Gluten Free Restaurants

[Coach]

So my girlfriend is a celiac (which means she cant eat gluten) and wondering if CP knows any places that are not necessarily gluten free, but good about doing it. We've been to Sorantinos which does gluten free pasta and its awesome, but would like to find some place new. We dont go to Earls anymore because they basically told us that they wouldnt clean their grill for her to eat because they were to busy so i told them where to go and we left. But ya help would be awesome!

[red sky]

I have seen signs at Primal Grounds that they offer Gluten Free choices, although it is a cafe I have heard they have really tasty food:

http://www.primalgrounds.com/menu.htm

At the bottom it has gluten free choices. Good luck!

[Coach]

^^^ ya ive driven by that place a few times and wondered about it....Thanks!

[HockeyPuck]

My wife is celiac and we've eaten at Tasty Menu. It's on 17th Avenue SE, I don't remember the actual address, but the area isn't exactly the ritziest....

Tasty Menu is great - I take the wife there whenever she gets a hankering for pizza - They make a thin crust pizza, which I think is excellent - the crust doesn't taste like chalk... Also, they make some pretty good desserts - I had the chocolate cake one time, and I really couldn't tell that the cake was gluten free. Plus the prices aren't that expensive, so you could have a pretty good meal for two for under $30.

They have a website:

http://www.atastymenu.ca/

[DFO]

http://www.atastymenu.ca/index.html

ahhh, got beat to it....

[red sky]

A quick check on Google populated this:

http://www.debdebdeb.com/celiacdb/restaurants

A tad outdated but you can always take her to Burger King if other options don't pan out

[Coach]

the lakeview bakery is AWESOME....cant even tell the difference. HATE the Coup. we went there early on in our relationship and i didnt say anthing til later....but i almost puked at that place

[HockeyPuck]

Also forgot to add that Chianti's has Gluten free options as well.

Oh, and Bolero's is safe for celiac's too. A bit pricey, but great food. Make sure you bring your eatin' pants though...

[Tower]

Vietnamese restaurants always are a good cheap option. I can't have wheat (but I can have gluten) and I go there a lot... All rice all the time...

[Tower]

Also forgot to add that Chianti's has Gluten free options as well.

Oh, and Bolero's is safe for celiac's too. A bit pricey, but great food. Make sure you bring your eatin' pants though...

Chianti's does not know how to cook rice pasta... Steam it don't boil!!!!

[Coach]

Chianti's does not know how to cook rice pasta... Steam it don't boil!!!!
really? does that make a pretty big difference?

[HockeyPuck]

Chianti's does not know how to cook rice pasta... Steam it don't boil!!!!

Hmm. My wife never said anything, but then again, she doesn't really have high expectations for gluten-free food anyways.

[Regulator75]

Swiss Chalet chicken and fries is Gluten free. Joey's on Barlow and 32nd has a gluten free menu.

Even the batter at Joey's only Seafood is gluten free. They use a rice batter for their fish, so go nuts order all you want. ;)

I too suffer miserably from this intolerance / allergy.

[HockeyPuck]

Matty, depending on your fast food tolerance, sometimes my wife gets a craving for fries - So I can take her to Wendy's, Mcdonald's, or whatever - we just have to make sure that the fries were cooked in a separate oil vat than other breaded fatty foods.... mmmm... grease....

[Tower]

really? does that make a pretty big difference?
Only those thin angel hair pastas. I buy the brown rice pasta for myself. A lot healthier then the regular rice pasta. You boil that stuff.

[Coach]

Matty, depending on your fast food tolerance, sometimes my wife gets a craving for fries - So I can take her to Wendy's, Mcdonald's, or whatever - we just have to make sure that the fries were cooked in a separate oil vat than other breaded fatty foods.... mmmm... grease....
Ya i know....actually apparrently (according to my gf) Macdonald's is the only one guaranteed to cook their fries in seperate oil than the chicken fingers, nuggets etc.

[Locke]

What have you got against Gluten? You're just an Anti-Glutite. One day, they'll build camps to hold your kind. Camps with cages. Cages and ovens. Ovens to bake Gluten into everything and force you and your kind to eat it!

