Five Guys

So if you are like me, you still crave a good burger and fries. I hate it when I go out to a place and they tell me that while the burger patty is fine, I can’t have the fries and many of the toppings are a no-no. Let me introduce you to Five Guys.

The sign on the door says it all – everything except the bun is gluten free. We went here a few months back and I have to say that everything I had was tasty, the toppings, the fries (which are big portions), and the burger itself. Currently there are three locations in Columbus (Polaris, Grove City and OSU), with a fourth Easton location coming soon.

Please be aware if you or a family member have a peanut allergy as there are many, many bags of peanuts around the whole place.

So go and enjoy a burger and fries (sans the bun.)

http://www.fiveguys.com/home.aspx

Banana Leaf

Bob and I decided to check out Banana Leaf one Friday after some friends gave it a rave review. We had never had South Indian cuisine before and were really excited to check it out (although Bob was less so once he found out it was all Vegetarian…) We decided to go with the Grand Buffet, which turned out to be a food marathon. The meal began with Lassi (a yogurt drink) in a variety of flavors. The lassis are unlimited and we definitely kept them coming. We also were able to try five different chaats, street dishes not common in US Indian restaurants. Finally, after all of this, you have dosas (kind of a rice crepe)brought to your table and head to the buffet to choose a variety of different dishes. The meal is finished with a Chai Masala.

While all dishes are gluten free, there are still Indian breads made with wheat that you will want to avoid.

We were completely stuffed by the end of our meal and I can’t wait to go back.

http://www.bananaleafofcolumbus.com/

Pistacia Vera

One of the things I miss most about my pre-gluten free life is going into a bakery and picking up some sweets. Luckily now whenever I'm wondering around the German Village it is still a reality thanks to Pistacia Vera. In addition to their signature item of macarons, they actually offer an entire gluten free menu of delectables. The GF menu includes Pate De Fruit (which were featured in Bon Appetit) and even a Chambord Flourless Truffle Torte.

Go and Indulge!

Their gluten free menu can be found here.

Ted's Montana Grill

Bob and I were meeting friends for dinner and a movie in the Arena District. There are a few places in the area that list gluten free options so we decided on Ted's. Bob loves their burgers and we knew that we could catch the Kentucky Derby there...win! While walking to the restaurant, we realized that we forgot to print off the gluten free menu from the website. Not a huge deal; we tried to remember some of my options. Once seated, we went to order and after putting together what I thought I could eat the server came. Bob explained I required gluten free choices and she promptly went and grabbed a of the gluten free menu. After hearing horror stories about people going to a restaurant that say on the website they have gluten free menus and then actually getting to the restaurant to receive a blank stare, I was pleased with my experience. One tasty bunless bison burger with some yummy toppings and mashed potatoes later, we were off to the movies....

Restaurants

Kristen and I are in the process of gathering information on gluten free options at local restaurants. Stay tuned!

Traveling

One thing that Kristen and I have always talked about doing more of is traveling. For a number of reasons, we have not been as well-traveled as we would like to be at this point in our lives. Needless to say, Kristen's Celiac diagnosis has us very concerned in this regard. Obviously, we will be fine traveling to other cities around the US, but what about Europe? Asia? How accommodating are restaurants in other countries? What about countries that do not have the health infrastructure that richer countries do? Does anybody have any experience with this or a good reference source?

Hittin' the Road

As much as all of us love Columbus, occasionally people do venture out to other places. If you have family or friends near Youngstown or are simply looking for a roadtrip, Nancy Bowser passed along this gem. Ferrara's Restaurant has a huge gluten free menu! It also does not look like one to be missed with items like Calzone's, Pizza, Ravioli and much more which all sound delicious.

Bob and I may be making a bit of a detour next time we head to Pittsburgh. If anyone goes feel free to share your experience with us!

http://www.ferraraatasteofitaly.com/

Enjoy and thanks Nancy!

If you have a great tip, feel free to pass it along. We are happy to share it with others.

