Thanks Whole Foods

I can't believe it has almost been a month since I last posted. But in that time I have been having fun with my parents who visited and a trip to Las Vegas. Las Vegas was surprisingly easy to eat gluten-free. Of course the one day we ate at the buffet helped because there are lots of options on a buffet. Pei Wei (off-strip in Henderson) was an easy choice too. Starbucks in the hotel offered its oatmeal for breakfast. I only ate wheat once and that was when we went to our favorite Italian place called Chicago Joe's. It is meals like that one that make me really appreciate the fact that I am only wheat intolerant, not a celiac.

I also have been enjoying Rudi's new gluten-free breads, especially the cinnamon raisin. And now I hear that Udi's is coming out with a cinnamon raisin bagel. Yum! But the advent of all of the really decent (in fact good) gluten-free products makes me wonder why more restaurants aren't offering them? I heard a rumor that Einstein Bagel's is going to offer Udi's gluten-free bagels. And thankfully the Belmar Whole Foods is now offering Udi's gluten-free bread for their deli sandwiches (see a previous post about that one).

But seriously, how hard is it to keep a loaf of gluten-free bread in a freezer? Or have some rice pasta available to cook up instead of regular pasta? All it requires is a separate pot of boiling water. It might cost the restaurant a little more than traditional products but suck it up. We will likely be dining with "normal" eaters and if you treat us well we will be back again and again.

And that brings me to my last little nugget of information. While Abrusci's in Applewood has a great gluten-free menu here is a bit of a warning. On a recent visit for lunch I found out that they are no longer offering gluten-free eggplant parmesan at lunch, only dinner. The eggplant sandwich was one of my favorite lunches. Also, the day I was there, they had run out of their yummy gluten-free bread. We ended up leaving as the two things I like to order when I go there weren't available. It was disappointing. Maybe call first before you make the trip.