Traveling Gluten Free: La Jolla, California

Traveling Gluten Free in La Jolla, California

The hubby and I are celebrating 6 years of wedded bliss (5 1/2 of those being gluten free)! We try to always do something special for our anniversary, however simple or small it may be. Last year, we had splendid plans to lounge on the beach, drink mojitos and take in the sunsets of the West Coast. Low and behold that plan was derailed due to extreme nausea from baby #2 cooking up in my belly! We ended up staying home, watching tv and having take out :) It was special and perfect. This year we spent a week in La Jolla, CA at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club. It was an incredible family vacation and we made sure to cheers a couple times to our beautiful family and our September anniversary.

Although, I did the majority of cooking in our small kitchen at the hotel or we picnicked at the beach we did manage a few meals out. I have found it is easier to cook at our hotel with small kiddos and having Celiac. But when we did eat out, the options were delicious and I never got sick/glutened.

Gluten Free Friendly Restaurants in La Jolla

1. Puesto! Was a good option for fresh Mexican fare. I had the carnitas bowl with a side of corn tortillas and crab guacamole. It was so much food I had it for dinner the next night! All natural meats, fresh homemade salsa and tasty ingredients! GF is listed on the menu.

2. A Shore thing Cafe had gluten free wraps that are probably the best wraps I've ever had. We had them for lunch 2 days in a row. They changed gloves and took extra precautions when told I have celiac.

3. Gelato is necessary on a hot day in Southern California. We hit up Bobboi Natural Gelato. This place makes some of the best gelato I've ever tasted. Using unique flavors and fresh ingredients, including fresh fruit from the farmers market, this is a place you must check out at least once. Plus the decor is just darling! Make sure to specify you have an "allergy" and they can use a clean scoop to get the gelato out of a new bucket/container (took a little explaining) but it all worked out in the end.

4. The Counter is a burger joint that is not to be missed (assuming you are flying in/out of southwest terminal at San Diego Airport). They are so good at keeping cross-contamination at bay. My toppings all came from separate and clean containers and the burgers and sweet potato fries (fried in clean fryer) are tasty!!

We look forward to visiting La Jolla again. Great weather, great food, beautiful sunsets.  Until then it's already winter...umm... I mean Autumn in Colorado :)

Gluten Free in Norway...traveling with Celiac Disease

Traveling to a new place can be scary. I do countless hours of research online, looking for places to eat-out, grocery stores close to my hotel or vacation rental, and wondering if I will be able to partake in the local fare... I didn't go out to eat too many places in Norway, yet I still ate the most delicious Norwegian salmon and fresh potatoes, just like the locals. I have found that having a vacation rental with a small kitchen a necessity when traveling internationally. It's so much easier to prepare some meals and snacks at your home-base than always wondering if you can find gluten-free meal out and if that meal is going to be safe for one with Celiac Disease.

Here's a breakdown of my daily meals while out and about in Bergen and Oslo, Norway.

Breakfast:
Yogurt and gluten free muesli (found at Meny, Coop, SPAR) and fresh fruit

Snacks:
gluten free Wasa crackers and cheese, carrot sticks, Toblerone chocolate or a cappuccino. I also packed some Lara and Kind bars in my suitcase just in case I was ever starving!

Lunch:
Max Burger and McDonalds both have gluten free buns. At Max, they are very nice and accommodating  regarding food allergies. I ended up eating Max in the Stockholm Arlanda airport in Sweden, however the Norwegian Max have the buns also.

Dinner:
Fresh poached or grilled salmon, boiled dutch potatoes, salad with olive oil and vinegar
the salmon is Norway was better than any salmon I've had in the US. It was so fresh, tasty, not expensive and easy to cook!

BakeFri

In Oslo, you must visit Bakefri. It's a 100% gluten-free bakery and cafe. The chicken salad, quiches and desserts are divine. The almond danish was the best! It was flakey, buttery, full of real almonds and oh so delicious. I cannot recommend this place enough!

