We’ve been to Bacchus before, pre-GF, so I expected a good meal. It was not very busy on a Saturday night, but it was rather loud. They don’t have a separate gluten-free menu, but our waiter was knowledgeable and said we could order most things and they could adapt them.  I’m always happy when a server is knowledgeable but it’s never true that you can order anything because some things like pasta or gnocchi are based on flour.

Potato skins

I started with potato skins which were filled with a Gorgonzola cream and topped with prosciutto. When the dish came the server told me they had to cut off the top of them since they were breaded. This works for me since I am gluten intolerant but if I had celiac it would have been a problem – and he had no way of knowing why I asked for it gluten free. It was good, but it wasn’t potato skins. There was nothing crispy happening on the plate. It was a nice twist on traditional potato skins though. My husband

mussels

got mussels which were good.

For the main course I ordered salmon which is supposed to come with a pecan crust, spinach and a sweet potato hash. The server told me the pecan crust had breadcrumbs so they would

salmon

prepare it without. It had a beurre blanc sauce that I was ready to argue about – often restaurants prepare sauces that should not have gluten with flour as a stabilizer. I was happily surprised that this beurre blance was made traditionally and had no gluten. My husband ordered the ribeye which was supposed to come with a Gorgonzola crust. The server said they would have to make it without since it had breadcrumbs. I suggested they just use some plain Gorgonzola instead, which they did (because otherwise it’s just a plain piece of meat). As always I’m frustrated when the response to a gluten-free diner is to just take things away without making reasonable replacements.

As usual, the only gluten-free dessert option was creme brulee so we passed.

The food was all good and I would again in the future.

Bacchus in Buffalo

We’ve been to Bacchus before, pre-GF, so I expected a good meal. It was not very busy on a Saturday night, but it was rather loud. They don’t have a separate gluten-free menu, but our waiter was knowledgeable and said we could order most things and they could adapt them.  I’m always happy when a … Read more

GF ebookTraveling when you are gluten-free can be challenging. Figuring where to eat, what you can eat (if you’re in another country), and how to find food on the go is tough. I’ve been traveling gluten free in the US and abroad for several years and I’ve taken everything I’ve learned and put it together in a great new ebook called The Gluten Free Guide to Travel. In it I cover:

  • How to find hotels that are gluten free friendly
  • Airline food
  • Communicating in another country
  • Researching restaurants
  • Finding gluten free local specialties
  • Gluten free tours and cruises
  • What food to pack
  • Where to buy GF food while on the go
  • How to get help finding places you can eat

This nicely priced ebook is being offered at an introductory price, so don’t miss out!

The Gluten Free Guide to Travel

Traveling when you are gluten-free can be challenging. Figuring where to eat, what you can eat (if you’re in another country), and how to find food on the go is tough. I’ve been traveling gluten free in the US and abroad for several years and I’ve taken everything I’ve learned and put it together in … Read more

Duffs1The old fashioned take on the best wings in Buffalo is the Anchor Bar. However, the new consensus is Duff’s. When President Obama came to town, he stopped here.  Duff’s fries their wings (and their French fries) in the same oil as onion rings and other gluten products, so if you can’t tolerate that, you should skip eating here (because it’s torture to watch others eating the wings you want!) and make your own wings at home (here’s my recipe). They do have salads and other GF items on the menu.

If you’re ok with the possibility of cross-contamination, the sauce and the wings do not contain added gluten. We had wings and fries on our recent visit to the Eastern Hills location- mild, medium and BBQ wings. All are delicious and come with a large dish of celery, carrots, and bleu cheese (check the label on the dressing for gluten – ours was fine).  The wings are huge and wonderfully crispy.  Duffs2

Duff’s

The old fashioned take on the best wings in Buffalo is the Anchor Bar. However, the new consensus is Duff’s. When President Obama came to town, he stopped here.  Duff’s fries their wings (and their French fries) in the same oil as onion rings and other gluten products, so if you can’t tolerate that, you … Read more

davids grilleA recent afternoon found me in the Southtowns and in need of lunch. My daughter whipped out her phone and using UrbanSpoon, decided we needed to go to David’s Grille in Orchard Park.  Lunch is a tough meal in restaurants for those of us who don’t eat gluten. You’re almost always stuck with a salad, unless you get a sandwich without the bun (which is not a lot of fun, excuse the rhyme).

David’s lunch menu had a nice assortment of salads – 7 of them. As soon as our waitress came over, I asked if they have gluten-free salad dressing. The white balsamic and raspberry vinaigrette are GF she told me. Several of the salads have gluten in the form of croutons, tortilla strips or pitas, but it’s possible to order them without. I got the David Eddy salad, which came with bacon, egg, cucumber, tomato, and cheese ( I had already dug in when I took this picture, so it’s not as pretty as it looked when it arrived). All salads can have chicken or shrimp added to them for $5 (chicken) or $7 (shrimp). Those items are gluten-free, but I didn’t get any. Since I was feeling deprived, I also ordered a side of fries. They have curly Q and regular fries. They cannot guarantee that the oil is not cross-contaminated, so if that’s a problem for you, don’t get the fries. Whatever you do, don’t get the curly Q fries, which have a coating on them that contains gluten. The regular fries do not, so I had those. My salad was excellent. Everything was fresh and it was a nice size. The fries were crisp and very good.

If you want to do a sandwich without bun, there are lots of options. My daughter ordered the David’s Grille Melt (on the bun, which had Buffalo chicken, caramelized onion, 2 cheeses and a dipping sauce) and enjoyed it. It would have been tasty even without the bun.

Our lunch came to a very reasonable $23.

The restaurant was almost completely empty during our visit, so it was quiet and service was very fast and attentive. The restaurant is attractive with a large hip-looking bar area. Parking is on the street or in a lot behind the building. I would come back here for lunch and sample a different salad if I find myself in the neighborhood again. The dinner menu didn’t present a lot of options for GF, unless you get steak or pork tenderloin, so I probably wouldn’t come for dinner.

David’s Grille

A recent afternoon found me in the Southtowns and in need of lunch. My daughter whipped out her phone and using UrbanSpoon, decided we needed to go to David’s Grille in Orchard Park.  Lunch is a tough meal in restaurants for those of us who don’t eat gluten. You’re almost always stuck with a salad, … Read more

A beautiful pineapple carpaccio dessert

A beautiful pineapple carpaccio dessert

My daughter and I took a trip to St. Martin recently. We dined several times in Grand Case, on the French side of the island. Despite somewhat of a language barrier, I had many wonderful gluten-free meals there. You can read all about it here.

St. Martin GF Dining

My daughter and I took a trip to St. Martin recently. We dined several times in Grand Case, on the French side of the island. Despite somewhat of a language barrier, I had many wonderful gluten-free meals there. You can read all about it here.