Gluten-free Paris: where to eat, by a celiac who lived there

I was born with celiac disease and lived in Paris for six years. This is the list I give to friends who visit: places I have eaten at myself, plus a few that readers and friends recommended (I say so when I haven't been). For the rest of France, see my guide to eating gluten-free in France.

Before you go: five things to know

1. Many gluten-free places only open for lunch. The 100% gluten-free restaurants mostly serve quick meals at lunchtime. For dinner, book one of the restaurants that open in the evening (I say which below).
2. Sundays and August are tricky. A lot of small restaurants and bakeries close on Sunday, and some close for two or three weeks in August.
3. Book for dinner. Paris restaurants are small. For the popular places, book a table, even on weekdays.
4. Tipping is not expected. Service is included in the price ("service compris"). Leaving a euro or two for good service is kind, not required.
5. Say it in French. Even in a gluten-free friendly place, it helps to say "Je suis cœliaque, je ne peux pas manger de gluten, même des traces." (I am celiac, I can't eat gluten, not even traces.) My France guide has more sentences to show the waiter.

Quick picks by neighborhood

If you are short on time, here is where to eat near the places you will visit anyway.

100% gluten-free restaurants

Paris has an almost unmatched number of restaurants that serve only gluten-free food, so there is no risk of cross-contamination in the kitchen. Most of them serve quick meals at lunchtime; for dinner, Apeti, Sol Semilla, Thaisil and 42 degrés open in the evening.

Apeti, organic, plant-based and gluten-free

This restaurant in the 7th arrondissement, a short walk from the Invalides and the Eiffel Tower, serves organic, gluten-free, vegetarian food. The menu changes often to follow the seasons. You can eat there every day, for lunch and dinner, which is quite rare for a gluten-free place in Paris. The dishes are varied, and the desserts will make you forget all the times you had nothing sweet to eat. You can also take away or order delivery.

21bis Av. de Ségur, 75007 Paris - metro Ségur or Saint-François-Xavier - Google Maps

Sol Semilla, vegan food with superfoods

A few streets from the Canal Saint-Martin, Sol Semilla serves vegan and gluten-free food built around superfoods. The short menu is a good sign: everything is fresh. At lunch, go for a bowl, a salad or a soup; in the evening, try the buckwheat risotto and the chocolate mousse. They also have a small shop if you want to bring some superfoods home.

Open for lunch every day and in the evening on weekdays; book for dinner.

23 rue des Vinaigriers, 75010 Paris - metro Jacques Bonsergent - Google Maps

Thaisil, refined Thai and Cambodian food

If you want to try traditional Thai food that is entirely gluten-free, don't miss Michael's restaurant. The food is refined: try the original recipe of pad thai, or a delicious red curry. The desserts are amazing, which is rarely the case in Thai restaurants in my opinion. I also had their five-mushroom soup from the winter menu, and it was a treat. Everything is gluten-free, most sauces are homemade, there are vegetarian options, and all allergens are on their menu.

I didn't need to book for lunch, but it was already busy, so book a table for dinner. Open Monday to Friday.

3 Rue du Nil, 75002 Paris - metro Sentier - Google Maps

Cococo, homemade Japanese bento

Cococo is a tiny Japanese gem, 100% gluten-free and dairy-free, a few minutes' walk from the Louvre. You eat organic homemade bentos, karaage (Japanese fried chicken) and vegan desserts, with no added sugar. It is lunch only, Tuesday to Saturday, and the room is minuscule: book!

35 Rue Coquillière, 75001 Paris - metro Les Halles or Louvre-Rivoli - Google Maps

Manicaretti, Italian food without allergens

A discreet place in the 10th arrondissement: it is 100% gluten-free, even though nothing on the shop front says so. Everything is organic and they fight food waste. The plates are generous and the prices are reasonable for Paris. They have no website: find them on social media and Google Maps.

