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Lou Malnati's Pizzeria (River North)
Lou Malnati's is a family-owned Chicago pizzeria group dating to 1971, and this River North restaurant on Wells Street is its flagship downtown location for deep dish. The menu publishes a small gluten-free thin crust pizza, and it is unusually candid about the process: the gluten-free crusts are made in a certified gluten-free facility and then finished in the restaurant's kitchen, where cross-contact with gluten can occur. That published cross-contact statement, not a promise of a separate kitchen, is the documented protocol here. It is a useful record for a wheat- or gluten-avoiding diner who wants Chicago pizza with the handling limits stated up front.
Contact & location
- Address
- 439 N Wells St, Chicago, IL 60654 River North
No phone number is published in this listing's sources — use the website or the key link above to contact the business.
Decision snapshot
- Evidence tier
- Allergen menu documented
- Allergen menu
- Item-by-item allergen menu published
- Allergens documented
- Gluten, Wheat
ConfidentDiner collects allergen and preparation information from restaurants’ published materials, from restaurants themselves, and from diners. Information is dated and sourced, but menus, ingredients, suppliers, staff, and kitchen practices change without notice, and cross-contact can occur in any non-dedicated kitchen. Nothing on this site is medical advice or a guarantee that any restaurant or dish is safe for any individual. Always tell the restaurant about your allergy, confirm current practices directly before ordering, and make your own decision with your medical professional’s guidance.
The protocol, in full: Allergen documentation
| Gluten | Documented in the restaurant's own published allergen material Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
|---|---|
| Milk | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Egg | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Peanut | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Tree nut | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Fish | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Shellfish | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Soy | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Wheat | Documented in the restaurant's own published allergen material Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Sesame | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
The protocol, in full: Kitchen protocol
| Allergen menu | The menu publishes a small gluten-free thin crust pizza option alongside its deep dish and thin crust pizzas. Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
|---|---|
| Cross-contact statement | The menu states that the gluten-free crusts are made in a certified gluten-free facility, then finished in the restaurant's kitchen, where cross-contact with gluten can occur; earlier menu wording likewise noted the crusts are prepared in a sterile environment but finished in a kitchen where wheat and wheat products are present. Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Dedicated facility | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Dedicated fryer | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Dedicated prep | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Staff training | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
| Order flagging | Not published in the restaurant's own material — ask before you go (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
The protocol, in full: The visit
| Price band | Not published in the sources checked (not documented) Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · 2026-10-28 |
|---|
Good to know before you book
- The menu states that the gluten-free crusts are made in a certified gluten-free facility, then finished in the restaurant's kitchen, where cross-contact with gluten can occur; earlier menu wording likewise noted the crusts are prepared in a sterile environment but finished in a kitchen where wheat and wheat products are present. — Lou Malnati's Pizzeria, 2026-10-28
- The menu publishes a small gluten-free thin crust pizza option alongside its deep dish and thin crust pizzas. — Lou Malnati's Pizzeria, 2026-10-28
Questions diners ask about this place
Does Lou Malnati's Pizzeria (River North) publish an allergen menu?
Yes. Lou Malnati's Pizzeria (River North) publishes an allergen menu that marks dishes item by item, linked from this page. We last checked it on 2026-10-28. A published menu documents ingredients as the restaurant states them — it is not a guarantee, and menus change, so confirm when you order.
Which allergens does Lou Malnati's Pizzeria (River North) document?
Lou Malnati's Pizzeria (River North)'s own published material documents: Gluten, Wheat. The allergens we track that it does not document are: Milk, Egg, Peanut, Tree nut, Fish, Shellfish, Soy, Sesame. Undocumented means we found no published information — not that the allergen is absent.
Does Lou Malnati's Pizzeria (River North) document a dedicated fryer or prep area?
Not in the published material we checked on 2026-10-28. The protocol table on this page shows exactly what is and is not documented, and the visit-prep card lists the questions to ask instead.
How current is the information on this page?
Every fact here comes from Lou Malnati's Pizzeria and was last checked on 2026-10-28. Kitchens change staff, suppliers and menus without notice — always tell the restaurant about your allergy and confirm current practice before ordering.
Is this your listing?
Claim this listing free to correct anything here, add photos, and complete the details the public record leaves blank — 14 items are currently marked "not documented" on this page. Claiming never buys a higher evidence tier: tiers are earned by documentation, checked the same way for everyone.
Source & freshness
Source: Lou Malnati's Pizzeria · Last checked: 2026-10-28
Report a change or an error — reports are checked and logged on this page.
Change log
- 2026-10-28 — Listing published from the restaurant's own published allergen material (datasets v1 + expansion pass 2, merged Oct 28, 2026).
More options in Chicago
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- Mindful Baking Kitchen & Cafe — Allergen menu documented, last checked 2026-10-28
- CheSa's Bistro & Bar — Allergen menu documented, last checked 2026-10-28
Lou Malnati's Pizzeria (River North) — visit-prep card
Allergen menu documented · Last checked 2026-10-28 · Source: Lou Malnati's Pizzeria
- Address
- 439 N Wells St, Chicago, IL 60654
- Allergen menu
- https://www.loumalnatis.com/chicago-river-north
Key facts
- Allergen menu: Item-by-item allergen menu published
- Allergens documented: Gluten, Wheat
Questions to ask before you order
- Is the fryer shared with breaded or battered items, and what else is cooked in that oil?
- Is there a separate prep area, boards and utensils for allergy orders?
- How is an allergy order flagged and communicated to the kitchen, so it cannot be mixed up?
- How are staff trained on food allergies, and how often is that training refreshed?
- Which parts of the kitchen, if any, are kept free of my allergen?
ConfidentDiner collects allergen and preparation information from restaurants’ published materials, from restaurants themselves, and from diners. Information is dated and sourced, but menus, ingredients, suppliers, staff, and kitchen practices change without notice, and cross-contact can occur in any non-dedicated kitchen. Nothing on this site is medical advice or a guarantee that any restaurant or dish is safe for any individual. Always tell the restaurant about your allergy, confirm current practices directly before ordering, and make your own decision with your medical professional’s guidance.