Area Restaurants Offer Options
In the Fox Cities, we love our burgers, brats and sandwiches—all of which come on golden brown buns or yummy crusty bread. Not to mention cheese curds and fish, both breaded and battered.
But if you are among the growing number of people who have been diagnosed with celiac or Hashimoto’s disease, foods like bread that contain gluten can cause painful gut reactions or inflammation in the body.
Because of this, more and more people are going gluten free, which can make finding places to dine a challenge. Fortunately, several restaurants in the Fox Cities have recognized the growing need for gluten-free options.
Understanding the Effects of Gluten
To understand where the need for more gluten-free options comes from, it might be helpful to understand what this word, that actually sounds like “glue” means, along with how it affects the body.
Gluten is a protein found in foods with wheat, barley and rye. When using these types of flours to make bread or baked goods, it acts as a binder to thicken the dough or batter.
People with celiac or Hashimoto’s disease might want to eat food with gluten, but their systems don’t process these foods like everyone else’s.
According to the Mayo Clinic, celiac disease is an autoimmune condition where the immune system reacts to gluten, sometimes causing damage to the small intestine. For celiac sufferers, eating gluten triggers an immune response to the gluten protein in their small intestine. This reaction can damage the small intestine’s lining and prevent it from absorbing nutrients. Celiac sufferers often know something’s wrong because eating foods with gluten can often cause a painful gut reaction.
Celiac’s lesser known cousin, Hashimoto’s disease, is also an autoimmune disease, but it affects the thyroid gland. Unlike celiac disease, people often don’t know that they have Hashimoto’s disease.
How gluten affects the body, in this case: The protein structure of gluten mimics that of the thyroid gland. In someone with Hashimoto’s disease, when the body attempts to attack gluten, it actually attacks the thyroid gland. Besides causing inflammation in the body, it can also do real damage to that gland that regulates the body’s metabolism. Hashimoto’s is less easy to recognize as the symptoms are fatigue and weight gain, but no physical pain as in celiac disease.
Entirely Gluten-Free Restaurants
Someone who is familiar with the effects of gluten on the body is Ann Mongin, owner of Cornflower Cafe in Appleton where all of the menu items are gluten free.
Mongin has been gluten free for over 30 years due to a health issue and, she said, she didn’t have a lot of options back in the 1990s when there was less awareness of autoimmune diseases like celiac and Hashimoto’s.
“There was nothing (to eat). I was hungry,” she laughed. “There was hardly anything. I can remember finding gluten-free crackers and being excited about that and they were just terrible. They were like cardboard.”
The limited amount of available gluten-free foods back then prompted Mongin to start cooking gluten-free foods for herself and her friends.
“I had been cooking dishes and desserts for friends who were gluten free. Then a gluten-free store opened up. It wasn’t open for very long, but I brought them samples and they liked them. I thought, ‘I have to find a kitchen to bake in,’” she said.
She did find a kitchen to share, but when she realized the cost of renting a kitchen space, she said that she knew she was going to have to start producing a lot more items to make it work, which, she said, is when she started focusing on baking.
“Which was kind of a surprise to me,” she said. “Cooking was more, you could put in a little of this or a little of that… Baking felt so regimented to me.”
She admitted she likes both cooking and baking equally now. While sharing a kitchen, she also brought her baked goods to the farmers market.
“I was doing the farmers market (in Appleton), and people would come into buy bakery (in the shared kitchen), were like, ‘You should start a restaurant,’” Mongin said.
She opened the Cornflower Cafe in May of 2022, and she said they’ve been busy ever since.
Some of what can you expect to find on Cornflower Cafe’s menu:
“The biscuits and gravy—people are always really excited about that because they haven’t been able to find that (dish) anywhere else,” Mongin said. “Also, sourdough pancakes are pretty popular. We just started making those.”
They also offer a Turkey BLT, which is one of the more popular sandwiches according to Mongin.
Focusing on breakfast and lunch, other menu items include: Cinnamon French Toast, Quiche, Chipotle Chicken Salad, as well as a Turkey Burger.
Closer to Appleton’s downtown is Happy Bellies. Known for their gluten-free doughnuts, Happy Bellies is not only gluten free but offers a lot of dairy-free items as well, which is helpful for anyone on an anti-inflammatory diet.
“I’ve never heard anyone say, ‘I’ve given up gluten and dairy and I don’t feel any better,’” Owner Rebecca Brown, said.
Co-owner with her mom, Agnes, Brown said her mom has been cooking healthy food for her and her siblings since she was little.
“Growing up, she always cooked from scratch, healthier options for us,” Brown said.
With healthy eating a way of life, it wasn’t hard for Brown and her mom to apply these same principles to the restaurant.
“We wanted to create a place where we could go get a treat that we felt good about eating… At the time, a lot of the things we were practicing were gluten free, so I said, let’s just keep everything gluten free,” Brown said.
