver, I can only think of a handful of dedicated gluten free Japanese spots that we’ve been to around the world (there’s one in Madrid called Okashi Sanda that is SPECTACULAR if you ever find yourself there). 

As you, dear reader, likely know already, it is SO nice to be able to enjoy a type of food that is usually off limits or difficult to navigate AND be able to order everything on the menu.

Which is the case here at Iki, where everything is gluten free (and they’re accredited by the local Celiac Association). 

The food is authentic and tasty, but you need to make sure to call ahead in advance and make a reservation, because it’s a small place and they often are reservation-only, especially on Fridays and weekends.

We showed up for the early bird special (literally at 5:00 pm) on Valentine’s Day to make sure we could get a table because we missed out on reservations. Don’t make the same mistake we did!

The menu highlights for us were the gyoza, which is something I don’t think I’ve ever had before in my 10+ years of being diagnosed with Celiac Disease, the yam fries (and, more importantly, the dipping sauce), anything tempura, and the teriyaki chicken rice noodle soup.

Gluten Free Epicurean (100% GF)

The first of the two must-visit gluten free bakeries in Vancouver, Gluten Free Epicurean is on a similar level as New Cascadia in Portland (which we live a few blocks from and visit often). 

They do a great job at just about everything, but the gluten free bread and pastries are where they really shine.

The only downside is that it’s not easy to get to if you don’t have a car. It’s southeast of the downtown core, and you’ll either need to take two buses, rent a bike, or take a rideshare to get there. 

They have a bunch of different offerings – we’d break them down like this: 

• Sweet and savory pastries
• All of the breads
• Heat & eat options like sandwiches, quiche, and pizza
• Frozen take & bake items
• Pantry staples (not made by them, but sourced by them) 

We liked it so much after our first visit that we made a significant detour to go back a second time during our trip. 

Like we said, the two places where we think they shine are the breads and the pastries. 

First, let’s talk about the bread. The sourdough loaves, which are easily bigger than my head, are excellent. 

The texture is great and the flavors are fun – they have everything from plain, to everything, olive, and roasted garlic and rosemary, and they rotate through them.

They also have more specialty breads like focaccia and baguettes. 

The thing to know about breads is that they have a weekly schedule where certain breads are available on certain days of the week.

At the time of writing, the plain sourdough loaves are Saturdays only, the everything loaves are on Wednesdays, olive loaves are on Thursdays, and the flavored sourdough loaves are on Fridays. 

Basically, if you want a sourdough loaf, make sure to come Wednesday to Saturday, depending on what you’re looking for.

Next, pastries.

We also really enjoyed their pastries, and made the return trip specifically for the fresh apple fritters and cardamom buns (which is a cinnamon bun, but with cardamom).

Both were great, as were the other various scones and croissants we took home to eat over the next few days. 

This is also a good option to grab an on-the-go lunch to take with you on a hike (or some other excursion) – they have a selection of ready-to-eat sandwiches, pizza slices, and more that you can grab to go.

Lemonade Gluten Free Bakery (100% GF)

Lemonade was the first gluten free bakery we visited in Vancouver, and it set the bar pretty high.

The thing that Lemonade does really, really well is pastries. We also tried their bread, and it wasn’t our favorite – the texture was a little gummy – so we’d focus on pastries here. 

They have a couple of cases that you’ll be face-to-face with when you walk in the tiny shop on Cambie Street, one of Vancouver’s most interesting stretches. First is the pastry case, where you’ll see a wide variety of tarts, pies, and more. 

But before you order 16 things from there, make sure to check out the other pastries in the case to the right of the cash register (which we almost missed), which is where you’ll find things like croissants and cookies. 

Standout pastries for us were the almond croissant and the cinnamon danish.

The texture on the croissants was well above average (for gluten free croissants, we mean, which are never quite as flakey as their gluten-full counterparts), which is something that you don’t see every day.

Saan Saan (100% GF)

Saan Saan is a new(ish) bakery and cafe in Chinatown (5-10 minutes east of B.C. Place) serving gluten free items inspired by the owners’ childhoods in Hong Kong. 

There are three things you need to know about Saan Saan before we talk about the food and drinks here that should tell you just about everything you need to know. 

First, I literally changed my flight to make sure I was in town at a time that they’re open. 

Second, I have never in my life had this type of food since my diagnosis almost 20 years ago (whoa, I’m old). 

