Gluten Free Davos, Switzerland

Davos, Switzerland

I recently visited Davos, Switzerland on a business trip and learned many people are not aware of coeliac disease there. Since I was on a business trip, I was quite busy so didn’t get to go out much, but the few times I did, I was not impressed. Since I stayed in a flat, I took things into my own hands.

As I carried around my German, Italian and French gluten free cards, I struggled to find restaurants and staff that were helpful. I went out one evening and had a chicken dish with vegetables and a sauce and I still felt very sick the next day.

Gluten free bread and cheese fondue

Like I mentioned earlier, since I was on a business trip, one night we had a working dinner. I had let the event planners know about my condition and they had organized my own separate cheese fondue with cheese, gluten free bread and potatoes! That was a nice experience because I had never had a fondue. And boy do I love cheese. If you do go to Switzerland you must experience the fondue – bring your own bread to the restaurant and make it happen!

Also, visiting grocery stores near my flat, I realized there wasn’t one gluten free dedicated section like I’m used to. However, when I showed my gluten free card to

Gluten free pasta shells and tomato sauce

an employee at EuroSpar she actually went and got a long list of products that were gluten free. So she had helped me find things I could have. I had brought gluten free pasta from home, so one night I had boiled some and bought some pasta sauce! Delicious!

My last night there, my colleagues and I went to Ochsen restaurant. I showed my gluten free card to her and she’s like “O I know! I have coeliac too.” That made it a lot easier to order and she was very helpful. Since she also suffers from it, she made sure the kitchen staff was helpful. So if you enjoy steakhouses, stop by this restaurant for sure.

Overall, when eating out in Switzerland it’s quite hard to be safe from contamination and just enjoying a decent gluten free meal when you’re at a restaurant. However, if you are staying in a flat, it is a bit more manageable.

Starbucks Gingerbread Lattes ARE Gluten Free

I think what made my holiday season even more special is finding out that Starbucks ginger bread lattes are gluten free! I was so thrilled! I had asked earlier that week to one of the non-coeliacs and he had said not to put the nutmeg topping and that would make it gluten free. BUT I go to a Starbucks that has three coeliacs working there and they ensured me it was gluten free. I had avoided them all last year because I read on forums that the gingerbread latte was not gluten free. Wanted to share the news as soon as I found out! When three Starbucks Coeliac Baristas say they are gluten free then they 100% are. Woohoo!

Go grab one today :) and Happy Holidays!

Betty Crocker Gluten Free Cakes, Brownies and Cookies

You give up a lot of yummy foods when you have coeliac disease. You don’t have many desserts, can’t enjoy other people’s birthday cakes, or just go to any old store and pick up a cake or a brownie. I think the hardest thing for me is watching everyone else have some and I sit there with my mouth watering! It’s hard and no one else really gets it except other coeliacs...

My Mom knows how much I love all that sweet stuff, so when she came to visit from the U.S. she brought me Betty Crocker yellow cake mix. So one weekend I was really craving cake. I decided to look on Betty Crocker’s website and I was surprised to find a part of her website dedicated to gluten free products and recipes!

I saw a quick and easy recipe for Betty Crocker’s Carrot Cake and decided to give it a try! It was delicious! The rest of my family also couldn’t believe it was gluten free. If you spot Betty Crocker gluten free products, I highly suggest you buy them. I’ve also tried the brownies and cookies, they have also turned out great!

Hell Pizza - Delicious Gluten Free Pizza

I absolutely love pizza. Who doesn’t?! What I wouldn’t do to just be normal and order some Pizza Hut or Domino’s take out? Eh, well it’s not that easy anymore! But, like everything else, I’ve managed to deal.

I used to have pizza almost every week, now I’m lucky to have it once a month. When I do have pizza, I usually make it homemade. I buy the Sainsbury’s free from pizza crust, add sauce, spices, veggies and anything else I desire.

A few weeks back, my family and I went to HELL pizza. (Yes, I know, the name kind of throws you off) The atmosphere of the restaurant is quite Hellish… but the pizza is absolutely heavenly! I felt like I was eating normal pizza. It was simply amazing. There was so many different toppings on the menus and such a large selections. All the side sauces were also gluten free. It was delicious and I highly recommend it.

We spoke to the waiter and asked him where we could get the pizza bases because it would be great to make some homemade pizzas with them too. He says the gluten free pizza crusts are sent to them from New Zealand. He continued to tell us what a big global chain Hell Pizza is becoming and what a phenomenon there gluten free pizzas had become around the world. Make a visit :-)

Tennis Player Novak Djokovic Has Coeliac Disease

I read this article and it made me smile. Sometimes the best way to get facts out about certain diseases and conditions is through celebrities. Especially those that have it. Novak Djokovic, a tennis player, had undiagnosed coeliac disease. Once he started his gluten free diet he became an ultimate success on the tennis court. Reading articles like this makes me believe that you can live a somewhat normal life but also excel.

I’ve seen quite a few articles on this in various papers and websites – The Independent – Is a gluten-free diet behind Djokovic’s smash success? And The Wall Street Journal – Djokovic’s Gluten-Free Ascendancy

Take a read and let me know what you think.

Muffinska – Gluten Free Muffin Shop

My husband and I were walking around London’s Covent Garden one day and a muffin shop caught my eye -- Muffinska. I was looking at the sign and they said they had gluten free muffins available! I got very excited as usual, so we both made our way into the store.