60 Rue de Paradis, 75010 Paris - metro Poissonnière - Google Maps

42 degrés, raw, plant-based and gluten-free

An almost unique experience: the food is plant-based, gluten-free, free of refined sugar, and raw (never heated above 42 °C, hence the name). They also run cooking classes. Open Monday to Saturday for lunch and dinner.

109 Rue du Faubourg Poissonnière, 75009 Paris - metro Poissonnière - Google Maps

Kapunka, Thai street food

Thai food is traditionally almost gluten-free, but in most Thai restaurants the sauces contain wheat (soy sauce) and the risk of cross-contamination is high. At Kapunka, all the food is gluten-free, with vegetarian and vegan options. Careful with the beer, though: it contains gluten. Have an iced tea or a lemonade instead.

Three restaurants: Montorgueil (51 rue Saint-Sauveur, 75002), Montparnasse (32 rue Delambre, 75014) and Batignolles (139 rue Cardinet, 75017) - Google Maps

NoGlu, gluten-free café and takeaway

NoGlu was one of the first gluten-free places in Paris. Frédérique, its founder, wanted to bring together French cuisine and the health concerns she discovered in California. Today there are cafés in the 7th (near the Musée d'Orsay) and the 11th, where you can have breakfast, brunch or a quick lunch, and a takeaway corner with bread and pastries. They open every day, but not in the evening.

I have never been myself, and the online reviews are mixed on service and value for money. Tell me about your experience so I can update this guide (use the contact page).

69 rue de Grenelle, 75007 (metro Rue du Bac) & 15 rue Basfroi, 75011 (metro Voltaire) - Google Maps

Restaurants with gluten-free options

These restaurants also cook with gluten. They know what gluten-free means, but always tell the waiter you are celiac, so they take care with cross-contamination.

Loulou, brunch and burgers

I used to live right next to one of their restaurants and I love going there for comfort food. You will find gluten-free burgers, pancakes and a club sandwich, and most of the brunch dishes, served all day in an Australian style, are gluten-free. They sometimes have gluten-free beer, but not always in stock. I confess I have given in to their gluten-free cromesquis (fried bites) at aperitif time more than once...

90 Bd Saint-Germain, 75005 Paris - metro Maubert-Mutualité - Google Maps. There is a second one in Antony, south of Paris.

Le Grenier de Notre Dame, vegetarian

A little gem a two-minute walk from Notre-Dame, as the name suggests. This vegetarian restaurant, open since 1978, also has vegan dishes and above all many gluten-free options. The atmosphere is cosy and warm, and they serve gluten-free beer, a nice bonus for a celiac's cheat meal. The online menu doesn't say which dishes are gluten-free, but the one in the restaurant does, and the staff are very helpful.

18 Rue de la Bûcherie, 75005 Paris - metro Saint-Michel or Maubert-Mutualité - Google Maps

Laïa, Mediterranean food in a garden

Hidden in a garden in the 11th arrondissement, Laïa has gluten-free options at lunch and dinner. If you want refined food for a night out with friends or a date, this is the place. And the cherry on the panna cotta: they serve Pietra, a gluten-free beer. The only downside: the desserts are not gluten-free.

226 Bd Voltaire, 75011 Paris - metro Rue des Boulets - Google Maps

PNY, burgers

PNY (for "Paris New York") makes burgers halfway between French and American culture, with a gluten-free bun on every burger for a small extra. No booking, but click and collect and delivery work too, gluten-free option included. They have several restaurants in Paris (Oberkampf, Faubourg Saint-Denis, Gaîté...) and in Lyon, Bordeaux and Lille.

Google Maps

Gemini, Italian with gluten-free pizza and pasta

A classic Italian restaurant with gluten-free pizza and pasta for a small extra, and several addresses in and around Paris (Vaneau in the 7th, Convention in the 15th, Boulogne...). I have eaten there and was not sick, but I am not sure everything is done to avoid cross-contamination. If in doubt, call before you go.

