Almost everything I ate traveling to Lisbon Gluten Free
A weekend of trams, castles, and easy GF eats. Even Pastel de Nata!
My first visit to Lisbon was back during my gluten-eating life and so as has been the case anywhere I’ve returned to, I was curious how much I would miss out on what I knew. Obviously skipping most of the gluten filled bakeries and cafes till I got to a safe spot was a bit of a let down but overall, I found Lisbon to be an easy city for my visit.
There are fewer dedicated places than say Sweden or marked places than Italy but the city is rarely without a safe option nearby, which is important as you work up an appetite walking up and down hill after hill to get to everything fun! Most importantly, I did manage to find a spot with safe Pastel de Natas without having to venture way out of the tourist center on my short visit.
Lisbon gluten free overview: 7.5/10
Dedicated GF spots
Craft Burgers
There aren’t a ton of dedicated spots in Lisbon, especially in the tourist part of the city but there are some. I really like having a fully safe stop for my first meal as a way to settle in, even ask the staff what the Celiac vibe is like so I started out at Café do Rio – Craft Burgers which is a dedicated GF burger spot. Though in this case, dedicated means entirely skip buns.
While a bit unusual for most people, I rarely bother with a GF bun anyways and the burger itself was impressively done. They have many options for toppings and flavors well beyond the classic cheeseburger that I admittedly had. Also really tasty fries to go alongside.
Tapioca World
As my final stop before the airport, I made it into Tapioca World which is a dedicated Brazilian restaurant that does both hot meals and acai bowls/smoothies. I’m a big Acai fan but places can be oddly sketchy, especially when there’s gluten filled toppings floating around, so it was really nice to get something safe and delicious. Actually was rather bummed at myself for not trying them till the final moment… a cold bowl on a warm day of city walking is great!
Grom
Speaking of treats, and given how warm Lisbon can be on a summer day, there absolutely has to be Gelato. I stopped into a few places, notably Grom, which is dedicated, and Amorino, which is shared but takes all the usual precautions if asked and has several locations. Both were delicious options.
Shared GF Spots
Dear Breakfast
Thick bread, bacon, and eggs? Need I say more. Dear Breakfast is a spot I had visited on my prior trip so it was nice to see strong reviews on FMGF to go back. It is a shared spot and not a marked menu but I had no issues conveying the Celiac-level need and they had no issues accommodating.
There are several locations around Lisbon though we stuck to the Chiado location which is right in the midst of the central hub, a few blocks up a hill (of course) and with a view of the tram right out from the window. The sandwich was nice enough but the bread was really the win of the meal.
Troppo Squisito
There’s a lot of reliable even if shared food around Lisbon and brief as my trip was, I enjoyed going out and about rather than just sticking to the green checkbox FMGF spots. For dinner on my last night, I made it over to Troppo Squisito, a (touristy) Italian restaurant right by the water. Since this visit was in the off season, the touristy vibe wasn’t an issue at all, and we were basically alone. Food was nice, and they were confident in their GF offerings, confirming separate prep for the pasta I went with. But the best part of the dish was definitely the mozzarella and tomato starter, so good!
Sometimes the best spot is not the one 50 people have happened to review but rather a local dish from someone up for Celiac-safe precautions, at least in that moment. I believe this meal was at Santa Restaurante on my walk down from the castle though checking again now, the couple GF reviews they have aren’t great so while I liked the vibe and was fine, ask twice before eating?
Honest Greens
As I’ll explain below, I spent a lot of Lisbon snacking on all sorts of treats and much as I enjoy that, I do try to balance my meals, at least a bit. For that, I made a couple visits to Honest Greens which does salads and health-ish plates. They’re another shared spot and like the rest, well reviewed, and definitely in the know about allergens. The menu is pretty wide and pretty tasty despite the health focus.
Bali do Cais
Pastel de Nata was one of my pre-Celiac diagnosis treats and while I have seen GF versions a few times elsewhere, I was excited to finally try them GF in Lisbon. Bali do Cais is a certified Gluten Free cafe located in the tourist hub and was the easiest option for a treat. While certainly nice and worth stopping in for, it just wasn’t “it” either for me, or my gluten-eating friend, who taste tested against a real one. Not everything translates to a GF version for me though the reviews of the place are great, so maybe it was just us.
Potato Project
Turning from sweet towards savory and a bit closer to a meal, Potato Project is another place I’d also been to before going GF. They sell fries with all sorts of options and are nearly dedicated save for a few toppings. I know it seems like I have a lot of fries looking at this post but given the prevalence of shared fryers, they’re actually one of my “treat” items. Plus, you know, it’s a vegetable, right?
McDonalds
Finally, there’s McDonald’s. While many people know Italy has safe burgers, Portugal McDonald’s is miles better as they actually prepare most any burger on GF buns (in Italy, they mainly just have a cheeseburger they microwave up, it’s incredibly safe but also very basic). The buns aren’t exciting of course and obviously Lisbon has much better food, but it’s nice to have the option and was a perfect airport meal before heading out.
Grocery store options
I did not snag any photos but like most major European cities, Lisbon’s market, big and small, have a healthy selection of certified gluten free products as well as well-labeled naturally GF items. In addition to all the tasty but not always balanced meals here, I stopped in Continente Bom Dia Chiado by my hotel for some prepared fruit, yogurts daily and a couple bars to resupply before my next stop. Just close your eyes as you walk past the amazing looking fresh bakery case every store seems to feature front and center.
Lisbon is totally doable with Celiac whether for a weekend or a week. You’ll eat well, eat regularly, and the city rarely leaves you stuck. GF and GF labeling is not the norm but solid shared spots are plentiful, with dedicated options sprinkled in.
