It has been a LONG time since I posted here! Not sure when life got so busy, but it has totally derailed my blogging schedule. I am wrapping up an online course this week and looking forward to having some extra free time {anyone else work full-time and go to school? I feel ya!}. Last month, I surprised my cousin and maid of honor in Chicago to meet her new, sweet baby girl! This was my first trip to Chicago. It was a short weekend, but luckily I was able to find some good gluten-free eats!

Disclaimer: I am participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. All opinions/recommendations are my own.

Summer House Santa Monica

We went to Summer House for breakfast on Saturday morning. It is such a cute restaurant! The decor is light, airy and as the name suggests, makes you feel like you stepped into the summer season. It’s a pretty big restaurant, but from what I could tell, it fills up quickly. You should definitely make a reservation beforehand. We made ours the night before and there were only a few openings left for 8:30am.

Summer House offers a separate gluten-free menu. I ordered the three egg breakfast without crispy hashbrowns and a cappuccino. I was very impressed when the waitress told me that the kitchen has a separate toaster for gluten-free bread. In the almost 6 years I have been gluten-free, this was the first time I have been to a restaurant that has a gluten-free toaster. I also loved that my toast had an “allergy stick.” This extra little step always makes me feel like the kitchen and servers are very aware of their customers.  We all loved our breakfast and I bought a huge gluten-free chocolate chip cookie at the bakery counter on our way out.

City Winery Chicago Riverwalk

We spent Saturday afternoon on Michigan Avenue. When we made it over to the Chicago River, we stopped at City Winery to warm up and relax at bit. This wine bar is right on the river with indoor and outdoor seating. It was a pretty chilly day, but fortunately indoor/tented area was heated. This restaurant does not have exclusively gluten-free options. However, if you are gluten-sensitive, you could opt for the meat and cheese platter, skipping the bread. We shared a bottle of Caves São João Rosé Bruto {Sparkling Rosé} from Portugal. The bartender told us that City Winery is the only place outside of Portugal to serve this wine. I’m not a huge fan of rosé, but I thought this one was great. Gluten-free or not, I definitely think this restaurant is an awesome place to stop at if you’re in Chicago; especially if the weather is nice! I am looking forward to going back.

Homeslice

Saturday we stayed in and ordered pizza from my cousin’s go-to place – Homeslice! Gluten-free pizza is hit or miss, but I am always looking for the perfect GF crust.  There are only a few places near my house in NY that actually have great GF pizza. Sometimes GF pizza can be soggy, so I usually play it safe and don’t order many toppings. I ordered the Jr. Cheese pizza from Homeslice. It was so good! The crust was thick and crisp. Not soggy at all. I would definitely recommend this place if you’re in the area. After enjoying our pizza, we rented The Greatest Showman {affiliate link} and stayed in for the night. I am not a huge fan of musical movies, but I really enjoyed this one!

The Vig

After walking around the Lincoln Park Zoo, we took a long walk over to The Vig for lunch before I headed home. To our surprise, Sunday at The Vig was quite the brunch party. If you’re looking for a quiet brunch spot, skip this place. If you’re looking for good 90s jams from a live DJ with a side of dance party, go here. Definitely a great location for birthdays, bachelor or bachelorette parties.

The Vig offers a decent amount of gluten-free options on their menu. I ordered the Chorizo Skillet and was not disappointed!  This personal sized skillet came with potatoes, crumbled chorizo and a fried egg. I definitely want to try to re-create this dish in my own kitchen! It had tons of flavor and was just the right size. Our waitress was really friendly and provided us with food and drink recommendations too.