Travelling with Allergies

Travelling with Allergies in 2022

This year, many are getting back into travelling, however doing so with allergies can be hard and stressful, especially when it comes to a gluten allergy or Celiac Disease. “Am I going to have choices for my 3 meals a day?” Not to worry, preparation is key.  Here are my tips and tricks to travelling stress free. 

• Before leaving, research restaurants and places offering food you can eat during your travels.
• Look on web sites like Google, TripAdvisor, Glutenfreeme, etc. for ratings and read a few of the reviews to see what they are about. However, on many occasions, some comments have nothing to do with the food itself.
• Take a look at the menu to make sure they offer something that appeals to your palate. It may be too fancy or too simple for what you would like to eat.
• Once you have arrived at your destination, make reservations! You would not believe how busy some of these restaurants get during evenings.
• Try to be open to new experiences and new flavours!

For Gluten-Free allergies, here are some of the best places to put on your list of places to visit according to a Facebook survey done by Coeliac Sanctuary; https://www.coeliacsanctuary.co.uk/blog/the-10-best-countries-to-visit-for-gluten-free, and of course my personal findings.

For more information check all the guides below(in blue, just copy and paste in your browser):

1. Italy, The capital of Gluten Free

We just recently visited Italy (August 2022) and although I have only visited Rome, Naples, Sorrento, Positano, Salerno, and Capri, I can say that these places know without a doubt about Gluten-Free Allergy. Almost every place caters to gluten-free.

The vast majority of places will offer gluten-free pizza and pasta, and mostly all supermarkets have a gluten-free section with treats, pasta and occasionally breads. The following is My GF Guide to Italy:

Here are a few places we visited during our recent trip:

On our way from Rome to Naples:

• Gran Caffé Egidio (www.egidiograncaffe.it)

OMG! You would never expect such great food for Celiacs on a small road like this. Did we miss something? I had for the first time in years wonderful fried calamari and fresh tomato basil pasta with Caprese salad. Worth the stop if you are nearby. Inexpensive$

Naples:        

• A Taverna Do Re Di Francesco (Parrella Supportico Fondo di Separazione, 2, 80133 Napoli). Our very first meal in Naples, we sat outside in between buildings with hanging lights, it was lovely and close to where we were staying for a few days. Unfortunately, no gluten-free pizza, however great pasta choices for me. Inexpensive$

• Pizzeria Del Portico (Via dei Tribunali, 354, 80138 Napoli) This place is located close to the Napoli Underground Roman Ruins. I had the best gluten-free pizza in Napoli, but unfortunately for me it was made with deglutinate wheat and I am allergic to wheat on top of Gluten, so imagine my pain a few hours later!!! Nevertheless, if you are not allergic to wheat, it was a great pizza! Inexpensive$

 

• Donna Luisella (Via Luculliana, 9 Borgo Marinari) Good food and good service, all pasta could be made gluten free, but I chose their Tris Grigliata Pesce as we were next to the sea and wanted to experiment other food than pasta and pizza. Expensive$$$

• Leopoldo Bakery (Via S.M. Di Costantinopoli 1/BIS 80138) It’s located just across from Naples National Archaeological Museum, so plan to eat at this great little gluten free bakery when going to the museum. Best gluten free bakery of my trip to south Italy. We had some deglutinate wheat bread, chocolate croissants, sandwiches, pizzas, and everything was delicious! Unfortunately, I do not do well with deglutinate wheat, but that is me!!! Love this bakery!!! Average$$.

Sorrento:

• Ristorante Pizzeria Tasso (Via Correale, Sorrento) Our very first meal in Sorrento, we sat in this enchanting restaurant near the outdoor terrace. The best service possible and the food was outstanding, such that we went a second time for our last meal in Sorrento. A great variety of gluten-free choices. I had sea food risotto, appetisers, dessert, and everything was truly amazing. Expensive $$$ (We indulged)

• Fuoro51 (Corso Italia, 24, 80067 Sorrento)
  This is one of 2 restaurants we really really enjoyed in Sorrento. Nice ambiance, very friendly service, and fine tasty Italian meals. Everything we had was so tasty and fine. We will definitely come back on our next trip! Average $$

• Café Latino ristorante pizzeria lounge bar (Corso Italia, 24, 80067) Enchanting décor, maybe we were not lucky in the choices we made, but all our meals were blended, no flavour to match the décor. We also waited a long time at the end of our meal to get the bill, but hey, we were on vacation so not a problemo! Average $$ 

• Il Pozzo (Via Torquato Tasso, 32, 80067 Sorrento) Small Restaurant, Good Food but nothing special, I would not go back. Small portions. We made reservation but there was a lot of confusions as 4 families were waiting and had made reservation with the owner. Average $$