WTF is Gluten anyway? Sounds like ass juice.

;)

[Dan02]

a protien(i think) in wheat.

[Coach]

What have you got against Gluten? You're just an Anti-Glutite. One day, they'll build camps to hold your kind. Camps with cages. Cages and ovens. Ovens to bake Gluten into everything and force you and your kind to eat it!

WTF is Gluten anyway? Sounds like ass juice.

;)
I'm not sure this was completely sarcastic or not so Ill just say it. This isnt a choice my gf made. She has celiac disease which basically means if she continues to eat gluten she wont be able to absorb nutrients and eventually die of malnutrition.

[metallicat]

I'm sure Locke was just joking.

My dad is a recently diagnosed celiac, and when looking around for a restaurant in which to get him a gift certificate, I was surprised with how many offered gluten free foods. I'm sure you've done it, but it can't hurt to call any place that you want to eat at, and ask them if they offer a gluten free menu.

Some food for thought (no pun intended), apparently something like 1 in every 100 some of us will have celiac disease, but only 1 in 3000 or so people know thy have it.

[red sky]

Locke doesn't use green font to indicate whether he is trying to be sarcastic, it is just a given. At this point, Locke should actually be using green font when he is being serious.

[Coach]

I'm sure Locke was just joking.

My dad is a recently diagnosed celiac, and when looking around for a restaurant in which to get him a gift certificate, I was surprised with how many offered gluten free foods. I'm sure you've done it, but it can't hurt to call any place that you want to eat at, and ask them if they offer a gluten free menu.

Some food for thought (no pun intended), apparently something like 1 in every 100 some of us will have celiac disease, but only 1 in 3000 or so people know thy have it.
ya its really common....supposedly as humans we're not supposed to eat wheat because its hard to digest

[Ducay]

Ya, my fiancee's entire family has it, except her (thank god). The whole gluten-free thing is getting a lot better recently. Once the new packaging rules come into effect, itll be even easier for them (as all foods will have to be labelled if they contain gluten).
A lot of restaurants are starting to do GF as well.

Where they like:

-La Piccola Napoli , in Avenida (Bonavista). They used to go to Chianti's, but now they never go there after discovering the Gluten free options.


Also, people with Celiac's DON'T FORGET TO CLAIM IT ON YOUR TAXES.

[Bobblehead]

ya its really common....supposedly as humans we're not supposed to eat wheat because its hard to digest

I knew a guy in university who was diagnosed with it (around 1990) and had never heard about it before.

Then in the last 5 years I hear about all these gluten free foods and started wondering WTF. Now it is common?

[Ducay]

I knew a guy in university who was diagnosed with it (around 1990) and had never heard about it before.

Then in the last 5 years I hear about all these gluten free foods and started wondering WTF. Now it is common?


I personally know at least 6 people who've been diagnosed within the last 5 years.
I think its more of a thing that people just live it with unknowingly and people are just starting to get tested for it; hence the huge surge in diagnosis.

[c.t.ner]

Wow. Crazy to see a little small community of Celiac afflicted people on the Calgary Puck network.

My girlfriend was self-diagnosed last year (January to be exact) with Celiac Disease. It's been one hell of a ride, filled with numerous trials and tribulations. I ahve grown to dispise Modified Corn Starch (which seems to be the thing that triggers all of this allergy)

We've found a slew of restaurants in town that have Celiac friendly menus. Here's some of the Gems. (Many have been mentioned already, but some have not)

- A Tasty Menu
- Chianti's (offers Gluten Free Pasta)
- The Coup
- Chili's (has a glutenfree menu)
- The Marda Loop Nellie's Caters to Celiacs
- Nectar in Inglewood
- Cheese Cake Cafe (has a dessert)
- Joey tomatos has a Gf menu

To top it off we recently launched a blog. www.glutastic.com (http://www.glutastic.com). My girlfriend writes it and it details her struggles with living with Celiac's disease in Calgary. She updates it every couple of days, with product reviews (BUY JUDY G's PIZZA), restaurant reviews and facts for people dealing with it and live with people with Celiac Disease.