They opened in 2011. Back then they were downtown, hidden away behind The Fire. She has fond memories of people discovering them by accident.
“The Fire would have birthday parties and all the young girls would come back and use the bathrooms. We were right next to the bathroom. We just became this place that people would talk about that was tucked away by the bathrooms…We also did the farmers market and that really helped us get our name out,” Brown said.
When it came to opening their own brick and mortar, they tossed around what they wanted to name the business.
“At first, when we opened, we were called Gluten Be Gone. We were in it for a month and I was like, ‘We gotta change our name.’ I wanted a place where people could come and sit. Who wants to say, ‘Hey, let’s go to Gluten Be Gone,” she joked.
Brown wanted the name to bring in customers who wanted good food and better ingredients, so even if they weren’t gluten free, they wouldn’t know the difference in taste.
Brown didn’t want to put ‘gluten free’ front and center because she wanted the food to be delicious first.
Brown said that besides striving to use better ingredients—they don’t use any food dyes—she also said that each recipe takes time to perfect.
“Our doughnut recipe we made a minimum of 50 times. You have to keep working at it, practicing, tweaking things,” Brown said.
While they are known for their doughnuts, some other things you’ll find on their menu includes cupcakes, cookies, nut bars, as well as breakfast sandwiches. They also make cakes to order.
New to the Fox Cities this year, That Healthy Place in Appleton opened its doors in January. Owned by Ashley Alsbach, a health coach and personal trainer, this cafe strives to serve healthy, energy packed items.
From shakes to sweet treats, every item on their menu is gluten free as well as dairy free. They also have grab and go snacks, all great for anyone with gluten sensitivities.
Some popular items their menu features include a Breakfast Burrito and a stress relieving smoothie called Internal Peace. Who couldn’t use some of that?
Restaurants With Gluten-Free Menu Items
Mylee Xiong, owner of GingeRootz in Appleton, also recognized the need for offering gluten-free options. Besides offering a separate gluten-free menu for diners, she also said that things can be made to order at GingeRootz—however you like it.
“If you want to adjust one of our dishes on the menu we will make it how you like it,” Xiong said.
Some of the items on their gluten-free menu include: Tuna Salad, Chicken and Mixed Vegetables along with Fried Rice. They also offer gluten-free soy sauce, an item that people often don’t know has gluten, but it is made with soy.
Another Asian restaurant that takes gluten-free menu items very seriously is Basil’s Cafe in Appleton. With several items listed on the menu with a GF next to it, it makes ordering for anyone who is gluten free very easy.
If you’re gluten freen and you thought Italian food was completely off your menu, know that Carmella’s, an Italian Bistro, goes out of their way for the gluten-free customer. With a knowledgeable staff, gluten-free diners can select from menu items like Sea Scallops and
Wild Mushroom Risotto, Scottish Salmon, Wild Caught Chilean Sea Bass and Filet Mignon.
And speaking of Italian food, pizza can be another favorite that people who are gluten free think they have to give up.
Stuc’s Pizza offers a gluten-free pizza crust that not only tastes similar to their regular pizza crust, but is also crispy and holds up well with several toppings.
If you’re in the mood for some Mexican food, Sangria’s offers made from scratch dishes with a staff trained to help patrons who have gluten-free sensitivities order.
Other upscale restaurants offering gluten-free menu items include: Draft Gastropub offers a choice of several different protein bowls from salmon, shrimp, bourbon chicken and brisket made with rice or couscous that are gluten free.
Urban Modern Kitchen also offers a wide selection of protein bowls.
Graystone Ale House in Kaukauna, includes a GF on their menu to help diners find those menu items quickly. They also offer gluten-free dinner rolls for a small upcharge.
Mark’s Eastside offers several steak and seafood dishes which include a choice of potato.
Fratello’s has a dedicated gluten free menu along with gluten free beers.
Breakfast and brunch places: Author’s Kitchen offers quinoa bowls and also has a note on menu items which are gluten free.
SAP offers gluten-free bread for popular breakfast items like French Toast and accommodates dietary restrictions.
Several cafes like Copper Rock, Moon Water Cafe and Tempest Coffee Collective have incorporated gluten-free menu items like bread for their breakfast and lunch items.
Still, if you’re simply craving a burger or a sandwich, several restaurants in the area have answered that call by incorporating gluten-free buns and bread into their menu, usually for a small upcharge.
Bazil’s Pub on College offers a gluten free bun. Other places where you can get a burger on a gluten-free bun include Mill City Public House, The Bar, Stone Yard, Red Robin, Tom’s Drive-In, Culvers, Chick-fil-A, Parker John’s BBQ & Pizza.
It is important to note that while these establishments do their best to accommodate diners with dietary needs, it is also important to inquire if there is any cross contamination.