Gluten-free day at Whole Foods Dublin

Sometimes it is amazing how well things work out. Kristen was preparing to go gluten free in a week and we were stressing out about what to buy, what to cook, etc. Fortuitously, Whole Foods Dublin had a "gluten-free" day the Saturday between Kristen's decision to do a gluten-free trial and actually going gluten-free. All of their food samples were gluten-free and there was a presentation and a store tour. They had a number of recipes out, including a wonderful recipe for gluten-free fried tilapia (reprinted below). During the presentation, Gluten intolerance and Celiac Disease was explained in greater detail. It was probably too basic for most of the audience, but it was very helpful for Kristen and I. We also found the tour to be very helpful. We learned where to find gluten-free foods and what to look for on labels. We were also able to sample many prepared foods, such as cookies, crackers and pretzels. They actually have a dedicated gluten-free section in the front of the store, which makes shopping much easier! According to our guide, Whole Foods is working on a ready made gluten free pizza crust. All in all, it was a great way to be introduced to a gluten-free lifestyle.

Gluten-free Fried Tilapia

Ingredients:

1 lb. Tilapia filets
1 cup Pamela's gluten-free pancake and baking mix
1/2 - 3/4 cup club soda
Safflower oil

heat oil until it shimmers in deep skillet
Cut fillets into 2-3 inch strips
Mix baking mix and 1/2 cup club soda in a flat dish
Add additional soda until the batter is the consistency of whipped cream
Cover all sides of fish with the batter
Fry fish until golden brown on all sides
Drain onto paper towels
Enjoy!

In the mood for tapas...

Bob and I decided to move from Downtown Chicago to Evanston, Illinois during his last year in law school. There we found a fantastic tapas place that was not only tasty but a bargain. While I still miss that place, I was quite excited when I found out that Barrio, a new tapas place downtown on High Street, would be opening. A few weeks ago, we finally ventured to Barrio on a Saturday night. In full disclosure, this was my first restaurant experience since going gluten free and I was very nervous about the whole situation. Bob knew this and emailed Barrio a week beforehand to see if they could accommodate me. They responded that they could and many of their items would be fine for me to order. The reservation was made and off we went.

The server was very helpful and not only went to check on what dishes I could eat, he even stated that he would double check with the chef on anything I ordered. I was able to order almost all of the cold tapas plates and many of the hot plates. After choosing a few dishes we enjoyed their delicious Sangria. I must say that while everything we had was tasty, I could eat their bacon wrapped dates all day and night. Overall, the staff were very polite and accommodating throughout the entire process and they seem happy to answer questions.

While not quite the affordable haven of my beloved Evanston tapas joint, Barrio does help fill the void.

For more information, feel free to visit their website: http://www.barriotapas.com/

-Kristen

Earth Day on the farm

Kristen and I are members of a Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA) program run by 2silos farm in Mt. Gilead, Ohio. Today, Denise, the proprietor of the farm was nice enough to invite us and the other shareholders to an Earth Day open house and "meet our meat," so to speak. A CSA is a great way to get farm-fresh vegetables and meats, which is the easiest way to access unprocessed, gluten free foods. In addition to the meat and veggies, some CSAs even include items like eggs and honey. For a run-down of the business model for CSAs and advantages, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community-supported_agriculture or http://www.localharvest.org/csa/. To see if there are and CSAs available in your area, check http://www.localharvest.org/store/local-csa.jsp.

Introduction

Hello! We are Kristen and Bob. Recently Kristen was diagnosed with Celiac Disease and we are venturing into the world of gluten free living!

Our goal is to update about our finds: local restaurants that accommodate, products we have found and even some recipes that sound good. While we still encourage everyone who cannot eat gluten to do research or talk to their server, chef, etc... we just hope to make the whole process a little easier. Also, we welcome tips and advice so feel free to pass something along and we will make sure others can read about it.

In the meantime, here is a gluten free chocolate cake recipe we want to try out next weekend!
http://tiny.cc/ereWP