Many people ask me about where to eat in Arizona. Besides our dedicated restaurants/bakeries, a great option is looking into a Fox Restaurant Concepts restaurant near you. Fox restaurant concepts is a mecca for gluten free dining with their multiple fresh food concepts and trained servers and chefs.
My favorite is True Foods kitchen which prides itself in local and fresh ingredients that change seasonally to reflect the growing seasons. Their menu is based on anti-inflammatory foods from Dr. Andrew Weil. They have amazing and flavorful salads with surprising taste and textural combinations. For example my favorite is the winter salad with cauliflower sweet potato and mulberries topped with horseradish dressing. Should it had not been recommended to me, I doubt i would have even tried it. C’mon….no one could have guessed that flavor combo. Now that it’s summer, the salad is unfortunately not available but it has been replaced with delicious seasonal offerings until next Fall. Like watermelon radishes with cashews and grapefruit? Yes please.
There are plenty of gluten-free options that are marked clearly on the menu (along with vegan and vegetarian). However, i still tell the server that i have celiac disease and they need to be extra careful with the preparation of my food, making sure not to grill on same surfaces if I get a side of chicken breast along with my salad.
Thankfully, Fox Restaurant Concepts built True Food Kitchens across the US. I, for one, am happy for this growing trend of fresh, clean food, that is healthy – and also safe for celiacs.
If you’re looking to go even greener, even deeper into the hippie vibe – look no further than Flower Child. This Fox Restaurant Concept serves kombucha on tap – so that guides you to what type of menu it is. Most of their menu offered is gluten-free, from salads, to bowls, to veggie and grain sides.
Zinburger is another great option, but unfortunately is only available in Arizona. My location has a separate fryer for gluten-free french fries and offers gluten-free buns, however, they do also state about cross contamination warnings. I often forgo the bun, as you know that you can only eat so much gluten free bread in one day that eventually you just start asking for lettuce wraps.
Whenever in Arizona, and looking for gluten-free restaurants that aren’t just dedicated bakeries – check out Fox Restaurant Concepts!
Arizona has so many great gluten free options… I definitely ate my way through Phoenix! 🙂 We have True Foods in Southern California too and I love it!
Culinary Dropout is also Fox Restaurant Concepts and is NOT gluten-free friendly. Servers knew nothing and has to ask the kitchen as the menu doesn’t say. I still got “glutened” after eating a SALAD at one of their restaurants. Not at FRC restaurants are good for GF life but the two that you called out are.