• La Basilica Restaurante (Via Sant'Antonino, 28, 80067 Sorrento) We had an amazing dinner! The restaurant offers impeccable service. I had great gluten-Free choices, they even made me a 1 portion appetizer so I could share with the rest of the family, which within itself was amazing. Everyone really enjoyed their meals. Expensive $$$

• Trattoria da Maria Grazia (Puolo Beach Sorrento)  We were very impressed by the quality and level of professionalism and service we received at Trattoria Maria Grazia. You would expect beach food, instead we got great restaurant food, and I had a great gluten-free seafood salad, perfectly fresh for a hot day lunch. It felt like we were really part of the locals. The staff was very nice and professional. The atmosphere is inviting and local. Highly recommend! Average $$

Maiori:

-    Tony's Food & Drinks (Maiori Amalfi Coast) 

We all had burgers, even me, I chose a salmon burger which was made with smoke salmon, delicious! Nearly everything on their lunch menu was available gluten-free and we were near the beach, it was great! Average$$

Rome:

• Venchi Cioccolato e Gelato Rome (this is a franchise so you can find them everywhere!!!) They have great selection of gelato for everyone and every dietary need, such as dairy free, gluten free. Excellent choice! A must try on your trip in Italy! Average$$

• Pizza in Trevi (Via San Vincenzo 30/30A, Rome) This was heaven for me! I had a different placemat, different set of cutleries, different glass of water, they are very serious when you mention you are celiac. It is also a very cute restaurant. Has friendly service! I was able to get a very tasty Gluten Free Beer and a great Pizza, which I finished for breakfast the next day, because it was good, and we were in a hurry! Ha! Ha! They have gluten free menu for you to look at online. Excellent everything!! A must try if you go to Rome as it is near the Trevi Fountain! Average$$ 

• Osteria Café Del Monte (Borgo Pio, 136a) Very good service, fresh arancia (orange juice). We had scramble eggs with bacon, and it was so delicious, we felt like we were eating real bacon instead of the salty bacon you find everywhere. I recommend! Inexpensive$ 

• Osteria de Pastini (Bo Via dei Pastini) What a little GEM we found just coming back from the Pantheon. I had a gluten-free Spaghetti Bolognese, and it was delicious, better than mine, which I’ve never said before. Super friendly service, great ambiance. Strongly suggest. Average$$

•  Tartufi&Friends (Via Borgognona) We went to this restaurant by fluke, they approached us and when I asked if they had gluten-Free, they said proudly "yes". We all had great meals, my daughter had Tagliolini Cacio e Pepe, I had Beef Cheek, my husband had a Rossini, and our son had the Carbonara Taglioni. Everything was delicious and flavourful and a nice change from the regular pasta dishes. The service was friendly, and the patio had a lovely ambiance. Average$$ 

• Saltimbocca (Via di Tor Millina, 5) We love the ambiance inside and outside the restaurant, the food was excellent with Roman specialty and great choices of gluten-free! We will be back when we next visit Rome!!! Must go when in Rome! We had dinner here twice. Average$$

• HEDERA - Food, Music & Spirits (Vicolo Doria, 7) We had scramble eggs for breakfast and although they were good, the bacon was much too salty, and the eggs were ok. Unfortunately, I would not recommend. Expensive$$$

• Raviolo d'Oro (Via della Guglia, 63) A nice restaurant where we went for lunch and were served our meals in a little pan, it was a nice touch. The ravioli and gluten-free Carbonara was good. Service was cordial and nice. Good food, good wines. Average$$

2. Spain (in my opinion, the second capital!)

I visited Spain 4 years ago, in 2019. It seemed like I could find gluten free nearly everywhere.

Supermarkets have huge varieties too, stocking popular brand like Schar, (amongst others).

Generally a lot of the classic Spanish dishes are gluten-free as standard from paella to patatas bravas so you shouldn't have a problem finding dishes in restaurants.

In Barcelona there are 100% gluten-free bakeries, restaurants, and ice cream parlours. Seville has 100% gluten free bars, plus other places. There are loads of options to choose from. Check Legal Nomands Spain blog for some ideas of places to eat.

We spent 6 days in Tossa de Mar and I must say it is Paradise for the beaches, all of the nice restaurants and location location location, but even more for the gluten free options. All restaurants have delicious gluten free meals. I know that Italy may be the birthplace of pizza, but I assure you I had my best pizza in Tossa de Mar at the restaurant Mestre d'Aixa.

3. USA

The USA has a few gluten-free options depending on which states you go to.

For ideas in New York, take a look at My GF Guide's blog, with no less than 18, gluten-free places (100% GF), and that’s just in New York!

