[The Glutenator]

I have just returned from 6 weeks in Europe, and thought I would post my experiences about eating gluten free there. I was diagnosed with celiac about 3 months before the trip (while planning) which was a huge bummer, but I can say that I was able to truly enjoy seeing other parts of the world! I did get a little bitter at some points, particularly beer and schnitzel in Germany and pastries and crepes in Paris, but all in all I just tried to focus on what I was seeing and not what I was missing out on with the eating.

My trip was a lot different than some previous posts, because I was a single backpacking female, who was on a tight budget. This meant that I rarely went out to eat and relied on grocery stores for all my meals. I couldn’t cook in hostel kitchens either, because 98% of the time the pots were caked in pasta residue from other travelers. I did go out once in Prague to a great place with high end food at very reasonable prices and they were great about gluten free. The place was called Café Louvre and I highly recommend it! Also, in Granada, Spain, there is a restaurant called El Piano that is dedicated gluten free. I went there for every meal, as I hadn’t had cooked food in 3 weeks at that time, and never got sick of it. They prepare a bunch of dishes each day, like meat balls, rice, quinoa, and other grain and bean salads, burger patties, chilli…plus really great desserts. You get to pick 4 items that they package to go. It was just so good! They are actually vegan too, and I didn’t realize until the second day when I asked what meat was in the chilli, and I still could swear the “meat balls” were made of beef.

What I found in Germany and Switzerland was that gluten-free food was carried in specialty food stores, usually with “Bio” in the name, or in drug stores. This was different to France and Spain where the grocery stores carried gluten free items. Germany was the best stocked country I went to, and I had a few more problems with finding the same variety and quality of products in France and Spain. My strategy was to buy an extra backpack that I dedicated to food. Whenever I found a store with good gluten-free products, I re-filled this bag to bursting to make sure I didn't end up going hungry down the road. This worked pretty well, and it was only near the very end of the trip that the bag ran too low for comfort. My main stocking up places were: anywhere in Germany, and a great Bio store in Geneva. While unimpressed with most brands, I found an absolute blessing: DR. SCHAR!!! The products come from Germany, and I was able to find them in stores in Switzerland and Spain as well. The buns are, honestly, better than any gluten free product I have tried in Canada or the USA. I tried the paninis, mini-baguettes, and ciabatta buns which were all like a white-bread type of bun. They said they were “par-baked” and should be finished in the over, but I ate them right out of the package and they were amazing! I also had the “cibatta rustica” which was more like a multigrain roll and was just as good. I cannot say enough about how light and fluffy these breads are! SO GOOD!

Sr. Schar also made some great cookies and other snack foods, but you can get some pretty comparable packed cookies around here so I will not go into a great rant about their deliciousness. Although, there chocolate coated wafer bars are worth mentioning. But, the chocolate croissants were GREAT! I found them in Germany, and carried them to Paris so I didn’t feel too out of place at breakfast time. I also tired there apricot cupcakes and chocolate cupcakes for breakfast, which were also good, but when it came to stocking up again I dedicated all the room in my bag to the croissants for breakfast and other buns for lunches and dinners. Although PB or nutella on buns for every meal and the same breakfasts everyday did get a bit old after 6 weeks, it really was a blessing to be enjoying the products so much.

The good news: you can order some of the Dr. Schar products in Canada and the US, although they do offer FAR more products in Europe (for example unfortunately you can not get the croissants in North America). I now plan to get all my breads from them, and recommend everyone do the same! I am so looking forward to sandwiches on soft buns for lunches! And finger crossed they will start manking more product available here soon.

So: Europe was PHENOMINAL. I had an amazing trip seeing a new part of the world. As an added benefit, I found my new love Dr. Schar.

Note: Got glutenated twice on the trip, once pretty bad in and once with a bit less severe. Both times it was because I was exhausted, leading to a drop in my cc stringency while preparing my gluten-free food in a hostel kitchen crawling with bread crumbs and pasta residues.

Feel free to ask any questions about the food, or any of the amazing sites in Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, France, Switzerland, and Spain!

[lynnelise]

Your trip sounds amazing! I'm glad there were so many gluten-free resources available.

I have tried a few of the Schar products and they are very good. I wish we could get those croissants in the U.S. They sound heavenly!!!

[Mack the Knife]

Schar products are great. I survived on their bread rolls during my recent trip to Germany. And we can get their croissants in Australia and I love them!

[TiffersAnn]

You make me want to travel back to Europe again. I too found that in alot of European countries it was easy to find gluten free foods. Like in spain all of their packaging labels had 'Sans Gluten' if it was gluten free. Many of the restaurants will also have a gluten free symbol in their window by the door. It's a tiny wheat stalk with a line crossing through it. I even found some gluten-free bakeries in Paris.
Soo glad to hear you had a fabulous time. I love hearing the Happy Stories from people.

[GFphilly]

TiffersAnn, on 03 September 2010 - 07:22 AM, said:

You make me want to travel back to Europe again. I too found that in alot of European countries it was easy to find gluten free foods. Like in spain all of their packaging labels had 'Sans Gluten' if it was gluten free. Many of the restaurants will also have a gluten free symbol in their window by the door. It's a tiny wheat stalk with a line crossing through it. I even found some gluten-free bakeries in Paris.
Soo glad to hear you had a fabulous time. I love hearing the Happy Stories from people.

Hi! I am about to go to Paris in a few weeks for my honeymoon and I was wondering if you could share the names of the gluten-free bakeries you found there? I'm very nervous about being able to find "safe" food, so any recommendations you can give would be much appreciated!!

[Mack the Knife]

GFphilly, on 03 September 2010 - 04:37 PM, said:

Hi! I am about to go to Paris in a few weeks for my honeymoon and I was wondering if you could share the names of the gluten-free bakeries you found there? I'm very nervous about being able to find "safe" food, so any recommendations you can give would be much appreciated!!

Make sure you check out this completely gluten free restaurant in Montmartre. I had a great meal there! http://www.dessietdesmets.com/

[The Glutenator]

Wow, wish I had known about that place! I am sure I would have splurged once on my back-packer's budget!

[i-geek]

Ooh, now I'm sure that I want my next big trip to be to a European destination. Along with the success stories here, I've also heard very good things about Sweden and Norway as far as being celiac-friendly. Glad you had such a great time. Think I'll start planning now...

[sb2178]

Oh, yeah, don't know where you are, but I get Schar products in Boston and they are excellent if pricey. Not the criossants, though, must investigate. Mmmm...

[yolo]

Sounds like a wonderful trip!

Wish I could eat sugary, gluten-free floury, yeasty, lactose items but can't. I am betting you can buy basic food to cook yourself. My question is do they often offer that too as gluten-free fare in restaurants etc.?