Crossed Grain

44 WWW.COELIAC.ORG.UK PEOPLE - TRAVEL Canada “Loads of choice for supermarket shopping and eating out, really love all the choices in Canada and have visited various places in British Columbia this year and found great food everywhere from big cities to small towns.” Ally “Was in Nova Scotia this year. Eating gluten free was no problem, all restaurants and fast food outlets were well informed and very helpful.” Christine “Whistler was amazingly off the scale fantastic, even the tiny take away pizza shop had gluten free bases. All restaurants and take away places were well informed, they changed gloves and cooked bread in different toaster. The supermarket had pasta too.” Janet Ready, set ski From the stateside slopes of Utah and Colorado to the snowy peaks of Innsbruck in Austria, and of course the magnificent Swiss Alps, smart research and preparation mean you won’t have to miss out on the après-ski fun. Austria “I’ve been to Mayrhofen a couple of times and it was no problem. I had a restaurant card with me and I also took some cereal and bread rolls and snacks. That way I could have breakfast and make sandwiches for lunches when up the mountain and then dinner was no problem.” Caireen “I contacted the Austrian Coeliac Society and they were very responsive. They sent me lots of local venues and translation tips to use.” Lisa “The best thing is to self cater. Larger supermarkets have good free from sections. Schär is the main gluten free brand but there are others too. If you are also lactose intolerant, the range is much better than in the UK.” Shan “It does vary where you go. We went to one lovely gasthof in the mountains where they were happy to make a proper gluten free Weiner Schnitzel; more usually they’d offer to do you one with no breadcrumbs. It was sometimes frustrating because bread is often part of a dish so an item (eg bratwurst/soup) may be listed as containing gluten when it’s only the accompanying bread which has gluten in. Most people under 30 speak good English though so you should be able to communicate effectively.” Sophy Switzerland “Menus in restaurants on the French side are easier than the German side for GF. Watch omelettes as some restaurants add a little flour to thicken as I found to my cost! Lot of good fresh food cooked simply available. There’s a good choice in Migros and Co-op (supermarkets) own restaurants for lunch. Always tell hotels when you book that you require gluten free meals. Take the German, French and Italian translation cards with you as these are the three main languages you might need on holiday.” Isabel “Ask for your fondue with potatoes. Raclette is a good option too. Migros and Co-op (supermarkets) have decent options when it comes to bread.” Jen USA “We downloaded an app called Find me gluten free which works all over North America. There were also delis on there as well as restaurants.” Naomi “Have visited lots of places and never had a problem, the West Coast were particularly good, restaurants were so accommodating, felt I had more options than in the UK.” Nia “Been to several states. Usually good options around but some loudly claim to be gluten free are utterly clueless about cross contamination. Grocery shops usually seem to have a reasonable range of GF.” @Cobnutlin Wheat is a major part of Austrian cuisine so you need to be careful and make sure you’re well prepared. Contact the Austrian Coeliac Society ahead of time, they should be able to offer you some tips that will help you plan your trip. Different ski resorts vary widely on their gluten free food offering. Make sure you do your research ahead of time and contact them in advance. When you’re out on the slopes, always pack a gluten free lunch just in case. In Canada awareness of gluten free is generally pretty good – in fact more than 60 fast food restaurants in the country have an online commitment* to meeting the needs of gluten free diners. However don’t forget that it’s still important to check about cross contamination and pack gluten free snacks, especially if you’re visiting areas outside the bigger towns and cities. Tip Tip Tip *Correct at the time of printing.