A perfect (gluten-free) anniversary

My husband and I have only been married for two years, but quite honestly, these have been the healthiest   two years I've had in a very long time. On our wedding day, I didn't know I had celiac disease (I was diagnosed a few months later), but we served a wonderful meal of new mexican fajitas (on corn tortillas), fresh homemade salsa, a beautiful seasonal green salad, spanish rice and beans. Essentially our wedding was gluten-free...until the cake! I don't remember feeling sick or bad on that special day, thank goodness! Fast forward and here I am eating cake, pizza, waffles etc... just made a little differently than before. I am forever grateful for having an extremely supportive husband who loves everything (so he says) that I cook and is always open to eating gluten-free. I look forward to the many, many meals we will share.

As for a perfect way to celebrate our 2 years together we traveled to the big city...Denver is only a 30 minute drive from our current home, but it's worlds apart from our life in Boulder (this topic could be another post entirely).

First things first, dessert before dinner at Pinkberry! Did you know that ALL Pinkberry flavors are gluten-free? Yes! I love this place. I think it's best to stay away from the toppings because you never know if the oreo-cookie serving spoon accidently fell into the chocolate shavings :( The fruit toppings are more isolated from the other toppings, so those are usually a safe bet, to avoid cross-contamination.

Dinner at Linger. Well,  supposedly I live in the "foodiest town in America" but I fell in love with Linger. Sorry Boulder. Not only did the waiter bring us two glasses of complimentary prosecco,  he was incredibly well versed on the issue of cross-contamination and being a celiac. I was taken more than serious. I was taken care of.

Linger has an amazing view of the Denver skyline from just about any seat in the restaurant. The careful attention to detail was well done, from the food, to the menus, to the bottle of water. Did I mention the food was absolutely incredible. The plates are small and the idea is to share a few dishes and savor the flavors. Linger. Enjoy.

Here's a sampling of what we had...a bowl of corn and poblano soup with Dungeness crab and avocado, sweet-potato waffle fries with chipolte ketchup (fried in a "clean" fyer), seared diver scallops with apple, and watercress salad, and a grilled chicken, grilled corn, avocado, bacon, french feta yumminess cobb salad (with grilled GF bread). Check out the awesome menu here.

The Linger eatuaries sign 

from the LoHi neighborhood

Gardens at the Gregory Inn

Next on the list: a  quaint bed and breakfast in LoDo. The Gregory Inn.  My amazing gluten-free breakfast included a crustless quiche, apple-chicken sausage, fresh fruit, coffee and juice. Lovely. The chef (Todd) was helpful and knew just how to make a safe meal for me! Breakfast on the roof-top patio was a perfect start to the day.

Breakfast at the Gregory Inn

Last, but certainly not least it's important to have dessert (again).  This is one of the easiest cakes you can make! Happy celebrating!

Flourless Chocolate Cake 
(circa 1997, Gourmet Magazine)

Ingredients
4 oz fine-quality, bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened)
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
3/4 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for sprinkling

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F and butter an 8inch round baking pan. Line the bottom with a round of wax paper and butter the paper.
Chop chocolate into small pieces. In a double broiler, or metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, melt chocolate with butter, stirring until smooth. Remove top of double broiler or bowl from heat and whisk sugar into chocolate mixture. Add eggs and whisk well. Sift 1/2 cup cocoa powder over chocolate mixture and whisk until just combined. Pour batter into pan and bake in the middle of oven for 25 minutes (or until top has formed a thin crust).
Cool cake in pan on a rack for ~5 minutes and invert onto a serving plate. Dust cake with additional cocoa powder and serve with fresh berries, whip cream, sorbet, etc... whatever you like!

 the ingredients

complete! 

Gluten Free in Albuquerque, New Mexico

Having lived in Boulder for the last year, I've become quite accustomed to having numerous gluten-free options at hand. I feel like I can go into almost any restaurant and have something safely prepared for me. When I come back to New Mexico, I don't feel so fortunate. There's a saying in NM that it's the "land of mañana" in other words, what ever needs to get done, can get done tomorrow. Well, I believe this saying exists because New Mexico is a little behind the times. Stuff gets done here just a little slower than in other states. Sometimes thats a good thing, but in the world of  knowledge and accommodating people with food allergies and gluten intolerance, this is not such a good thing. For example, one of my old favorite restaurants, Flying Star put out this statement about gluten: "Our counter staff is happy to comply with your changes, but will not be able to assist you with Gluten issues." Shut down.

