Gluten free pizza at Ciao!, Eastchester, New York

So maybe it was a touch of serendipity... a co-worker of mine happened to notice an ad in a local Westchester newspaper recently and brought it to my attention. It was an ad for gluten free pizza- eat in or take out. I grabbed the paper, made a copy and waited with growing anticipation for Rob to come home. It was a Friday and when he saw it, we both ran to the car and drove to Ciao!

After we were seated, I harbored a bit of doubt that the ad might have been misleading and a gluten free pizza really didn't exist- so I was just elated when Rob asked for the gluten free menu and voila - it appeared by our courteous waiter!

Immediately Rob decided on the gluten free pizza with sausage, onion, garlic and spinach. While waiting we enjoyed an endive salad filled with tasty tomatoes, roasted red peppers and Gorgonzola. Happily the gluten free pizza arrived quickly and we set to work.

Yum yum- Ciao! created a delicious pizza with succulent sausage seasoned perfectly with just enough anise and spice. There were huge cloves of garlic which I couldn't ingest all of- and crunchy onions. Okay so I picked the spinach and perhaps it wasn't the best choice as it detracted from the onions and garlic and sausage- but you know I'm always trying to hide the veggies!

So scrumptious is all I can say. The crust definitely had the tell-tale gluten free flavor- but hey at least we were secure in what we were eating; it did have a nice texture and crisp crust- and surprisingly held the weight of the toppings without collapsing into a soggy mess on the plate which has been known to happen with rice-based creations.

I think Ciao will become our new home away from home... you can't imagine how thrilling it is to have found a restaurant offering Rob's favorite... Gluten free pizza yes!!


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Legal Seafood

Having celiac certainly has its challenges- eating out is high on our list. Lately we just aren't sure if what we're ordering is actually gluten free and with stressed out waitstaff- you never know- unless of course you happen to have a Legal Sea Foods near you. Though we did do a review of L.S. a year ago here's another one. We are thrilled to report another exceptional gluten free dining experience.

Upon arrival Rob asked for the gluten free menu, which the maitre d' gladly handed over after a bit of shuffling. Once seated Rob salivated over the multitude of celiac-safe choices.

We started with mojitos, corn meal calamari and oysters. One of the waiters quickly let us know that the cocktail sauce was not gluten free, but assured us that the mignonette sauce would be.
Next up was a delicious salad filled with avocado, greens, tomatoes, and gluten free croûtons. It was a delight. More than that though was the attention to our needs. Just after we were served the manager came to our table to explain that he personally saw to it that Rob's meal was gluten free using clean cookware. Wow! That's usually the problem in restaurants- you never know what kind of gluten contamination might be going on in the kitchen.

Of course all the attention made Rob's ears tinge with slight embarrassment. Deep down though I know he was relieved that the meal he just consumed was indeed gluten free.

Thank you Legal Sea Foods!!

Restaurant - Carlyle, Arlington, VA

So last week we had the chance to catch up with some good friends in Virginia. We decided on the Carlyle , located on 4000 South Arlington Street. As the weather was in our favor, we were lucky to be seated outside.

Rob first perused the menu then made the normal "what can you do that's gluten free" speech to the waiter. He went to check with the chef; meanwhile another wait-staffer offered Rob a gluten free menu. Rob needless to say was overjoyed at the thought of an actual celiac-safe dining selection. The only other time we've been so lucky is at Legal Seafoods or Risotteria.

At first glance there appeared to many enticing meals to choose from. Upon further inspection however, we noticed that the dinners were color coded with red being not gluten free; the green being "made with corn", and the blue being gluten free. Rob asked about the ribs which were supposed to be safe; it turns out the ribs were actually not safe for celiacs. Hmm. It caused us an inordinate amount of confusion. Rob finally suggested to the waiter that the Carlyle just print the gluten free items instead of peppering the menu with non-celiac-safe choices. At last we asked the waiter to check on the grilled shrimp and grits to make sure it was gluten free. Luckily for Rob, it was, especially as he was running out of choices.

When the gluten free shrimp and grits came out, we were ready to eat. Despite the bit of an ordeal we had ordering, Rob's dinner was very delicious. The shrimp were perfectly grilled and the grits were smooth as silk. We could have been in New Orleans! Great gluten-free food and friends, who can ask for more?

New Orleans Gluten Free Style

Gluten free in New Orleans? Yes it is entirely possible to obtain celiac-safe fare in the city that prides itself on beignets, po-boys and fried crawfish. On a recent trip to the great jazz and food capital, Rob and I had a terrific time navigating the French Quarter, the Garden District and the multitude of stop-you-in-your-tracks Cajun and Creole food.

Though I did say it’s possible to find gluten free meals, it’s not always easy in the Big Easy. Be forewarned that the majority of the casual/lunch establishments feature fried, breaded or roux-added specialties on the menu. We were most pleasantly surprised however by New Orleans hospitality and no matter where we went, the wait staff tried to accommodate our dietary needs.