According to the survey, Las Vegas, Seattle and Florida (to name a few) have multiple gluten-free bakeries and restaurants as well as lots of places that can cater to various dietary needs. Disneyland, Florida was already catering well to Celiac in our last visit about 10 years ago; which is better than Paris from what I experienced in 2018!

4. Australia

 According to Coeliac Sanctuary, Australia works the same as New Zealand with their strict procedures and once again their knowledge is outstanding, both countries work with the same laws regarding gluten-free.

There are multiple 100% gluten-free restaurants and bakeries in Sydney and even more restaurants that cater well. Check out Happy Celiacs Sydney guide for more places.

Of course it’s not only Sydney that has gluten-free places there are plenty of places to try all over the country.

5. New Zealand

According to Coeliac Sanctuary, New Zealand works different when it comes to gluten-free, other then Australia. In the UK gluten-free is food with less than 20ppm of gluten detected in testing, however in New Zealand and Australia gluten-free means zero gluten detected in testing.

A bit like Finland, New Zealand have a fair amount of Coeliacs which makes gluten-free more common and knowledge even more widespread.

There are dedicated gluten free bakeries around, and even Chinese restaurants that cater well. Ice cream parlours not only have cones but also toppings that are safe too. Check out Gluten Free Livings New Zealand guide for loads of places to try.

6. Ireland

According to Coeliac Sanctuary, So close to the UK but caters different for Coeliac and have their own Coeliac Society too, it is worth checking their website out

Most restaurants can cater easily to Coeliac and there is some gluten free bakeries floating around including Denises Gluten-Free Bakery and RiceFlour Gluten-Free Bakery in Cork

Check out Gluten Free Ireland for more info on eating in Ireland.

7. Turkey

According to Coeliac Sanctuary, while there are plenty of things to eat gluten-free in Turkey, it is definitely worth while having a travel card as a few people did say there definitely some language barriers when it came to contamination issues. There is lots of bread involved in many places too, so best to be safe!

Hummus is a classic in turkey and is naturally gluten-free so always a good option to go for. Rice and potatoes are of course gluten-free too are particular staples in Turkey. Watch out for orzo with is very common over there and is ridiculously hard to get gluten-free so always be cautious if they say they can do orzo gluten-free.

Good options on menus in turkey are shish kebabs and grilled meats/fish. Menus can be restricted but there are options around. Istanbul does have a couple of gluten-free restaurants too, take a look at Daily Sabah for more tips.

8. Portugal

According to Coeliac Sanctuary, Portugal resembles the UK supermarkets, where they clearly label gluten-free products and it is fairly easy to eat out too.

Piri Piri chicken is a common Portuguese dish and there are plenty of places to get this, a lot of other traditional dishes are gluten-free too such as bean stew, Feijoada and Portuguese rice pudding and arroz doce.

In Lisbon there are places to get the Portuguese classic pasteid de nata, a type of custard tart plus, there are plenty of restaurants that cater to gluten-free needs. Take a look at Legal Nomads gluten free Portugal blog for a bit more info on places.

9. Finland

According to Coeliac Sanctuary, in Finland it should be possible to find gluten-free options in all restaurants and coffee shops.

Some allergy websites have called it "the headquarters for celiac disease". Coeliac seems to be very common here and everyone knows someone who has Coeliac, gluten-free and contamination knowledge in the country is very high. It is also apparently ahead in research when it comes to Coeliac.

Helsinki has a gluten-free bakery in Keliapuot which sells gluten-free Karelian Pies, a Finnish favourite usually made with rye flour (which isn't gluten-free).

Check out The Sightseeing Coeliacs blog post for more places in Helsinki to visit

10. Cyprus

According to Coeliac Sanctuary, Cyrpus is a Greek speaking country (or variation of Greek, Cypriot) and while some people have said they found it hard to find gluten-free others LOVE IT. If you go with typical Greek style food you shouldn't go too wrong.

Cyrpus does have a completely gluten-free bakery too, Areteos Bakery, where you can get loads of traditional Greek baked goodies.

Take a look at GlutenFreeCy for lots of places to eat including some gorgeous places in Paphos and find hotels that cater too.

Other places were mentioned too were Mexico, Canada, Poland and Dubai all being close right behind Cyprus, with Sweden, Goa, Malta, Iceland, Egypt and Norway all getting the odd mention too in the survey from Coeliac Sanctuary. Where have you eaten abroad that catered to your allergies really well? Anywhere different? Let us know as we would love to add it to our blog.

 

Josée; Owner/Baker

The Bread Essentials

406 Royal York Rd

Etobicoke, ON M8Y 2R5

647.680.3490