Mint Downtown Thai

Mint Thai is located at 732 4th right near Horton Plaza.  The don't have a gluten free menu, but the staff is knowledgeable and happy to provide a limited set of gluten free choices.  I had lunch at Mint Thai in Feburary of 2012, and although the food was OK, it was not the most exciting or spicy Thai food I've ever had.  On the other hand, I haven't been to a Thai restaurant that could accommodate gluten free in 10 years.

The lunch menu was quite reasonably priced with entrees ranging from $7 to $9.  The service was quick and the interior was nicely decorated.  Pictured at right, I tried the chicken pad thai, with a deep fried spring roll, soup and a salad.  Unfortunately, the soup was delivered cold, and the salad was made of iceberg lettuce.  Overall it was a tasty meal, and I would recommend it if you need to eat lunch downtown on a budget.  I don't think I would recommend it for dinner because the prices double, and I doubt the flavor does as well.

The Melting Pot

I went to the melting pot in march of 2012 to celebrate a friends birthday. We found it to be a tasty and memorable experience, although at 50 dollars per person it was somewhat expensive. It was certainly a great place to celebrate a special occasion.  The melting pot is a fondue restaurant and they have burners built into each table to cook the fondue and keep it hot.  They have a gluten free menu, and they readily accommodate gluten intolerance.

Fondue is something that is meant to be shared, and there are only two burners on each table, so you need to go with at least one guest who also wants to eat gluten free. The fondue consists of four courses: a cheese fondue, a salad, an entree, and a dessert.  A classic fondue consists of dipping bread into molten cheese, but the melting pot does not supply gluten free bread and rather supplies extra vegetables. The entree is a flavorful broth in which you cook meat, potatoes and mushrooms. Both the cheese and entree are prepared in front if you buy the waiter. The desert we tried was called a flaming turtle, and it consisted of molten chocolate, caramelized pecans and flaming bacardi 151. Normally I skip dessert, but in this case the flaming chocolate, pictured above, was the most exciting part of the meal.

6th Ave Bistro

Roasted Pork Special

The Sixth Avenue Bistro is one of my favorite restaurants.  The owner, Jack Gambrel, says that the bistro is a neighborhood restaurant, and it is intended to be welcoming to anyone who lives or works in the neighborhood.  Jack has operated the bistro at same location for over 30 years, and over the years he has learned to accommodate almost any food allergy.  The staff is very friendly and is well aware of gluten intolerance and other food allergy related issues.  Although there is no gluten free menu, the kitchen will happily modify almost anything on the menu to be gluten free.  They will even use a separate pot of oil to produce fresh french fries and nachos.

The bistro has an eclectic menu ranging from sandwiches and burgers to tacos and cajun fare.  The prices are moderate with a meal ranging from $7 to $15.  I would personally recommend the red beans and rice, the jambalaya, and the carnitas tacos. The last time I was in I had the roasted pork special, pictured above, with au jus, roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes, and mango salsa.

1165 Sixth Ave, San Diego, CA  92101
Phone: 619-239-4194

Listing of Gluten Free Restaurants

I live in the cortez hill area and I like to walk to restaurants in the gaslamp area.  Each of these restaurants has a gluten free menu, or is gluten free friendly.

• Sixth Avenue Bistro $
• Burger Lounge $
• Pho Express $
• Craft and Commerce $$$
• House of Blues
• Sammy's Woodfired Pizza $
• Mint Downtown Thai $
• Seersucker $$$
• Taka Sushi $$$
• Blue Point Coastal $$$
• The Melting Pot $$$
• Joe's Crab Shack $$
• Buca di Beppo $$
• Po Pazzo $$$
• Bite Me Mediterranean Eatery $
• La Fiesta Mexican Cuisine and Lounge $$

Nearby restaurants in the hillcrest area:

• Naked pizza $
• Chipotle $