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Subject:
From:
Jim Lyles <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Sat, 11 Jan 1997 13:18:24 -0500
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<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

About a week ago I wrote:

> One of the members of our local support group is traveling to Costa
> Rica at the end of the month.  She'd like to know whether or not
> she'll have trouble getting GF food during the trip.

Since others expressed an interest in the same information, I thought
I'd summarize the replies I received.  I was amazed at the number of
helpful replies, many of which were quite detailed.  They are listed
below, with the non-CD-related stuff removed:

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Don Wiss:

It is too hot for wheat to grow there.  It is a rice based culture.
Ener-G Food's rice pasta is made there.  No contamination problem
according to Sam Wylde.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Lynda Swink:

I have been down in CR twice in the past two years.  Most of the foods
there are pretty simple:  Black Beans and rice, fresh fruits and
vegetables, etc.  Not too much of a problem for me.  If you stick to
the simple homestyle foods such as Pinto guayo (Bl. beans and rice),
tortillas (corn), and the other fresh fruits and veggies, there should
not be a problem.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Cindy Fisher:

I've been there (1975) but I loved it.  No problem staying gluten free.
The central valley has the loveliest fruits and vegetables in the world
but you need to be sure and wash them good because of the pesticides
and herbicides used there that have been banned in this country.  On
the coast one can stick with fresh fish and veggies and fruits and of
course the wonderful corn tortillas.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Pat Wisniewski:

Costa Rica is a great place to go.  The locals affectionately call
themselves "Ticos".  They know they live in paradise and there are
signs aplenty of "La Pura Vida".

Eating is no problem, as long as you are prepared to take the typical
precautions that you would at home.  I enlisted the help of a native
here in the states to prepare some cards with my restrictions, and used
my twenty-year-old high school Spanish to relate my needs, along with
handing them the card.

The national dish is "Gallo Pinto", a dish of black beans and rice,
eaten with scrambled eggs (huevos revueltos) for breakfast, with baked
plantains (platanos) for lunch, and with an occasional meat or fish for
supper.  To go to Costa Rica and not eat gallo pinto is a sin.  In many
restaurants another specialty is "El Casado" which if I recall
correctly translates to "The Married Man".  It is a platter full of
various delicious items, that explains why the married man needs pants
with a larger waistband (admittedly dated and sexist, but you will
enjoy the food).

There are fresh fruits and vegetables aplenty (and types of potatoes
unseen on the US grocer's shelves), and prices are very reasonable.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Jack O'Brien:

My wife Connie, who has celiac disease, and I traveled in Costa Rica two
years ago.  We had no trouble because much of the staple food is corn,
beans, potatoes, and rice.  The protein is eggs, fish and chicken.  We
ate lots of fresh fruit.  We drank mostly bottled soda and mineral
water.  Last year, we went to Spain.  For that trip, I had cards made up
in Castillan Spanish which explained the celiac problem....you might
want to write up something in English and have it translated in Mexican/
Central American Spanish.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
From: Marilyn

We spent 3 months in Costa Rica this year, but I was not diagnosed
(I'm still not) at the time.

I was eating an extrememly low fat diet, and found that cooks and
waiters and such were very cooperative, generally, but my speaking
Spanish was crucial.

And, I noticed the tendency to tell you what you want to hear, on
occasion; sometimes, "si" means, yeah, sure, but I can't really help
you.

So, the bottom line is:  Get your requirements into Spanish--maybe even
in written form.

With the Central American emphasis on beans, corn, and rice, there are
lots of things you can eat.  There are wonderful grocery stores in San
Jose.  If you are going to resorts--the food is prepared on site and
you need to make friends with the cooks--at the expensive places they
are accustomed to dealing with strange gringos.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
From: Arlene Karpan

I was in Costa Rica a year ago for nearly 3 weeks and had no problem
eating gluten-free.

A common Costa Rican breakfast is "gallo pinto" which is rice and beans,
and it usually comes with fresh fruit, fried eggs, fried ham, juice,
etc.  The fruit is wonderful and abundant and I could easily make a meal
just of fruit alone.  Omelettes and bacon are other breakfast
possibilities.  The gallo pinto is very common and can be served with
any meal, so this is always a safe choice.

For lunch or dinner, I found it was usually possible to order a fried
steak, baked chicken, or fresh fish fried only in margarine.  Green
salads are good too (without croutons).  If someone is staying in a
place like a resort for a few days it helps greatly to speak to the
maitre-d or chef to explain your problem, and the measures they can take
to ensure that your meal is gluten-free.  Often it's as simple as
boiling vegetables, frying meat or fish in plain butter or margarine,
and not adding sauces.  Fish is very common, especially sea bass and I
found it wasn't difficult  to just get it fried plain.

