Giraffe – gluten free and family friendly
Giraffe is a casual chain restaurant with outlets in central and suburban London (including Heathrow and Gatwick airports) and also around the UK. The staff are always friendly and overall the restaurants have a young feel. It is a family friendly restaurant, and also somewhere you could go to eat on your own and not feel too obvious.
The food is a mixture of healthy options like salads, grilled salmon, stir fries and risotto, but there are also items like burger & chips (not gluten free) & kids options. Below is a picture of the chorizo risotto which is a good dinner option.
If you have any special dietary requirements, the stores have a guide to all the major allergens which you can ask for.
Gluten free is also often marked on the menu, but I have found variations between stores and if you look at the allergy guide there will be additional gluten free options.
I have also seen a separate dedicated gluten free menu (below) which is my preferred option!
For breakfast, out of the whole menu only one item is marked gluten free at Heathrow T5, which is a ‘nut bowl’ and it is delicious. It is a fruit salad in yoghurt with crushed pistachios & almonds, with orange blossom. It is not overly filling, but teamed with a fresh juice it is a nice way to start the day. The online menu shows other GF options for breakfast, such as an omelette, so check the options at your local store.
As mentioned, Giraffe is a family friendly restaurant – this is a good thing if you have young kids, but can be not so great when you don’t! Below is a picture of all the prams at the Southbank restaurant on a summer’s weekend!
There are some Giraffe spin offs, such as Giraffe Stop and Giraffe Kiosk. I have seen this at King’s Cross station and they had a GF salad option and also bowls of curry or 3 bean chilli.
Giraffe is mentioned in the London airports post, London train stations post and London chain restaurants post, as well as in the Central London restaurant listing. Please click here for other London restaurant reviews.
For more ideas on eating out gluten free in the UK and travelling, please check the following links:
