San Diego is a sunny, laid-back city where the food scene is as diverse as it is delicious! Whether you’re grabbing street tacos in Barrio Logan or enjoying fresh, local dishes in North Park, you’ll find that this coastal city has a little bit of everything. From beachside bites to hidden gems in cool neighborhoods, San Diego is the perfect spot to explore and savor some good allergy-friendly food. This guide details some of my favorite spots in San Diego for gluten and nut allergies. Keep reading for nut-free breakfast sandwiches, top 10 allergen free mini donuts, gluten-free cupcakes, and more allergy-friendly San Diego spots!
Where We Ate
We ate at a variety of restaurants and bakeries across the city! Read the list to learn more about each spot and how they accommodate food allergies. You can also take a look at the Google map below to see where these places are located throughout allergy-friendly San Diego!
1. Chani’s Donuts
Chani’s Donuts is a top 10 allergen free mini donut shop in San Diego that serves amazing hot mini donuts. You can choose from a variety of fillings and toppings to customize your box of donuts. Flavors include raspberry, strawberry, apple pie, powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar, and more. The shop is themed with fun carnival decorations and art, and Chani, the owner, is so sweet and inclusive of those with food allergies. It’s a great place for any any allergies, and it was so comforting that the entire shop is nut and gluten-free! Definitely stop by for a box of donuts if you’re in the San Diego area.
2. El Tianguis Rolled Taquitos
El Tianguis Rolled Taquitos is a 100% gluten-free and nut-free taquito shop in San Diego. The taquitos are so good! They have different variations including chicken, pork, beef, and vegetarian options, and all are totally gluten-free! I had a mix of chicken and potato stuffed taquitos and pico guac and guacamole as a topping. They are advertised as dedicated gluten-free, and I double-checked with the staff and was told everything in the kitchen is also nut-free. It’s also close by Starry Lane Bakery (mentioned below), so I recommend grabbing taquitos for lunch before picking up top 9 allergen free bakery treats! Find a full list of dietary information on their website.
3. Starry Lane Bakery
Starry Lane Bakery is a dedicated top 10 allergen free bakery in San Diego with amazing sweet treats! I’ve visited several times over different trips to San Diego and tried many of their products. Some of my favorites include hot cocoa cupcakes, cinnamon biscottis, bundt cakes, pretzel rolls, whoopie pies, and oatmeal raisin cookies. They’re open almost every day a week and also have delicious pies and cakes that can be made to order. I highly recommend making a trip to Starry Lane Bakery if you’re visiting the San Diego area!
4. Eggie’s
Eggie’s is an ADORABLE breakfast sandwich shack in the heart of Pacific Beach that offers egg centric breakfast sandwiches. The entire shack is completely nut-free! They have fresh squeezed OJ and a selection of breakfast sandwich options. All sandwiches contain gluten, egg, and dairy, but they have one gluten-free option, their egg-in-a-jar, which comes with hash browns, bacon, cheese, and poached eggs. The jars are prepped separately so I didn’t have any concerns about gluten cross contamination. It was such a fun find, and the egg-in-a-jar was the perfect breakfast before exploring Pacific Beach. Definitely recommend visiting one of their three locations in San Diego!
5. Bencotto
Bencotto is the sister restaurant of Monello (see below) and is located next door in Little Italy. Both have similar Italian menus, but Bencotto has a few more options and is slightly more upscale. Both locations serve AMAZING pasta, and you can make almost every pasta on the menu gluten-free! They have several options for gluten-free pasta including gluten-free gnocchi! We got the caesar salad (which comes with a parm crisp which is gluten-free), a few drinks, and their pink sauce gluten-free gnocchi, which was so good.
There are few nuts on the menu, but staff are very helpful and accommodating of nut allergies. I felt comfortable dining at both Bencotto and Monello and would recommend both for tasty dinners in Little Italy.
6. Monello
Monello, a Milanese kitchen and sister restaurant to Bencotto (see above), is a fantastic restaurant in Little Italy. They have few nuts on the menu and are extremely attentive to food allergies. One the menu, they offer gluten-free gnocchi and penne and can make almost all of their pasta dishes gluten-free. Some of the sauces contain flour, but staff are knowledgeable and can advise for safe options. I had the gluten-free penne bolognese and some of their fun cocktails. They also have great pizza and appetizers. This is a super fun spot for dinner and drinks, and the outdoor seating with views of the ocean is great during the summer time.
7. Oscar’s Mexican Seafood
Oscar’s Mexican Seafood is a great taco chain with locations throughout San Diego. Everything is nut-free and almost everything is gluten-free. They have a variety of tacos, sides, apps, and amazing ceviche. The menu is pretty simple but I love getting a few tacos with mix and match proteins and splitting ceviche and sides. They have a number of locations throughout the San Diego area.
8. City’s Tacos
City’s Tacos is another great taco chain in San Diego. They have one taco that comes with almonds as a topping but other than that everything is nut-free. The menu is labeled with allergen symbols to denote nuts, gluten, meat, and dairy, so it’s super helpful to find safe options. I felt comfortable as the almonds were kept in a separate area, and I asked staff to change gloves. We enjoyed a spread of tacos including Caribbean Salmon, Surf & Turf, and Quesibirria, and they were amazing. Highly recommend stopping by one of their five locations – there’s also one next to Petco Park!
9. Oceana Coastal Kitchen
Oceana Coastal Kitchen in Catamaran Resort Hotel is an amazing restaurant and a great food allergy find! There are no peanuts on the menu and the only nut in the kitchen is almonds. The menu is clearly labeled with vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free symbols, so it was very easy to order a safe gluten-free meal. The waiter confirmed with the chef about my allergies and then came back to let me know what was safe.
I had the braised short ribs with polenta, and it was one of the best meals I’ve had. I was also safely able to have the creme brûlée! All the desserts are made in house, and there were no nuts on the dessert menu (except almonds in one biscotti that was a topping on one dessert). We came back a second night, and I was able to safely have sushi as they had several gluten-free rolls. This is definitely a more upscale dinner, but we throughly enjoyed the food and ambience.
Thanks for reading my guide to allergy-friendly treats throughout Los Angeles! If you’re looking for more allergy-friendly bakeries, make sure to follow my Instagram where I share eats and travel finds. And for more West Coast travel recommendations, check out my restaurant guides to Seattle and Disneyland and my Los Angeles Treat Guide. Let me know in the comments which San Diego spot you want to try most!