Google Maps

Bakeries, pastry shops and cafés

The thing I miss most when I travel is good bread. Paris is the one city where you can find a real gluten-free baguette.

Chambelland, the reference for gluten-free bread

Don't miss this bakery, pastry shop and café if you come to Paris. Chambelland is an institution: they have their own mill, which guarantees a gluten-free flour with no contamination, and many other bakeries and restaurants in France buy their flour. Their bread is naturally gluten-free and organic. You will find a unique variety of gluten-free breads, pastries, sandwiches and quick lunches.

14 Rue Ternaux, 75011 (metro Parmentier) & 43 rue Brochant, 75017 (metro Brochant) - Google Maps

Café Mareva, brunch in Montmartre

Maréva is an athlete and former financial analyst, lactose intolerant, who left everything to open a gluten-free café. The menu is 100% gluten-free and lactose-free: waffles, pancakes, bowls, coffee and homemade cakes that change every day. A perfect breakfast before climbing to the Sacré-Cœur.

27 rue de Clignancourt, 75018 Paris - metro Anvers or Barbès-Rochechouart - Google Maps

La Manufacture du sans gluten, pastries in Montmartre

Some say it is the best gluten-free bakery in Paris. With so many good addresses, I can't choose, but I can only advise you to try their viennoiseries (croissants, pains au chocolat). In January, order a galette des rois, the French kings' cake. Bonus: the shop is right opposite the grocery store from the film Amélie, so it makes a perfect break while visiting Montmartre. It is not cheap, though.

2 Rue Androuet, 75018 Paris - metro Abbesses - Google Maps

Copains, organic gluten-free bakeries

Copains started as the project of two friends, Giovanni and Baptiste, who wanted to make gluten-free versions of traditional French pastries. Everything is organic and gluten-free, made with alternative flours. It has been such a success that there are now more than ten Copains bakeries in Paris, and others in Lyon, Bordeaux, Brussels and London. You will probably walk past one.

Among others: 8 Rue des Abbesses, 75018 (metro Abbesses) - Google Maps

Aux Merveilleux de Fred, a naturally gluten-free pastry

Not a gluten-free shop, but a must. The merveilleux is a pastry from the north of France made of meringue and whipped cream, covered in chocolate shavings: naturally gluten-free. Careful, some versions contain speculoos or biscuit, which contain gluten: ask. There are many shops in Paris, find the nearest one on the map.

Google Maps

Drinking a gluten-free beer

Several of the restaurants above serve gluten-free beer. Here are bars that don't serve gluten-free food but do have gluten-free beer. For the brands to look for, see my best gluten-free beers (in French).

Mikkeller, the Danish beer bar

In this beer bar near Pigalle you can have wine, cocktails, and gluten-free beer in bottles, like their gluten-free Pale Ale.

32 Rue Marguerite de Rochechouart, 75009 Paris - metro Anvers - Google Maps

Les Caves Alliées, a medieval bar

I have never been, but a friend warmly recommended it. This bar in a 15th-century vaulted cellar has board games, many kinds of mead (honey wine, gluten-free), cocktails and gluten-free beers. When I asked them on Facebook, they answered very quickly and advised me to send a message on the day to know which ones are available.

44 Rue Grégoire de Tours, 75006 Paris - metro Odéon or Mabillon - Google Maps

Le Troll Café

This beer bar near Bastille has more than a hundred beers. There had to be a gluten-free one in the lot: the organic Grisette (blonde).

27 Rue de Cotte, 75012 Paris - metro Ledru-Rollin - Google Maps

Closed places

Many articles online are out of date. Don't waste time looking for these, they have closed: Helmut Newcake, Yummy and Guilt Free, Rice Trotters, Sitron, Onyriza and Foucade.

More gluten-free guides

• Eating gluten-free in France: restaurants, supermarkets, French dishes that are safe.
• Gluten-free Lyon and gluten-free Toulouse.