Gluten Free Breakfast in Belfast
We don’t have a Tiffanys in Belfast but we do have gluten free breakfast and we have a good few choices depending on your cravings.
First up we have to talk about the good oul fry. Whether you call it an ulster fry, an Irish breakfast, or a breakfast grill, a cooked breakfast hits the soul as well as the stomach. Unfortunately because it is also a bready meaty mix of wonders it can be hard to find gluten free versions in their whole complete form - i.e without half the plate missing! That means various combinations of proper gluten free breakfast sausages, potato bread/boxty, soda farls, black or white puddings, dipped (fried) bread as well as the ever expanding sundries including beans, tomatoes, mushrooms, bacon, veg roll, hash browns. All of these feature in various forms throughout the fry world and if you search hard enough they can be found in Belfast. Here are a few that I have found but I’m always delighted to find more so if I’ve missed anything from these lists then please let me know!
For the proper Belfast market experience, visit St Georges Market Friday to Sunday and upstairs in the rafters sits Stock Belfast, who have a grilled breakfast and a lovely labelled menu. I am intrigued by the picanha steak and eggs too! Creams Cafe and Bistro in Dundonald is a family favourite with us. In Northern Ireland, it is all about the breads, so their filled sodas and gluten free frys with both GF soda and potato breads, are hard to resist despite several lunch options; because who can resist an all day breakfast?
For an Italian twist one of my new favourite places to visit is Nova, just a few steps away from city hall they are one the few places where we can go for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. An added bonus is that their head chef is coeliac and so the menu is very accessible for gluten free.
Moving away from frys and in to the east of the city, I love Treat Street in Ballyhackamore for a gluten free bagel or French toast. Nearby Cafe Smart and Truffles on the Belmont road both offer gluten free breakfast options like French toast and pancakes and I’ve also had a pretty decent French toast at Cypress Avenue (Unfortunately they don’t label their menus but will give them verbally when you’re ordering)
Moving across the city Causeway Cafe in the donegal road has a full separate gluten free menu and comes highly recommended but if I were you I would head to Nica Nica Cannoli & More, an Italian cafe in the Weavers Halt mall (formerly the northern mall at europa bus station) for a gluten free croissant and/or gf cannoli and incredibly decadent coffees. Nothing will set you up for the day more than these beauties and they are unique to Nica Nica as the only place with gluten free versions of them on their menu.
For some more healthier or lighter options Kaffe-O use gluten free oats throughout their stores and so are one of the few completely safe hot coffee options and this also means that their porridge and overnight oats are gf too. They do have other allergens like wheat and rye breads so they are very upfront about the potentials of cross contact. In fact all of the places that I have mentioned above are shared kitchen and prep areas but are places that I am - at this moment of 06-08-25 - confident in. There are plenty of places that might say they offer “non-gluten” options but I personally do not believe in sharing places that I’m not sure of and I’m pretty cut throat in striking a place off my list if they muck about.
If you have any information about these or other venues I would love to find more options throughout the wider city area so I am open to hearing about others experiences. Word of mouth is key to this community.
