Authentically Italian via Noo Yoik, Frankie and Benny’s has a super sized menu that’s the size of a book. I’m not kidding. It’s literally a book, packed full of all kinds of pizzas, pastas, burgers, steaks, grills, sandwiches and wraps, waffles and brownies. In other words, a no-go area for a coeliac. Until now!

So do Frankie & Benny’s do gluten free food?

Recently Frankie and Benny’s have introduced a gluten free menu.

Frankie & Benny’s Gluten Free Menu

This is definitely a step in the right direction. But what I’d love to see are gluten free versions of some of Frank and Benny’s best dishes. So gluten free pasta or pizza or waffles would be amazing. What we’ve got instead is a list of all the things that are on the current menu that can be eaten by a coeliac. So a burger…without the bun. And quite a few salads (as usual) and a few chicken dishes. The hickory BBQ ribs make the list though, so that’s good. What’s also pretty good was the Mediterranean vegetarian risotto, which was tasty and filling and definitely something I’d have again.

Frankie & Benny’s vegetarian risotto

Something I wouldn’t have again are the potato skins, which I had as a starter. They were described as mouth-watering and full loaded. But cheddar cheese, with raw onion and tomato on a slightly undercooked potato was not great.

Frankie & Benny’s potato skins

I finished with a frutilicious sundae, which came without the strawberry ice cream but was pretty good none the less.

I have to say that these kind of places normally have the worst customer service. But the service we received was excellent. Our server was chatty, helpful, polite and on the ball.

When it comes to food, this is not the best restaurant you’re ever going to visit. But if you’re looking for a family friendly venue that caters for every single member of the family then this is a good bet. And the service is great.

There are 120 Frankie and Benny’s across the country. Find your nearest one here.

For more information and the latest offers visit:

• Twitter: @frankienbennys
• Facebook: FrankieBennys

CELIA & Clive at Vozars

I know we’ve talked about CELIA gluten free lager on this blog before. If you haven’t tried it yet, where have you been? It’s the only brewery in the world that uses saaz hops, a protected variety. And it has an amazing clean and refreshing flavour with a subtle sweet taste at the end. The other half is a big craft beer lover. And he’s a big fan of CELIA. And it’s not just him. CELIA picked up the award for best gluten free beer at 2013’s Free From Awards. Not bad considering it only launched last year!

CELIA lager is also fantastic with food. So when we heard that CELIA had joined with Clive handmade pies for a one night stand at Vozars in Brixton, we hot footed it to one of our favourite gluten free restaurants in south London.

CELIA & Clive at Vozars

Clive’s is a vegetarian organic bakery based in south Devon producing a range of pies, cakes and flapjacks using interesting ingredients. But let’s talk about the gluten free pies shall we?

CELIA Lager & Clive’s Pies

We tried the Aloo Gobi pie served with a yoghurt dressing and salad. And Minty Chickpeas served with a hot pepper sauce and green veggies. Crikey. The pies were fantastic! The pastry was short almost crumbly and moist so it sorted of melted in your mouth. And they were big enough to be substantial but you never feel like you had a mouthful of pastry because there was plenty of filling too, which were really moist, really spicy, and really flavoursome.

CELIA Lager & Clive’s Pies

The bad news? This was a one night only event to celebrate Coeliac Awareness Week. The good news is that you can buy a Clive’s pie and a bottle of CELIA for only £4 from Ocado. But hurry, the offer ends on May 20th.

CELIA lager normally retails for £2.49. And Clive’s Pies for £2.99.

To find out more visit:

• Web: www.celialager.co.uk
• Twitter: @CELIAlager
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/CELIALager

• Web: www.clivespies.co.uk
• Twitter: @clivespies
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/clivespieshandmadewithlove

Rossopomodoro Verace Gluten Free Pizza

Have you noticed that a lot of the chains like Prezzo and Pizza Express are doing gluten free pizzas these days? And most of the time they’re not bad.

But if you want a gluten free pizza that has a real taste of Naples about it I can highly recommend checking out Rossopomodoro. There are currently six Rossopomodoro restaurants in London – we went to the one in Wandsworth – and one in Birmingham but hopefully more will be coming soon.

Too clarify, Rossopomodoro state that they offer pizzas that have no gluten free containing ingredients (NGCI) although they can’t absolutely guarantee 100% that it’s a flour free environment. But it looks like the team work really hard to ensure the risk is kept to an absolute minimum. Find out more about their gluten free credentials here. And I have to say the staff were really well informed.

