El Tovar Dining Room

TLDR: Got glutened, likely from the soup of the day.

There were 3 GF options on the lunch menu (Mediterranean salad, quinoa dish, shrimp dish). The waitress was knowledgeable about celiac and I felt safe ordering. I got the Mediterranean salad with salmon and loved it! The view was amazing and excellent service. (Parking was horrid.)

Unfortunately I also got the soup of the day (waitress said it was GF). It was delicious but I am pretty sure there was gluten in it. Thankfully this was our last stop of the day as we were heading back to our hotel in Flagstaff. I would not eat there again with Celiac but perhaps people with more experience ordering GF would be successful eating there.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Not very

Safety Feature Ratings

• Staff is knowledgeable and can answer questions

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Not Much

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

I got the Mediterranean salad and it was not that great. I ordered mine with salmon, which came shredded in a small dish and was incredibly salty. It tasted like canned fish. The salad itself was fresh but not worth $18 (without the cost of the salmon). The iced tea tasted like Lipton. Overall, the quality was far less than the price. I think there were 4 GF options for lunch.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Below Average

Chris was very knowledgeable and kind! Food was good. Menu is labeled GF on certain items but not many. However, they can make many of them GF. I had Harvey’s house breakfast and said no toast. He said we have GF toast in a separate toaster. Sold!!!

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Most/All

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

Delicious dinner. I was excited that the waitress brought me GF bread before my meal .

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Most/All

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

I got the Mediterranean Salad, and it was fine. I went there for dinner, and didn’t find many gluten free options that appealed to me. I am 13 years old, so I was looking for something a little simpler, and they really had nothing that appealed to me. My parents enjoyed it, but for kids I would not recommend.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Not Much

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Average

This restaurant is very safe to eat at but very expensive and not nearly as tasty as it should be for that expense.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Average

My celiac daughter and I ate safely for lunch. They had gluten free buns for our burgers. The fries are not safe but we had options to substitute. Our server was knowledgeable and we enjoyed our meals!

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Most/All

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

This is a nice more delicate restaurant, also rather expensive. Staff is very well aware of celiac requirements. The have really nice vegitarian and non vegitarian plates. Staff offers help to adapt to make the food glutenfree, if need be. We really enjoyed the evening, with good food in a special decor. El Tovar in fact is one of the eldest buildings in the Grand Canyon National Park.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Good

They were limited in gluten free options due to the pandemic. They had gluten free bread so I asked them if they could make my son a grilled cheese sandwich, explaining he did have Celiac. Unfortunately after eating this he immediately had a stomach ache. In general it was not a very impressive dining experience for the reputation it has. Great views of the canyon, check. Great food, definitely not. And more importantly not good for a picky 11 year old with celiac.

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— No gluten-free information on the menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Not Much

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Below Average

Staff was very helpful. Chef even sent out some GF biscuits (to go with the salad we ordered) that were very good.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

I had an excellent Christmas dinner at El Tovar. The menu was marked with the gluten-free options. My options were one appetizer, three or four entrees, and no dessert (which was a little disappointing, but I was so full from dinner that I probably wouldn’t have ordered one). I chose the prime rib with green beans and garlic mashed potatoes. It was pricey ($48), but it was delicious. I think the other entrees were ham in chipotle sauce and maybe salmon. My kids got the ham and said it was delicious.

Update: we returned for lunch the next day and they were serving the usual menu (vs. the Christmas menu). They can make any sandwich on GF bread, so I ordered a chicken club on a GF bun. It tasted really good! They also had flourless chocolate cake and crème brûlée for dessert, so we got both to share with the table.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

Fine dining menu and pricing for dinner. Safe for my celiac for dinner and dessert. Really nice atmosphere.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Good

Enjoyed the grilled chicken club sandwich on a gf bun. Fries are not in dedicated fryer so I enjoyed a nice side salad.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Good

Other Characteristics

• Good for dairy-free
• Good for lunch
• Good selection of healthy options
• Good vegan options
• Good with other allergies

We ate here for lunch one day in June. Make a reservation to be safe. This was a solid 4 stars. Service was a little slow but not absurd. Not a whole lot of gluten free options but they were good. The chili isn’t marked GF but it is when served without the corn muffins, and this was good. Served a bit lukewarm with melted cheese and onions on top, but taste was good and hearty. We also ordered the two entree salads, a Mediterranean entree and a harvest salad. The latter was superior and the dressing was pretty good. The Mediterranean one said it came with balsamic vinaigrette but was more like oil and vinegar. Both were medium portions, not huge. Overall it was a safe and pleasant dining experience, which I usually give 5 stars for. But I did 4 sheerly because it STUNK in there. Like the weirdest, sweatiest, melted chocolate and beef rotting in the sun with some grime and excrement smell. Nauseating.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Not Much

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Good

I had the salmon for dinner and it was amazing! No side effects!

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

Beautiful hotel restaurant with exceptional service. We had two meals there — New Years Eve and a Lunch. Both were exceptional — the service was excellent, they double checked with the chef on a busy night and made appropriate substitutes. The turkey sandwich was the best GF sandwich I’ve had. It’s expensive and worth it. They even had GF muffins for both meals. Great people!

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Be prepared and bring your own food, especially for breakfast. They have GF pancakes and toast but they told us it’s not safe - cooked on same griddle and toasted in same toaster. Bacon, eggs, and a smoothie are about all that was safe for breakfast. But they allowed us to bring food in. The staff really tried to help but some didn’t really know a lot. Just be prepared.

Don’t waste your money. Mediocre food. Very expensive for what you get. Service is bad.

Wonderful staff. Lots of gluten free options and even GF bread. Separate fryer for GF fries. The celiac son was extremely happy and so were we. Fabulous.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Gluten friendly .....I had a turkey club sandwich for lunch on gluten free bread. Yummy. Beautiful view of Canyon and a delicious lunch. And jewelry from the Hopi Hut. Friendly and knowledgeable staff. Excellent place to dine.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

They had gluten free pancakes and yummy toast for breakfast. 3 of us are gluten-free but my son has celiac disease and he did great after eating the toast. Highly recommend this place!!

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Very impressed with the wait staff as well as their wide array of menu items. I had the meat chili and it was very good. The chili came with a side of GF muffins that were obviously store bought and not very good, however, they were good enough.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

I really wanted this to be a positive experience for our celiac kiddo and was optimistic based on previous reviews. Our server was nice but not knowledgeable. He wasn’t sure if they would be able to make a GF grilled cheese. He said fries were not possible but provided fruit he specified were “leftovers from lunch.” And because nothing on the menu clarifies whether it is GF or not (except the flourless chocolate cake for dessert), he advised I get the vegan stuffed portbello mushroom because it was definitely GF. After it arrived , we realized it came with wheat berry pilaf which is packed with gluten. So far it does not appear that they poisoned my celiac kid, but they introduced cross contamination at our table that we do not introduce in our home and it would have been a huge health problem if it had happened on his plate instead of his caregiver’s.

Celiac friendly?

No

I'll start with the food was very good and I didn't get sick. The latter being more important to me. There isn't a gf menu but they have gluten free bread and the staff is very knowledgeable about what is safe. Try the flourless chocolate cake!

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Super accommodating and knowledgeable. My 10 year old celiac got a gf burger/bun and they fried her French fries in a pan for us. Totally nice and great good. Duffy was our server and maybe the chef as well. He was very helpful. I'd recommend. They'll do any sandwich in their menu with gf bread.

Our waiter Antonio was very knowledgeable about GF and even surprised me with two fresh herbed biscuits made for me. The food is excellent and elegant and the view of the Grand Canyon is matchless.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

We highly recommend this fabulous gourmet restaurant at the El Tovar Lodge! The friendly and professional dining staff was very knowledgeable about which dishes from their large menu were gluten-free or could be modified to be - and that was the great majority of them! For dinner they brought us melt-in-your mouth herbed biscuit/muffins and they had GF pasta as an option. GF flourless, nut-free chocolate torte and creme brûlée for dessert - both delicious! For breakfast, GF pancakes (light and delicious, almost crepe-like) and GF toast options (plus lovely omelets and much more). Very easy to eat Paleo and vegetarian here too. Note on menu says many (most?) ingredients locally sourced, sustainable and/or organic. Nice dark wood lodge decor added to the enjoyment. Dinner entrees ranged in price from $20 to 35 (salads $10-15). Breakfasts were $9 - 15.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

What an amazing restaurant! Our server was very knowledgeable about which items were gluten free. They even had warm gluten free bread! I had the New York strip steak for my main course and the flourless chocolate cake for dinner. Everything was delicious!

Very fancy restaurant with a great view of the Grand Canyon. I had a mozzarella and pesto appetizer that was to die for, and then an entrée Mediterranean salad. The salad was okay but not great. The server was very helpful in pointing out my options on the menu and discussing how we could modify them to be safe. I ended up getting a salad because the entrees were just a bit much for my tastes, but there were definitely a lot of options.

Absolutely amazing restaurant! Make sure to try the New York Strip.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Had a nice dinner here and there were many options. They did not offer gluten-free bread, but they did have gluten-free desserts that looked good.

My boyfriend and I made reservations for my birthday. We ate here last night. It was a fantastic experience! I cannot have dairy or gluten, and there were many things on the menu for me to choose from! We ordered the plum chili scallops with jicama slaw appetizer, and it was perfection! I had a glass of wine as well (so many to choose from!). For dinner I had the Vegan Stuffed Portabello Mushroom with fingerling potatoes (fingerling potatoes replaced the wheat berry that was on the menu, per the waitresses recommendation). It was the most amazing meal I've had in a long time! I ate every last bit! My boyfriend had the buffalo filet mignon with pepper jack mashed potatoes and broccolini. I had a bite of the meat with the fig compote it had on it and it was amazing! For dessert I had raspberry sorbet, which was delicious. They also had a flour less chocolate cake available (I couldn't have it due to the dairy). Overall perfect experience for my birthday dinner! Highly recommend! Plus most of their food is local, sustainable, and organic!

El Tovar was a great place to dine. The wait staff and chef were very accommodating to a gluten free diet. The staff was able to make just about any item on the menu gluten free. I was able to order gluten free pasta, bread, and cake. They were all tasty, and I did not get sick from the food or cross-contamination.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

The finest restaurant on the South Rim boasts a chef who has done something amazing: he has systematically revised the menu over the last year or two to de-emphasize flour and increase the proportion of dishes inherently GF. Wow. Dishes were delicious and creative. I'm unclear on whether they have dedicated kitchen space, but the dining room and kitchen team were very accommodating when they knew GF allergies were in play. I had a delicious, worry-free dinner there.

Celiac friendly?

Yes