Papa Johns Gluten-free Menu Items

Find out what menu items from Papa Johns do not contain gluten and what you need to know about their gluten-free crusts.

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If you’re looking for a place to order pizza while trying to stick to a gluten-free diet, you may have been eyeing the Papa Johns menu.

While pizza normally contains gluten from their pizza crust, some restaurants take extra steps to include folks with a gluten intolerance and can handle some small amounts of gluten in their diet by offering a gluten-free crust.

Find out what Papa Johns is doing to help folks on a gluten-free diet enjoy their pizza, what you need to know about their pizza crust, and what the important takeaways around cross contamination are when you’re eating at a restaurant while on a gluten-free diet.

Plus get a list of menu options from Papa Johns that contain no gluten or wheat ingredients to help you make an informed decision about what to order from this restaurant.

What is gluten?

Gluten is a protein found in most wheat products, and acts as the “glue” that helps to hold wheat, barley, kamut, spelt, farro, durum, bulgur, rye, and semolina together to maintain their shape. 

Gluten is naturally occurring, and therefore is impossible to strip away from the grain. If a grain naturally has gluten in it, there’s no way to make that food gluten-free.

Where can you find gluten in food?

Gluten can be found in the form of wheat and grain products, like bread or flour in the more obvious places.

You can also find gluten as a binding ingredient, an ingredient added for texture like to make a food more crispy, or as a thickening agent.

Where can you find gluten in restaurants?

Depending on the restaurant you’re visiting, you may find gluten in a variety of places. 

At fast food restaurants, there will be gluten in hamburger buns, the breading of crispy chicken sandwiches or chicken nuggets, some French fries, salad dressings, croutons on salad, and chili or soup options.

At other restaurants, you’ll find gluten in flour in sauces, in pizza or other pastry dough, pasta, and as a thickener in some soups. 

Where gluten is found in the menu items will vary from restaurant to restaurant. That’s why it’s always a good idea to review menus from home, and see if you can find any allergen information before you get to the restaurant itself.

Being able to review nutritional information and allergen statements before visiting a fast food restaurant can be the difference between ordering something that you think is safe for your gluten-free diet and getting sick.

Being knowledgeable about what specific menu items you’ll be able to eat without any worries of later reactions is crucial to sticking with your gluten-free diet.

Papa Johns allergen statement

The Papa Johns website does not have any specific allergen statement as it relates to how the handle gluten in their restaurants.

That said, they do have a full Allergen Guide on their website where you can see what menu items contain and do not contain gluten and/or wheat ingredients. 

This is the note on their Allergen Guide regarding gluten in their kitchens:

“Please note that all of our products may come into contact with wheat or dairy in our restaurants.”

What you need to know about the gluten-free pizza at Papa Johns

Papa Johns does offer a gluten-free crust option for folks on a gluten-free diet. However, they make a special note on their website that says that all their products may come into contact with wheat (and therefore gluten) in their restaurants.

The gluten-free crust may work for folks who are intolerant to gluten or can handle trace amounts of gluten from cross contamination, but this is not a safe place to order pizza from if you are celiac. 

The Papa Johns website also has a full list of ingredients that do not contain gluten or wheat ingredients in their Allergen Guide on their website. That information is what I’ve used to outline the gluten-free options later on in the post.

What to know about cross contamination at restaurants

Most fast food and carryout restaurants are not considered gluten-free establishments so it’s useful to keep this in mind when making decisions about where to go and what to order.

It’s important to know that even if a fast food restaurant claims that their menu items do not contain gluten, that the possibility and probability of gluten in their products is going to be high if there is even one menu item with gluten available. 

Depending on your level of sensitivity to gluten, this can be make or break information for you.

If you are Celiac and are allergic to trace amounts of gluten, you’ll likely want to avoid most fast food restaurants that offer any bread products or French fries that are cooked in a shared fryer with other gluten-containing ingredients.

If you are not sensitive to gluten at the trace level and have adverse reactions to gluten due to a food intolerance, you may decide that these trace amounts of gluten from cross contamination are worth risking for a quick, easy, and convenient food option.

Being aware of how you have reacted to gluten in your diet in the past and how much gluten it takes for your body to react is useful knowledge when it comes to situations like these.

Use your best judgment about what you know about your body, how you react to gluten, and what the risks are for you specifically.

Papa Johns Gluten-free Menu Items

These menu items are those that Papa Johns has noted in their Allergen Guide as not containing wheat or gluten ingredients.

There is still a risk of cross contamination with gluten in their kitchens and restaurants, so keep this in mind before choosing this restaurant or ordering.

Crust Options

• Gluten-free Crust

Sauces

• Pizza Sauce
• BBQ Sauce
• Ranch Sauce
• Alfredo Sauce

Cheeses

• Pizza Cheese
• Parmesan/Romano Cheese
• Asiago/Fontina/Provolone Cheese

Pizza Toppings

• Pepperoni
• Italian Sausage
• Sausage
• Beef
• Canadian Bacon
• Bacon
• Grilled Chicken
• Salami
• Philly Steak
• Fresh Mushrooms
• Pineapple
• Onions
• Green Peppers
• Black Olives
• Green Olives
• Sliced Jalapenos
• Banana Peppers
• Anchovies
• Tomatoes

Sides

• Roasted Wings
• Honey Chipotle Wings
• Buffalo Wings
• BBQ Wings

Extras

• Garlic Dipping Sauce
• Pizza Dipping Sauce
• Cheese Dipping Sauce
• Ranch Dipping Sauce
• Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
• Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce
• BBQ Dipping Sauce
• Buffalo Dipping Sauce
• Crushed Red Pepper Packet
• Parmesan Cheese Packet

Desserts

None of the Dessert menu options from Papa Johns can be considered safe to eat on a gluten-free diet.

If you enjoy ordering from Papa Johns and have been wondering if this restaurant is still a good option for you while sticking to a gluten-free diet, I hope this information is helpful. 

There is a gluten-free pizza crust option available at this restaurant, but there is still gluten present throughout the kitchen and restaurant. Keep this in mind before ordering from here if you are extremely sensitive to gluten or celiac.

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More Gluten-free Restaurant Menu Items

If you’re looking at other popular restaurants and wondering what gluten-free menu items they offer, be sure to check out my Gluten-free Restaurant Guide. I’ve outlined all the gluten-free options from 45+ popular restaurants and fast food chains.

• Gluten-free Fast Food: Options from Major Chains
• Gluten and Dairy-free Diet: 4 Restaurant Tips
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