On our first stroll out, we checked in for Hurricanes and corn-fried pickles. These were deliciously unexpected and tasty. Apparently any thing fried does indeed have a special culinary appeal! We should note, however, that though the pickles were corn-breaded, we’re fairly sure the same oil might have been used to fry the gluten menu items. We kept our fingers crossed and hoped for the best.

Next we tried out Red Fish Grill where we treated ourselves to raw oysters, baby green and shrimp salads, and black fish. We were extremely pleased and glad to be a part of the scene.

Café du Monde was on our must-do list if anything for the experience. It was a raucous and bustling place piled high with powdered sugar beignets. We opted for take-out café au laits and took a walk on the riverfront. Unfortunately for celiacs, Café du Monde offers only beignets, coffee, and hot chocolate. But we didn’t mind! Well Rob did, I did not!

Muriel’s was a charming, stylish restaurant with old world New Orleans flair. Bayona, also in the French Quarter was a true treat. I had a succulent dish of lamb, and Rob finished off the evening with a delectable crème brulee. Both restaurants were familiar with gluten-free requirements and definitely tried to provide a satisfying celiac friendly dining experience.

Lunch time found us at a casual eatery that didn’t have much in the way of gluten free. What we did have though was another round of fresh raw oysters, dirty rice and grilled vegetables. It was fair, though ironically a nice change of pace. We could actually walk out without feeling like our stomachs were about to explode from overeating!

On our last night, we gave Emeril Lagasse’s, NOLA a try. Were we ever glad we did! It was well worth the 40 minute wait. We were escorted to the 2^nd floor via elevator and seated in an intimate room. We feasted on fresh green salads with blackberries and pistachio crusted goat cheese, and grilled tilapia. The tilapia could have been spiced up more, but I believe the chefs were ensuring the dinner was absolutely celiac-safe.

We ended our evening with a melt-in-the-mouth crème brulee that was just dynamite.

Our farewell breakfast found us back at Café Beignet for southwestern omelets and roasted potato hash-browns. We highly recommend their coffee and chicory too.

So do go to New Orleans and have an absolute blast. Though you won’t be able to indulge in the beignets, po-boys, or muffalettas, there are certainly plenty of other dishes that are available to gluten-free seekers. If worse comes to worse, you can always stroll down Bourbon Street with a tall Hurricane in hand!

Beer: Redbridge

My wife and I dined at Risotteria in NYC last night and as I asked for a gluten-free beer with my gluten-free meatball pizza the server mentioned they had Redbridge.

What a coincidence. I just blogged about it's release yesterday, I never expected it to be in the market so soon.

I've tried two other celiac safe beers, Bard's Tale and Ramapo. I would say that Redbridge is my favorite, but I must make the disclaimer that I've never drank regular beer - I have no idea if it is actually like the real thing.

My wife tried some and said it was lighter in texture than a Samuel Adams but the taste was similar. My fraternity brother dining with us thought it tasted good, but not that good.

Please try it out for yourself and let us know.

Happy Holidays!

Baltimore Restaurant - Legal Seafoods

My wife and I dined at Legal Seafoods last night to celebrate a job change. LS has a great gluten-free menu which makes it easy for Celiacs to order.

Appetizers:
We shared an order of fried calamari for an appetizer. They were prepared in an egg wash with corn meal. I've never had real calamari so there is no comparison, but it tasted great. My wife said it was better than real calamari because it was crisp and not oily at all. Light as opposed to heavy.

Main Course:
I had garlic shrimp with brown rice, it was great. Just the right amount of spice.

Overall both Diana and I would highly recommend Legal Seafoods. As a celiac dining out, having a dedicated menu with "normal" food on it is a wonderful thing.

NYC Restaurant - Risotteria

Risotteria
270 Bleecker Street
New York, NY 10014
212-924-6664
www.risotteria.com

My wife and I recently made it over to Risotteria for dinner after hearing about it for a long time. It's a nice corner restaurant, which means the seating is minimal and packed in.

Who cares?

They've got a menu that has almost everything available in a gluten-free version. That might not sound like much, but this is an Italian restaurant.

We were hungry, so we ordered three entrees.

1. Arborio rigotti (w/ calamari, roasted red peppers & olives) $12.25 - Diana wasn't blown away by this dish. She's wondering if it was just the unusual ingredients (calamari). Next time she'll try something else.
   
2. Panini (w/ Italian sausage, mozzarella, peppers & olives) $13.25 - This sandwich was AWESOME - I've always been jealous since I've missed out on the grilled sandwich fad. Not this time! The sausage was sliced thinly making the sandwich easy to eat.
   
3. Olive Puree Pizza (w/ soppressata, mozzarella & hot peppers) $12.75 - This was ok, I think the problem was the fact that I ate the entire pie and that's a lot of olive paste to eat. The soppressata was so thinly sliced, I was reminded of the Seinfeld episode with the meat slicer. I'm looking forward to ordering a regular pizza next time I visit. The crust was nice and thin with great texture.

Overall Rating: FIVE STARS - Both of us were very impressed with the menu and the food. We just need to explore more. There was nothing terrible, just two entrees that weren't our favorites.

If you have celiac you must visit Risotteria.