Gluten Free Dining in Cheyenne

by ALEXA

Cheyenne Frontier Days is a big old party … and where there’s a party you’ve got to have good gluten free dining options.

In Cheyenne, Wyoming you can get up close—and hopefully not too personal—to these beautiful creatures at the Terry Bison Ranch. In less than a week thousands upon thousands will descend upon Cheyenne for the annual Cheyenne Frontier Days.

For a town that usually shuts down at 8:00 pm, this is quite the event. It is the largest outdoor rodeo and Western celebration in the world and attracts some of the hottest tickets in country music as well as the wildly popular (at least with me) U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds.

They say Cheyenne doubles in size during this event, and I believe it. The quiet downtown streets fill bumper-to-bumper with Ford duallys and out-of-state plates. Real (and some not-so) cowboys and cowgals sashay the sidewalks ducking into air conditioned bars and restaurants to beat the mid-July Wyoming heat.

All around, it’s a big old party … and where there’s a party you’ve got to have good grub.

Provision Up | Cheyenne Grocery Stores

Here are the grocery stores I shop at. If you are military and can get on base at F.E. Warren, the commissary has some good deals on gluten-free fare.

Natural Grocers
5116 Frontier Mall Drive
(307) 635-3800
Website

This is where I do the bulk of my grocery shopping. I know this store like the back of my hand. Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage is a chain of whole food and supplement stores. This is where you need to go to get your kombucha, kefir, coconut water and organic coffee. Pop in and buy all you need for a gluten-free picnic; Rudi’s bread, Applegate sandwich meat, apples, Lara bars, you name it.

King Soopers
3702 Dell Range Boulevard (north side)
(307) 638-0014
Website

King Soopers (part of the Kroger family) has impressed me with their gluten-free offering. All gluten-free products carry shelf labels. The organic produce offering is pretty good as well.

Golden Dragon International Groceries
1605 Seymour Ave
(just east of downtown on Lincolnway)
(307) 634-1686

I love this place. It is such a hole in the wall, but has everything I need in the way of Asian groceries. It’s fun just to pop in and poke around. I still can’t believe Cheyenne can support this store. Guess there are more people here than I realize who like their rice sticks and squid!

Quick Dining

Ruby Juice
113 E 17th Street (downtown)
(307) 634-3022
Website

Salads, soups, smoothies and gluten-FULL wraps. Clean, cheerful shop.

Chipotle
1400 Dell Range (north side)
(307) 632-6200
Website  |  Order Online

We go to Chipotle a lot. They are very accommodating and it is one of the cleanest restaurants in Cheyenne. Mention that you are gluten-free and they switch their gloves. It’s popular with the military in town and can get quite crowded.

Rudolfo’s Mexican Grill
801 East Lincolnway (just east of downtown)
 
(307) 632-1231

Don’t be intimidated by the look of the place—a very old and outdated former Kentucky Fried Chicken. This is the most authentic fast food Mexican you will find for 100 miles around. You know it’s authentic when they have one of those pickled condiment stations. Anyway, the guys that work there are great. It’s open 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. My favorite are the chicken tacos. I’m not too keen on the steak. Very affordable, very good. Dine in or drive thru. PLEASE ask if there is wheat/gluten in the corn tortillas. My son seems to have issues with them. Corn tortillas can sometimes be made with gluten. I wonder if these are?

Finer Dining

Re-O-Na Sushi & Thai
112 W 17th Street (downtown)  
307-638-8820

Website

 Two parties on their way out said it was fantastic and that the curries are great and portion sizes hefty.

Morris House Bistro
2114 Warren Avenue (downtown)

307-369-1378
Website   Menu

One of Cheyenne’s few fine dining experiences. Featuring “low country” Southern cuisine, The Morris House Bistro opened it’s doors a month ago. It is located in the historic Esther Morris House. Esther Morris is commonly regarded as one of the heroines of the women’s suffrage movement.

