We visited Bilbao as part of a roadtrip in Northern Spain and we loved this cool, artistic city. As for the foodie side, gluten free Bilbao has plenty of coeliac friendly eateries for you to enjoy. Whether you fancy casual drinks and pinchos, baked goods and exploring, or a slap up meal.
Bilbao would be perfect for a weekend break. You can get around the centre easily on the tram network and there’s plenty to see and do. The Guggenheim museum is a must visit, of course.
The city has a real metropolitan feel to it, yet there are plenty of relaxing squares and shady streets to sit and while away the hours. With platefuls of gluten free pinchos and glasses of wine.
You can also take a river cruise and enjoy the sights or travel around the centre via tram. There’s plenty to explore – here are some of the top sights or have a read of Visit Spain.
Where to Stay
We stayed in an AirBnB (although I wouldn’t recommend our particular one, it was pretty average), as I like having the option to self cater, especially for breakfast.
However, there are many hotels that can cater for coeliacs in Bilbao. Here are a couple of options that may suit you:
- Hotel Gran Bilbao – a well-rated (3rd best rated on Tripadvisor), reasonably-priced hotel in the centre of Bilbao, with a good array of gluten free breakfast options. Various coeliacs reviewers have spoken very positively of starting their day with gluten free baguette, omelette and more!
- Gran Hotel Domine – a slightly more luxurious option, who say they can cater for gluten free diets for breakfast and other meals.
Gluten Free Food in Spain
Spain is generally a good place for coeliac holidaymakers. Supermarkets are really well stocked, with big gluten free sections (also look out for extra products on the shelves), making self catering a doddle.
We tended to have breakfast at home, plus lots of beach picnics, then would eat out in the evening. However there were also some incredible products we found that I HAD to try, like these croquettes and calamari rings. We thought the calamari might be a bit rubbish but they were SO GOOD.
Eating out is an option for coeliacs too, it just takes a bit of research and patience to find the safest places. I’ve got some specific recommendations for you below, but there are bound to be dozens more places that can cater for coeliacs.
What if I Don’t Speak Spanish?
If you don’t speak Spanish, print out a couple of copies of this Spanish language coeliac card. I find it super useful to be able to show to restaurant staff, rather than having to give them my phone to read it.
I didn’t get a chance to print one out this time, so had to muddle through with my bad Spanish. Generally I would tell them I am coeliac and ask for if they had gluten free options. Then I would ask if they were free from contamination. It was a rustic approach, but conveyed the message well and helped me find the safe places amongst the not-so-safe ones.
Laura’s rustic Spanish phrases
Sorry to all fluent Spanish speakers out there – please do get in touch ([email protected]) if you can correct this:
- Sin gluten = gluten free
- Soy celiaco/a (celiaco if you are male, celiaca if you are female) = I am coeliac
- Sin contaminación? = my very rustic was of asking them about cross contamintion, literally “without contamination?”
But I also found quite a lot of people spoke good English, so that was very helpful.
Gluten Free Bilbao Guide
Below you’ll find full details of the places we tried in person, found them suitable for coeliacs and with a good gluten free offering. Please always double check when you visit these locations, as in hospitality menus and processes can change rapidly. If you visit and find they are no longer suitable please do let me know!
Thank you to Helena from Disfrutando Sin Gluten for her helpful tips – if you need a Spanish language Bilbao guide, you should definitely check out her website.
Where to Get Gluten Free Pinchos in Bilbao
Irrintzi
We had a lovely selection of gluten free (coeliac friendly) pinchos here, eaten outside on a little table (there’s a sit down option too if you want to be inside). They gave me a little list of gluten free pinchos to choose from, confirmed they could cater for me as a coeliac, and made them separately. I liked this spot a lot and the barman/owner was really friendly and welcoming.
I had loads of recommendations for this spot and although we didn’t manage to try their food (my youngest had run out of pinchos patience by this point!), I did manage to pop in. Staff showed me the gluten free menu and told me all the gluten free options were suitable for coeliacs. It has a lovely location in a square (across from Victor below), ideal for kids to have a run around while you eat.
My not being able to speak Spanish was a minor issue here, but I managed to get myself a gluten free beer, coeliac friendly croquettas and amazing warm gluten free bread in the end! Through broken Spanish and English I managed to establish that they had measures in place to limit cross contamination, and it was a nice spot to sit in the square (it’s close to Ahoan).