Third, this will surely be our first food stop on our next trip to Vancouver. 

Now let’s talk about the food, which is both unique and delicious. 

The menu here is split up into a few different categories. 

They have the baked goods, like puffs (filled with sweet or savory fillings, like apple or char siu) and the cookies and mochi brownies. 

They have the snacks, like fish balls and prawn toast, which are smaller bites that are basically appetizers. 

Then they have the entrees, like bowls and fried rice dishes. 

Unfortunately, the way my flight times worked out, I was only really able to partake in the baked goods part of the menu. 

The stars of the show were the BBQ pork (char siu) puff and the ginger milk burnt sugar cookie (though Alysha would say it was the black sesame caramel cookie, which was distinctly savory). 

The location might be off-putting to some people given its proximity to E Hastings St and the Downtown Eastside, so we’d recommend either approaching from the north side (walking through Gastown on Powell St), or taking a rideshare to get here. 

Once you’re inside, the space is warm and inviting, and the staff were very helpful in giving me advice on what to order. I brought a bunch of stuff home to Alysha so she could try it too.

Innocent Ice Cream (100% GF)

For one reason or another, I had never been able to make it to Innocent Ice Cream’s locations over the past several visits to Vancouver. One time it was the offseason and they were busy changing locations, another time the days didn’t line up. 

Finally, they moved into a nice new space east of the city center, and I was able to make it happen on this latest trip. 

Now, if you know me at all, you know that I am a big sucker for ice cream. You know what I haven’t had in years? A really good ice cream sandwich. 

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you gluten free ice cream sandwiches at Innocent Ice Cream, where the ice cream is made in a gluten free facility, and is stuffed between two gluten free cookies also made in a gluten free facility (and without oats, aside from their oatmeal cookie). 

I had a hard time choosing and ultimately ended up with the mint chocolate chip ice cream between two chocolate cookies. YUM. 

They also have plant-based options for ice cream (most, if not all, of the cookies are already vegan). They also have waffle cones if you’d rather have that than an ice cream sandwich. 

In the summer especially, it’s worth the journey to get there (it’s a 15 minute drive from downtown). 

Virtue Natural Bakery (100% GF)

While I had been to the main gluten free bakeries in Vancouver (the two listed above) before, there were two bakeries in Kitsilano that I had somehow never been to before.

So, my first stop in Vancouver was a stroll through Kitsilano to grab some goodies from both of them. 

Of the two, Virtue was my favorite (with an important caveat). I had a savory scone, an almond butter brownie, and a slice of carrot cake, along with a brie and prosciutto sandwich on their French Baguette (I wanted to try their bread, which is pretty good!). 

The big caveat here is that they do use gluten free oats in a lot of their products.

However, I really appreciate that all of their items are labeled so that it makes it really easy to find their oat-free options (they are marked with an “OF”). 

Overall, a nice option if you’re looking for well done gluten free pastries or a takeaway sandwich, though it’s probably a little far out for most tourists in Vancouver and, if you’re deciding which bakeries to journey to, I’d prioritize the other two above. 

Bakery by Jany (100% GF)

You know, I should know by now not to judge a book by its cover.

There have been so many times in my gluten free escapades that I have almost skipped a place because of the vibe (or something else related to the way it presents itself) only to be absolutely blown away by the food (this also happens to me fairly often with coffee shops). 

The reason this place jumps out to me is the fact that they have gluten free croissants, which tend to be somewhat hard to find in North America (outside of Montreal, an elite city in terms of gluten free pastries). 

I was just coming off of a trip to San Francisco where I had one of the more disappointing gluten free croissants I’ve ever had, so maybe my expectations were artificially low, but I was pretty impressed with these croissants! 

So impressed that I went back a couple of days later for seconds. Which should tell you all you need to know. 

It was actually a laminated pastry! The problem with the croissant I had in SF was the fact that it was just bread in a croissant shape, really. Which is…not a croissant. 

Here’s a video of their process to getting to a gluten free croissant. 

One thing to keep in mind: croissants – gluten or no – are really hard to make (very labor intensive), so you’re going to pay a premium for them.

In this case, you might balk at the $7-10 per croissant, but remember all the trial and error and labor that goes into each one of those layered beauties. 

The dough here is a little dense, but honestly I’ve only had one or two gluten free croissants in my life that weren’t (croissants are one of the toughest pastries to nail without gluten from my conversations with various bakeries over the years).