We've been able to meet some cool people through it, including Judy G (maker of Judy G's Pizza).

Btw I'll give all you guys a tip who live with a celiac. There is a little bakery in cochrane called GF Passterrie in Cochrane (there's a link on glutastic) and it sells GF cupcakes with Bernard Callibeu icing choclate.

If you ever want to get in the good books, make the trip out there and purchase a half dozen.

You can thank me later. ;)

[Locke]

I think its a huge medical conspiracy to undermine the godlike power of the Canadian wheat board.

[SoCalFlamesFan]

I knew a guy in university who was diagnosed with it (around 1990) and had never heard about it before.

Then in the last 5 years I hear about all these gluten free foods and started wondering WTF. Now it is common?

Its pretty common. Some say its the most common genetic disorder. What's changed since the 1990's is the awareness of the problem. Also, over the last century wheat has been bred to contain more and more of the protein that causes the reaction, because it is also the protein that gives bread its elasticity. Wheat was bred to contain more of the protein simply because it was better for bakers etc. Another thing is that its often hard to diagnose as symptoms can vary wildly between people.

A scary thing is that some food products are now being experimented with to ADD gluten to them. Tomatoes are one such food. The idea is that this will extend the life of these products and make them less susceptible to bruising etc. Not helpful if you are a celiac or have problems with this allergen.

[SoCalFlamesFan]

As someone who was diagnosed as a Celiac almost 8 years ago and as someone who eats out often I can recommend a few places.

My fave is actually in Edmonton. Chinese is especially hard to eat out because soy sauce is such a common ingredient and most often is made from wheat instead of soy (fermenting both creates the same taste, and wheat is so much cheaper than soy)... So I recommend OPM in south Edmonton. It has a GF menu and the seven flavored beef might be the best thing in the world.

In Calgary I've had a lot of good experiences at the more expensive restaurants rather than the chains such as Earls. These places usually have great chefs and pride themselves on good service. My favorites amongst these categories where they've been very helpful include: River Cafe, Muriettas, Mercado, Catch,

Vietnamese is great although be careful to avoid anything that might contain soy sauce or ingredients such as spring rolls.

I love sushi, which like vietnamese is mostly GF, again avoiding soy sauce or anything with tempura (although you should ask as some restaurants might use only rice flour).

If you like Indian there are a lot of restaurants that make their curries without flour (used as a thickener in some).. my fave is Maurya in Kensington. Rajdoot on 4th Street is also great.

I also love eating at the King and I where the manager, staff and kitchen are very helpful and many of the Thai dishes are naturally GF. Great for lunch during the week although it can be very busy.

One of the things that help me when eating out is learning a lot of the basics of cooking.. so I know to avoid certain foods that contain gluten where it is not obvious, like the soy sauce, or sauces and gravies in general.

Calgary Celiac Society has this great link:

http://www.debdebdeb.com/celiacdb/restaurants/calgaryceliac.html

[Dan02]

My fave is actually in Edmonton. Chinese is especially hard to eat out because soy sauce is such a common ingredient and most often is made from wheat instead of soy (fermenting both creates the same taste, and wheat is so much cheaper than soy)... So I recommend OPM in south Edmonton. It has a GF menu and the seven flavored beef might be the best thing in the world.

I love sushi, which like vietnamese is mostly GF, again avoiding soy sauce

Couldn't you bring your own actual soy, soy sauce?

[Coach]

wow c.t.ner that's awesome for you guys, and very helpful. Its just that its very annoying to eat out especailly for her to have to explain it to every waiter/waitress. Its nice to just know that something is gluten free and not always have to order the patented "greek salad". And thanks for the hint on the cupcakes. She LOVES cupcakes and misses having crave so bad. Its a good thing I live west of the city, driving to Cochrane is actually closer than most places in the city. Everyone has been very helpful...keep the ideas coming! Always trust CP

[SoCalFlamesFan]

Couldn't you bring your own actual soy, soy sauce?

You can. I used to do this when going to sushi. Now I've got used to it without.

