Top 17 Gluten-Free Dining Spots to Explore in Downtown Des Moines

Cortez Jones

Had the BEST experience here. Trying to find a restaurant that offers a gluten free menu as well as regular with no discernible differences in taste is 1 in a million and buzzard Billy’s is exactly that. Any time we ever come back it will be good at BB. Kristen, Kela and shiree are the best servers EVER!

Mijo Martinez (Mijo Martinez)

My chicken chiabatta sandwich was a bit dry and the food selection was limited, but they did have substantial gluten free options. The setting and staff were very nice, making it an overall excellent experience.

Brett Giberson

Great food! Excellent gluten free options. Awesome location. We will be back!

Ben Miller

Went in on a quiet Thursday afternoon and the service and food were top shelf. Ribeye steak was cooked to perfection. Brussels were excellent and the cornbread is actually GLUTEN FREE! Start with the deviled eggs or the street corn dip!

Brooke Weber

I have been here several times recently for brunch. This place knows what they are doing and they are really good at it: the atmosphere, the decor, the food, the service. The lattes here are the best in the area, hands down. Even the cups and saucers are beautiful and add to my enjoyment of the coffee drinks. I want the exact cups for my own home. The seasonal latte flavors are creative and never overly sweet. I do love a pumpkin spice latte, and St. Kilda has the best. I was interested in a seasonal mocha and was hesitant to order it for fear it would be too sweet, but the server told me more about it so I decided to try it. It was the best mocha I’ve ever had with the perfect balance of flavors and just the right amount of sweetness. Everything that’s a part of the Big Aussie Breakfast is prepared to perfection: thick cut bacon, delicious blistered roasted tomatoes, perfectly crispy house-made bread. Even the gluten-free bread is excellent. Last week my boyfriend got a hashbrown on the side and it was the best hashbrown I’ve ever had - a lovely soft texture on the inside and perfectly crispy all the way around on the outside. The last 3 times I’ve eaten there, we’ve had the same server. I love her! Very friendly, relatable, and a bit quirky in the best possible way. After our last visit, I decided St. Kilda in Valley Junction is my favorite place for brunch.

Gina W.

My first food stop in Iowa was to take a solo walk to get tacos at Malo. This one was a home run at my first at-bat as a Des Moines rookie. Wow. I timed it just right, and they were placing my bag of food on the table right as I walked in the door. I got the avocado and fried onions on corn tortillas, and instead of getting a combo, I got the portobello mushrooms as my side. That way I was able to just put them on my tacos. I also got a side of fruit with sweet chili sauce. It didn't want to have anything super spicy before my marathon (think about it) so I got the pico de gallo. The tacos were delicious, and the fresh tortillas seemed handmade. The fruit was so juicy and sweet, but the stunner here was the portobello mushroom - like steak strips. Savory and meaty but not too salty... Just amazing. I had enough left over for a second meal. Great vegan and gluten-free options.

Brian Moe

Delicious food options. Had the gluten free steak and mushroom flatbread. It was hold-your-breath-and-close-your-eyes delicious. Brussel sprouts were on point. Deconstructed nachos were amazing. And service was excellent, especially given the unexpected rush at the end of the night.

Kyle Schmaltz

Great place, it's nice they have gluten free options like salads available.

Ev Tripolitis

Thai tea and veggie pho were great! Gluten free and vegan options (gf/vg)

Erik Donner

Great menu and awesome prices for being downtown. There is a decent selection of gluten free here, too!

LW Evans

Dinner on the patio is best here as indoors is a bit too noisy. Excellent cocktails; Pear Vino was fab! 🤩 Portions are generous the half order of the centro salad was enough for 2! Chicken Saltimbocca was tasty good and they did it gluten free with green beans. I'll be back for another evening on the patio!

Jane Kirk

I usually order using the app, and it's always fast and fresh and tasty. Perfect for gluten free, vegetarian, vegan, and they have veggie, chicken, and stake if you don't want fish. Super customizable.

Holly Fettinger

Food was good - plenty of gluten free options, and wait staff informed about what could be modified. Appreciate the extra assurance, as not all restaurants have knowledge around the impact to celiacs and for many of us, it can take us out of commission for days - it isn't a choice unfortunately, I mean who would want an autoimmune disease to randomly show up at 53?

Isaac Slings

A wide arrange of drinks! Great variety of food. Didn't get a refill on our waters but had a nice array of 8 cocktails. $100 bill for two with 4 cocktails wasn't a bad time. The mojito options are plentiful. Gluten free buns are also available

Simon McCoy

Decent Gluten Free Sandwich. They changed gloves and tried to eliminate cross contamination.

Katelyn Hobin

Love this place! Great Gluten free options!

Devin K

The food was amazing as always and the drinks were mixed very well. We came for my birthday and the woman who seated us told me happy birthday immediately and the table had little decorations saying happy birthday sprinkled on it. Our server was knowledgeable about the gluten free options which was great and has proven true every time we have eaten at any 801 location. We ordered a wedge salad which was delicious but it was by far the smallest wedge we've ever had. Instead of even being a wedge it looked like they took the two outside layers of a wedge and laid them on the plate, then hit it with all the extras and called it good. The blue cheese potatoes were perfect and the dry aged porterhouse was the best steak I've had in my life. Definitely doing that again. Unfortunately though our server disappeared after dropping off our food and taking my wife's drink order. I said I'd wait a few minutes and she never came back the entire time we were eating. I had finished eating and was still waiting so I called up to the bar and ordered a drink. The bartender was great enough to bring it to the table and even box up our food for us. The waitress didn't come by again until at least five minutes after the fact just to verify that she needed to charge for my negroni. She didn't even apologize for not circling around to us for such a long time. To clarify, we were eating at the tail end of the night and the restaurant wasn't that busy. Later instead of coming to our table and asking if we wanted another drink she stayed behind the bar and asked us. Like I said, it wasn't crowded at that point but when you are paying well over $200 for a dinner you expect a certain amount of professionalism. She was a very nice server but you could tell she was focused more on her other table of four that was spending more money than we were even though she had more than enough time to handle both of us. Overall still a great place and we'll be back. I'm sure our experience was an exception and not the rule.