Buffalo Mozzarella with slices of fresh tomato and basil

Anyway, the food. Do not visit if you’re on a low calorie diet. Everything is topped with a swirl of olive oil. But it’s proper Neapolitan olive oil that tastes absolutely delicious. So to start we shared a buffalo Mozzarella (shipped in from Sorrento) that came with slices of fresh tomato and basil and the obligatory oil. Now this was really something. The Mozzarella was beautiful. Creamy but light. Delish.

Then I followed it up with a Verace pizza: fresh tomato sauce, fresh buffalo mozzarella (yes, more) and fresh basil. Simple, classic and very Naples. And yes, I ate all of it and didn’t even entertain the idea of saving half for the following day. How about the gluten free base? Loved it. It was doughy and soft like a GF bread rather than a GF pitta and a lovely texture. And nearly all the pizzas on the menu can made as a gluten free version.

So bearing in mind it’s a pizza and pasta chain, how comes the food at Rossopomodoro tastes so authentic? Turns out all the all the chefs are Neapolitan and the ingredients are sourced form the Naples region. And Rossopomodoro only employ pizzaioli (pizza chefs) who come from pizzaioli families, and only cook in traditional wood burning ovens. And it shows too because the pizzas are extremely good.

Want an authentic gluten free pizza in London? Head on over to Rossopomodoro.

At the time of writing they have London restaurants in Camden, Chelsea, Covent Garden, Hoxton, Notting Hill & Wandsworth.

P.S. Sorry about the photos. It was a bit dark in there and I didn’t have my proper camera.

Rossopomodoro Restaurant in Wandsworth

Slow roast chicken with creamy mash, beetroot and olives

Sometimes you enjoy food at an eatery that’s so damn delicious you almost don’t want anyone else know to know about it in case it becomes really popular and you never get a seat there again. That’s what I thought after visiting Vozars gluten free restaurant in Brixton Village market in south west London at the weekend.

We’d come across Vozars before as Ben and his team had kindly sent us some gluten free beer to try before Christmas. CELIA Lager is a premium organic, gluten free lager from the Czech Republic, which is now available via numerous stockists and of course served at Vozars.  (Just for the record, CELIA Lager was tested by the other half who’s a real speciality beer drinker and a gluten lover and he thought it was great. “Light, refreshing and you’d never know it was gluten free.”)

So when a friend and I found ourselves having a mooch around Brixton Market at the weekend we thought we’d check out Vozars for a spot of lunch.

Vozars restaurant is in a covered market so it’s not big and it’s pretty basic. It slightly feels like being in someone’s front room, which, personally, I really like. There are about ten seats inside and the same outside, and there’s a tiny kitchen in the corner, which on the day we were there was manned by Martin, Vozars head chef and co-owner. The menu is small and quite unusual with a slight east European leaning, although Martin told us he prefers to call it just ‘European’ so he’s not limited by the dishes he can cook. Most of the ingredients are sourced from Brixton Market too.

Bruschetta with mushrooms and leek ragout

I chose the bruschetta with mushrooms and leek ragout.  A simple dish but really, really well done. Tasty, tangy and the bruschetta was excellent. My friend had the slow roast chicken, which came with creamy mash, beetroot and olives and was “superb.”

We followed it up with a gluten free brownie provided by the WAGfree Bakery, Vozars sister company and supplier of gluten free goodies to various London restaurants as well as Selfridges Food Hall. Now, I love a good gluten free brownie and this was one of the best. In fact, it’s been voted one of the best gluten free brownies in London by the London Evening Standard and it’s easy to see why. Moist and really chocolatey rather than sugary, and nutty too. It was blooming delicious. And I could kill for one right now.

Vozars gluten-free menu

If you find yourself in Brixton Market any time soon check out Vozars. Just leave a seat for me.

Vozars Gluten Free Restaurant
Unit 26, Brixton Village
Atlantic Road
London SW9 8PS
UK

Mon: Closed
Tue: 11:30am – 4:00pm
Wed-Fri: 11:30am – 10:30pm
Sat: 11:00am – 10:30pm
Sun: 12:00pm – 5:00pm

Living in London? Have you been to Vozars yet?

Gluten free tapas at La Tasca

I’ve been to La Tasca in Kingston a number of times, and always found a few dishes I can eat. But in the last few months their menu has had a bit of an overhaul courtesy of their in-house executive chef Antonio Bennett, and it’s now even more gluten-free-friendly, with an additional 18 authentic gluten free tapas dishes being added to the menu.

