Eating Gluten-Free in Kaua’i

Hello, friends!

I just got back from a vacation Kauai, Hawaii with my family. We had an amazing time exploring the stunning island and eating the delicious food! It is so easy to be gluten-free in Kauai; almost every restaurant we went to had great GF options. On the side of all the streets were smoothie and acai bowl trucks! I fell in love with the place. I didn’t eat strictly paleo on the trip because… well… vacation! But the island had amazing fish and veggies, so eating paleo would be completely possible there.

In this post is a list of the top 10 favorite places we ate during our vacation, and some pictures that I took of my food there! Enjoy, and ask me any questions you have in the comments below 😉

1. Bubba’s Burgers
We went here three times! Bubba’s sells local, grass-fed beef burgers. And the lettuce wrap burger is so yummy! Just note that the chili is not GF, (it has beer in it) and neither are the French fries.

2. Java Kai
This café is so cute! The coffee is really good. We went for breakfast one morning, and I got the power bowl, which is grain-free, too! Java Kai is perfect for a little smoothie or coffee. They also have GF English muffins + tortillas. 

3. The Dolphin
My family devoured the sashimi here, which was really tasty. A great place to eat fresh fish. Just remember that the soy + ponzu sauces have wheat in them!

4. Wishing Well Shave Ice
Three words: Organic. Shave. Ice. So good! The syrups for the organic shave ice are made right in the truck! I got the ginger + orange-guava flavors, which were amazing.

5. Kilauea Fish Market 
The fish market was the last restaurant of our trip, and the best! The seared ahi dinner, the poke, and seaweed salad were divine. This place is perfect to satisfy your fish cravings!

6. Poipu Farmers Market
We stopped at this adorable market on our way back from snorkeling in Poipu! Very fresh, local produce and yummy foods to eat. Lots of exotic fruits, including our amazing discovery of white pineapple! It is a sweeter, less acidic version of the pineapple we know.

7. Sushi Girl
This little roadside stand had unbelievable organic, local sushi. I ordered the Spicy Ahi sushi and it was so spicy and delicious. They even have GF soy sauce!

8. Papaya Natural Foods
The perfect grocery store to pick up some healthy staples at, after arriving at the Lihue Airport. They also make a mean Tarro Root Burger! (Tarro is a root grown on Kauai, which is sort of like a sweet potato. That’s what Poi is made from! You can see the taro being grown in fields all around the island.)

9. Kilauea Farmers Market
This market is located on the same property as Banana Joe’s (which I’ve heard great things about!) and the Kaua’i Mini Golf and Botanical Gardens. It had delicious organic fruits and veggies! I tried many fruits for my first time: Rambutan, Soursop, Longan, and Starfruit. All were amazing.

10.  Paco’s Tacos
This taco place is great for a quick taco lunch! Yummy and gluten-free 🙂

Have fun in Kaua’i!