Italy

[Lexis]

This JUne my family and I going on a trip to Italy. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on what to bring, and where to eat. Are there any places that are celiac friendly? If not, what should I bring to be prepared? Has anyone brought gluten free pasta with them to the restaurant and havethem prepare a dish for you or is it too risky? PLease any suggestions or tips would be of great help!!

[Lisa]

Hey Lexis:

Europe is far more advanced than in the States regarding Celiac. Your dining options will be more available to you.

If I recall, there are several people from Italy and many frequent travelers. I am sure that they will post soon.

[lovegrov]

I can't make any specific suggestions, but Italy is possibly the MOST celiac friendly nation in the world. You will not have any problem at all eating there. Food is labeled gluten-free and restaurants know about gluten-free.

richard

[blueeyedmanda]

My sister just spent a month there, and although she is not celiac she did bring me back some pasta and let me tell you it is soo good! She said there were a lot of gluten-free options. Good Luck, I hear it is a very pretty country.

[astyanax]

i'm going to italy in march! i've been to europe before, i find the language barrier is the biggest problem (i don't speak any foreign languages). DEFINITELY bring cards in italian that explain celiac and bring a bunch so you can just give them to the waitstaff and chefs.

i went on the italian celiac website but it's in italian only (as far as i could tell) and i tried getting restaurant info, i'm not sure how accurate my translations were!

i will post when i get home what restaurants worked out and any other new ones i might have discovered and general advice.

[gfp]

Hey Lexis:

Europe is far more advanced than in the States regarding Celiac. Your dining options will be more available to you.

Believe me its a big mix.... Italy is really good, France sucks in a lot of ways.... part of the problem is that many of the chefs take umbrage for suggesting they may have used an industrail additive. A friend of mine owns his own resto and in the early days I used to have to go through everything but he did it because we have a very good mutual friend... for instance his fois gras (home made) was stabilised with gelatin but the gelatin he used had gluten... or pretty high chance. (He now switched to a definiate gluten-free one)

If I recall, there are several people from Italy and many frequent travelers. I am sure that they will post soon.

I visit Italy as frequently as I can

Anyway this site is excellent Open Original Shared Link (the free cards are MORE THAN adequate for Italy because its so well known)

The Italian celaic soc has done an incredible job... here you find certified gluten-free places by region..

Open Original Shared Link

I have turned up in towns, gone to the tourist office and asked and they have helped me out...

Last night I ate at an Italian in Paris ... WOW its GOOD ....

I started explaining the problems and the guy suddenly twigged ... No problem he went and asked the chef who knew all about celiac, they made me gluten-free bruchettas and grilled them on a grill usually only used for meat and cheese...

I have to admit it helped that my friend I was with speaks perfect Italian, but once we got the concept and I remembered the Italian for celiac disease it was a dream!

[gfp]

i'm going to italy in march! i've been to europe before, i find the language barrier is the biggest problem (i don't speak any foreign languages). DEFINITELY bring cards in italian that explain celiac and bring a bunch so you can just give them to the waitstaff and chefs.

i went on the italian celiac website but it's in italian only (as far as i could tell) and i tried getting restaurant info, i'm not sure how accurate my translations were!

i will post when i get home what restaurants worked out and any other new ones i might have discovered and general advice.

Just post them and I'll translate... Italian isn't my best language but I can read it perfectly well.

[georgie]

Just post them and I'll translate... Italian isn't my best language but I can read it perfectly well.

Are the foods in the supermarkets all labelled with ingredients? What is Italian for Gluten , Wheat Starch, Malt etc. I hope to be making a trip to Italy next year and am quite terrified about being gluten-free!

[gfp]

Are the foods in the supermarkets all labelled with ingredients? What is Italian for Gluten , Wheat Starch, Malt etc. I hope to be making a trip to Italy next year and am quite terrified about being gluten-free!

Labelling is pretty good anyway but the usual place to buy specialist gluten-free food is at a pharmacy. However ... last time I was in Italy (6 months ago) there were a new chain of Gluten Free supermarkets startig up which were being advertised everywhere.

From what I could see these were out of town type ones but it shows how popular it is.

On the whole you don't need to be terrified, Italian health certification covers courses in celiac and the diagnosis rate is so high almost everyone knows someone with celiac disease.

If you check out www.celiactravel.com they have a resto card for Italy. Its more than enough you just need to get across you are a celiac.... because diagnosis is so high and Italians love eating out many resto's use gluten-free ingredients by choice anyway.. I don't mean bread, pizza and pasta, you need a specialist resto for this but I mean things like preservatives or thickening agents because the chance is they will get a celiac in so they just tend towards leaving their options more open.

