<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

Our trip to Chicago was made very special by the kind people from this list who shared their favorite GF places. Thanks to all who responded. We had a great meal from the GF menu at Vinci’s. probably best to make reservations. The man I talked to there on the phone suggested we also go to the Adobo Grill which is owned by the same company. We got another great meal and wonderful service. Someone mentioned the corn tortilla chips they serve with the guacamole, but they are not fried on a dedicated fryer and the chef made one batch special for me. He even came out before and after the meal to see how I liked it. I would high recommend both restaurants. A big thank you to the lady who sat down with the chef at each restaurant to make a GF menu. It was very impressive. We also ate at the Atwood Cafe in our hotel. We had a great meal after talking with chef Justin and our server Michael who were both very good. 

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Here is a summary of the listings I got from the people who responded. I have put my comments in brackets{}.

The first thing to do is check out the website below. Many people suggested that. It has an extensive list of restaurants. What a great idea, Celiac Sprue Association of Greater Chicago! They also
have a list of stores in the area.
http://www.csagc.cjb.net/

Chicago Celiac Association at http://www.park-ridge.il.us/csagc/restaurantlist.html
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There is a Whole Foods Market in Chicago. Check their website for locations, www.wholefoods.com.
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I am a celiac living in Chicago. Here are my suggestions for eating gluten free. Good places for purchasing GF food would be Whole Foods located on State and Erie (I think the cross street is Erie), which is a bit North of where you are staying. They have some frozen GF breads, cereals, crackers, cookies, etc. Not a huge selection, but there is some. Also, there is a bread store called the Breadsmith that makes GF bread every other Thursday and they also have some frozen. You might want to pop in there to see if they have any. The bread is on the sweet side, but it is good for breakfast, and they make one with raisins. This store is located on Wells and North Avenue. You can take the train (the red line to the Clark/Division exit) and walk 2 blocks west to Wells St. and then walk down Wells going north 4-5 blocks (past North Avenue) and it will be on the left side of the street right by Brothers coffee shop. This area is called Old Town and they also have some great restaurants you can eat at. Salpicon is a wonderful Mexican restaurant and they are very familiar with GF. They will point out on the menu which items are GF to order from, which is most of the menu. Also, Adobo Grill, another Mexican restaurant has a lot of GF items. They also make the best guacamole ever and it is served with corn tortilla chips. {The chips are not GF but they made me some especially and also substituted the corn tortillas} Actually, I am pretty sure they only use corn tortillas there. Both places are located on Wells Street. A few other suggestions are Ben Pao, an Asian restaurant and they have a list of GF items. Just tell them you are GF. If you have been reading the listserve, Fogo de Chao was mentioned about having GF choices and they just opened one up here in Chicago. I have not been there yet. There is also an Italian restaurant that has a GF menu, but I can't seem to remember the name right now. I went there and it was very good. I will look it up and email it back to you. I hope this helps. If you have any questions, let me know. Have a great time, and make sure you bring warm clothes. 


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Spagos at Dearborn and Grand has wonderful creme brulee. Safe place to eat.
Also up the other direction Weber Grill at State and Grand - and up another
couple blocks Joe's Stone Crab - they even checked every single ingredient
and watched for cross contamination! The Rainforest Cafe is fun (also in the
same neighborhood) but you need to choose from the menu carefully.
There's a Whole Foods on Huron and State. They carry Pamela's cookies, GF
soups, great deli, cheeses, etc.
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* Please remember some posters may be WHEAT-FREE, but not GLUTEN-FREE *