212 Market in Chattanooga Offers Tasty Gluten-free Meals

212 Market Roasted Quail with mashed potatoes and spring mix salad

Chattanooga, TN is a great place to live and visit and we’re fortunate to enjoy the small mountain city often while visiting family. Earlier this week, we stopped into 212 Market, a charming restaurant downtown, for a relaxing lunch before the Christmas blitz celebrations began in earnest. There are not many restaurants that I’m aware of that have a registered dietitian on staff, but 212 Market does. Because of that fact, the staff is happy to accommodate special dietary requests, including those of people who can’t eat gluten.

There are daily specials at 212 Market and they usually include a couple of gluten-free options. Either the dish is completely gluten-free as is, or can easily be modified to be so. The servers at the restaurant will go over every option with the Chef so you can rest easy knowing you are ordering something that is safe for you to eat. The staff at 212 Market loves to provide great tasting (anything but bland), gluten-free meals to their gluten intolerant customers. They happen to have quite a few ‘regulars’ that have to shun gluten, so that keeps them on their toes in regards to proper gluten-free service.

212 Market Spinach Salad with candied nuts, goat cheese and bacon

There is not a printed gluten-free menu at 212 Market since the menu is seasonal and the ingredients chosen are based on what is local and fresh during each season. However, something all of us need to keep in mind is that the presence of a printed gluten-free menu in no way guarantees anyone at the restaurant actually knows much about gluten-free food or service. In some cases, a gluten-free menu is handed down from a corporate office. If the correct training doesn’t accompany the menu, the restaurant might as well not offer the menu in the first place.

212 Market Shrimp and grits with black eyed pea salsa

The daily specials at 212 Market vary but I’ve enjoyed fabulous roasted quail with home made mashed potatoes and spring mix salad in the past. During our last visit, I opted for Shrimp and Grits and asked for the fried green tomatoes (not gluten-free) to be served on the side so my husband could enjoy them. The delicious meal was more than I could finish in one sitting so I took half of it to go. It worked out perfectly as I ended up having the leftovers at a holiday party where much of the food was off limits to me.

212 Market Creme Brulee and Chocolate Truffle Cake

The crème brulee is gluten-free at 212 Market and it’s quite tasty but the star of the dessert menu is the Chocolate Truffle Cake. It’s gluten-free and out of this world delicious! It’s served with a fancy balsamic reduction sauce which is like velvet and pairs perfectly with the incredibly rich chocolate treat. One of the servers at 212 Market serves it with coconut sorbet and calls it a gourmet Almond Joy.

Presently, 212 Market does not offer any specialty gluten-free options like pizza or bread, but I’m guessing if there was a gluten-free dinner club in the area, they would consider doing something special for a gluten-free event. With the addition of the wonderful new Earthfare store in Chattanooga, the Chef will have no problem finding great gluten-free replacement foods if the need for them should arise. Earthfare even has their own version of gluten-free ginger snaps which will make a perfect gluten-free crust for key lime pie!

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