"The Teamster" gluten free pizza with gluten free beer

Located at 2400 12th Avenue South, MAFIA0Za’s is a Pizzeria and Neighborhood Pub. The thing I like about MAFIA0Za’s of course is that they offer all of their pizzas with the option of using a great gluten free pizza crust. The crust is better then most, but ask them to cook it just a little longer if you want it on the crunchier side.

Another thing I like is they also offer Estrella Damm, Daura gluten free beer, a Spanish style Pilsener at the bar. Estrella is a barley based beer, yes, barley based. They use a technique to remove gluten during the brewing process. Two hints when you go, Sunday and Tuesday are 2-4-1 beers and if you buy wine next door at Vinea (which is one of the best wine shops in Nashville) just show the receipt and MAFIAOZa’s only charges $1 corking fee.

Visit MAFIA0Za’s online.

While most Italian good is normally off limits, Sole Mio is there to help. While they do not carry rice noodles, they do offer to help make most of the items gluten free and are very friendly. I highly recommend the Insalata Di Mare and the Prosciutto e Melone for apps and Pesce del Giornio for dinner. The staff was very helpful, after wine it is a little pricy though.

Visit the Sole Mio site.

So for the food that is most likely the hardest to do out gluten free I find myself recently eating at a lot of Italian restaurants that end up having a gluten free menu. A great place to take the family is the Old Spaghetti Factory down on 2nd avenue. It’s been there for years, I think one of the only restaurants that is still on 2nd sine I moved to Nashville in 1989. They can substitute any pasta dish with a gluten free corn pasta that is cooked separately to avoid cross contamination. It’s a great, low expense nice meal for the fam except for the fact that most of the time you will have to pay for parking downtown to enjoy.

Had dinner the other night at the Old Spaghetti Factory on 2nd Avenue in Nashville. We use to go there all the time when family was in town, the nephews always loved sitting in the caboose. Anyway, I heard they had a gluten free menu, but was still a little scared as I always am trying some place that is mainly gluten heavy. The staff was very helpful and I have to say it was some of the best damn gluten free pasta I have had. I highly recommend it.

See the Old Speghetti Factory gluten free menu

My wife and I went to Maggiano’s this weekend to enjoy their gluten free menu options. Everything was great! The staff was very helpful in letting us know what we could order on the menu and even helped us change some menu items around to be gluten free. They can substitute Corn fusilli in any of their non-stuffed pasta dishes or they can create a customized meal just for you! We had the new gilled artichoke without the bread crumbs and it was fantastic. Thanks to everyone at Maggiano’s for a great evening!

See their site.

Some times when I look at my post it feels as if all I write about is pizza and where I can find a gluten free version. Well… I like pizza, sorry I’ve been a little sad since the closure of Garlic Jim’s in Franklin. I live in the Donelson area so it wasn’t always convenient for me to make it out there but it was my favorite in town. Now I’m left searching for a new pizza place. With this, I’ve recently tried the gluten free pizza option at the Mellow Mushroom. Like Mafiaoza’s, the topping are great! Nothing like getting a pizza with high quality meat products on it! Sorry vegetarians, they do have veggie only options at both places though.

The issue I am having with ordering gluten free pizza out is that it takes a little longer to bake than a normal pizza and the fine folks that are helping us celiac’s out don’t realize that. For the umpteenth time I got a gluten free pizza with high promise only to have to go home and put it in the oven a little longer. The dough was spongy and just needed about 10 minutes longer to become perfect. Other than that, it was a great pizza on par weigh the others I have had recently.

I am grateful to every company that tries to make a gluten free pizza option, we owe you! Please take one word of advice though, cook it a little longer. I want a crust that will not fall apart when i try to fold it like a NY style slice of pie.

So I finally was able to try out Matteo’s Gluten Free Pizza out in Cool Springs. While I truly appreciate the trouble they went through to create this and know they use top quality ingredients, I have to say it is far from my favorite. I had the Italian sausage one and my wife had one with black olives. The sausage was large pieces, I generally prefer crumbled. The crust reminded me of a thick whole wheat crust, I prefer thin crust. So all in all, it was not a hit with me. I do, however, think this would be perfect for children or a party that you need to get something together quick for. If you truly want a great pizza in Nashville, I still think you need to take the time to go to Whole Foods and grab a pizza crust to make your own or go to Dad’s Gluten Free Pizza.