Wow! This needed checking out. So this week, on a mild autumn evening we found ourselves sitting by the riverside at Kingston, sipping sangria and sampling the delights of the new gluten free menu at La Tasca.

What did we have? To start we chose the gluten free flat bread served with delicious olive oil and a side of olives. The bread was very good although it would be even nicer if it were a little warmed through. We suggested this to the manager Alfonso (who was super friendly and really knowledgeable about gluten free stuff) and he said he’d give customers the option in future.

The olives and gluten free flat bread at La Tasca

Next up, we tucked into our tapas dishes, which were all superb, and included butterfly king prawns, sautéed in a chilli-&-garlic infused oil; chorizo and black beans cooked in white wine; rioja – mushrooms in garlic butter and wine; tortilla Española; and a vegetable gratin which consisted of creamy potatoes, spinach and blue cheese. This was a personal favourite I have to say. And all of these were gluten free tapas.

A selection of gluten free tapas at La Tasca

What’s more La Tasca even do a special gluten-free selection for two to share for £26.65. Great value. I’m pleased to say their gluten-free commitment has earned them accreditation from the Coeliac Society and a ‘Best Gluten Free Menu’ award from Healthy Eating, Eating Out Awards. And well deserved it is too.

The Coeliac UK accredited La Tasca menu

So after our feast, did we have room for pudding? No, not really. Did we have some anyway? Sure did. Because there were so many gluten free options on the dessert menu it would have been rude not to try them. How about chocolate fondant, or lemon and lime crumble tart or chocolate and toffee tart? Or how about Spanish style gelato or two scoops of sorbet? In the end I chose the lemon and lime tart which had a beautiful moist pastry and a tangy, sharp filling.

The gluten free desserts we had at La Tasca

So that would be my tip: don’t overdo it on the tapas, so you have room for pudding.

What I like about La Tasca is that despite being a chain it has a brilliantly authentic feel about it. The last time I had tapas this good I was in Barcelona. There are La Tascas all over the country too, so hopefully you can find one nearby.

Good atmosphere, excellent service and a superb choice of gluten-free tapas. What more can you ask for?

Have you tried the gluten free tapas at La Tasca? What did you think? Let us know in the comments.

Las Iguanas, Royal Festival Hall, London

So we found ourselves at Las Iguanas restaurant at the Royal Festival Hall in London last week, one of thirty Las Iguanas restaurants across the UK.

Serving up dishes packed full of Latin America flavours, Las Iguanas has something you don’t often see in South American restaurants: a gluten free menu.

Now, if you’re looking forward to munching down on gluten free enchiladas, gluten free burritos, or gluten free fajitas you may be a little disappointed as they’re not on the menu. (Perhaps the guys at Las Iguanas can think about addressing this?).

What they have done though is gather together all the gluten free dishes they have on the main menu to create a standalone gluten free menu. And this is a good idea actually. Because the main menu is huge and, let’s be honest, it’s a pain in the backside searching the menu for dishes with the little GF beside them.

So what’s on our own special gluten free menu? As it turns out: lots. And how nice is it to know you can eat EVERYTHING on it.

Lechuga Rellenos at Las Iguanas

So what did I have? I started with Lechuga Rellenos, (little gem lettuce leaves) with oven dried tomatoes, feta and herb chimichurri, an Argentinian sauce. Delicious and spicy, it was a good choice as a starter as it was nice and light.

Bahia Moqueca at Las Iguanas

I followed this up with Bahia Moqueca, a creamy coconut curry-like soup with squash, palm hearts and spinach that was served with rice. Now, I love Thai green curry so this was right up my street. It was so tangy and tasty I used my spoon to fish the last bit of the soup out of the wooden bowl, which was kept warm over a candle.

So the food is great. And Thursday night is two-for-one mojitos. Also great. The waiting staff also deserve a special mention too because they were all very friendly, helpful and energetic, which was amazing considering the restaurant was heaving the night we were there and the temperature outside was tropical.

It doesn’t look like all the Las Iguanas restaurants do the gluten free menu. So check yours does before you go. But if they do, it’s worth giving them a visit.

The Las Iguanas restaurant we went to was at the Royal Festival Hall, Festival Terrace, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX. But they have locations throughout the UK.