I have a European language sheet but I can't post to it from here because of the board rules... if you do a google search for "gluten Free Lexicon" you should find it pretty easily, if not pm me and I'll send a link or work out a way to get this to you.

Incidentally where abouts are you in Oz? and where are you going in Italy? I have tried lots of gluten-free places and some of them are absolutely fantastic. I started writing it up at one point but I have been to so many wonderful places in many different areas so if you can give me a clue I can be specific about recommendations:D

[georgie]

Thats a great link ! I have bookmarked that one - and it seems perfect. We haven't really got to the planning stage of our trip. As a rule we like to travel in the small country areas but if my gluten-free is hard to find - may have to go to more populated areas. Florence is on the List and Tuscany and also Venice. I guess Pompeii. If you have any special places please post them ! Or PM me. What gluten-free choices are available for breakfast?

[dkhilton]

Thats a great link ! I have bookmarked that one - and it seems perfect. We haven't really got to the planning stage of our trip. As a rule we like to travel in the small country areas but if my gluten-free is hard to find - may have to go to more populated areas. Florence is on the List and Tuscany and also Venice. I guess Pompeii. If you have any special places please post them ! Or PM me. What gluten-free choices are available for breakfast?

Hi Georgie....I saw your posts in the Aussie thread. I'm in Qld. Anyway I thought I might see if I could help you a bit with your travel concerns. I actually have both coeliac disease and IBS, which makes me a very worried traveller. I also can't have any dairy. Having said that, I've been overseas 3 times since being diagnosed: twice to Canada (where I was born) and once to Europe where my wife and I did a Royal Caribbean cruise with lots of day trips.

Air travel has been discussed in other threads but I will add my two cents: some airlines are better than others. Japan airlines was excellent for example, while Qantas has never been that great (surprisingly perhaps). If I were to go to Europe again, I'd go Singapore Air (to try), but recommend Japan airlines with a free overnight stopover in Narita (a very nice old Japanese town). Last time in Narita I had plain rice for breakfast. Always bring extra food (though you can't bring your own water anymore!). I've brought Orgran muffins I've made up, Sakata rice crackers, Mentos, Sweet Williams gluten-free and dairy free chocolate bars (Tangarine and rice bubbles). My tinned tuna was confiscated at customs in the US (as it had water in it) but you can still put it in your luggage. When travelling I also carry extra food in a separate piece of luggage and cut down my clothes. You never need all that you think you do, and you may need some food when you can't find anything somewhere.

I'd look at two options you may or may not have considered with a trip to Europe. In fact I have been looking at them myself as I hope to improve in health someday (soon?) so I can go back. In France you can rent gites (self-catering apartments) in many towns for as low as 400 euro a week (I also prefer the small medieval towns to the big bustling cities). If you bring some food you can use as basics (eg. Orgran pasta) you can add food from local vegetable and meat markets. That is, if you don't mind cooking yourself (which in the end is safest). Australia's Orgran and Dr. Scholls (sp?) are two brands that are in European pharmacies/stores over there. You can check with both companies to see if they stock things where you are going or even use the local tourist offices to find out by email before you go.

The second option is to find a place that actually caters for coeliacs. In France these tend to be chateaux which are expensive. In UK you can find B & Bs that cater. In Italy I found this guy who likes to cook and only cooks gluten free in his house as he has coeliac disease: this is his website: Open Original Shared Link It is on Lake Garda near Verona and also not far from Venice, which you mentioned as a possible destination. Northern Italy seems better suited to coeliacs because of the risottos.

I believe gluten free is SENZA GLUTINE in Italy and SANS GLUTINE in France.

Please do PM or email me when you get back from your trip so you can give me a run down on what you find so that I can possibly use what you learn in the future. Hope this helps.

[gfp]

Thats a great link ! I have bookmarked that one - and it seems perfect. We haven't really got to the planning stage of our trip. As a rule we like to travel in the small country areas but if my gluten-free is hard to find - may have to go to more populated areas. Florence is on the List and Tuscany and also Venice. I guess Pompeii. If you have any special places please post them ! Or PM me. What gluten-free choices are available for breakfast?

Man, Italy is small compared to Oz but its still huge. I have yet to go to Venice

Or PM me.

Seriously its better posting because someone else might know a better place and it will help others as well.

How long have you got?

Florence and Tuscany are a several week trip all by themselves if you want...

First advice for Florence is pre-book all your museums... seriously high season and the queues are horrendous ...

From Florence Sienna is not far away though the train is a real slow one... and Pisa is very nice and once the tourists go back and night surprisingly non touristy...

Regarding Pompeii, this is a whole other Italy... again one of several weeks... to start appreciating it.