The bistro is open Thursday through Saturday. The outdoor patio is open at 5pm, weather permitting. Seating for the patio is first come, first served. The dining room opens at 5:30, reservations are recommended—in fact I would make them now. If you have special dietary needs, call in advance and they will do their best to accommodate you.

The Capitol Grille
1600 Central Avenue (downtown, inside The Historic Plains Hotel)
(307) 638-3311
Website

This weekend my husband and I awarded The Capitol Grille with “The Best Burger in Town” award. I order mine with no bun, jalapenos, mushrooms and extra lettuce. Fries are not cooked in a dedicated fryer so substituting them with steamed veggies is a safer bet. Burgers are $7.95 and come with two toppings of your choice. Bison burgers are a couple dollars more.

Outback Steakhouse
1626 Fleischli Business Parkway (west of downtown)
(307) 638-8171
Website

We can’t wait for Outback to offer an organic, grass-fed steak. Yeah, I know, that’ll be the day. Nevertheless, we are always impressed with Outback’s attentiveness to our needs. They have a gluten-free menu with quite a few offerings. Our usual is the 6-ounce steak with a naked sweet potato and green beans for $9.99. They are one of the busiest restaurants in town. I’m guessing during Frontier Days they are insanely busy. You can call ahead to be put on the waiting list, but they do not take reservations.

Olive Garden
1535 Dell Range Blvd (north of downtown, Frontier Mall)
(307) 632-2411
Website

We don’t go to Olive Garden all that much. For me the breadsticks are just too tempting : ) If you possess more self-control than I do, it’s a safe bet. They, too have a dedicated gluten-free menu. Another popular place in Cheyenne, so try to beat the crowd.

Downtown Attractions & Favorites

Lastly, I thought I would mention some of our favorite things to see and do in Cheyenne for when you need a break from the crowds or the heat.

The Wyoming State Museum has some interesting exhibits and is a manageable size. The kiddie area is great! Keeps my kids entertained for at least an hour.

City News and Pipe Shop sells books and every magazine you’d ever want. They have a small coffee/sandwich bar and sitting area.

Prairie Panty is the best (and only) cooking store in town. They’ve got it all. On Lincolnway.

Bohemian Metals is one of my son’s favorite shops. If you collect rocks, fossils or turquoise rings, this spot’s worth a visit. 314 W 17th Street.

Terry Bison Ranch. This attraction is south of town five or so miles. We’ve enjoyed the “train” ride out to see the bison. I didn’t know this but the burger the restaurant at the ranch serves up was voted “Best Burger in Wyoming by Bobby Flay and the Food Network.” So there you have it!

More Good Stuff

5 comments

@hilaryfleming July 15, 2011 - 11:00 pm

I love that you have King Soopers where you are! I grew up in Colorado and my mom always shopped there. The weirdest super market name ever. lol

Reply
Myrna July 21, 2011 - 4:56 pm

What a wonderful post! This is very helpful for those coming to our town. I love your description of our "visitors". It's always interesting to see them all coming to town and a relief when they all go! 🙂 Not that we don't love them. It just changes everything here so much that it's a relief to get back to "normal".

Reply
Tiffany July 25, 2011 - 1:49 am

This is awesome Alexa! My partner and I haven't had the best luck when it comes to dining in this town, so this really helps! I'll be in touch soon about scheduling a dinner /lunch date. : )

Reply
Lexie July 25, 2011 - 4:46 am

Myrna, so glad you thought this post was helpful! Your comments mean so much … keep 'em coming : )

Tiffany, yes … lunch SOON! I have an idea for you that we need to chat about.

xoLexie

Reply
Andrea August 5, 2011 - 4:34 pm

When we come to Frontier Days this year we ate at 2 Doors Down. They had a gluten free bun so it was easy to enjoy their great hamburgers with the rest of my crew.
2 Doors Down
118 East 17th Street, Cheyenne, WY 82001-4516
(307) 634-6008
2doorsdown.net

Reply

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.