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Hi All,

We just returned home yesterday from New York City.  We took my celiac daughter Allison, for a high school graduation trip.  This was our second visit to NYC so we had already tried some GF restaurants but we did a little more research and tried to hit as many spots as we could while we were there this time.

I was mainly looking to eat out at restaurants who specifically had a gluten free menu.  Not restaurants like Chinese, Thai, Mexican or other ethnic foods that usually have gluten free choices by the nature of the cuisine.  I wanted Allison to be able to eat out like other people do and order things she can never eat out when with her friends or at other restaurants.

These are the restaurants we were able to try:

Risotteria 
S'Mac
Friedmans Lunch
Lilli and Loo
Peter's Restaurant
Bloom's 
Nizza
Bistango
Tu Lu's Bakery

Risotteria:

We ate lunch at the Risotteria twice.  We ate there twice last trip as well.  The soft bread sticks they serve when you sit down are amazing.  Allison had a gluten free panini both times with fresh mozarella, tomato and pesto.  I have a photo.  I can email you if you are interested.
We all think the Risotteria is amazing.  All of our food, salad, risotto and pizza were very good.  Allison also had the GF chocolate tiramisu for desert.  We took it with us and she ate it for breakfast the next day!
They also have mixes for purchase and a selection of GF beers.

S'Mac: 
http://www.smacnyc.com/

Ate there the first night.  Very casual little diner.  Made to order Macaroni and cheese with a twist.  Many choices of gourmet versions of the old classic.  All can be ordered Gluten Free.  Allison had the Napoletana Gluten Free.  Fresh mozarella, tomatoes, garlic and basil.  They serve the dishes in individual cast iron skillets bubbling hot at your table.  SO GOOD.  I had the Parisienne with Brie, Shitake mushrooms and rosemary.  Loved it.
After dinner at S'Mac we walked two blocks away to check out TuLu's Bakery.

Tu Lu's:
http://tu-lusbakery.com/

Tu Lu's was packed.  Line out the door.  We got an individual coffee cake, Raspberry almond crumble muffin, white cheddar jalepeno corn muffin and three mini cupcakes.  The best things were the jalepeno muffin and the raspberry crumble muffin.  Everything looked wonderful.

Bloom's Deli:
http://www.bloomsnewyorkdeli.com/

We stayed at the Affinia Shelburne hotel which was 3 blocks from Bloom's deli.  Bloom's offers almost all of their sandwich's on GF bread.  They also have GF pancakes and FRENCH TOAST!  Since it was so close, I got take out breakfast twice.  Allison had the french toast the first day which was really good.  She had the pancakes the second time and they were not as good.  I think they were made with some kind of bean flour and they were a little bitter tasting. Nice to have so many GF choices though. 

Lilli and Loo:
http://www.lilliandloo.com/

We had lunch at Lilli and Loo when we were shopping one day.  They have a specific gluten free menu with lots of choices.  Allison had Gluten Free deep fried spring rolls.  Something she can never order because the wrappers are usually made with wheat flour.  She loved them.  She also had gluten free pad thai noodles which were very good.

Peter's Restaurant:
http://www.petersrestaurant.com/index.html

Had lunch at Peter's after the Metropolitan Museum.  It is a short walk away.
Almost everything on the menu can be prepared Gluten Free.  It is clearly marked.  Both Allison and I had BLT's on gluten free bread. (They accidentally prepared mine GF)  My sandwich was very good.  Again, the best part was being able to order a BLT in a restaurant GF.  Instead something WITHOUT bread!

Friedmans Lunch:
http://www.friedmanslunch.com/

Friedmans Lunch is in the Chelsea Market in the Meat Packing district.  We visited the High Line Park and then had lunch at Friedmans.  Almost everything on the menu again could be ordered gluten free.  Allison had a grilled sandwich on gluten free bread with Gruyere and white cheddar cheese, caramelized onions and bacon.  I have a photo again if you are interested.  Yum. We all had a great meal at Friedmans.  

Nizza:

We ate at Nizza one of the nights we went to the theater.  It is right in the middle of the theater district.
They offer a gluten free menu and they bring GF bread to the table with dipping sauce.  Other than that, I was VERY unimpressed with Nizza.  The service, attitude and food were in my opinion mediocre.  It was super noisy and HOT in the restaurant.  Nothing more I would like to say about Nizza.  There are many reviews on Yelp.  Believe the bad ones.

Bistango:
http://www.bistangonyc.com/

We ate at Bistango our last night in NYC.  Also ate there on our last visit.  The restaurant was within walking distance of our hotel.
They bring hot, toasted GF french bread with garlic olive oil dipping sauce to the table.  They ask as soon as you sit down if there are any food allergies.  They have gluten free ravioli and tortellini but Allison had a boneless chicken breast with goat cheese and shitake mushrooms.  Very good.  The service and the food at Bistango was all great.  

That's my summary of our experience eating out GF in New York City.  Hope I didn't bore you with too many details.  All in all it was a wonderful experience and a treat to be able to try so many great restaurants that cater to the Gluten Free diet.
Looking forward to our third trip!

Beth
El Dorado Hills, CA

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