Naples is the big city but it is also a very special place.... if street crime were actually recorded it would have a crime rate through the roof but ?? It also has some excellent gluten-free places.... if you can eat cheese you might die and go to heaven...

Leaving Naples there is a regional railway.... I have usually camped in southern Italy... but there are many B&B type places.

My personal favorite is almost anywhere on the Sorrento line.... easy access to Naples (the national archaology museum is incredible.. ) and you can getr the train to Pompeii and Herculanium, Stabia etc.

If you intend to drive then Massa Lubrense is a area... its has no real centre and we ended up using buses and lost a lot of time... we camped at a place called Village Neptune... but it also has self catering if you book in advance.

I gotta say ts incredible for an outa the way place but a real pain to get to/from.... unless you drive yourself. Great diving and snorkelling and the Jellies don't kill.

Another fantastic getaway is Ischia.... keep it quiet

I found a great gluten-free pizzeria ... incredibly cheap... and incredibly nice people... It was so good we ate there almost every night very very nice people (did I already say that?) ... but they were... they insisted I try local wine and then refused to charge me ...

and kept making me little gluten-free snacks as treats ...

Its a smallish Island with a slow pace and I could spend 2 weeks easily there... wonderful local cheeses and beautiful scenery. Almost as beautiful as Capri without the prices ... and just a short ferry journey from Naples.

If you are near Rome ... I could go on for 3 pages... Rome is Rome... incredible ... their are plenty of cheap B&B in the centre near Termini station... and a really nice gluten-free pizza place that is very understated just 2 metro stops away...

I can look at any town for you once you decide on a provisional itinery....I'm terrible I always prefer winging it and take a tent just in case ... I never like pining myself down because you find such great places and want to spend longer....

My tinned tuna was confiscated at customs in the US (as it had water in it) but you can still put it in your luggage.

Nothing (legal) will be confiscated in Europe.

[quasar]

Hi Lexis! I've just joined this great international forum..I'm italian(diagnosed celiac in 2002)and I live in Rome,I will help you as I can,let me know your itinerary..so I'll search for info also in the italian forum. Write me soon,bye

[dkhilton]

Hi Lexis! I've just joined this great international forum..I'm italian(diagnosed celiac in 2002)and I live in Rome,I will help you as I can,let me know your itinerary..so I'll search for info also in the italian forum. Write me soon,bye

Hi quasar!

Great to have more international people join up! If you ever want advice on travelling to Australia, let me know! We have some of the strictest criteria for gluten free and our food has strict labelling laws that must include mention of any gluten or wheat in the ingredients.

Question 1: What is the standard for Gluten Free in Italy? How many ppm? I've heard that in different countries in Europe they have different criteria for how strictly gluten free food must be to be labelled. Coeliacs really shouldn't have any, so I find it strange that some go as high as they do, and accept wheat starch as gluten free...

Question 2: Do you know of any hotel/restaurants, or all inclusive 'resort' type places (preferably not so expensive...and even not so resorty...), that are definitely safe for coeliacs in the Rome area, or even better, in smaller medieval-type walled towns around Italy? I've heard there are Club Meds in Italy that can cater for gluten-free but I'm not interested in pools and beaches so much as character towns, castles, and old architecture...all the stuff we don't have in Australia! I'd like a place that will cover all my meals and accomodation at a reasonable weekly rate type thing so I don't have to worry about food and be absolutely safe and have high gluten free standards so there isn't cross-contamination. Am I asking too much?

[quasar]

Hi Dkhilton! I've read you're from Queensland...

I dream to come there in Australia(but it's too expensive,still,for me ) since I was a child..I collect plush-like koalas(got 10!)&I have the Italian Touring Club Guide on;when I was 16 I listened to Tina Arena&then I discovered&went crazy for Darren&Daniel from Brisbane..the Savage Garden(!!)..I met Darren 2times too(in Rome&Milan)..I adored their music...&now,many of my favourite g.f.food products

are by Orgran!!.. I guess your State should adopted me as onorary citizen !joke !

1=Anyway...Like there here,for Law,in few months,all the food conpany for every normal product have to declare on the label gluten & food grain/cereals with gluten.Here the quantity of gluten considered dangerous is more than 20ppm..Products certified glutenfree have on the "cross-out ear of wheat",or you can find them only in pharmacies.

2=Here in Rome there are 4hotels for celiacs:Best Western Hotel Spring House,Hotel Holyday Inn Eur Medici,Hotel Ristorante Alexandra,Hotel Meli

[Kathy S]

Hi Lexis! I've just joined this great international forum..I'm italian(diagnosed celiac in 2002)and I live in Rome,I will help you as I can,let me know your itinerary..so I'll search for info also in the italian forum. Write me soon,bye

Hi I'm Kathy-our family is also looking forward to a May June trip in Italy-Rome , Venice and Florence.