****Update**** One year after writing this post, Flying Star has decided to offer some "Gluten Not" options. I don't know if they pay any attention to cross contamination, but they do offer a couple breakfast entrees and muffins that do not contain gluten.

I've decided to pick my battles and Flying Star is one that can be shoved under the rug for the time being... I'm focusing on the restaurants that ARE open to accommodating those with Celiac Disease and Gluten Intolerance. Thank you Slate Street Cafe, Zinc Wine Bar, Slice Parlor Pizza, The Cube BBQ, O'Neills Irish Pub and Scalo for listening to your customers and offering safe and delicious gluten free meals! My hope is that more and more restaurants will jump on the bandwagon and understand that the individual that has gluten intolerance is the one that makes the decision about where to eat out. Having gluten-free options on your menu will actually increase sales :)

(Please excuse the quality of the photos, they were taken on a camera phone)

On a recent rendezvous to Albuquerque, I had the most wonderful meal at Slate Street Cafe. Many of the staff follow a gluten-free diet and the owner has a family member with Celiac Disease. Yay! The food here is amazing. It is presented well,  it's fresh and full of flavor. Plus a drink in the wine loft before the meal is a nice touch. They have a separate gluten-free menu, just ask the hostess when you take your seat! My meal included a peach glazed seared salmon with sauteed green beans, sugar snap peas, snow peas and a spicy kiwi-mango salsa. Awesome! All the salads are gluten free and the one that caught my eye was the  grilled peach and prosciutto salad with spring greens, asparagus, golden tomatoes and shaved parmesan.

We also ate at Zinc Wine Bar and Bistro- Zinc is an awesome place to listen to music and have a wonderful meal. The hostess, chef and waitress were all knowledgeable about my intolerance and assured me that I would have a safe meal. It was wonderful! I had the New Mexico raised steak and a mixed green salad with homemade champagne vinaigrette. I will be back. 

For more in-depth gluten-free listing, check out Gluten Free Albuquerque.  

The Cube 

talk to the manager or cook on-site. The BBQ sauce and most of the meats and salads are gluten-free,  naturally! 

Slice Parlor Pizza

A relatively new pizza joint in town. Serves a 12" pizza and even has gluten free beer on the menu. It doesn't get much better than that!

El Pinto Restaurant serves up some of Albuquerque's most delicious New Mexican food. You can safely eat chicken tacos, enchiladas and carne adovada. Order from their new gluten free menu and devour the delicious salsa!

If you are traveling to Santa Fe, check out the article published by Living Without Magazine.

My favorites in Santa Fe:

La Choza. You can safely eat the carne adovada (this chile and meat is not made with wheat flour). Pinto beans and Posole. Delish!

Vinaigrette Salad Bistro. Speak to the staff. They are accommodating to those with special dietary needs. I love the Apple Cheddar chop salad. Just make sure your meat is NOT marinated.

Tree House Bakery. All vegetarian and very tasty. Go on Tuesday- it's gluten free special day!

Revolution Bakery. This place is amazing. It's entirely gluten-free. Pick up your bread, cinnamon rolls, hot coffee, scones, pizza etc... and don't worry about gluten-contamination at all! WOO HOO!

Gluten Free in Switzerland and Italy

Traveling used to be so incredibly simple for me. I would find food at ease and go to whatever restaurant I wanted to, when I was hungry. Of course I didn't feel well afterwards, but it sure seemed simpler! Today, I google, I call, I feel nervous, I google some more, then it all seems to work out. I had the most awesome vacation a few weeks ago where I spent time on the Italian Riviera (Rapallo, Portofino, Santa Margherita, Camogli and the Cinque Terre) and in Switzerland (Zurich, Bern, Lucern, and Baden).  