Gluten Free Bakery
There is a small gluten free bakery counter called Magora Bakery located in the Mercado de la Ribera. It’s an adventure trying to find it, but worth the hunt if you want some baked goods.
Head into the glass building that houses the market and you should be able to spot a map of the market floorplan on the wall. When we visited, Magora was located upstairs on the left hand side of the market, but it will be marked on the map.
Tried & Tested Restaurants
A must visit for a delicious gluten free Bilbao meal, Naked & Sated is a fully gluten free restaurant and we loved it. We had a gloriously long lunch out on the terrace (or for good airconditioning and pretty interiors bag a table inside), while our littlest napped and our 5 year old was engrossed in her colouring book.
There’s a great range of dishes, from burgers and chips to burrata salad and grilled salmon. And be sure to save space for desserts as they have an amazing selection! We had some baked doughnuts and wonderful cheesecake. Everything was delicious!
Casa Leotta
A fantastic spot for pizza, my kids loved this restaurant as much as I did as a coeliac. They have gluten free pizza, pasta, beer and desserts on the menu, and freshly made gluten free bread too. It’s also certified by the local coeliac society, Asesorados EZA.
Everything we ate was really good, staff were lovely, and they had good cross contamination processes in place. They have two locations in Bilbao, we visited the Ajuriaguerra branch.
Other Restaurants
As we were only in Bilbao for a couple of days we weren’t able to try everywhere I had researched, but I had found lots of potential gems during my pre-trip reading. Here are some places you might like to try, which were recommended to me by readers or highly reviewed online:
- La Currita – a new fully gluten free coffee shop, which has opened since I visited. They offer brunch and coffee.
- Fit & Goxo – for fully gluten free and sugar free doughnuts.
- New York Dinner – easy fast food with a menu that can nearly all be made gluten free. Casual dining. Asesorados EZA certified.
- Mandoya – Asesorados EZA certified and reviews state that many of the dishes on the menu can be made (or are) gluten free, by friendly and helpful staff.
- Kasko Restaurant – coeliac friendly options according to Helena from Disfrutando Sin Gluten.
- El Puertito – this small eatery is an oyster bar so did not use any gluten in their menu, at the time of writing. They also reportedly offer gluten free beer.
- La Depends del Etxanobe – this fancy eatery (it’s featured in the Michelin guide) is very coeliac friendly. Much of the menu is gluten free, with other dishes easily adapted.
- Margarito – recommended by a follower as coeliac friendly and this is backed up by online reviews.
- Bertys Burger – this burger joint was also recommended by a reader, who told me they have good gluten free options that are suitable for coeliacs.
- Sua San – recommended by a reader as a nice spot for brunch, close to the Guggenheim museum. They have a gluten free menu available that is suitable for coeliacs.
Ice Cream
I rarely get ice cream from ice cream parlours, as cross contamination is often rife. However here’s a lovely option I tried in another city, but I believe there is one in Bilbao too:
Bico de Xeandro
This ice cream chain is FACE certified and they have really good processes, scooping from fresh tubs and using gluten free cones. We had one from the branch in Santander and I was so impressed. Just tell them you are coeliac when you order.
Fast Food
Because although there are tonnes of wonderful sit down restaurant options in Bilbao, sometimes you may want to grab something mega quick!
Burger King
Certified by the Spniahs coeliac society, Burger King in Spain have various coeliac friendly options including burgers WITH buns!
McDonalds
That’s right, McDonalds in Spain has gluten free options that are also accredited by the Spanish coeliac society! From a variety of burgers and chips to gluten free beer, it’s a great fast food option.
Other fast food chains that are Spanish coeliac society (FACE) certified include Pan & Company, Dominos, TGI Fridays, Telepizza, Pizza Hut, Pomodor and Sushi Daily.
The Final Word
I hope you find this gluten free Bilbao guide helpful for your next travel adventure! As I mentioned at the beginning, restaurants do change rapidly so please ALWAYS ask your own questions and send me an update if somewhere is not longer safe. You can email me at [email protected] or pop me a message on Instagram @myglutenfreeguide.
For more travel guide goodness and tasty recipes, please do stick around! Here’s some other reading you might enjoy:
Happy Travels! Laura xxx