They had four different flavors – blueberry and raspberry, white chocolate and raspberry, etc. I picked the blueberry and raspberry muffin. It felt quite hard, but most gluten free products are hard until they were warmed up. But I was excited to bring it to work for breakfast the next morning. A muffin instead of some fruit, or a bowl of gluten free cereal. I brought it to work and warmed it up and put some butter on it. The whole muffin turned into crumbles as soon as I cut it. It smelt awful -- as if it was gone off and the taste was even worse. My experience with muffinska gluten free muffins, wasn’t that great. Needless to say, I was left without breakfast that morning.

Wahaca -- Mexican Gluten Free Restaurant

HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO!!! This holiday in the U.S. and Mexico celebrates Mexican heritage and pride and to honor and celebrate the cause of freedom and democracy during the first years of the American Civil War.

So why not celebrate with some Mexican food?!? Mexican food may just be my favorite cuisine. I absolutely love it! One of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had as a coeliac so far is at Wahaca – Mexican market eating restaurant. It was amazing!

When we got there, we let our waiter know I had coeliac and to be aware of contamination. She was so lovely and explained that they have different parts of the kitchen where they prepared gluten free food, vegan food etc. and even had a different deep fryer. She also went through the menu with me and crossed off the items I should avoid because there is some sort of product with gluten in it. You can see the X outs in the photo! The whole meal, I kept telling my husband I felt so normal for once. I could order almost everything on the menu. I just couldn’t wipe the smile off my face :-)

I ordered several of the small street food dishes and absolutely stuffed my face. Even after the meal, I did not feel sick or bloated. I just felt like my stomach was going to ripe open from eating way to much!

There isn’t much else to say other than you will truly enjoy this dining experience.

Carluccio's Italian Restaurant - Gluten Free Lunch/Dinner Spot

A few days back my husband and I took a lovely day trip to Windsor Castle. As we were walking around, we saw Carluccio’s – an authentic Italia restaurant. I’ve had many friends mention there gluten free menu to me, but we’ve never had a chance to go! So as we walked by it, we thought this would be the perfect lunch for our perfect day out!

Carluccio’s gluten free menu had quite a few choices ranging from salads, to pasta, meat dishes and quite a few desserts! I ordered the Insalata di Mozzarella (without the focaccia bread), and for my main dish I ordered Penna Giardiniera –
pasta served with courgette, chilli, parmesan and garlic. Both were absolutely

delicious! They also give very good portions so you feel quite satisfied. I love pasta and have it quite often. I’m so thankful, that gluten free pasta is one of the food items that taste quite similar to normal pasta!

The service was also very good. The waiter was aware of the gluten free menu and the diet. I always tell restaurants please make sure there is no contamination. After the meal, I did not feel sick or get a bloated stomach. So I don’t think there was any contamination!

I give Carluccio’s two thumbs up and highly recommend it!

Leon's Restaurant - Gluten Free Lunch/Dinner Spot

Another super gluten free friendly lunch/dinner spot in central London is Leon. It has absolutely delicious foods and a lot of the items are gluten free, even some delicious desserts!

Leon is a mix of Mediterranean and Indian food. It has dishes ranging from the gluten free Leon Gobi to the grilled chicken with aioli sauce. They are also well balanced meals. With dishes like the gobi and grilled chicken you are also given brown rice with a side of fresh cole slaw. Yummy!

Leon also offers a few gluten free desserts that are just amazing and taste like normal desserts! The Better Brownie, Lemon Ginger Crunch and Deep Chocolate Tart and even a piece of Pecan pie!

The menu online has GF written next to it if it gluten free. My favorite bit is that even the menu at the actual restaurant has all the symbols next to each item to let you know if its gluten free, vegetarian, hearth healthy, etc. So when you are ordering you don't have to rack your brain thinking did the website say the hummous was gluten free?

The staff members I've asked questions to are very clued up on what has gluten and what doesn't and if they aren't sure of the answer they pull out a book and check. I have never felt sick from eating a Leon meal. I highly recommend it. There aren't that many locations in London, but wherever you are it's worth the trek!

Fire & Stone - Gluten Free Restaurant Review

Like I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, going out to eat can be such a chore at times. I try to avoid it, but sometimes can’t and don’t really want too. I miss eating out, anywhere, everywhere. For example, a few nights ago my husband’s high school friends got together for dinner. I really enjoy their company so I didn’t want to miss out. We went to Fire & Stone, a London pizza restaurant.

I called ahead of time and asked if they did gluten free pizzas and of course the answer was no. However, there was a BUT. They said if I brought in my own pizza base they could make me a pizza.

So I did just that. I gave them my base when I gave the order and my pizza came when the rest of the groups came. When it first arrived it was not cooked thoroughly. So I told them to take it back and cook it again for another 10 minutes. It came back and it was cooked. It was ok. The base went very hard, probably because it was cooked in a pizza oven. It was nearly impossible to
cut. I concluded that I prefer making my own pizza at home.

The manager came over earlier and told me they have cleaned the oven, but they cannot guarantee that there would be no contamination.

I felt a bit bloated after and in the morning I felt a bit sick. I should have had a salad, but of course I opted for taking a chance for a pizza. I think for my sanity, I just wanted to be a bit normal and just enjoy a pizza like everyone else! But I know I should have made the smarter decision. Ah well, no more Fire & Stone for me.