Why Seattle?
Paul and I booked a cruise to Alaska for a week. We decided to turn the trip into a two week holiday and added on Seattle and Portland before flying to Anchorage. Seattle as the home of Grey’s Anatomy, Twilight and Fifty Shades of Grey has been somewhere I had been seeing more and more of on TV, and I couldn’t wait to visit some iconic sights such as the Space Needle and Pike Place Market!
The Hotel
Originally we booked into an air b n b, but as the apartment in Capitol Hill wasn’t actually particularly nice (or clean!) we made a last minute hotel reservation once we had arrived in Seattle. This took us to the Even hotel – a beautiful and modern hotel that was extremely comfortable, even more so after the air b n b experience! They also had a fitness area and equipment in each room on top of the gym which would make it a perfect choice for anyone wishing to carry on exercising whilst away on holiday!
Breakfast
Portage Bay Cafe
The only way to do breakfast on holiday – gluten free French toast with blueberries and syrup at Portage Bay Cafe. Found thanks to the Nima sensor blog and conveniently located just around the corner from out hotel once we had moved from the air B and B! They said that they couldn’t guarantee the food 100% to be gluten free (a disclaimer you hear everywhere in the states if it isn’t a gluten free kitchen) but they took cross contamination precautions and the blog I read had Nima tested the food so I gave it a go. As you can see in the photo the food arrived with an allergy stick and I wasn’t ill from eating there.
Lunch
Duke’s Seafood and Chowder
Dukes was somewhere that I found thanks to the find me gluten free app which is always worth checking wherever you go to see if there are any gluten free hidden gems nearby – such as this! Thanks to the app my first meal in Seattle was amazing gluten free clam chowder!
I had a trio of chowders that included their award winning clam chowder which was incredible, a lobster and Pernod chowder that I also loved and a north west chowder filled with salmon that I wasn’t as keen on. It was such a treat to actually have the chowder and not just look on enviously!
Oh and then there was a gluten free carrot cake that we shared…all so good and by the Lake in Seattle – definitely recommend if you’re ever in the city! Paul hasn’t stopped raving about it since.
El Borracho
El Borracho is a casual Mexican restaurant located in Pike Place Market, perfect for a quick lunch consisting of gluten free tacos and $4 margaritas! Using corn tacos there were plenty of gluten free options on the menu – so much so they didn’t have an allergy menu they just said they’d let me know if I’d ordered anything with gluten in. Vegan options were also clearly marked. Tacos followed with a wander around Pike Place Market was such a lovely way to spend a few hours.
Dinner
Capitol Cider – 100% GF
After a long day Sightseeing we couldn’t be bothered and weren’t hungry enough to go out for dinner, but still wanted something so we ordered fish and chips to to the hotel to share using uber eats. Not the hottest food as the delivery driver couldn’t find the hotel despite having the exact address too but it was fab, and all ordered from the 100% gluten free Capitol Cider so there was no risk of contamination from my order either! This restaurant was highly recommended to me on instagram and was included in Carrie’s 100% gluten free guide to Seattle so I’m glad I at least got to try some of the food without having to go over to Capitol Hill! Definitely go here (or order from here!) when you go to Seattle.
Razzi’s Pizzeria
Recommended on instagram Razzis pizzeria has the most extensive set of gluten free and vegan menus alongside their traditional menus that I think I’ve ever seen!
Asking about cross contamination they were clued up and reassuring and I really wanted to love this place. However we order breaded mozzerella sticks to start and they weren’t very warm on arrival and the coating had a strange texture. I ate a couple just because they were gluten free mozzarella sticks but they weren’t great.
I wasn’t expecting great things from my pizza after this, and it didn’t look the most appealing either. I was actually pleasantly surprised with it tasting a lot better than it looked and absolute packed with toppings.
I wish I’d save some room for desserts such as the gluten free cheesecake. Paul didn’t really enjoy my mozzarella sticks either but he loved his (normal) pizza.
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse
Every trip we take I pretty much pick where I eat, my friends and family are pretty good at letting me find safe places. However they always want to eat out a top steak restaurant as one of the meals which isn’t my favourite meal. Paul picked Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse off of the reviews and photos online and we headed there with friends who’s Seattle trip crossed over with ours for a couple of nights. The restaurant didn’t have too many gluten free choices so I ended up with seabass, which was one of the largest pieces of fish I’ve ever been served! It started off pretty nice but became a bit bland after a while due to its size and lack of sauce. The others all got the steak that they desired though!
Ghostfish Brewery Company – 100% GF
We hired a car for the day to head to the Boeing Factory. On the way back to Seattle we stopped at Ghostfish Brewery Company. It’s a bit out of the way without a car, and a bit of a strange location but we quite liked the vibe of it when we entered. As it was a Sunday we ended up with an all day brunch menu which is all 100% gluten free. Due to the time I’m not sure we all fancied brunch, but I definitely wanted the pork belly eggs benedict with maple hollandaise sauce – it sounded amazing!
