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We just got back from London and had a great trip. There are definitely lots of gluten free goodies at the grocery stores and we had almost no trouble getting
gluten free at our meals. We did have to eat in fairly pricey restaurants but it was worth it to get the good quality food....and London is very very expensive.
Following is a summary that was very helpful to me.
We also ate at the Wolseley next to the Ritz and while they did not have a Gf menu, it was no problem for my son. He had a delicious roast chicken.
We also had dinner at a wonderful bistro, Le Boudin Blanc, in Shepards market (in Mayfair area) and they were very on top of the GF situation--this was very expensive--definitely a special meal place.
We found a charming pub near Berkeley square in Mayfair called the Guinea grill pub and that was outstanding-- steaks, duck , salmon.
There was a small stall in Covent Garden (apparently only on
certain days) that had fresh gf baked goods at fairly reasonable prices.
And another tip…..if you are planning to use the Underground at
all it is best to get an “oyster card” at the airport. It is much cheaper than
paying for each individual ride on the subway. You add an amount to the card
and them “swipe” it to get in and out of the underground.
Good luck to all you travelers and thanks to the many people that helped with our London experience.
Happy New Year.
Nancy
Subject: Re: London
I went to London two years ago and summarized this for a fellow Celiac...here's my findings...
Nando's- popular restaurant, locations all over...I ate at one in Notting
Hill and one by the hotel I stayed at(the Park Plaza Victoria on Vauxhall
Bridge Road)-I ate the lemon & herb chicken with rice and corn
Savoy Hotel- High tea! If you go to their website (you'll have to google
it) and email the hotel, you can make a reservation for a gluten free high
tea. It was really really fun. You dress up and it's beautiful and they
make you little crust-less sandwiches and fruit and breads and it was just
wonderful. Plus for gluten eaters their meal is fantastic also! This is
located on The Strand.
Smollensky's- GF menu...very good restaurant/bar. It's located at 105 The
Strand (just down the street from the Savoy Hotel). They also had a gluten
free dessert. I ate here twice.
Cotto- located at 89 Westminster Bridge Road phone # is: 020 7928 5535.
it's the Lambeth North tube station and it's just
across the street from the tube exit. But it's a little tiny italian
restaurant and the owner (Cotto!) is Celiac and he'll come out and ask you
what you'd like and everything. He made me my own garlic bread and alfredo
pasta. I think he preffers if you call ahead.
La Tasca- These are all over. The one I ate at most was at Cardinal Place
in Victoria again by the Park Place Victoria hotel and Vauxhall Bridge Road.
It lists GF items on its menu and was very good. You can find them all
over London.
Ok....so while you're packing, you might want to take extra luggage because
I'm just warning you, you'll want to bring a lot of things back with you!
They have SO MANY wonderful GF things at their grocery stores! Sainsbury's,
Tesco, Somerfield, and Marks and Spencer have many GF items. Marks and
Spencers are all over the place and they have lots of ready to eat salads
and drinks and foods that are gluten free, just read the labels. Many
things will say "suitable for coeliacs". Now...you need to find a large
Sainsbury's (large grocery stores are hard to find in London! most are tiny
little "metros" that have a smaller selection). But Sainsbury's had THE
BEST GF selection! I only ever saw two large ones...one was down the street
from my hotel (Park Plaza Victoria) and the other was on Tottenham Court
Road. You could probably look on their website to get exact locations. But
there are a few things that you absolutely cannot miss! Their brand is
"free from" and these things were my favorite:
Pittas
Bakewell tarts
Lemon Pound Cake (this was FANTASTIC! I've been trying to get people in
London to ship it to me it was so good! I brought a few back and gave one
to my other Celiac friend and she almost cried!)
Pancakes
tea cakes
shortcake cookies
apple pies
I'm telling you, both times I went for two weeks and most of the time I
just ate fruits and salads from marks&spencers and GF goodies at stores like
Sainsbury's and Tesco. Everynight I came home with more GF goodies that I
had found. The UK is fantastic for celiacs!
Oh yes, if you walk by a cafe Nero (I'm sure you will,
they are like Starbucks here) they have GF brownies individually packaged by
the cashier, but you have to pay cash. Also, down the street from Harrod's is a
chocolate place called Hotel Chocolate. VERY good chocolates and GF!
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