Gluten Free in Germany -- Munich and Berlin
June 15, 2024
Last month, our family of four had the privilege of enjoying 8 days in Europe -- 3 nights in Munich, 3 nights in Prague, and 2 nights in Berlin. In this post, I'll detail our gluten free dining experiences in Munich and Berlin. (I'll cover Prague in a separate post.)
As I planned the trip, I followed my usual protocol for choosing restaurants. I started by doing a fair amount of research online – looking at websites, apps, and blogs covering "gluten free Munich" and "gluten free Berlin." As always -- especially when traveling to a foreign country where English is not the official language -- I distilled the recommendations down to the restaurants that sounded safest. Ideally, it’s great to find a 100% gluten free establishment, especially when you don’t know the language and therefore may have a hard time asking questions and explaining the nuances of cross contamination. In this case, I did also come across reviews of places that weren’t dedicated gluten free but seemed to be very well-versed on how to keep Celiacs safe.
The next step was to look at the menus online to see which would appeal most to our family, in terms of range of choices. And finally, I plotted the top choices on a Google map I created to see if they were in close proximity to our hotel and sites we’d be touring. In general, all restaurants ended up being within walking distance or a short taxi (or Uber) ride away. There was only one restaurant – an Italian restaurant that came highly recommended on the western side of Munich – that ended up being a 20 minute cab ride from our hotel.
And, of course, we traveled with a German dining card that explains the gluten free diet, foods that need to be avoided, foods that can be eaten, and the importance of avoiding cross contamination.
MUNICH
We arrived at our hotel in Munich mid-afternoon and followed the age-old advice to NOT take a nap, despite hardly sleeping on our red-eye flight from the U.S. After getting settled in our hotel rooms at the Courtyard by Marriott in City Centre, we ventured just a few blocks to the Marienplatz pedestrian shopping area. We popped in to a church and the cathedral, browsed in a few shops, and then found ourselves at the Town Hall clocktower. This historic building has a working glockenspiel that entertains viewers several times per day, depending on the season.
At this point, we were hungry, so we looked up a dedicated gluten free bakery called Isabella Gluten Free which was on our “visit if we are in the area” list…not necessarily a place for a big meal, but maybe a snack. Sure enough, this place was just a few blocks from the Marienplatz, and we found it fairly easily with the help of Google maps. Unfortunately, we arrived toward the end of the day (5:00 pm), and they had sold out of many things, like their GF croissants. However, we had a spinach quiche, some delicious gluten free rolls with a variety of seeds on top (much like gluten-full versions you find in Munich), and a gluten free brownie with walnuts. Everything was great. It was tempting to buy a bunch of their small bags of cookies and other “to go” treats, but we figured we had better pace ourselves, as it was the first afternoon of the trip! Other items that looked amazing in the case included berry tarts, a passion fruit mousse cup, and various rolls. This is definitely a place to stop for breakfast or lunch. It is beautiful inside, with plenty of seating. They also have gourmet coffee beverages.
One requirement when choosing hotels (in addition to a central location near major sites) was whether it served a full breakfast. I can safely say that the Courtyard Marriott Munich City Center did not disappoint! Since we are never sure where we will be mid-day on a tour (or whether we will have time for lunch or be able to find safe gluten free options), we try to eat a hearty breakfast. This buffet spread was incredible, although European breakfast foods vary a bit from what we Americans are used to. They had cold cuts, cheeses, salad makings, a range of wonderful fruits, homemade yogurt and muesli (even packaged GF muesli from Schar), eggs, sausage, bacon, juices, and breads and croissants. The breads and croissants were about the only thing that weren’t gluten free, and they were separated from the other food. There were also homemade jams, fresh honey, and an espresso machine for any caffeinated creation!
The second evening, after a long day of sightseeing on the “hop-on-hop-off” touring bus – and walking through part of the English Garden and even one of the universities – we relaxed with some old friends at a biergarten I’d read about online. Our friends live in Munich, and the husband had been there several times, but the wife had not. In my opinion, it was the perfect spot…a good size, but not massive, and clean beautiful spaces both indoors and out.
We totally lucked out with the weather during our days in Munich, and this particular night could not have been more perfect sitting outside under the trees with our friends. I’d chosen this particular biergarten, Wirtshaus am Bavariapark Biergarten, based on the fact that they offer gluten free viennese schnitzel, gluten free Bavarian pretzels, and gluten free beer! All the Bavarian specialties! Apparently they have a dedicated fryer as well. They take great care in preparing their gluten free dishes. We actually had the good fortune to talk to one of the managers upon arriving, and his daughter is gluten free due to Celiac. So immediately we felt at ease! He told us how he had her taste 6 different types of gluten free pretzels before selecting the one they serve.
Ryan loved everything he ordered. In fact, we all loved it so much we went back a second time two days later before heading to the airport to catch a flight to Prague (more on that in a separate Blog post). On both visits we all ordered the schnitzel, because where else can you find this specialty other than Germany…and “when in Germany….” My first visit I ordered the “regular” schnitzel (because I don’t need to be gluten free like our younger son Ryan), but on the second visit, I ordered the gluten free version so that I could compare. Honestly, they were virtually identical. Both were served with delicious sautéed potatoes and onions, cranberry sauce, as well as a generously sized salad.
