We were in Lisbon for 2 days (April 2024). I did a lot of research into where I could safely eat gluten free while travelling to Portugal. My ultimate goal was finding gluten free pastel de nata (which I did, at Rice Me!). There are MANY more options (including entirely gluten-free options), but as always: do your research, ask questions ahead of ordering, and reach out to restaurants ahead of time when needed. I have included a map at the end of all the gluten free places I had researched as being safe to eat at, even if we didn’t end up eating there. The map includes a couple options for Sintra, in case you’re doing a day trip there. We have also listed a couple non-gluten free options for awesome pastel de nata, in case you’re travelling with someone who doesn’t need to eat gluten free.
Here is where I ate during our April 2024 visit and my reviews:
Rice Me! Deli & Cafeteria
We put off coming here as it was quite far from our hotel, but on our last full day we took the metro out. I finally got to try a gluten free pastel de nata after watching Ahmed eat glutenous ones for the first few days! It was very delicious, though not quite as flaky as I was expecting. We also had breakfast here and ordered salmon toast and eggs. Since we made the trip all this way, of course we had to get pastries to go for our train ride the next day. We bought a croissant, pain au chocolate, and more pastel de nata. The croissant was heavy and quite big for one person! A note that they also have a full restaurant that’s open for dinner.
Zenith
We didn’t have breakfast included at our hotel, so we stopped here due to all the rave reviews online. We both got eggs benedict – Ahmed with Salmon, and me the regular one. Ahmed didn’t get the gluten free version, and he really enjoyed his. I found the benedict was delicious, but the gluten free bread was super dry. We went back again another morning, and I decided to try a tapioca crepe with scrambled eggs, avocado, and mushrooms inside. I didn’t love the texture of the crepe at all (I found it very chewy), but the inside tasted delicious. They also had bowls and pancakes available gluten free here. Lots of choices, and we’d highly recommend Zenith for your brunching needs.
Bonjardim
We had read great reviews online, and we encountered a line up when we went without a reservation. We ordered the full rotisserie chicken, rice, and fries. We also ordered a salad which they forgot to bring us, but we were totally fine with that and didn’t remind them because this was so much food! The chicken was moist and had great flavour. Ahmed really enjoyed his with the piri piri oil (I’m too much of a wimp with spicy for that). Overall, a good choice.
Honest Greens – Chiado
This is a Spanish chain restaurant that has multiple locations throughout the city. What’s great is that they list what does contain gluten rather than what doesn’t. They do have a couple of items that have cross-contamination though, so if that’s an issue for you like it is for me, check out their allergen guide (which is readily available online). We tried the piri piri chicken plate with double salad and the Latin bowl with a side of hot honey halloumi. My favourite was the halloumi, while Ahmed loved the chicken. The plates come with salad and bread by default, so make sure to request the double salad option. We also ordered the refillable water bar, which had still and sparkling water as well as 4 flavoured waters. The cucumber mint and strawberry ginger were fantastic. Highly recommend the water bar.
We loved it so much we came back again another night and got a dessert! We tried the raw chocolate cake with berries, which wasn’t too sweet but also didn’t have a ton of flavour. Overall, we loved Honest Greens and would try it again in other cities for a clean, healthy, yet delicious meal.
Casa Portuguesa do Pastel de Bacalhau
Here you can find traditional Portugese bacalhau in the form of fish cakes. There are multiple locations throughout Lisbon – we went to the location at LX Factory. They serve cod and potato fishcakes with cheese in the middle. I had read ahead that the rice wafer on top couldn’t be guaranteed to be gluten free, so I made sure I had one without that. We didn’t love how the inside of the cake went cod-cheese-cod, rather than the flavours all mixing, as the flavours were each super strong. This meant you got a couple bits of smack you in the face cod flavour, followed by a few bites of super stinky cheese flavour, and then cod again. I think it would have been better if the cod and cheese flavours mixed together. Overall, didn’t really understand the hype and wouldn’t come back, but probably worth trying once on your visit.
Oakberry
This is an international chain that makes smoothies and smoothie bowls with gluten free options. They have their allergens list posted online, so make sure to consult that before you go. They have a small menu that also lists gluten free options right on it (all fruit toppings are gluten free, all dairy add-ins, some protein options, and they have a gluten free oat option). We tried the smoothie bowls, which we enjoyed, but found overpriced for the size. It is also a bit of a weird presentation, as the bowls are actually given to you in a cup, which makes eating them a bit strange.
Amorino’s Gelato
We had a craving for ice cream or gelato late at night, and this was the only place we could find open, so we checked it out. It turns out, all the gelato flavours are gluten free! So are the macarons. However, not all the toppings are gluten free, so be careful there (neither are the crepes or waffles). You can get as many flavours as you want, and we found 3 to be a good amount for a small cup. We both got chocolate, coffee, and Amarena (black cherry with cream). A good stop if you’re wanting gelato/ice cream in Lisbon.
Santini Gelato
While they didn’t have allergen information in store, they did have information on their menu online. They have 3 locations throughout Lisbon – we went to the Chiado location. Between the two of us, we tried mango, raspberry, and strawberry. The strawberry was the best one in our opinion. Another decent gelato option in Lisbon.
NOT Gluten Free
Ahmed of course needed to try the non-gluten free pastel de nata so that we could compare the gluten free ones to them. He noted two places that were delicious (in case you’re travelling with someone who does not need to eat gluten free). Those two places are Fabrica de Nata and Manteigaria,
Map of Gluten Free Options
If you want more options, here is the Wanderlog map I made of everywhere I could find that had good gluten free reviews, labelled menus, and/or indications that gluten free was safe at their restaurants. Please note that I did not personally eat at all these restaurants, so do your own due diligence and reach out or check their websites/menus ahead of your visit.
HOW TO USE THE MAP: Click on the Wanderlog logo in the bottom right corner to open the full-size map up in a new tab. There, you can choose to just look at one category at a time or see all the categories on the map at once (click the 3 squares in the top right to choose). You can also export the map to Google Maps, share the map with others, or save the map.