Mendocino Farms Gluten-Free Guide: Safe Picks and the Krispies Trap

Mendocino Farms is one of the better fast-casual menus for gluten-free eating - most sandwiches can be rebuilt on gluten-free bread, and several of the best salads need no changes at all. But there is one trap that catches people every day, and it involves the chain’s most famous sandwich. Here is the complete picture, from Mendo’s own official allergen guide.

Gluten-Free As Served (no changes needed)

These items carry no gluten in their standard build:

• Avocado & Quinoa Superfood Ensalada - the signature salad is safe as built
• The Modern Caesar
• Golden State Cobb
• The Seasonal GOAT with Pink Lady Apples
• Tomato Basil Soup
• Southern Potato Salad
• Kale & Apple Rainbow Salad
• The housemade lemonades, teas and juices

Gluten-Free on Request (the GF bread swap)

These sandwiches become gluten-free when you ask for the gluten-free bread - say so when you order:

• The Farm Club and its half combo
• Peruvian Steak
• Chimichurri Steak & Bacon
• Chicken Pesto Caprese
• Prosciutto & Chicken
• Turkey Avo Salsa Verde
• The Happy Hippie
• Vegetarian Pesto Caprese and its half combo

Our gluten-conscious filter keeps both lists together and is regenerated from the official guide.

The Krispies Trap

Here is the one to remember: Mendo’s krispies contain gluten. The crispy coating on the “Not So Fried” Chicken is not a breading you can swap away - it is the product. No bread change makes that sandwich gluten-free.

The same warning applies anywhere the krispies appear, including as a salad topping. If a menu item’s crunch comes from krispies, it is off the gluten-free table entirely.

Two More Things Worth Knowing

Wheat-free is not the same column as gluten-free. Mendo’s guide tracks Wheat and Gluten separately, and they do not always move together. If your issue is a wheat allergy rather than gluten, work from the Wheat column of our allergen guide - it is the full official table, item by item.

Say “allergy” if it is one. Mendo trains its teams to ask whether gluten-free is a preference or an allergy, because prep is handled differently for the two. Cafes are shared preparation environments, so cross-contact is possible - for coeliac disease or a serious allergy, tell the team, every time.

The safe order we would place: Superfood Ensalada to start, a Farm Club on GF bread as the main, Tomato Basil Soup on the side. You will not feel like you ordered around the menu - because at Mendo, mostly, you do not have to.