The restaurant 7Sisters Italiano offers authentic Italian food with an appealing twist: most of the food is gluten-free.

Co-owner Jeanine Morgan said the restaurant is named after herself and her six sisters who all have Celiac disease.

Celiac disease causes damage to the small intestines when gluten is consumed.

Jeanine and Todd Morgan own the restaurant, which opened in Citrus Heights in 2010. Morgan was working with Whole Foods Market to come out with a gluten-free product line.

When the store came up with a name for her business, Morgan had another suggestion.

“I said, ‘What about (calling it) 7Sisters,’” Jeanine Morgan said. “You want (to have) a catchy name for your business.”

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. It is in foods such as breads, pastries, pizzas, gravies, soy sauce and marinades.

Many restaurants offer a limited selection of gluten-free food options, but there are not many restaurants offering a full gluten-free menu to customers.

At 7Sisters Italiano, customers get the guarantee their food will be made 100 percent gluten-free.

Jeanine Morgan said 7Sisters is one of the first gluten-free restaurants on the West Coast. Even though its focus is gluten-free food, it does have a regular menu for those without gluten allergies.

Since it was the lunch hour, the waitress suggested buying a loaf of gluten-free bread for $4 as a starter since the restaurant does not offer bread later in the day until dinner. The cook then brought a plate of mozzarella cheese to go with the bread.

The cheese was chewy, mild and tangy. It was a nice surprise to go with the appetizer.

The décor of the restaurant is simple with a New York flair and pictures of places in New York City including the Empire State building and old movies like “The Godfather.” Written on the windows of the restaurant are the names of Jeanine Morgan and her six sisters.

The restaurant looks like a pizzeria and customers can see the pizza being made inside.

On the gluten-free menu, they have eggplant rollatini and a mozzarella roll for appetizers.

For entrees, they offer salads, gluten-free pizzas and pastas, including egg- and rice-based pastas with a number of sauces. For dinner, there are plenty of poultry and seafood options for regular diners, including chicken picatta and spicy pesto shrimp.

An eight-inch round gluten-free pizza with pepperoni costs $8.99 and customers can choose the cheese and toppings to go on the pizza. The sauce was a sweet, tomato sauce with spices, while the pizza crust was soft and buttery smooth.

An egg spaghetti dish with a spinach pesto sauce costs $11.99. The egg pasta was a light dish, yet it was packed with tons of flavor. The freshness of the spinach was present and peppered with bursts of basil, which balanced well with the pesto sauce.

For dessert, thin-mint cookies are available for 50 cents each. The cookies have a different look compared with the Girl Scout thin-mint cookies with a square and thick shape and have a stronger minty taste.

The restaurant has also started producing gluten-free products under the heading of 7Sisters Gluten Free. Their products can be found at stores like the Gluten Free Specialty Market in Sacramento and Whole Foods Markets. These products include homemade Italian bread, pizza crusts and kits, thin-mints and pastas.

It was great to see Jeanine Morgan cared enough to check in with customers about how their meals were and talk with them about the food and share stories about living with Celiac disease.

Asking for feedback from their patrons showed they really care about their customers and the food they make.

Brittany Lambert can be reached at [email protected]