For dessert they often have fresh fruit or flan (milk custard with
caramelized sugar sauce like creme caramel).

We ate at several "local" restaurants too, but we speak enough Spanish
to order just what we want and explain about not preparing anything with
flour.

Another thing we like to do is find a fruit stand or a small
confectionary or grocery store and buy things such as yogurt, cheese, or
fruit to take back to our room for a meal or a snack.  Sometimes you'll
find vendors selling freshly boiled corn on the cob on the street
corners - yummy.

I also took along some emergency food such as rice cakes and rice
crackers, peanuts and dried fruit, to have on hand in case I couldn't
find anything appropriate to eat; but I don't think I touched it the
entire time we were in the country.

Another consolation is that many waiters and hotel and restaurant
workers speak English, which helps in explaining your problem. It's
also a good idea to learn the Spanish word for "flour" and tell them
"no harina", as they might not understand "wheat flour" (a lot of
people don't know that flour is made from wheat!)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Vicki:

I don't have any info except to recommend that I used Ener-G foods
2-slice package of tapioca bread to get through 2 weeks in Great
Britain.  1-800-331-5222 is their #.  They're located in Seattle and
are free from cross-contamination.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Ellinor Wheeler:

I haven't been to Costa Rica, but I'll share my experiences with Mexico,
because there is probably more similarity than difference....None of the
following is guaranteed--I don't think anything in any restaurant in any
country can be guaranteed to be gluten-free.

In Mexico, food is served in much more nearly its natural form than
here.  Flour, diglicerides (sp?), etc. are not generally added to
things, although cheese is added to some things.  I order regional
dishes, which are simply prepared.  In a coastal town, I always order
fillet of fish for dinner (anything other than fillet is likely to be a
whole fish or goodness knows what).  I order it grilled either with
butter only or with butter and garlic.  With the fillet comes a small
serving of vegetables and a small serving of potatoes or rice The rice
might be cooked in broth rather than water, but it is not "Spanish
Rice".

In a restaurant that caters to lots of tourists, a salad might be
served.  It is probably OK (gluten-wise and microorganism-wise, in
Mexico), but the dressing might have gluten.  I take my own dressing.
In a restaurant not heavily dependent on tourists, soup is OK
microorganism-wise, but not salad.  "Tortilla soup" in Mexico has a lot
of ingredients (unlike the way it is made in the USA), and I wouldn't
trust it, even if the tortillas are corn.  Good soup bets in Mexico
include chicken rice soup (likely to be mostly broth), lime soup (which
is chicken broth with a little lime juice), and rice soup, which is
likely to be a "dry" soup--slightly moist rice cooked in broth.

For lunch, soup or salad and corn tortillas are a possibility.  Or have
fillet of fish or another regional specialty meat that is cooked in a
plain manner (In the Yucatan, it is pork).  Or beans cooked in a plain,
regional manner.  Even at a roadside stand in the backcountry, soup,
beans, and corn tortillas are likely to be available and are likely to
be free of gluten and bad microorganisms.

Breakfast may be more of a problem for your friend.  Eggs are always
available, and tortillas can be found, even if there're not on the menu.
Don't eat eggs at a restaurant that is't primarily for tourists (I've
gotten sick even on soft-boiled eggs, which I removed from the shell
myself.)  I usually cook rice for breakfast in a little electric pot in
my hotel room several days a week.  (Electrical converters may be needed
in Costa Rica).

I don't speak Spanish worth a darn, so I carry around written notes to
show waiters, saying things like "Is there any wheat flour in this?"
(and I point to the item on the menu) and "Please ask the cook or the
owner."  It probably takes a 6th to 10th grade level of education or
intelligence for a waiter to fully comprehend what I'm talking about (I
keep my eyes on his face to see how he's processing the question), but
every restaurant I've been in has someone who is well above that level.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
>From Elisa:

I have been to Costa Rica three times and if you like rica and beans,
you can eat gluten free pretty easily--perhaps make up a Spanish
language card you can show to servers to explain food restrictions.
The typical meal (although you can get stuff like burgers too) is a
casada which is rice, beans and some kind of meat (you specify).  You
would probably have to ask that the meat be prepared without flour or
soy sauce.  They also have delicious fruit drinks made from berries
(mora), papaya, mango, etc that you can get with or without milk.
These are available all over.  There are many markets where you can
buy fruit/veggies but you may want to take rice cakes, etc.,  for
snacks or if you get in a jam.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

A big thank you to all who replied.  I'll be sharing this info with my
friend at our next group meeting on Monday.

Jim Lyles ........ <[log in to unmask]> ........ Holly, Michigan, USA

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