Pho (pronounced feu in Vietnam or foe by anyone outside Vietnam) is the Vietnamese national dish and is a simple, fresh nutritional noodle soup dish that’s eaten for lunch, breakfast and dinner. And as it’s made with clear vegetable stock and rice noodles it’s also a great choice for coeliacs as it’s gluten free.

Pho Chay and Bun Cha Gio Ga

So last weekend we went to Pho the restaurant on Wardour Street, one of the four Pho restaurants in London, to try pho the dish.

And the first thing you notice about Pho is it’s pretty cool. As are the waiting staff. But they’re also friendly and super knowledgeable. Our waitress was very helpful and friendly and was happy to spend time going through the menu and pointing out the few dishes I couldn’t eat because they contained hoisin sauce or soya sauce (although Pho are happy to take these out). But most dishes on the menu are great for coeliacs and there were numerous vegetarian options too.

So what we did choose?

Well I started with Goi Cuon, fresh summer veggies and noodles wrapped in (gluten free) rice paper with a fish dipping sauce. And Andrew chose Cha Gio, fried pork spring rolls. Both these starters are fairly substantial and incredibly filling. So if you want to leave space for your main course you might want to share one of these.

At Pho everything is freshly made with ingredients that are delivered daily. So my Goi Cuon was packed full of fresh peppers and mint. And our server took the time to show Andrew how the lettuce could be wrapped round the pork spring rolls for extra crunch.

Homemade lemonade vodka

For the main course I chose Pho Chay, which is tofu, mushrooms and rice noodles in a veggie stock, and Andrew chose Bun Cha Gio Ga which is lemongrass chicken with a stir-fry topping and rice noodles, and is served with veggie spring roll and peanuts. This dish had a lovely combination of textures with crunchy stir-fry and soft noodles and a beautiful combination of flavours including coriander, chili, nut, and lemon. My Pho Chay came with side dish of fresh herbs including flat leaf parsley and mint, and chili so I could give my dish a bit of an extra kick if I wanted to. I didn’t need to. It was tasty and filling but a bit on the salty side for my personal taste.

There’s one item on the menu that you absolutely must try and that’s the homemade lemonade vodka. Cold, minty and packing a punch. Highly recommended.

Pho Soho
Opening times: Monday to Saturday
 12 – 11pm, Sunday 
12pm – 10pm
Address: 63-165 Wardour Street,
 London,
 W1F 8WN,
Telephone: 020 7434 3938

Freidman’s pastrami sandwich and sweet potato fries

Friends of GFB, Wendy and Paul, recently made their annual pilgrimage to the amazing city of New York and Wendy, being gluten intolerant, was kind enough to write some notes about the places she visited that were GF friendly.

Freidman’s Lunch

A great café inside the foodie Chelsea Market. Many items on the menu can be adapted to be gluten free. I had a yummy pastrami sandwich and sweet potato fries. The bread they use was much tastier than anything I’ve had in the UK.

They also do bagels for breakfast/brunch but only at the weekend. And they stock a bottled gluten free beer called Redbridge which was really good.

Very reasonably priced.

S’MAC (short for Sarita’s Macaroni & Cheese)

Great little place in the East Village serving only mac ‘n’ cheese – they position themselves as “New York’s best Macaroni & Cheese” on their website.

All dishes are ‘build your own’ where you choose your own cheese combinations and additional ingredients and can all be made with gluten free pasta. I had a ‘nosh’ size (the smallest size) though I wished I’d had the ‘major munch’ as it was so good! Only negative was that on their website they say they offer a vegan/non dairy cheese option but they didn’t have this on the day we visisted – (I shouldn’t really have dairy but did).

A filling and tasty cheap lunch.

Bar Breton, 250 5th Ave, New York

Bar Breton
UPDATE: Apparently closed now unfortunately
A smart but cosy French restaurant open for lunch and dinner on 5^th Avenue not far from the Empire State Building which specialises in traditional Brittany buckwheat galettes.

Absolutely delicious and they also have a dedicated gluten free fryer for their herb fries! We had a salmon galette with horseradish cream and also a Gruyère and Black Forest ham. Traditional Breton cider to drink served in a teacup!

Reasonably priced for the great quality.

Babycakes NYC, 248 Broome Street, New York

Babycakes NYC

Oh my God! Heaven on earth! Cute bakery on the Lower East Side selling the most delicious breads, cookies and cupcakes and all made with healthy ingredients. They don’t use eggs or dairy instead using healthy coconut oil and only use agave nectar, never sugar.