Also - if you ever travel to the US (or live there) - try Red Bridge beer - made by Anheuser Busch. www.redbridgebeer.com I'm drinking it right now watching the Flames v. Montreal.

In Canada you can try La Messagère... I've bought it all over town though watch for the expiry dates.

[c.t.ner]

Its just that its very annoying to eat out especailly for her to have to explain it to every waiter/waitress. Its nice to just know that something is gluten free and not always have to order the patented "greek salad".

I know how you feel. The worst is when you go to a restaurant, the staff assure you it's gluten free and then the accidentally poison your meal. You might as well just quarantine our table and put a giant SARS sticker on my girlfriend's head, because the level of service just insta-plummets.

And thanks for the hint on the cupcakes. She LOVES cupcakes and misses having crave so bad. Its a good thing I live west of the city, driving to Cochrane is actually closer than most places in the city. Everyone has been very helpful...keep the ideas coming! Always trust CP

No worries man.

My girlfriend loved Crave cupcakes and almost celebrated her birthday with a Crave cupcake, but realized she would be upchucking it before finishing the icing. So she wnet nuts when she found GF Pastisserie. (they also have a slew of other products)

http://www.gfpatisserie.com/

[Tower]

Couldn't you bring your own actual soy, soy sauce?

Believe it or not Safeway brand soy sauce is wheat free!!! And yes you can bring it into a restaurant!

[Regulator75]

^^^^^^^^^^
So is VH brand soy sauce.

[c.t.ner]

A scary thing is that some food products are now being experimented with to ADD gluten to them. Tomatoes are one such food. The idea is that this will extend the life of these products and make them less susceptible to bruising etc. Not helpful if you are a celiac or have problems with this allergen.

That is unfortunate, but very informative news. This will just make organic food that much more important to our diet and that much more of expense. Thank god for the tax deduction/relief.

[Regulator75]

Oriental Palace in Parkdale has many Gluten free menu items, it's nice to have Chinese food options again.

http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=9+Parkdale+Cresent+NW,+Calgary,+AB&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=26.510788,56.601563&ie=UTF8&ll=51.059024,-114.136426&spn=0.006298,0.013819&z=16&iwloc=r0

I believe the long time owners may be Celiac as over 60% of the menu can be made Gluten free.

I have been there twice and the food was Gluten free food was excellent.


(http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=9+Parkdale+Cresent+NW,+Calgary,+AB&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=26.510788,56.601563&ie=UTF8&ll=51.059024,-114.136426&spn=0.006298,0.013819&z=16&iwloc=r0)

[c.t.ner]

I posted this in the iPhone apps thread, but might find it intresting for others. My fiancee stumbled upon a new iPhone app for Celiacs called - is that GLUTEN FREE? (her post about it is here (http://www.glutastic.com/too-fancy-for-my-pants/))

Anyways, i'm sure there are some iPhone people who could use this app. Here's the link that gives a bit more fo a review. http://glutenfreepost.com/?p=1462

[TheSutterDynasty]

Bumping this old thread - does anyone have any current / updated suggestions for a nice gluten-free restaurant? (Or a nice restaurant with a good gluten-free menu)?

[blankall]

Milestones has a descent sized Gluten Free menu:

http://www.milestonesrestaurants.com/gluten_free.php

[Yellefan]

What kind of restaurant are you looking for? My wife is Celiac and we have tried a lot of them. Here are a few of her favorites:

Una Pizza
Clive Burger
Blue Star Diner
Dairy Lane
Diner Deluxe
Without Papers Pizza
Revolution YYC (Pizza)

[Lil Pedro]

Avatara Pizza and Una on 17th are your options if your gf is in the mood for pizza

[Yasa]

Toscano's on Heritage and Macleod (by the London Drugs and TD Bank) has gluten free options. The food there is great.

[FlamesFanInOilCountry]

I'm gonna bump up this old thread again... Do the last few replies still stand, guys? Anyone have some new suggestions? Anyone recommend a GF bakery? (My wife and I have struggled to find one).