Unfortunately it wasn’t as good as it sounded, two of us had it and the eggs were all hard on the poached eggs on my friends plate which is always disappointing, the potatoes were a bit underdone and I’m not too sure what the replacement for the bread actually was! The pork belly and sauce were delicious though. Paul enjoyed his burger but one of our friends didn’t enjoy their wrap. The service was slow and not friendly, so this wasn’t our favourite restaurant in Seattle and was pretty frustrating when you’ve eaten there due to its gluten free menu and your friends have joined you in doing so. However, it is actually a brewery with the most extensive range of gluten free beers so maybe still head here but stick to the beer!
Bakeries
Cinnamon Works
Found on Jackie’s gluten free follow me website Cinnamon Works is the Place to go on Pike Place Market to pick up a Coeliac safe treat! They mix, bake and store all their gluten free items separately and were the only place near the market that i found that had confidence in their products being suitable for those with Coeliac, some of which were also vegan.
With an impressive range of bakery products such as pies, breads and cinnamon rolls it was a difficult choice to make but in the end I selected the monster cookie which literally has everything in it! As gluten free cookies rarely come as soft chewy cookies the size of my head, how could I not choose this?! Paul had some and it’s one of the few gluten free products that he had no complaints about! Sadly for the dairyfree and vegan amongst you this cookie was only gluten free, but other flavours were vegan so you wouldn’t be missing out by going here.
Le Panier – Not Coeliac Safe
From Jackies website I also tried Le Panier at Pike Place Market for some macarons. This was a normal bakery that had a counter with macarons in. They took no cross contamination controls, I was really hesitant as we were in a normal bakery but once they put them in the bag with the pastry that Paul wanted I knew I definitely wouldn’t be eating them and I wouldn’t advise this bakery for those with Coeliac. It’s another reminder to always be careful and vigilant, and make sure you feel safe eating somewhere regardless of where you found the recommendation and to always trust your first instincts!
Cupcake Royale
Cupcake Royale was another recommendation from Jackies website that I was a bit hesitant about. This was mainly because the staff used the disclaimer about a shared kitchen so heavily that I doubted whether to buy a gluten free cupcake. However I decided to as they knew and took cross contamination measures in their bakery. I chose a salted caramel chocolate cupcake and it was rich and heavenly, and didn’t make me sick but you’ll have to decide whether you want to eat them.
Wholefoods
If you’ve never been in Wholefoods then you really should. It’s amazing for those with food intolerances and allergies. Their gluten free choices are amazing. Your bank balance may not be grateful for the decision but you will be! I bought a bag of Tate’s cookies for the train journey to Portland, that Paul helped me devour! They handily come in two packets inside the big bag too so you don’t have to eat the whole lot at once!
Other Recommendations
*Juice Press – smoothies and raw vegan
*Frankie and Jo’s – vegan icecream parlour with gluten free waffle cones – 100% GF
*Flying Apron – gluten free and vegan bakery – 100% GF
*Nuflours Bakery – gluten free bakery with dairy free options – 100% GF
*The Cookie Counter – vegan gluten free dessert shop
*Niche gluten free cafe and bakery – 100% GF
*I love my GFF – organic – 100% GF
Sightseeing in Seattle
After Recommendations for Columbia Center from a few people we actually decided to go up this rather than the Space Needle, this was so the Space Needle was in our views!
Pike Place Market
An iconic and must visit place to go if you’re ever in Seattle!
Gum Wall
It certainly divided opinion – quirky or disgusting you’ll have to decide? Either way it certainly smelt sweet, but people blowing bubbles with their gum and taking selfies in front of a bubblegum wall was a world gone mad in my friends eyes!
The Original Starbucks
Yes I took a photo, but no I didn’t stand in the queue!!
The Boeing tour was so much more interesting than I thought it would be. We hired a car as it’s 25 miles north of Seattle and not easy to get to via public transport, but we felt it was worth the effort.
Cameras weren’t allowed on the tour, but I did take a photo in the cafe of the gluten free option. This was a burnt sugar marshmallow Rice Krispie bar that I loved. I was glad to not have to miss out on a treat when everyone else wanted a tea and muffin stop ahead of the tour!
We wanted to go on the ferry boats, but the trips were a bit long for us whilst battling the jet lag so instead we did a one hour harbour cruise to see the skyline of Seattle by boat.
Bill Speidel’s Underground Tour
One of the staff from Columbia Center recommended this tour and we were so glad we did it for a chance to see Seattle Underground and some of its history. We went on the day and had about a 45 minute wait for a tour, long enough for a glass of wine whilst we waited but you can book in advance online!
Lake Union Park
We spent our first afternoon in Seattle eating chowder, sitting in the sunshine by the marina surrounded by yachts and battling jet lag!
We weren’t sure about Seattle on our first day, we didn’t have an instant love of the city and our air b n b experience didn’t help, but I grew to love it. I hope that whatever you see or eat in Seattle you have a great trip. Please leave any other recommendations below in case I get to return, or to help other travellers reading this.
Happy travels!
The Sightseeing Coeliac 
One thought on “Gluten Free in Seattle – The Sightseeing Coeliac”