Even my favorite bakeries in Portland can’t quite nail it. 

They also have sandwiches, a range of other pastries, and little goodies like thumbprint cookies to pick up in their little bakery near the beach in Kitsilano. 

Everything is gluten free and they have lots of dairy free and vegan options too. 

Gobble (100% GF)

Gobble is a compact fast casual (ish) restaurant on W 4th Ave in Kitsilano that is only open for lunch (at the time of writing). 

The entire menu is gluten AND dairy free, and they have plenty of plant-based options to choose from too. 

The menu is fairly straightforward and simple.

They basically have a fixed number of choices for mains, sides, sauces, and bases to choose from, and you can either combine them in one of their signature bowls, or create your own bowl. 

Kind of genius, and the food was really good.

I stopped by on my first afternoon and got their porketta bowl, where the smoked honey mustard sauce was the star (and returned for a quick lunch a few days later.

Bon Macaron (100% GF)

Bon Macaron, as you might imagine, makes one thing: macarons. In 20+ different flavors. And they’re all gluten free. 

My favorites were the classic pistachio and, to my surprise, the jasmine, which I got because Alysha loves jasmine, but my expectations were tempered because I had a hard time imagining how a macaron could be floral and jasmine-y. 

Turns out, I was wrong again! Somehow they pulled it off. 

They have a stall at the market on Granville Island and a facility on the other side of Granville Island, which is where they make all of their macarons. 

Ask for Luigi

If you’ve been paying attention to this site for a while, you’ve no doubt gathered that we’re pretty obsessed with Italian food.

Italy is one of the top gluten free travel destinations – particularly for newly diagnosed Celiacs – because of the fact that they go out of their way to be inclusive to Celiacs with their food culture.

For more, you can read our guide to gluten free Italy, which is essentially just one long love letter. 

It’s no exaggeration to say that Ask for Luigi served us the most authentic and best Italian food we’ve ever had outside of Italy. 

We’re from the United States, where Italian food has transformed into what has become known as “Italian-American,” and might as well be a completely different genre of food. 

Most Italian-American food is about as Italian as, well, Italian-Americans, which is to say roughly 50%. Sure, the dishes are there – pasta, pizza, etc – but the makeup of the dishes is actually fairly different.

It’s not a bad thing, it’s just different. 

Ask for Luigi’s food menu focuses on handmade pastas, simple (but delicious) sauces, and high quality ingredients, which is as close to the food we’ve eaten in Italy as we’ve found. 

We made a reservation for lunch on a weekday, and showed up right on time. We were greeted by the uber-friendly staff, who seated us and explained the menu to us. 

Now, this is the part of the lunch where I ask about cross-contact in the kitchen, and being an Italian restaurant, I’d expect it to be a little more risky than most.

However, the server assured me that the gluten free pasta was handmade in-house using separate equipment, and cooked in new pasta water and in fresh pans. 

There is definitely gluten in the kitchen, which means there is always going to be some level of risk, but it seems to me that they do about as good a job as you can reasonably expect.

Plus, all of their desserts (at the time of writing) were naturally gluten free too, by design. 

While they have a few different kinds of regular pasta, there’s only one kind of gluten free pasta – a tagliatele, which is an egg noodle (which helps with the texture) that is the perfect vehicle for soaking up sauce.

That does mean that on some of the dishes – a squid ink pasta or a spinach pasta – you’re going to miss out on the special pasta. But it’s so rare to have ANY option at all!

If you’re concerned about the cross-contact on the pasta dishes, they do have a naturally gluten free risotto that would minimize the risk of shared utensils for gluten free and not gluten free pasta dishes (to the extent it exists)

You should also know that there’s a $5 CAD upcharge for gluten free pasta, which is a bummer but is also understandable given the extra cost of ingredients and labor that goes into it. 

Anyway, get the gluten free pasta and whatever ragu they currently have on the menu. I happened to get a venison ragu, which was excellent and took me straight back to Bologna from my last trip to Italy. 

What to order: The gluten free pasta, which is made in-house, with any ragu or bolognese they have at the moment. And the olive oil cake for dessert, which has inspired us to get onto baking olive oil cakes at home recently.

Nuba

Nuba is the first gluten free restaurant we fell in love with in Vancouver, and our love of their chicken shish tawook dates back to about 2015 or so, when we first stumbled upon them on a snowy New Years Eve.