Thank you for the links

Do you happen to know the name of the new Gluten free store chain that is mentioned in this thread? I'm happy to know that a pharmacy is the proper place to go for food items as well.

I'm unfortunately also allergic to corn among the many food allergies, does anyone know what brand names I might want to look for?

Thanks

[Lexis]

I'm leaving for Italy next wednesday, we are traveling to Rome, Venice, and Florence, any last minunte suggestions of where to go and what to bring would be great! Thanks!

[amber]

Hi Lexis! I've just joined this great international forum..I'm italian(diagnosed celiac in 2002)and I live in Rome,I will help you as I can,let me know your itinerary..so I'll search for info also in the italian forum. Write me soon,bye

Ciao Quasar,

I have read your posts and it is very interesting to hear from someone in Italy. I too am from Australia (Melbourne) and I have a daughter who is 10 years old and a celiac. We are thinking of going to Italy sometime but I am concerned about the food of course for my daughter. I have hearda that in Italy there is good awareness of celiac disease in most places. Is that true? How easy is it to find gluten free food to buy? How easy is it to go into a restaurant and get a gluten free meal?

It is interesting that you buy Orgran products there. I know that they export to Italy and the owners of the company here in Melbourne are of Italian background. I am lucky as the factory is not that far from where I live and we can go there and buy their products cheaply.

My parents are both Italian. My Mum is from Gorizia and my Dad is from Lipari. I can understand the language as long as people don't speak too fast but I am not very good at speaking Italian except for the basics.

I hope that one day you get a chance to come to Australia. Start saving your money nowl. Do you have any relatives in Australia as it seems many Italians do.

Here is a cute link for you that I found the other day. It is of a swimming kangaroo.

Open Original Shared Link

Grazie

[amber]

I'm leaving for Italy next wednesday, we are traveling to Rome, Venice, and Florence, any last minunte suggestions of where to go and what to bring would be great! Thanks!

Hi Lexis,

Have a wonderful trip and don't forget to come back and let us all know how you manged over there with food. Don't worry as I have heard good reports about Italy and I am sure that you won't starve. You can always eat plenty of gelati.

[Lexis]

I'm leaving this afternoon, any last minute suggestions would be great. Wish me luck!

[Ms. Celiac]

Hi Everyone,

In August, I will be in Milan and Venice. I was wondering if anyone has any restaurant suggestions for either of these cities that accommodate a gluten free diet?

I've already called the hotel that I'm staying at in Venice (Hotel Cipriani) and they said that it is not a problem and that they will alert both the concierge and the head chef of their restaurants. I've been told that they have gluten free bread, pizza, and pasta at their restaurants. I still need to contact my hotel in Milan.

So does anyone know any gluten free restaurants, ice cream / gelato shoppes, etc.?

Thanks

[mattagli]

My name is MATTEO, I am italian and I have just move in US from Italy few weeks ago.... today is my first time in this forum.... but if u have question about gluteen free foods, restaurant and so on.... please let me know !! I will be happy to help u ....and u will love my country even if u eat gluten free PIZZA!! ...

CIAO e a presto!

[GlamourGetaways]

If you find yourself craving a substantial Gluten Free Meal, telephone the Italian Celiac Association at: 892424 (from Italy only).

When telephoning this number you will gain access to an English language and a text message system with the name(s) and telephone number(s) of Italian Celiac Association informed venues serving a gluten-free menu in the area . You provide them with your area and they will either tell or text you the location of the nearest gluten free serving establishment.

When calling you must state or type both of these two keywords together: A.I.C. (Italian Celiac Association) informed and gluten-free menu.(*)

The Eating Out Project was set up because the Italian Celiac Association needed to create a chain of venues informed about celiac disease which would be able to offer a service suitable for the dietary

requirements of celiacs.

In order to become a member of the chain the venue must have satisfied the following requirements:

* Participated at a Basic Course organized by the AIC on coeliac disease and the gluten-free diet

* Completed their training with subsequent meetings/courses supervised by their Regional AIC

branch

* Receive up-to-date AIC information material

* Allow periodic check-ups by their Regional AIC branch

* Use products that are approved by the Italian Ministry of Health, listed in the National Register of

Gluten-Free Food of the Ministry of Health and/or products present in the AIC Food and Drink

Handbook

[CathleenAnna]

Hello and I am so glad to find this link!

Would anyone have any specific recommendations for restaurants, pizza, or grocery stores in Ischia, Italy?

I will be traveling with my family to Ischia with perhaps some side trips to Florence and Agropoli in June. My 8 year old daughter and I are recently diagnosed with Celiac...this will be our first big trip.