Gluten Free Travel and Eating - Gluten Free Guerr...

Gluten Free Guerrillas

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Gluten Free Travel and Eating

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Remember when, pre-diagnosis, you could just, if you so wished, head to the local convenience store and pick up a snack to satisfy that pang of hunger? I spent last week in a remote part of Scotland and had the foresight to take small packs of biscuits with me to take out on daytrips, incase my stomach started growling at me. Going up from London, where I have a whole range of GF products available at my local supermarket, I wasn't convinced I would have the same luck up in Scotland! I took some packs of Byron Bay cookies, some GF muffins (breakfast stuff!) and some Halva (note: it wasn't until I tried t eat the Halva that I remembered I hate the stuff!). OK, so it added considerable weight to my already stuffed suitcase, but I am so glad I took the extra bulk! We stopped in really remote, random places which didn't have GF options and I often found myself without anything to eat. Well, I would've had nothing, had it not been for the wonderful Byron Bay cookies I was carting around with me. Their double chocolate and fudge cookies are life savers and they will be accompanying me on all of my future travels. My tips for healthy travel: Whever you go, make sure you are prepared; Never assume that you will find something, no matter how small; Eat Biscuits.

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philaustin profile image
philaustin

Its a pity it isn't possible to set up a web site listing places where you can get gluten free meals and takeaways. It would be good if you could type in a location and a distance and it would list all places within that distance, just like when you search for cars on the Autotrader web site. The places would have to serve genuine gluten free meals, not just burgers without the buns, carrots and lettuce. I tried using Gluten Free on the Go to locate eateries near Camden Market because my daughter wants to go there. None could be found using the UK / England /Greater London / Camden selections. I did find an Italian restaurant that did a big range of gluten free pasta and pizza meals but had no idea where it was or how far it was from Camden Market. Gluten Free on the Go gets 1 out of 10 for trying from me! If anyone knows of any genuine gluten free eateries near Camden Market I would love to know. Otherwise its going to be the gammon steak and potatoes (which could be contaminated) or I take my own sandwiches and sit outside in the cold while my wife and daughter select from a nice menu in some cosy pub or restaurant. Are there any statistics on the number of divorces due to coeliac disease?

FionaGFG profile image
FionaGFGAdministrator

Hi Phil we've been thinking along the same lines and are liaising with a small team who are putting something like this together. So watch this space. In the meantime there is also this group:leaveitout.com/ The latter doesn't seem to get used a huge amount sadly.

Re Camden here are the places we'd recommend as we've tried them or seen great reviews by Gluten Free bloggers:

1) £ Chain GF ***** Nandos

nandos.co.uk/restaurant_29/...

Yep we're not a fan of chains yet this is actually very good. Ask for the manager and explain you need gluten free. They have a huge allergy bible (great layout) and will ensure your food is cooked separately. The oil is normally only ever used for chips so it's great to have them as a guilty pleasure as so many places contaminate them. Easy meal option: half a chicken, chips, colesaw and corn on the cob. The Savanna Dry cider is a bit naff and not the same as a nice beer. So generally we tend to try the vino instead. As a starter you can have olives (wow-wee!) and they do GF desserts. I don't have a sweet tooth so I've never tried them but I know Coeliacs who love them.

2) ££ Chain GF **** La Porchetta

We've tried this twice. They offer almost all the normal pasta sauces as GF and will cook GF pasta. It's ok. Well worth it if your fellow eaters want pizza/ pasta etc. Just brace yourself for 'food porn' pizza temptation everywhere. It will take longer to cook the GF pasta (so order yours first). Do check when they serve it that it's the GF pasta as once I was glutened by them messing up the order and giving me real pasta by mistake (d'oh!).

3) Arepa Stall in Camden

This is fab. They understand gluten free and you can try the Corn Arepa and have things like shredded beef and other Venezuelan fillings. Join their facebook group for a map and info:

facebook.com/group.php?gid=...

4) We also love The Stag pub. It's just a 2 tube stops from Camden. Get off at Belize Park and head here. It's worth it for a GF bottled beer. They are pricier than normal but hey - where else can you find a GF beer in London!? They are few and far between, so we like to support them. They even have a great beer garden with heaters (sorry planet) for the cold weather:

thestaghampstead.com/

The Stag 67 Fleet Road, LONDON NW3 2QU 020 7722 2646

5) Follow Caz's great Gluten Free blog here. She always inspires us to try new places!

glutenfreefoodie.co.uk/sear...

philaustin profile image
philaustin

Thanks ever so much for all of this info, Fiona. Unfortunately we went at the weekend. I found the Arepa stall; the only place I could eat and serving only one snack with 6 different fillings for 4 pounds a pop. At least it was hot. Wife and daughter, being cheesed off because I couldn't find anywhere to eat (I suggested Nando's but they weren't having it) settled on Doggetts near the Tate Modern for lunch. I asked the people behind the bar if they did any gluten free food and got a definitive NO. Not surprising for a pub specialising in pies and real ale! Settled for a packet of crisps and half a cold bacon baguette I had on me, washed down with some industrial cider(choice of two; Strongbow or Magners).

Meanwhile, wife & daughter tucked into hot meals while I proudly insisted it didn't really matter. Later went on to watch Saracens play at Wembly. All food gluten laden, and Guinness and Carlsberg to drink. Alchopop and wine for the ladies so I swallowed my pride again and had a Smirnoff Ice. Got back to the Holiday Inn hotel in Hemel late but Sainsbury's was still open so I got some cold cooked chicken and wine. Ate it with the remainder of a Glutafin baguette and washed away the depression with the bottle of wine. Not a healthy eating weekend considering I have high blood pressure and osteoporosis. I tried really hard to find eateries before we went. What's really needed is a way to track down GF food whilst on the move. Could there ever be an app for Ipods, or a service one could text on ones mobile do you think? I don't have an Ipod but it wuld be a good excuse for getting one!

Incidentally we went into the Tate Modern to see the 'fake sunflower seeds' and Doris's Crack, not knowing theres a gluten free restaurant on Level 7!

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