After a brief hiatus, our love affair resumed on a cold weekday night on this past trip, rekindling the fire. 

On our latest foray into Vancouver, we went to Nuba in Kitsilano for dinner on a weekend evening, a cozy candlelit space with high ceilings and an intimate vibe. 

Now, the entire menu is NOT gluten free, but they do have a clearly marked menu.

The first question I ask at places like this is whether or not anything with gluten goes in the fryer. The server wasn’t sure, so they went back to the kitchen to double check for us. 

At this location, nothing with gluten goes into the fryer (which was my guess based on the menu). You should make sure to double check though, because this changes often in kitchens where the menu changes. 

The food here is Lebanese, which has made its way into our favorites over the past few years.

The key at Nuba is fresh ingredients, which really come through when you start digging into the plates that come to your table fast and furious. 

Here are the things we’ve ordered and enjoyed: 

• Muhammara: This is a roasted red pepper and pomegranate molasses dip (usually served with pita, but they will bring you cucumbers). It’s a big portion for two people – it ended up on our sandwiches the next morning.
  
  
• Chicken Shish Tawook: The highlight for us! When we left, we remarked that we should have just gone all in on shish tawook and ordered several of them. 
  
  
• Najib’s Special: Crispy fried cauliflower doused in lemon juice with a delicious sauce to dip it in.

Juke Fried Chicken

I’m always skeptical of places where they serve a bunch of fried items that aren’t 100% gluten free, which is why I’ve skipped Juke on my past few trips to Vancouver. 

However, after deeper investigation, I am happy to report that (at the time of writing this), the only items that contain gluten on the menu are the sandwiches, and the buns are the only gluten in the restaurant. 

That means the fryers are gluten free!

All of the fried chicken – and there are several options to choose from – is battered in gluten free flour. 

The options for chicken are split between the type of chicken, from traditional fried chicken with various cuts like thighs and drumsticks to popcorn chicken and chicken nuggets (my preferences, where the batter to meat ratio is much, much higher), and the coating (regular vs. spicy). 

They also have a few other items, like ribs, fries, and a couple of sides – the fried brussel sprouts and the peanut slaw were both good – along with a bunch of sauces to choose from (house BBQ and chipotle maple were my favorites). 

Personally, I would avoid the sandwiches despite the fact that they have gluten free buns.

The risk of cross-contact there is always going to be higher, so I’ll stick with the naturally gluten free items on the menu, of which there are plenty. 

Their location in Chinatown is walkable from Yaletown and the Olympic Village, though you should know that there are exactly two tables inside and they are clearly set up for takeout / delivery, which is why I ended up getting it to go. 

The Fish Counter

It’s a little unusual to find Celiac-safe fish and chips in places that are not dedicated gluten free, but the Fish Counter over on Main Street, just south of Vancouver’s downtown core, is doing it about as well as you possibly can. 

As soon as I sauntered up to the ordering station and gave the staff member my spiel – I have Celiac Disease, can’t eat gluten, etc etc – they started running through the steps they take to prevent cross-contact with gluten in the kitchen. 

Here’s what they told me: All fish can be made with a gluten free batter, which is prepared and stored separately, and fried in a dedicated gluten free fryer.

Unlike most gluten free fryers, which are right next to the regular fryer, this one is on the other side of the kitchen, which made me feel better.

Plus, fries are all fried in the gluten free fryer, so they’re also safe. Malt vinegar is not safe, ketchup and tartar are. 

They also told me about modifications they can make to their menu of tacos and sandwiches.

Personally, I’d stick to the fish and chips to avoid any confusion (or additional risk of cross-contact) with substituting and changing the sandwiches and tacos, but that’s just me. 

We got the cod, and it was excellent. The fries were great too – not too thin, so they had some “oomph,” but they were cooked so that they were still very crispy, which we liked.

Don’t sleep on the slaw that comes with the fish and chips, which had Alysha and I fighting over who got the last bite.

Machete

Of the three Mexican options on this list, I much preferred the more traditional approach at Machete, a small space near the Science Center (or Chinatown) on the east side of the downtown core. 

One of our favorite recent discoveries at home in Portland is a place with almost the same name that serves up massive machetes, a street food in Mexico that is essentially a long, narrow quesadilla (in the shape of the blade of a machete). 