Almost all of their cakes are gluten free with the exception of a few which are made using spelt – though the cabinets are all clearly labeled and the staff always ask about intolerances when serving.

I had carrot cupcake and pumpkin bread (as it was Halloween) – really amazing and deliciously moist with the subtle taste of coconut. We need one of these in London!

Babycakes NYC cupcakes

I also bought the Babycakes book (Babycakes: Vegan, (Mostly) Gluten-Free, and (Mostly) Sugar-Free Recipes from New York’s Most Talked-about Bakery) by founder Erin McKenna so will be testing out my baking skills over the coming weeks – I just need to source some of the ingredients online first which are not as easy to find in the UK – they have great online suppliers in the US.

Other places we ate were all very helpful by adapting dishes to exclude specific ingredients to ensure that they were gluten free.

It sounds like Wendy and Paul had a fantastic time in New York and we thank them for taking the time to send us their experiences.

Get yourselves over there to try out some of these places. It’s getting cheaper and cheaper for us in the UK to visit the States. And of course, let us know if you discover or know of any other great places in New York.

However, a couple of our readers left messages in the comments section that they had become ill after eating McDonald’s fries and they had been led to believe that the fries were often cooked with gluten products.

I called McDonald’s UK to ask them if the fries were gluten free; are they ever cooked in the same vat as gluten products; and could there be any risk of cross contamination?

This is their reply:

Our French Fries and Hash Browns are gluten free, as are Fruit Bags, Carrot Sticks and the Garden Side Salad, our core McFlurry ice creams (i.e. not promotional) and our Chocolate and Strawberry Milkshakes, but not Vanilla.

I was sorry to read that one of your blog community members had concerns about cross-contamination of our French Fries. This should certainly not be the case as we make absolutely every possible effort to apply the highest quality measures throughout all procedures. We cook our French Fries in a dedicated vat and prepare them in a dedicated area. Whenever we cook a promotional side order containing gluten, such as Onion Rings, they are cooked in a separate vat some distance away from the Fry station. Gluten free promotional items are cooked in the same way as our French Fries and to the same standards.

Our menu is constantly being reviewed to create the most varied choices available for all customers. We also work closely with the Coeliac Society to provide them with updated information for their members’ booklet, but if your blog community have concerns about the available information please let me know and we can look at how we can better outreach on this issue.

Steve Heywood, Press Officer, McDonald’s UK

So it does seem McDonald’s are on the case when it comes to gluten free products and the care that needs to be taken when preparing them.

The concern, I guess, is that the odd individual restaurant is not adhering to these standards. Have you experienced this at all? Let us know in the comments.

For more information on allergens and the nutritional value of McDonald’s products visit the McDonald’s menu site.

Cheese and coleslaw gluten free sandwich from Starbucks

Starbucks have been using Genius bread for a while since they started selling the classic tuna mayo earlier this year. This week they launched a new sandwich: cheese and coleslaw made with mature cheddar and red Leicester cheese with crunchy cabbage, carrot and red onion coleslaw topped with mixed leaf salad. Perfect for summer.

“We take the health and wellbeing of our customers seriously and we’re committed to offering choice, including a great quality gluten free sandwich. We’ve received really positive feedback from our customers and this product has enabled us to provide more options for our coeliac customers but also for other customers too,” said Sarah Dunne, corporate communications manager at Starbucks UK and Ireland.

Free from artificial flavours and colours, Starbucks cheese and coleslaw sandwich using Genius brown bread is available from all UK Starbucks costs £2.95 for take away or £3.45 eat in.

Have you tried Starbucks’ cheese and coleslaw sandwich yet? What do you think?

The market consists of about 40 stalls selling quality, fresh produce and ingredients including cheeses; fresh pastas and sauces; chutneys and pickles; middle eastern delicacies; and artisan breads, cakes and pastries.

We enjoyed a glass of freshly pressed apple juice and a sip (or two) of organic brandy before I went on the hunt for gluten free goodies. And I came across the Arancici Brothers, who make delicious vegetarian and gluten free Arancini risotto balls, which look a bit like falafel, and are packed full of fresh herbs, cheeses, onion, garlic and a hint of citrus.

Arancini Brothers gluten free balls

The guys were serving them hot with a salad, in a chilli or garlic wrap, or just on their own with a little pickle on the side. And let me tell you, they were absolutely delicious. Very tasty. And very filling. Try and get your hands on some of these. They’re perfect for packed lunches and picnics.

You can find the Arancini Brothers at these markets.

