The new Burtons Grill & Bar has a something-for-everyone menu for people with food allergies

Two decades ago, Kevin Harron, a restaurant executive with a background at Outback Steakhouse, Carraba’s Italian Grill, and Legal Sea Foods, was struggling to find a bar-restaurant that could accommodate his gluten allergy.

So he and some partners created one themselves. The first Burtons Grill & Bar, opened in Massachusetts in 2005 with a tavern menu featuring not only gluten-free options but also dishes that can accommodate other allergies, such as nuts or dairy.

Burtons, which has slowly expanded along the East Coast, opened its 23rd location this week on Lancaster Avenue in Wayne, next to Minella’s Diner.

It’s hard to believe that this location used to be a Chili’s. Burtons popped out the front window to create a patio accommodating two dozen people and set up a 24-seat, U-shaped bar.

There are live trees in the main dining room, nature scenes painted on the walls, and, cut into an odd-shaped corner, a glass wine tower.

The clientele are meant to feel comfortable in casual attire or dressed up, said Burtons’ chief executive, John Haggai.

The menu, like the surroundings, has an upscale feel: steaks (an 8-ounce filet, a 12-ounce New York strip, and 14-ounce, 28-day-aged ribeye, all priced in the $40s); and seafood, such as crab cakes ($39.50) and a house specialty, a crab-crusted haddock that shows Burtons’ New England roots ($38). Those are alongside sandwiches, soups, salads, and bowls.

Nearly every dish on the menu is accompanied by the letters “GF,” to indicate that they’re gluten-free. Some are designated “GFV,” meaning that they can be prepared gluten-free by request, such as the pastas. (During a recent preview, the gluten-free rotini pasta accompanying the chicken Milanese Alfredo was pretty much indistinguishable from regular wheat pasta, while the panko-crusted chicken had all the flavor and crunch of other breading.)

Brioche buns and wheat pasta are the only foods containing wheat in the restaurant. Cheese is not melted on burgers while on the flattop, in deference to those with dairy allergies. (Cheeseburgers are finished on a dedicated salamander broiler.)

The kitchen takes precautions for other allergies, for example, by color-coding cutting boards, sanitizing work stations between orders, and using separate cutlery and plates. The entire staff is trained in allergies.

“We waited years to find this spot,” Haggai said. “Not to knock King of Prussia, but there’s 50 restaurants to choose from right there. We’re more neighborhood-y and more suburban, so we wanted to launch in a nice suburban area that’s got really beautiful visibility.”

This Burtons also will do takeout, and has set up a dedicated counter and side entrance.

Burtons also plans to open in Doylestown’s Barn Plaza development, and a third location in Collegeville is in the works, Haggai said.

Burtons Grill & Bar, 312 W. Lancaster Ave., Wayne. Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday to Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.