Gluten Free eats in Southampton England recommendations Please!

[suefrankw]

Hello all

and thank you for all the great info on this board.

We will be in Southampton pre-cruise for 2-3 nights and wondering if someone can make recommendations for gluten free eating/pubs, etc. I have celiac

thank you!!

[KBs mum]

The majority of places offer gluten free and vegetarian/vegan options as standard. Best to check direct with specific places as there are so many options in many price ranges and areas of any town/city in the UK

[John Bull]

We don't have any dietary restrictions, but I'll do my best.

 

I'm not aware of any restaurants in Southampton which specialise, so you will have limited menu options.

But folk with intolerances are an important sector of the market, and even chain pubs & restaurants which cook sous-vide in central kitchens or buy in ready-made elements are clued-up on dietary requirements, note suitable dishes on their menus, and have knowledgeable kitchen brigades.

I'd just warn against bland reassurances from waiting staff - some are very very knowledgeable, some are relatively inexperienced part-timers. If in doubt, ask the wait staff to check with the manager or kitchen.

 

The internet's not much help - lists of "gluten-free restaurants" include plenty of places which don't limit themselves to gluten-free, so either

- they major on gluten-free

- or they simply include gluten-free options, which most restaurants do anyway.

And for Southampton, like everywhere I've been in the world, TripAdvisor includes every eatery which mentions the name of the searched town, including those waaaay out in the countryside.

 

Here's the best I can come up with in the city centre:

 

The majority of outlets in the modern West Quays dining & entertainment complex alongside the shopping mall, from Bill's and Las Iguanas thro to Zizzi and Red Dog as per the linked map. These are (all?) national & international brands, so no "local" atmosphere but plenty of choice in one place. Many also have outside dining with a view across to the 13th Century town walls. We've eaten at a few, can't remember the names but they were perfectly acceptable

https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1GEWG_en-GBGB999GB999&tbs=lf:1,lf_ui:9&tbm=lcl&sxsrf=APq-WBsaYPBoWo1H6haWqhHIVPufykZ0-A:1649457342863&q=gluten+free+southampton&rflfq=1&num=10#rlfi=hd:;si:;mv:[[50.90315400736939,-1.4048378315347154],[50.901130941675504,-1.4108245220559557],null,[50.90214248551054,-1.4078311767953355],18]

 

On Town Quay, just a five minute walk from West Quay,

https://ennios.co.uk/ 

We like Ennio's, proprietor-run Italian restaurant with rooms over. A little more expensive than the West Quay offerings, but more our scene.

https://www.laregata.co.uk/

Next door to Ennio's, La Regata is a proprietor-run Spanish restaurant. We like La Regata too, very similar to Ennios in many ways except the menus. Majors on paella (me no like) and tapas (me like very much).

Close by, within the city walls, http://southampton-pubs.co.uk/dukeofwellington/ is a traditional & historic pub popular with cruisers. More basic menu, more basic prices, we've enjoyed evenings there.

Other pubs and restaurants along the waterfront.

 

There's a decent selection of restaurants & pubs in Oxford Street on the eastern side of the city centre near Ocean Cruise Terminal

 

https://www.harbourhotels.co.uk/southampton/eat-and-drink/the-jetty

At the top end of the price scale, The Jetty is part of the Southampton Harbour Hotel which sticks out into the Ocean Village Harbour in the shape of a cruise ship.

We had sunday lunch there just the once - truly excellent, up-market setting, but at a price to match. Well worth a visit if your pockets are deeper than ours.

(BTW not where shown on TripAdvisor's map, it's a little further east - perhaps a short taxi hop depending on the location of your hotel.)

 

Those are just a small selection, Southampton has a wide variety

 

JB 🙂 

 

 

 

Edited April 8, 2022 by John Bull

[ozscotart]

On 4/8/2022 at 5:06 PM, suefrankw said:

Hello all

and thank you for all the great info on this board.

We will be in Southampton pre-cruise for 2-3 nights and wondering if someone can make recommendations for gluten free eating/pubs, etc. I have celiac

thank you!!

Last October we went to Bella Italia, not having been to that branch before, but think the pasta was cooked in gluten water, but I’ve been to other branches of Bella Italia without a problem, so I would emphasise it must be cooked separately. There do seem to be other choices around, and our hotel (Holiday Inn) was good with breakfast and lunch. 

[seba1]

Following! We have 2 who much eat gluten free. I am hoping the Find Me Gluten Free app will help. 

 

Stephanie

[suefrankw]

thanks so much for the info! every little bit helps...