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Yellow Door Bistro can do almost everything on the menu gluten free

[maverickstruth]

Notable (http://notabletherestaurant.ca) has really done a remarkable job with their gluten free menu -- to the point that the bulk of their regular menu items are prepared gluten free. Their executive chef has created a line of GF pasta that they use for all of their pasta dishes (whether on the 'regular' menu or not), and even things like their entire dessert menu other than the occasional feature item are GF.

I'm not sure how they are with cross-contamination issues but the level of awareness they've demonstrated in terms of transitioning almost their entire menu to GF suggests to me that they take it very seriously.

Plus, they're my favourite restaurant in the city, GF or not!

[iggy_oi]

I'm gonna bump up this old thread again... Do the last few replies still stand, guys? Anyone have some new suggestions? Anyone recommend a GF bakery? (My wife and I have struggled to find one).

Lakeview bakery is really good, there's one in lakeview and one in oakridge

[kermitology]

People food does a lot of GF stuff. The pizza crust at Without Papers as well as a couple of other pizza places is from there. They also do fresh baking I think.

http://peoplefood.ca/our-plan/

[taco.vidal]

Heaven on 17th.

https://heavenartisangf.ca

http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/15/1709939/restaurant/Uptown-17th-Ave/Heaven-Artisan-GF-Cuisine-Calgary

At Heaven Artisan GF Cuisine, we understand if that it can be difficult to dine out if you have serious food allergies, but people with Celiac disease are safe with us. Cross contamination isn't an issue because we are a dedicated facility.
As a local business, we believe in giving back to the great community we serve. We try to use as much local and organic ingredients and supplies as possible. Some of our suppliers include Poplar Bluff Farm, Care Bakery, Highwood Crossings Farm, Community Natural Foods, and Sysco.

[troutman]

Notable (http://notabletherestaurant.ca) has really done a remarkable job with their gluten free menu -- to the point that the bulk of their regular menu items are prepared gluten free. Their executive chef has created a line of GF pasta that they use for all of their pasta dishes (whether on the 'regular' menu or not), and even things like their entire dessert menu other than the occasional feature item are GF.

I'm not sure how they are with cross-contamination issues but the level of awareness they've demonstrated in terms of transitioning almost their entire menu to GF suggests to me that they take it very seriously.

Plus, they're my favourite restaurant in the city, GF or not!

Notable is really limited for vegetarians and vegans though. Not unusual in Calgary.

[northcrunk]

As someone who was diagnosed as a Celiac almost 8 years ago and as someone who eats out often I can recommend a few places.

My fave is actually in Edmonton. Chinese is especially hard to eat out because soy sauce is such a common ingredient and most often is made from wheat instead of soy (fermenting both creates the same taste, and wheat is so much cheaper than soy)... So I recommend OPM in south Edmonton. It has a GF menu and the seven flavored beef might be the best thing in the world.

In Calgary I've had a lot of good experiences at the more expensive restaurants rather than the chains such as Earls. These places usually have great chefs and pride themselves on good service. My favorites amongst these categories where they've been very helpful include: River Cafe, Muriettas, Mercado, Catch,

Vietnamese is great although be careful to avoid anything that might contain soy sauce or ingredients such as spring rolls.

I love sushi, which like vietnamese is mostly GF, again avoiding soy sauce or anything with tempura (although you should ask as some restaurants might use only rice flour).

If you like Indian there are a lot of restaurants that make their curries without flour (used as a thickener in some).. my fave is Maurya in Kensington. Rajdoot on 4th Street is also great.

I also love eating at the King and I where the manager, staff and kitchen are very helpful and many of the Thai dishes are naturally GF. Great for lunch during the week although it can be very busy.

One of the things that help me when eating out is learning a lot of the basics of cooking.. so I know to avoid certain foods that contain gluten where it is not obvious, like the soy sauce, or sauces and gravies in general.

Calgary Celiac Society has this great link:

http://www.debdebdeb.com/celiacdb/restaurants/calgaryceliac.html

You shouldn't go to any indian resteraunt that uses flour in their curry. Curry should get it's thickness from the onions carmelizing properly, not being lazy and adding flour. +1 for Rajdoot, it's owned by family friends and their food is great.

