Lynchburg restaurants offer a variety of gluten free menu options
By Brandy Centolanza
From pizza and pasta to bagels and donuts, restaurants in Lynchburg are offering more options than ever that are gluten free so that guests with dietary restrictions can still enjoy their favorite comfort foods. These restaurants are just a sampling of those in the city that have gluten free dishes regularly on the menu.
Isabella’s Italian Trattoria
Flourless Chocolate Cupcake
Isabella’s Italian Trattoria has an updated menu featuring a slate of gluten free dishes ranging from appetizers and salads to pastas and even dessert. Nearly two dozen menu items are served without gluten. “We have a number of guests with gluten intolerance or a preference to eat gluten free,” says Cheri Barauskas, owner of Isabella’s Italian Trattoria. “The chicken piccata, which has only one substitution of no flour dusting on the scallopini, and the pasta dishes substituting the corn pasta, which is our gluten free pasta, are the most popular. The homemade flourless chocolate cupcake is also a very popular item.”
4925 Boonsboro Road | isabellasitalian.com
Jo Jo Pizza
Ask for the cauliflower crust
Pizza lovers can indulge in a slice without gluten at Jo Jo Pizza. The pizza shop serves up both a pie using a rice flower gluten free crust and a cauliflower gluten free crust. “Both are a 10-inch crust and are quite the hit,” says Vito Carcioppolo, owner. “We ensure to cook them in a separate part of our ovens and make sure to keep away from all gluten, including using a separate cutter.” Jo Jo Pizza’s also offers salads as a gluten free option.
1400 Lakeside Drive | jojopizzalynchburg.com
Millie’s Living Café
Blueberry Cashew Spread
At Millie’s Living Café, you can nosh on a number of gluten free bagels, including the luna bagel with a blueberry cashew spread topped with fresh fruit and honey drizzle or an onion bagel topped with avocado, olive oil, and herbs, one of the café’s top sellers. Millie’s Living Café also has gluten free cinnamon raisin bread, gluten free muffins, and gluten free brownies.
1701 Enterprise Drive | millieslivingcafe.com
Magnolia Foods
Ask for your sandwich to be on a GF bun
Magnolia Foods has roughly a dozen sandwiches on its deli menu, all of which can be served on a gluten free bun. You can choose from traditional sandwiches such as tuna or chicken salad, turkey, or ham and swiss, veggie options such as sliced tomato, avocado, cucumber, and lettuce, or hummus, or you can build your own. Side dishes such as fruit salad, cucumber salad, kale salad, or black bean corn salad are also prepared without gluten. Occasionally, Magnolia Foods will also offer gluten free pastries.
2476 Rivermont Avenue | magnolafoods.com
Mama Crockett’s Cider Donuts
GF donuts, Tuesdays at Mama Crocketts
Got a hankering for a donut? You can start off every Tuesday morning by grabbing a gluten-free donut at Mama Crockett’s. Employees clean out the fryer and change the oil for their donuts every Monday after closing to prevent contamination. “Then, we freshly prepare and use a special gluten free batter all day for all our donuts,” says Levi Smith with Mama Crockett’s Cider Donuts. “Almost all of our coatings are gluten free as well, but our customers can always ask one of our slingers if they’d like to make sure.” Gluten free donuts are a rare commodity, so some patrons even travel from out of state just to try one of Mama Crockett’s donuts. “We’re happy that we can provide a place for those in our Lynchburg community and beyond to regularly stop in for a gluten free treat,” Smith says.
500 5th Street | mamacrocketts.com
Find more LYH restaurants serving gluten free options HERE!
Bon Appétit!
Brandy Centolanza is a freelance writer who covers health, family travel, and the hospitality industry.
She writes from her Virginia home surrounded by her husband of 20 years and their two teens, three cats,
and a bearded dragon named Craig.
See More of her work HERE