Starbucks is nearly ubiquitous from coast to coast, and thankfully, also famously inclusive for all styles of coffee sippers and eaters. With a range of kosher options, vegan snacks and bites, and non-dairy milks (minus any surcharge for alt milks) it’s possible to hack your Starby’s order for all sorts of specific needs and preferences. Including making sure your drinks are gluten-free.
Starbucks does have an official published menu that breaks down options by whether they’re vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free, but the menu shows as updated in 2019 and only focuses on gluten-free snacks, so it’s incomplete. Currently, you’ll have to comb through each menu item and read through the ingredients one-by-one. Or, just read this guide where we break it all down!
In general, keeping it as simple as possible is your best bet. More complex drinks, like most blended drinks with flavorings — and those with sprinkles, java chips, or cookie syrup — contain gluten, but not in every single instance, so again, just check the labels.
Plain black coffees (hot or iced), lattes, cold brew, nitro cold brew, plain espresso or cappuccino, etc., are good to go — as are the teas, matcha lattes, and lemonade. Milks can vary depending on the brand of oat milk each store uses, for example, which isn’t always gluten-free. You can always ask your local barista to check. Bottled and packaged treats marked as gluten-free are of course safe bets, with no risk of cross contamination.
Your level of caution depends on your gluten sensitivity
Everyone knows about the non-dairy options at Starbucks — like their many alt milks — which have become increasingly popular. But it can be more opaque to ensure what you’re eating and drinking is gluten-free, since gluten can sneak into drinks and treats in ways you wouldn’t necessarily expect.
Your level of caution should depend on your sensitivity to gluten — if you’re suffering from severe allergies or Celiac disease, versus if you have sensitivities. For those in the first camp, who need to be extra cautious, you should know that Starbucks explicitly states that it can’t rule out any possible risk of cross contamination in store, and you should always double check menu item nutrition labels. The exact wording of the company’s warning in a Starbucks U.K. nutrition and allergy guide goes, “due to the nature of how we create our beverages we cannot guarantee that they are free from any allergens. Our beverages are prepared where allergens are handled by our partners, and where equipment and utensils are used for multiple menu items, including those containing allergens.” In general though, steer clear of drinks with fancy flavorings, java chips, cookie crumbles, or just ask your local barista if you’re not totally sure.
For snacks to go with your GF drink, you’re mostly looking at packaged goods, which can be certified fully free of gluten in a way items made fresh in the store cannot be. The more obvious things to avoid include bread-y baked goods like pastries, bagels, bread — none of which at the time of writing this are offered in gluten-free options.