[cancer man]

http://www.lifemadedelicious.ca/recipe-categories/special-diet/gluten%20free?gclid=CPnluabIg74CFdKGfgodzkYA-A

[homestand]

I'm gonna bump up this old thread again... Do the last few replies still stand, guys? Anyone have some new suggestions? Anyone recommend a GF bakery? (My wife and I have struggled to find one).

http://www.earthsoven.com/ (http://www.earthsoven.com/)

[malcolmk14]

Old bump!

I've just recently been diagnosed with celiac disease. I really appreciate some of the suggestions made in this thread. For my personal life and cooking, I'm not that worried about the change. It's eating out with friends and social events that are going to be a pain in the ass.

Anyway, anyone have any new/up-to-date suggestions for places that are good for celiac people??

[Coach]

Old bump!

I've just recently been diagnosed with celiac disease. I really appreciate some of the suggestions made in this thread. For my personal life and cooking, I'm not that worried about the change. It's eating out with friends and social events that are going to be a pain in the ass.

Anyway, anyone have any new/up-to-date suggestions for places that are good for celiac people??

Honestly seems way easier now. It's pretty incredible how fast it's changed. Most places seem to have gluten-free options, and if not, people at least know what it is and that it's a thing. The having to explain what it was to every single server was the frustrating thing for the old GF. Hunger brought her to tears one night because we were late for a show so didn't have to to go out for food, but there was nothing she could eat in the vicinity, so we got a couple bags of chips from a convenience store and went to a play.

Couldn't enjoy the play because we were both starved. We went to Joey's Eau Claire afterwards and they seated us right by the kitchen, so we got to see all the food go by. All she was able to have was grilled chicken with veggies (as per usual) and all she wanted in the world was a burger and fries. She just broke down as soon as her food came about how sick she was of eating the same crappy stuff over and over, and having to frustratingly explain that she can't have toast on top of her chicken caesar salad, and it showing up anyways.

So that was the celiac situation in 2008. I had never heard of it before meeting her. Now every grocery store has entire aisles dedicated to this stuff, and almost anywhere you go has gluten-free options, even bakeries. The quality of options has skyrocketted. Plus, there are some interesting alternatives that you'd never discover other-wise (Spaghetti Squash and meat sauce FTW!).

I know there are a lot of knobs that cling to this stuff as a fad, but I can appreciate that the fad has a significant positive impact on the lives of a lot of people.

[Fuzz]

I was diagnosed about 5 years ago, and I've been in the situation MattyC described. Usually happens while travelling when you don't care what you eat, you just want something satisfying so you can get on with the day.

What part of the city are you in? Their are lots of restaurants these days, so it isn't to big an issue.

Unfortunately we had at one time, 3 dedicated gluten free stores and they are all closed. You can get most stuff at grocery stores, but the dedicated shops were a treat to go to as you didn't have to read labels. Fortunately the new regulations make it easier to spot hidden gluten. If you need any recipes, let me know. I've made a few of mine own for things like pizza, waffles, etc that are better than anything I found online.

[malcolmk14]

Thanks! I'm in Rosscarrock, just west of Westbrook Mall.

[Fuzz]

I'm not to familiar with what is around there, I'm up by McKnight and 4th st NW. On 17th their is Heaven, The Big Cheese Poutinerie, and Clive Burger. Beer Revolution has decent pizzas, as does the Blind Monk. Double Zero in the Core, Palomino, Pig and Duke...lots of options.

If you need fast food travelling, New York Fries poutine is GF, and I'll often bring a bun with me if I know McDonalds is the only option. Just order no bun and the burgers and fries are GF.

[Arsenal14]

Thanks! I'm in Rosscarrock, just west of Westbrook Mall.

My wife's cousin lives in that area and is celiac. Her go-to takeout options are Avatara Pizza (http://www.avatarapizza.com/) and Oriental Palace (http://orientalpalace.blogspot.ca/), both in Parkdale. I wouldn't say they're the best pizza/Chinese restaurants in the city, but for gluten-free they're pretty good.