Colorado Springs is not a very big town and my last trip there three years ago was a bit of a challenge to find celiac-safe places to eat gluten free. This visit, however, was not a challenge. Coquette's Bistro and Bakery on North Tejon in downtown Colorado Springs was amazing. They are a dedicated gluten free family restaurant and bakery and they will even go so far as to gently educate folks who come in off the street with their gluten-full leftovers from the other restaurants on the bock about how dedicated they are to maintaining the safety of their facility. Translated: please do not bring in the leftover pizza from down the street and risk the safety of the little ones who need to eat gluten free and flock to the bakery to pick out their favorite cupcake. Seriously - there were a ton of kids there and it was so nice to see how excited they were to eat their meals and gush over the baked goodies.
The food was amazing, the service awesome and just the fact that I did not once have to ask any questions about the food (re: gluten anyhow) allowed me and my family/friends to forget about my meal and focus on enjoying our time together.
They are opened for brunch/lunch and dinner, have a bar and separate bakery, sell frozen baked goods and meals to-go as well. I ate there almost every day of my trip it was so good!
This place was amazing. I had the Monte Cristo sandwich and it was probably the best sandwich I ever had! Deep-fried gluten-free bread covered in powdered sugar. Sooo good! My boyfriend had the savory crepe and he said he couldn't even tell it was gluten-free The bakery cases and freezers are full of gluten-free baked goods, breads, rolls, and so much more. It was so tempting to buy one of each. I bought carrot cake, blueberry coffee cake, and bread to go. Everything was delicious. This is a destination restaurant for anyone with celiac disease!
I had been referred to this restaurant by a Twitter follower when I asked where would be a good place to eat in Colorado. It is in a BEAUTIFUL town reminding me greatly of NY towns in the Lake George region, and has many great reviews. I am sad to say that my review will not be one of those. My Husband and I were highly disappointed to say the least, and this is big seeing as I am typically a rather positive reviewer.
We got there mid afternoon, around 1. It took the staff, who were walking by us consistently, 5 minutes to ask if we wanted to be seated, at which point we opted to sit outside to enjoy the town. This was a big mistake as we were seated right near the dumpster and were constantly annoyed by flies. The waitress came out about 2 minutes after seating us to ask if we were ready, and when we said no it took her half an hour to come back. I am not kidding, I timed it. I was considering going back in to let her know we were ready but I wanted to see how long it took for her to get to us. When she came she took our order and we also moved back inside to avoid the flies.
Being from NY, and wanting to escape that type of environment, I don't do well with attitude or rudeness. The place was not busy while we were there and the entire atmosphere was just an odd mix of laid back but impatient. They wanted to take your order and get you out, with no consideration of effective service with a smile, but they wanted to do it around their time. NOW you don't always have to smile but you certainly don't imply that the patron made a mistake and roll your eyes.
The only saving grace of this place was that the food was good quality. Everything was of good quality and flavorful, although a few things just seemed 'off' in a way I can't explain. The Truffle Fries, really home fries, were delicious and unique, and the cupcake has become something I have strived to make several times with no success. In addition, there was a variety of gluten free menu selections you would often not see at other restaurants.
All together this has to be one of the most disappointing restaurant experiences of my gluten free travels, not because everything was horrible but because it was something I had wanted to live up to the review standards. It's just another example of how a place functions can make food disappointing. I am not sure if we were there on an off day, had the wrong servers, or their reputation has gotten the best of them, but if you do decide to try it out, don't get your hopes up. Or maybe you are someone who can tolerate the above better than me, in which case I give you a big thumbs up.
YUM. My favorite gluten free go-to in the Colorado Springs area. Great food, moderately priced, and my non gluten free friends love it too. In quaint Manitou Springs, CO. They have a small bakery as well for some take away goodies to go.
We were visiting the adorable town of Manitou Springs (just 10 min. from Colorado Springs downtown) and 3 different people recommended Coquette's Bistro. That was enough to set me in their direction. I'm so thankful to those strangers….not only was the food great but the staff made me feel like I was 'special," very attentive and helpful as the menu is extensive.They specialize in crepes so I went for the Cajun, as suggested by my waiter. I loved it, loved it. The scent alone was intoxicating and the flavors burst forth yet remained simple and mouthwatering. I had to have dessert! They had just made fresh brownies (yes they do their own baking!). They put strawberries and whipped cream on the side for me and I think I left on a cloud. Sweet dreams of going back when I'm in town…PS, its hard to believe they're Gluten Free!! They've won a bunch of awards for their food and OMG it was great no matter GF or no GF. I ordered their Coquette flour so I could try replicating the crepes at home.