We also chatted with the lovely Caroline of Sugargrain who makes gluten free cakes as well as award-winning confectionary such as elderflower marshmallows. Some of her cakes are dairy free, fat free and made without sugar; so there really is something for everyone.

Caroline of Sugargrain gluten free cakes

Of course, I had to try a chocolate nut brownie – for research purposes, you understand – and it was definitely one of my favourite chocolate brownies ever (and I’ve eaten lots). It was so moist it was almost creamy, and very chocolatey without being too sweet or sickly. Scrummy.

You can find Sugargrain at these markets and you can also follow Caroline on Twitter @sugargrain.

The Real Food Market at the Southbank takes place on the first weekend of every month. Dates are August 6th – 8th, September 3rd – 5th, November 5th – 7th and December 3rd – 5th. If you’re in the London, and you love food, it’s worth a visit.

Whether you have a food allergy or intolerance, are vegetarian or vegan or even need to find a child-friendly venue or a place with disabled access, Leave It Out can help.

Simply enter your post code, click which intolerance you have and Leave It Out will show you your nearest restaurants.

You can even win dinner for two at a restaurant of your choice by writing a review or sending the site a new listing. Got a fantastic local restaurant you want to talk about? Just register here (it takes about 30 seconds) and write a review. Or if you want to see your favourite local restaurant listed just contact the Leave It Out team.

You’ll also find lots of informative articles on the site written by Medical Consultant Dr Adam Fox and Dietician Tanya Wright, such as Coeliac Disease And Malt Extract and When And How Can Wheat Allergy Occur?

We think this site is going to be a great resource. Remember to get your reviews and recommendations in. And you might be enjoying a gluten free pizza free of charge at the end of the month!

If you’re in the Surrey or south London area you absolutely must visit Bruschetta in Kingston upon Thames. This amazing gluten free Italian restaurant is run by the fabulous Julia and Daniele. And the best bit? The entire menu is gluten free. Yes, there is a ‘regular’ menu for those in your party who want to eat the wheaty stuff. But why would they? The gluten free menu is so packed full of delicious and authentic Italian dishes you can probably convert them for good.

Having visited last Saturday, I can thoroughly recommend the Pizz’Italia pizza with mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, rocket and fresh ricotta. Seriously tasty. My friend had the Finocchiona pizza with mozzarella, tomato, artichokes heart, Italian fennel salami and parmesan. The pizzas are incredibly filling. But we still found room to share a slice of Julia’s chocolate cake. Delicious.

All the gluten free dishes are authentically Italian and prepared in a gluten free kitchen. For opening times and menus visit Bruschetta’s Facebook page (and become a fan!).

Gluten free tea at Claridge's

Do you remember last week we told you we’d been invited to tea at Claridge’s courtesy of Genius gluten free bread? Well, we went on Monday and we have to say it was absolutely delicious.

We enjoyed smoked salmon with horseradish and dill; organic chicken with lemon remoulade; dorrington ham; and cucumber and rocket – all with the crusts cut off, natch. And they were all made with Genius gluten free bread which will now be available as part of Claridge’s afternoon tea. (Just ring in advance and let them know.)

Gluten free cakes and pastries

As if that wasn’t enough we then tucked into gluten free scones served with Devonshire clotted cream and strawberry preserve; fruit tartlets; and to-die-for chocolate ondulay cake. These were all to Lucinda’s recipes although not part of the Genius range (yet!).

Lucinda Bruce-Gardyne Genius Founder

We managed to grab a few words with Genius’s founder, the lovely Lucinda Bruce-Gardyne, who told us the sales of gluten free sandwiches in Starbucks (made with Genius bread) were selling really well. In fact, non-gluten-free-people were buying them without even realising! And she told us about new products in the pipeline, namely brown and white rolls. We can’t wait. Of course, the next step is to roll (no pun intended) Genius gluten free bread out internationally.

On the way out we received gorgeous goodie bags containing a couple of loaves of Genius bread and Lucinda’s fabulous book How to Cook for Food Allergies: Understand Ingredients, Adapt Recipes with Confidence and Cook for an Exciting Allergy-Free Diet.

Not tried Genus gluten free bread yet? It’s now available in all major UK grocery stores.

So we’re thrilled to see that the people over at Genius are involved. And as you know we’re huge Genius fans here at The Gluten Free Blog. Genius bread is delicious. So we can’t wait to see what scrummy fillings Claridge’s serves up.

It’s Monday May 10th. So we’ll give you a full report after the event.