Category: Restaurants

Honeygrow

Mentor, Avon, Strongsville, Akron, Canton

Honeygrow features fresh, made-to-order stir-fry, salads, and honeybars.

This fast casual chain has recently expanded into the Cleveland area. There are now locations in Mentor, Avon, Strongsville, Akron and Canton.

The Red Coconut Curry, Loaded Greek salad and OG Cobb salad are gluten free as is.

The menu is fully customizable and GF ingredients are clearly indicated. So there are a lot of choices.

I was advised at the restaurant to alert personnel of “allergy” prior to placing the order on the store kiosk or to call the restaurant before placing an order in the app.

I was told my order might take a few extra minutes to prepare as the wok used to prepare the stir fry would be sanitized as part of their allergy protocol.

The food was served quickly. I enjoyed the Red Coconut Curry and had customized my order by substituting vegetables.

I also tried a Create Your Own Honeybar. The GF treat I chose was yogurt with fruit topping, chocolate chips and shredded coconut. There was also a drizzle of honey.

I’ll return to try a different combination of ingredients.

Brick and Vine

100% Gluten Free Restaurant in Brecksville

https://www.brickandvinerestaurant.com

A new restaurant, Brick and Vine, has opened in Brecksville, OH. Located at 8903 Brecksville Rd. – intersection of Rt 82 and Rt 21.

Service hours begin at 3:00 pm – Tuesday thru Saturday

We dined with Brick and Vine this past weekend. Our server informed us that everything on the menu is gluten free. Staff with gf needs enables this menu!

Arancini was our starter! It has been many years since I was able to enjoy Arancini in a restaurant. It was perfectly made. Crispy outside, creamy and wonderful on the inside. Sadly, it is stuffed with chorizo making it NOT a vegetarian option. I hope they will offer this with variations over the months ahead. While I like chorizo it would not be me go-to for this item. Still, the plating was beautiful and the dish plentiful.

Salads were also beautifully plated. We chose the wedge and the caesar salads both of which were plentiful. Half the wedge came home with us!

Our entree choices were the Tortelloni alla Vodka (a creamy tomato sauce) and the Fried Chicken Sandwich (topped with shaved fennel)! First thing I noted about the sandwich was the great bun! Seriously, the sandwich was super good but the bun was probably the BEST gf bun I’ve ever had in a restaurant. Both dishes were super good!

Our server requested that we order our entire meal up front as this enables the kitchen to time the service according to the dishes requested. By ordering everything up front it enables them to have runners remove plates and deliver new plates in a smooth transition. It worked well for us in terms of food service AND we were not neglected by our server – Emma – she was on task and managed to check in on us to make sure everything was going as it should.

Our desserts were the the Basque Cheesecake and the Frozen Key Lime ‘Pie’. I’m not such a cheesecake lover but I must say that this cheesecake was really good! The Key Lime dessert is more of a whipped key lime chiffon type thing and is really good the next day (cold but not frozen). We were too full to enjoy dessert at the restaurant so brought it home for next morning breakfast. It was wonderful!

Nordstrom Grill

Beachwood

I really enjoyed my recent lunch at Nordstrom Grill. The restaurant is on the 3rd floor of the Beachwood Place Nordstorm store.

They have a menu with designated gluten free items.  I was assured by the greeter/seater, and very capable server, that my meal would be safely gluten free.

The Honey Dijon Cobb Salad was fresh and tasty. It was topped with perfectly cooked and seasoned salmon

My gluten eating companions enjoyed their salads.

There are several entrees marked gluten free and gluten free penne is available.

The menu does not mark the tomato soup as gluten free. However, the server checked with the kitchen and the tomato soup is gluten free.

Covered parking makes this restaurant an even more enticing choice during Cleveland’s inclement weather.

Julia’s 1902

https://www.julias1902.com

37819 Euclid Ave, Willoughby, 44094

Located in Willoughby House, a newly renovated mansion turned Inn, Julia’s 1902 opened in 2024.

From Julia’s 1902 website:

Julia’s 1902 is a restaurant and bar located on the ground floor of Willoughby House, an inn that offers ten unique suites. Executive Chef Jose Coronado takes inspiration from the flavors of his native country, Guatemala, as well as Mediterranean, Asian, and Latin American cuisines.

Julia’s 1902 offers a sophisticated yet approachable dining experience with a variety of dietary options made from locally sourced ingredients.

I have the pleasure to dine at Julia’s a few times in the past months. Each and every time I was able to order a dish prepared specifically to be gluten free. Not only were each of the items I ordered perfectly prepared and served but the server was knowledgeable and attentive. Check out their menu, it is clearly marked for gf options. Weekly/Daily Menus with TuesdayMenu – Tapas. Weekends – Brunch.

Be sure to make a reservation. Note that this is a no-tip establishment but there is a 20% gratuity attached to your bill. Valet parking is essential as the parking lot is a bit tight.

It’s Only Fair, LLC

East, West, South, Downtown, Mobile

https://streetfoodfinder.com/ItsonlyFair

Food trailer serving classic fair favorites that just happen to be gluten free. Find them on Facebook and Instagram.

Hello GF’ers! Happy New Year to you and yours! This post is just a sample of what we have to look forward to this coming summer!

!AS ALWAYS – BE YOUR OWN BEST ADVOCATE!

See this message from Carrie, Owner/Operator of It’s Only Fair, LLC

The flours that we use are mainly rice and tapioca. We expect to be all over Northeast Ohio, mainly Cuyahoga County.

We are currently looking to book events for 2025, but nothing scheduled yet.

I was diagnosed with celiac in 2024 but gluten free since 2023.

I was tired of only having a few safe places to eat and wanted to provide a gluten free food that isn’t being done, which just happened to be food that takes everyone back to their summer childhood days.

The best part of everything is seeing people’s happy faces when they are able to eat something that they haven’t had in years, or ever. 

Here’s a glance at the menu