Italy is hip to gluten intolerance and celiac disease. It's not hard to find food in most grocery stores and pharmacy's that cater to the gluten free traveler. Switzerland was a bit harder, but in the end totally do-able. I have to admit, when I see a food market, a pharmacy or other food vendor, I always have to check to see what they offer. I am sure my travel companions get tired of me always stopping in to check out the markets! I have found that is is absolutely necessary to have a hotel or apartment with a kitchenette when traveling abroad. Going out to eat should be a treat, not a chore. I cooked everyday while on the trip, but I was never deprived. Everyday I made myself a Nutella rice-cake sandwich to enjoy while others were having chocolate croissants. I packed a lunch with gluten-free Shar bread. I devoured the cheese and yoghurt in Switzerland and I had my fair share of chocolate bars, fresh olives and cappuccinos in Italy. I didn't get sick and I didn't feel hungry...not once.

 

Here are some tips and a list of awesome places to get some good food in Italy and Switzerland. 

Plan your stays in various cities based on the open air food markets. These are delectable and honestly, you wont find better produce. Sweet cherries, peaches, nectarines, strawberries and apples were in abundance and all grown in Italy. It was heaven. We stayed in the Ligurian region. Markets are held daily. http://www.initaly.com/regions/liguria/markets.htm  

Billa Supermarket- Rapallo, Italy

I stocked up on fresh pesto, gluten free penne pasta, fresh mozzarella cheese, veggies and chocolate from this market. Salami and other cured meats are labeled gluten-free (senza glutine)

Ristorante Da Paolo, Camogli, Italy

I've been to this restaurant three times and they always know what to do. I believe the chef has Celiac disease. The meal is pricy, but worth it. I recommend going at lunch, but make a reservation! Fresh grilled calamari with olive oil, herbs and garlic, with a insalata mista was fantastic!

Ristorante Da Paolo, Via S. Fortunato 14, Camogli

Tel: 0185.773595

Restaurant Il Cancello, Portofino, Italy. This restaurant is at the Palace hotel offers gluten free meals.

Kerala Indian Restaurant, Zurich, Switzerland. This restaurant treated me like a queen. They have an incredible amount of gluten free items on the menu and were very proud and sure of providing me a safe meal. On top of all the good service, the food is excellent. Our meal included vegetable pakora (made with chickpea flour), tandoori chicken, malabari chicken curry, aloo gobi vegetables and a indian pudding with cardamom and coconut milk for dessert. Yum. Yum. Yum. 

Muller Vital Shop, Zurich, Switzerland- I was able to buy a selection of breads, rice-cakes, musili, and snacks from here. This is great place to supplement your fruits, veggies and yogurt which are abundant in Zurich. 

The  Drogerie +Reformhaus +Naturheilpraxis in Stein-am-Rhein, Switzerland sells a selection of GF products, including a few gluten free baked goods. 

The Marinello market in Rail City (main Zurich train station) carries a selection of gluten free bratwurst and sausages. They are all delicious! Just read the fine print on the allergen statement. Marinello is even open on Sunday, as everything else seems to be closed! 

Other grocery stores in Switzerland were my lifesaver. I went to either the Coop and Migros daily. They are found in almost every town and you can stock up on the best yogurt you will ever eat plus meats, cheeses, fruits, veggies and nuts. 

GF pasta with pesto, spicy sausage, 

wilted spinach and fresh mozzarella

Gluten Free in Dallas, TX

I was in Dallas over the weekend for a wedding and was very worried that I would be eating steak and potatoes for the entire three days! First let me say, not surprisingly Dallas is not anything like Boulder. The more I travel as a celiac, the more I realize what a special place I live in and how easy I have it. In Dallas, there were a couple times when a waiter looked at me funny and didn't really understand what I was trying to explain. I was given a salad with croutons, which I returned. Then received a different salad, still with croutons. Eventually, I was give an salad without croutons, but with crumbs all over the place. It was obvious that they had just removed the bread from the salad. Needless to say, I never did get a clean salad and I sure didn't eat one that was contaminated. I had fruit instead.

It wasn't all doom and gloom for my culinary experience... I found LOVE at Kozy Kitchen. This place is awesome. They make their own GF whole grain bread, have grass fed organic buffalo burgers and even have a huge selection of cakes, which are ALL gluten free. Heaven. Heaven. Heaven. This is a restaurant where the food is flavorful, fresh and not only for those on a GF diet.  I wish I would have spent more time at Kozy. Another good thing about Dallas is that you can always hunt down a Whole Foods. Sure this takes planning, but it's well worth the time.  For a quick bite or lunch, Jason's Deli offers a gluten free menu. Nothing spectacular, but when you need fuel, a sandwich does the trick! I had a wonderful weekend, but I am happy to be back in Boulder, the gluten-free mecca.

