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Gluten Free In San Diego-Help

Aims51

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Aims51 Newbie
Aims51
Posted

So, my boyfriend and I are going to San Diego, CA for a vacation in December and although I am very excited I am also scared about my diet. I have a pretty serious gluten intolerance (may even be celiac but I went gluten free several months before my doctor actually found in necessary to do the tests, arrg)so I have to be very careful about where I eat. Are there any suggestions of where to eat (that is not too expensive)near the sea world/zoo area? What would you suggest for snacks at the zoo, sea world, and the wildlife park? Any help will be much appreciated! I am just so scared about the vacation and I want to make sure I am prepared.

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Darissa Contributor
Darissa
Posted

We went to SeaWorld last week in San Diego. We were pleasantly surprised, as we had been there last year as well. The managers are now trained in different Allergens, including gluten. You need to task for the managers at each of the restaurants. We really were inpressed with Alex at Calipso Bay. He was very knowledegable about Celiac. He got our food fresh out of the back, not off the line. We had BBQ chicken and it was so good! We also had ribs at ShipRex Cafe that were great. We are very sensitive to cross contact, and we did good the days we were there. We normally ate a big breakfast before going, brought in almonds/nuts/dried fruit for a filling snack, (tell the at the gate when they search your bag that you have gluten free snacks due to "allergy" and they let us in) and ate a late lunch. We normally ate dinner outside of park. I wrote seaworld before going, and this was their reply:

Dear Darissa, Thank you for your email. We do offer a pre-package meal which is a gluten free Marghertia pizza that is offered at all of our main meal facilities (Calypso Bay Smokehouse, Shipwreck Reef Caf

tgrahek Newbie
tgrahek
Posted

I think you picked a good place to visit! I was in San Diego a couple years ago and had no trouble with gluten free as well as dairy free. They are very health oriented in San Diego. I don't recall the places I went but I do know that I used this great website to research ahead of time.

Open Original Shared Link

Good luck!

cap6 Enthusiast
cap6
Posted

San Diego is a wonderful place to visit and very gluten-free friendly!! The Warren Celiac Disease Foundation is in San Diego so that town is very friendly. Google "Gluten Free in San Diego" and you will come up with tons!

Aims51 Newbie
Aims51
Posted
  • Author

Thank you so much for so much detail! I finally have convinced my boyfriend to go gluten free (to see if he has issues too) and so having such detail in your post will be wonderful to show to him. It is encouraging to see that most people regard San Diego as allergy friendly. This will be my first vacation as gluten free, but the information that you and others have given has made me feel more comfortable. Thank you!

cap6 Enthusiast
cap6
Posted

Check the posting under Gluten Free San Diego from January 2012. There are a couple of places listed with positive comments from the posters.

She mentioned staying at the Hilton Bayfront and the Vela Restaurant.

The Yard House with A "gluten sensitive" menu.

the Edgewater Grill in Seaport Village

tHE Harbor House in Seaport Village

Albert's at the San Diego was only fair.

Pull up her posting for more details. i only copied the places she suggested.

JillianLindsay Enthusiast
JillianLindsay
Posted

I was there last year for a conference and had a good time :) I was staying in a hotel with a mini fridge (I recommend that if you can). I went down to a Whole Foods and stocked up and had a little stash of food at the hotel room for whenever I needed it. There's a Whole Foods on University ave. in Hillcrest, only 5 mins. from the Zoo. Kitty-corner to the Whole Foods is a very small restaurant/bar called Wine Encounter. They serve delicious, gourmet gluten-free pizza!! I highly recommend it, but go on a weeknight because on Fridays & Saturdays they are way too busy.

Also, someone suggested P.F. Chang's when I was there last year. Here's my old thread: If you like Asian cuisine, it is DELICIOUS and very celiac-friendly too :) It's at the Fashion Valley Mall, only a 10-minute drive up from the Zoo area. If you go on a weekend, I recommend making reservations online Open Original Shared Link you will get seated much quicker if there is a huge line-up.

I went to the Safari Park & Zoo and they were quite impressive! I didn't eat there, but it sounds like you already have some great suggestions for places to go, etc. Enjoy!

So, my boyfriend and I are going to San Diego, CA for a vacation in December and although I am very excited I am also scared about my diet. I have a pretty serious gluten intolerance (may even be celiac but I went gluten free several months before my doctor actually found in necessary to do the tests, arrg)so I have to be very careful about where I eat. Are there any suggestions of where to eat (that is not too expensive)near the sea world/zoo area? What would you suggest for snacks at the zoo, sea world, and the wildlife park? Any help will be much appreciated! I am just so scared about the vacation and I want to make sure I am prepared.

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anabananakins Explorer
anabananakins
Posted

There's also a Chipotle near the Whole Foods in Hillcrest, Chipotle is always my favourite standby when travelling in the US. I was staying downtown and got the bus out there which was quite straightforward and I was half dead with jetlag (I'd flown into LAX from Australia that morning and taken the train down to San Diego!) If you have a car it'll be super easy.

San Diego was a really nice place to visit, enjoy your trip!

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    • trents
      celiac, chocolate and alcohol

      By trents · Posted

      So, you had both and endoscopy with biopsy and a colonoscopy. That helps me understand what you were trying to communicate. No, no! It never occurred to me that you were trying to mislead me. It's just that we get a lot of posters on the forum who are misinformed about what celiac disease is and how it is diagnosed so I need some clarification from you which you were so gracious to give.
    • barb simkin
      celiac, chocolate and alcohol

      By barb simkin · Posted

      I had both the genetic genes for celiac.  My gastroenologist advised he also took a biopsy during one of my colonoscopies and endoscopy and advised I had celiac disease, along with stomach ulcers from my esophagus stomach down to my small bowel. I was shown the ulcers on the catscan and endoscopy report.  I also had polyps in 3 places throughout my large bowel. I was on a strict diet for months following.  I am sorry if I didnt define how I was diagnosed with celiac disease.  I am sorry if you think I was misleading you. I also had to pay $150.00 for the genetic testing.
    • trents
      celiac, chocolate and alcohol

      By trents · Posted

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    • barb simkin
      celiac, chocolate and alcohol

      By barb simkin · Posted

      I did nor read the chocolate pkg as it was of fered to me and I ate 2 pcs. I do know that only very dark chocolate and and a very few others are gluten free. Most alcohols contain gluten. I have several yrs of not knowing my celiac condition as docs would not do the test. After looking on the internet about my sufferings I insisted on the gene trsting which showed positive for gluten insensitivity and a biopsy on my next colonoscopy that also showed positive which could not help the damage done to my small bowel. So I very rarely have a glass of wine
    • trents
      celiac, chocolate and alcohol

      By trents · Posted

      @barb simkin, are you sure the chocolate products are gluten-free and not "manufactured on equipment that also handles wheat products and tree nuts", i.e., cross-contamination? And what kind of alcoholic beverages are we talking about? Most beers are made from gluten-containing grains. Just checking.
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