Gluten-Free Tip: NYC Shout Outs!

Just returned from NYC and had two amazing GF dining experiences…both worth a weekend trip to Manhattan!

Between 61st and 62nd at Lexington is LILLI AND LOO (http://www.lilliandloo.com/) who serve Asian cuisine including fantastic sushi. Best of all they have an extensive (yes, much more than the usual 5 choices) GF menu which includes mouthwatering GF pork dumplings! Very reasonably priced as well.

The other fabulous experience was Risotteria (http://www.risotteria.com/) in the West Village located at 270 Bleecker St. Of course, this is one of the most well-known GF restaurants in the country (appearing on most GF blogs), but I had never had the opportunity to visit until this past Sunday. Wow. Delicious, salty homemade breadsticks, excellent GF dressings for fresh salads, authentic Italian thin crisp pizzas with pureed olives or pesto, and they have GF Panini sandwiches! Purely Italian and wonderful ambiance. Desserts (including yummy cupcakes) too! And what a location to take a stroll after dinner and work off all those courses.

Gluten-Free Tip: FAST FOOD

We rarely eat at fast food restaurants, but for those times when we're desperately hungry and in a huge hurry we veer off the road and into the drive-thru a couple times a year. Our vote for the best GF fast food restaurant is Wendy's. In fact I keep a copy of their GF menu in the car for those quick fixes. Go to www.wendys.com, then click on "Food" and next "Nutrition Facts". On that page, under "Nutrition Topics," you will see "Menu Items Without Gluten" on right column which you can print out to have on hand. For a fast food joint Wendy's has a pretty good GF variety from their Taco Salad to their Bacon & Cheese Baked Potato...filled with salt, fat, and calories, but isn't that the point of fast food?

Gluten-Free Tip: CROSS CONTAMINATION

Cross-contamination occurs when gluten inadvertently gets on your gluten-free food. It can happen when your silverware drawer fills up with household crumbs or if you share condiments with wheat-eaters. Many gluten-free followers assume the salad bar is safe, but I recently stood behind someone who used the crouton tongs for every other item she dished onto her plate. So when using the communal tongs, make sure you wipe them first with a clean napkin and dig down to the bottom of the lettuce!