When I saw them on the menu here, I knew that’s what I had to have, and I actually showed up on a very rainy night only to find out that they were sold out of them for the day. 

Instead of compromising and ordering something else on the menu, I decided to come back when they were available. 

At the time of writing, there is exactly one thing on the menu that contains gluten (WHY?!), the baked cheese sticks, and they actually have a gluten free version available too (again, WHY?!).

They’re baked in their own pans, so risk of cross-contact is relatively low (they don’t use the flattop for flour tortillas for example, which I find is a common issue). 

Everything else, including desserts, is gluten free. 

They have a wide range of masa-based dishes, like the aforementioned machetes, huaraches, gorditas, and tacos with a range of fillings, including plenty of vegetarian options.

I had a gordita and a machete, both with their housemade pork (the machete also had plantains and oaxaca cheese – YUM).

Cuchillo

I’m going to be honest, I was a little mixed on this place, both before I went and after trying their food.

Generally speaking, I prefer Mexican food that is closer to the traditional end of the spectrum (like Machete above) than to the more progressive end, but I also love almost all Mexican food, so I’m up for pushing those limits. 

Cuchillo, which is on the eastern end of Gastown (and a couple of blocks north of E Hastings, which isn’t particularly pleasant to walk by), is very much on the progressive end of the spectrum. 

I walked away from my dinner at Cuchillo thinking I paid a lot for not very much food, and the food I got was kind of boring.

Now, this is coming from someone who has spent a lot of time in places with big Latin American populations (California, for example), so take my thoughts with a grain of salt because we have a ton of great, authentic Mexican food near us. 

The vibe is nice – low lighting, lots of wood, a long bar, and an open kitchen – which makes it a good date night spot. 

Almost everything is gluten free, but not everything (it was the trout ceviche and the short rib when I was there).

However, as soon as I said the word “Celiac” the server knew exactly what I needed, and actually proactively asked me if there were any allergies or dietary restrictions. 

I tried the chips and guacamole, the corn bread azul with guajillo chile butter, the mole carrots, and the queso sagnaki tacos (too much food for one person, it turns out).

I also wanted to try the chorizo scotch egg and the queso dip, but I ran out of room in my stomach. 

Maybe it was my ordering choices, but everything I had was just a little off. The mole carrots were extremely salty (I love salt!) and the cornbread azul was missing something (maybe a drizzle of honey and some salt?).

Overall, a good option to have, but if you’re in Vancouver for just a few days with limited meals, I’d probably spend my time elsewhere. 

Lucky Taco 

Lucky Taco is a (mostly) gluten free taco joint about a block from Kitsilano Beach.

The server exclaimed “Celiacs love us!” and proceeded to tell us that everything on the menu is actually naturally gluten free with the exception of the churros, which are prepared in a distinct part of the kitchen.

The fried chicken is coated in rice flour, the ponzu sauce is made with tamari, and everything else is gluten free. All tortillas are corn, and are prepared to order. 

Are they the most authentic tacos in the world? No, definitely not. Are they delicious? Yes.

They also have great cocktails. I can imagine this being a lovely place to spend a summer evening after hitting the beach, but we were there in the dead of winter, so the vibe wasn’t quite the same. 

The two standout tacos were the spicy chorizo, which has two layers – a crunchy and soft tortilla – and is delicious, and the fried chicken. The quesabirria was also pretty good, but not the best I’ve ever had.

Cider House

Right across the street from Lucky Taco in Kitsilano, we visited this place twice over the course of our five day winter trip, and I honestly wasn’t expecting to eat here when we showed up one rainy night for cider. 

However, after asking a few questions of the server (who was also the chef, at the time), I discovered that most of the menu is naturally gluten free (including everything that goes into the fryers, crucially), and those things are largely separate from most of the menu. 

The menu is clearly marked, and the things to avoid (at the time of writing – make sure to double check this when you’re there) are the burger, the mac & cheese, and the croutons on the caesar salad.

So we ended up here twice, enjoying some cider and a few snacks (we liked the olives and the fried brussels).

We were going to get the poutine, but we had other dinner plans on both occasions, and a plate full of fries and gravy is a surefire way to ruin your appetite for dinner!

Gluten Free Vancouver, Mapped

Here are all of the spots we’ve mentioned in this guide plotted on a map so that you can visualize how they might fit into your Vancouver itinerary. 

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