Picazzo's in Arizona Changing The Gluten Free Dining Game

This week Mr. Charming and I were sitting around the house after work, completing all the last minute details for Baby P's arrival and I got the urge to do something spontaneous and fun! With just 6 days out from my due date, I actually had energy on Thursday and wanted to sneak in one more date night while it was just us. 

Wanting to do something different and away from home, we headed to Paradise Valley, AZ - just 20 minutes or so from us - to check out some old high school stomping grounds, like my old neighborhood and our old mall and then we planned to search for some gluten-free eats for a romantic dinner. 

And we found the holy grail of Gluten-Free goodness. 

​Guys. I could literally order 90% of what was on the menu. INCLUDING drinks, appetizers AND dessert. This NEVER happens. 

See that bread? That warm, moist foccacia? TOTALLY gluten-free. Made with tapioca, rice and potato flours it tasted HEAVENLY in a little EVOO, salt and pepper. Though I JUST put a little yeast back in after 5 years, I limited myself to one piece, plus a small toasted piece with my pasta, but you couldn't even tell it was gluten free. 

Not only do they offer a fully gluten-free menu, everything is also non-GMO and they have SO many vegan options too! You can substitute Daiya cheese in any cheese dish or pizza and all of their meats are nitrate and nitrite free, as well as being free of antibiotics. An establishment where I can actually ORDER pepperoni or salami and not wonder if its sketch? SCORE. SCORE ONE BIG ONE FOR YOU PICAZZOS. 

I think I'm in love.

So, on with our order and dining experience...

There were SO many things I was looking at, but I was remembering back to my decadent Italian experience at Vitello's and I was craving fresh pasta drizzled with with fresh herbs and olive oil, so my order was the following:

Gluten Free Foccacia Bread (which I of course shared.)
Gluten Free Fusilli Pasta with EVOO, Avocado, Tomatoes, Garlic and Fresh Basil

Mr. Charming's order was tres magnifique, and looked a little something like this... 

And guys! You can GET THAT PIZZA, his decadent BBQ Chicken Pizza, gluten-free AND VEGAN. They have vegan chicken strips and Daiya cheese on a chewy-on-the-inside, crunchy-on-the-outside gluten-free crust. It's our new favorite out of all our favorites. 

The staff was also amazingly sweet and are all so knowledgeable in allergies and celiac. It was such a wonderful vibe and it was really busy for a Thursday. Which is a great sign!

We are looking forward to visiting again after the baby's arrival and I have a few ideas for what will be up next on my orders...

• The Pepperoni Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Pizza 
• Pineapple and Dairy-Free Cheese Pizza
• A major salad with a Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Baked Chocolate Chip Cookie with Coconut Milk Ice Cream for dessert

Really, there is just so much goodness. With multiple locations throughout Arizona, in Sedona, Flagstaff, Scottsdale and Phoenix, we are excited to have Picazzo's to look forward to as we travel throughout the state with Baby P. 

Have you been to Picazzo's? If so, what is YOUR favorite dish? Seriously, because I'll add it to my growing list of must-trys!