The breading on the GF schnitzel was a slightly different color (and had parsley flakes on it to distinguish it from the gluten free version), but I couldn’t have really told you which was which if I’d done a blind taste-test. I did the same thing with the pretzels, taste-testing both. Again, a home run! The brand of gluten free beer they serve is Echleicher Helles Bio-Bier. Ryan loved it, and we are going to try and find it at home.
The third evening, after a full-day excursion to Neuschwanstein Castle and Linderhof Palace (with a quick stop in Oberammergau), we took a taxi to Limoncello restaurant on the western side of Munich. Despite a 20 minute cab ride and a bit of a wait to get served (or even get water or wine), we had a really nice meal. Our server, who appeared to be perhaps the owner, hostess, and only server that night – clearly juggling a lot – didn’t speak fluent English, but then again, we don’t speak any German! But we managed to navigate the menu with the help of Google translate (and many of the dishes we were familiar with because they were listed by their Italian description).
We started with grilled vegetables, which were fantastic and perfect for sharing between 2 people, and bread (not gluten free). While they do have gluten free pasta, and they had beef medallions that sounded divine, Ryan selected a gluten free pizza. Our server assured us that the kitchen is very careful in preparing the gluten free dishes. Ryan really enjoyed the pizza, and my small bite confirmed that the crust had a great texture and taste. If you prefer to order a gluten free pasta dish (I assume they can prepare most or all of their pasta dishes gluten free), I highly recommend the Pasta Limoncello, which had a delicate lemon flair and was topped with pancetta and bit of prosciutto. Delizioso!
We all selected gluten free desserts: chocolate mousse, limoncello panna cotta, and tiramisu (I don’t think Ryan had ever had a gluten free version of this). If you don’t mind going a bit outside of the city center area, I recommend this restaurant. The choice of Italian wines was also quite good, and I particularly enjoyed my Valpolicella.
BERLIN
We didn’t have quite as much time in Berlin…only two nights, in fact. The first night we arrived back at the hotel so late after seeing Sansoucci Palace in Potsdam, west of the city, that we decided to just grab something nearby.
We went to Vapiano, which is a global chain you will also find in some cities in the United States. They offer both gluten free pizza and gluten free pasta, as well as many salads. Their menu has GF and other notations. The only strange thing (for both gluten free and “regular” pizzas) is that they give you a kitchen scissors to cut the pizza yourself (as opposed to cutting it with a pizza wheel for you). I found my regular crust hard to cut this way. Ryan didn’t complain, though, and seemed to enjoy his gluten free pizza, which was served on a special plate with parchment paper underneath.
The second (and last) night in Berlin, after touring all over the city, we dined at Restaurant Momma Monti, just a 15 minute walk from our centrally-located hotel. We all had a wonderful meal, and our server was very familiar with gluten free requirements, since his mother is gluten free. That always makes things infinitely easier to explain, especially in another country with a bit of a language barrier! (But again, you can always use a dining card.) After being served some nice seeded gluten free rolls, Ryan ordered a delicious filet mignon in Barolo sauce, served with potatoes and vegetables.
My meal was gluten free as well…a starter of beautiful grilled vegetables and baby mozzarella, with salmon in white wine to follow. All the pasta dishes could be made gluten free as well, and there was quite an extensive list of choices. Ryan chose the creme brûlée for dessert, as he loves it and hadn’t had it for a while. My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed a carafe of the house Primitivo wine. All in all a great meal in a cozy setting.
Other places “on our list” to try if we had had more time in Berlin included various dedicated gluten free bakeries/lunch spots: AERA, Brotquelle, one of the three locations of Oshione, and Pretty Hill. We initially had reservations at Tapiocaria one night, but they ended up being closed for a special event. It's a Brazilian restaurant with carved meats and a large gourmet salad bar, similar to ones here in the U.S., and almost everything is gluten free. There's a highly recommended GF-friendly burger place on the northern end of the city called Burgerie, but it ended up being too far from our hotel to be a convenient option.
For a quick bite, there are also Five Guys burger joints all over the city…and in Munich, too. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Five Guys, they are an American chain, started in our home state of Virginia, and they offer burgers wrapped in lettuce for those avoiding gluten. They have an allergen chart (in Germany, too). Pretty much everything is gluten free there, except for the buns. The fries are gluten free and fried in a dedicated fryer used only for fries.
One final note: Our hotel in Berlin -- the Dorint Kurfurstendamm -- also offered a lavish breakfast buffet, which is one reason why we chose this hotel. Ryan doesn’t like to make a lot of fuss, so typically he opted for hard-boiled eggs, fruit, cheese, and yogurt. This hotel also brought out some very tasty seeded gluten free rolls for him. Like our hotel in Munich, there were salad makings (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, etc.) if that struck your fancy early in the morning. And if you could find someone who spoke English well enough and was well-versed about gluten free diets, there were probably tons of other foods that were safe (i.e. cold cuts). At least that is what I was told by the hotel when I contacted them prior to our visit. You just have to be careful, as the hotels often put the bacon and sausage atop bread in the chafing dish, to soak up the grease. It was little things like this that made Ryan want to stick with the most obviously “safe” foods. But I'm sure any of these restaurants would have been more than happy to serve him some fresh bacon or sausage from the kitchen.
What a wonderful trip we had to Munich and Berlin...two very different cities each with a distinct feel and culture. And with a little bit of advance planning and research, you should be able to enjoy local specialties while staying safely gluten free!