Kozy Kitchen
Jason's Deli
Whole Foods Market
Wholesome Foods Bakery

The Kozy Kitchen

Grass fed buffalo burger, with sauteed seasonal 

veggies, raw cheddar cheese and mustard

the Oh My God Cake!

(white chocolate, peanut butter, chocolate, etc, etc, etc)

I only had one steak while in TX, but here are a few other restaurants which cater to the gluten free crowd! 

Outback Steakhouse

Texas Land and Cattle

Kona Grill

Fish City Grill

Gluten-Free in Stockholm, Sweden

I was lucky enough to spend a week in Stockholm recently. In Sweden, celiac disease and eating gluten free is well accepted and the blank stares of confusion are rare at restaurants! I did my research before going on the trip about where to eat and shop for food. I highly recommend visiting the cafe at Junibacken museum. They have many gluten free options including a Swedish meatball, mashed potato and lingonberry dish that was fantastic!

Swedish Meatballs

                                                      an enormous chocolate dipped macaroon

For fast-food, visit McDonald's for a cheeseburger and fries. The french fries are cooked in clean oil so there is no risk for cross contamination with breaded items. I have to say- I never really like McDonald's, but I had to try it out in Sweden! The fries were good, the burger still sucks. But if you are like many people, and really love and really miss McDonald's, take a vacation to Stockholm.

Other fast food options include the Taco Bar. I'm from New Mexico, so my opinion of eating Mexican food in Stockholm is quite biased. But to give the restaurant credit, almost everything on the menu is gluten free, including the tacos and enchiladas. Dinner for 2 was about 120sek. Not too bad! The salsa was mild but extra jalapenos perked up my chicken tacos.

Stockholm is not cheap. For a decadent and tasty meal try out the Vassa Eggen Steakhouse. This hip bar and steakhouse was extremely accommodating. I was able to have warm gluten free bread, Swedish boiled potatoes and a beautifully charcoal grilled steak topped with roasted garlic and red wine sauce. Yum. Plan on spending about 350sek for 2 people.

One of the best meals we had was at Lao Wei. This ever popular Chinese vegetarian restaurant fills up very quickly, but it's well worth the attempt of getting a table! The whole menu is gluten free and vegetarian. The flavors are fantastic and the ingredients are fresh! Highly recommended. 

So good, we forgot to take a photo before eating!

Another great restaurant is the  Resturang Cypern. The menu is clearly marked of what items are gluten free. Plus it was really tasty Mediterranean food. We enjoyed the food and relaxed atmosphere so much, that we had dinner here two times. 

                                                           Chicken Kebabs with Greek Salad

Ikea cafe- when in Stockholm, don't forget to visit the Ikea mothership. Almondy tortes are sold in the cafes and in the freezer section of the store. I enjoyed a slice of almond torte and a cappuccino at the cafe. It was well worth the 20 min free bus ride from downtown.

One of the best places to have a lunch or an afternoon snack is the Vete-Katten bakery. They serve "Friends of Adam" gluten free muffins and bread. You can have a wonderful sandwich on gluten free bread, a sweet muffin and a hot cup of tea. This place is awesome. It's comforting and beautiful all at the same time. I was able to read and people watch one rainy afternoon. Absolute bliss.

                                                     Cardamom Muffin by Friends of Adam

                                                     Feta and Cottage Cheese Sandwich

Many hotel chains offer a gluten free breakfast. We stayed at the Elite Stockholm Arcadia Hotel- the continental breakfast included boiled eggs, cheese, variety of meats, fresh fruit, and gluten free bread- just ask the breakfast staff!

Grocery stores are always a life saver. I found a great selection of GF bread, cookies, crackers, cereals and other snacks at Hemkop. I bought bread and sandwich fixings to take my lunch on the go. This saves money and ensures you always have a safe meal to eat when out and about.

                                                     Ham and swiss cheese on Shar Bread

Eating gluten-free in Stockholm is about as easy as eating in Boulder, Co. It's a gluten-free playground and I would be more than happy to visit again!