Today will focus on over-night accommodations and breakfast/dinner.
In the past my Mister and I have taken road trips that required us to rent a room for the night, halfway through our journey. Staying the night means you have two meals to worry about: dinner that night and breakfast the next morning.
There are a few ways I work around this.
If you are in a large city and have internet access you can do a quick search to find chain restaurants around you that are gluten-free friendly. If you read my restaurant reviews you'll find that there are some nationwide chains that have a good gluten-free record. You can also check out a new link I discovered: The Gluten-Free Registry, a nation-wide registry that lets you search for gluten-free friendly restaurants by state and city.
Gluten-free Registry has an app you can download or you can do a quick search for other free, gluten-free apps that let you search for gluten-free restaurants by your location.
Even if you do not have internet access you still have options. One of the biggest is asserting yourself in a restaurant and simply asking what their gluten-free options are and asking a waiter or manager for help in navigating the menu. I've had good results with this when eating in new-to-me places and I'll write about my latest one tomorrow.
Another option that I wrote about yesterday was to bring along your own gluten-free frozen meals. Almost every hotel that offers free continental breakfast has a breakfast area or common area with access to a microwave. If they don't have one, all you have to do is ask; one hotel that didn't have a microwave in their common area even gave me access to the employee break room microwave.
You can also specifically request a room with a microwave and mini-fridge for your perishables at a slightly higher rate.
That takes care of dinner, now what about breakfast?
If you've prepped your lunchbox you can have a filling albeit slightly unsatisfying breakfast of hard boiled eggs and other snacks you've brought along.
Or you can bring along any number of gluten-free pre-prepared breakfasts.
Most big chain hotels offer a free continental breakfast with an overnight stay. Most of these are rife with pastries, cereals, and heat-and-serve waffles; even if they offer hot options like eggs and sausage, it can be a mine field for a gluten-intolerant.
If you decide to risk it and maneuver your way around the provided breakfast, there are now digestive supplemental aids that help in cases of accidental gluten digestion.
The GlutenEase supplement is one such product but you can find different brands or varieties in health food stores.*
*BIG disclaimer: I am not promoting any product, I am just discussing different possible alternatives and obviously make your own decision as to what you choose to take, do your research and read your labels. The intention of these products is to ease an accidental digestion of gluten; they are not intended as a "magic pill" for you to go hog wild eating wheat and not suffer any ill effects. Most of these supplements work best when taken well before accidental gluten ingestion, in other words, start taking it before your trip or before you think you might be in danger of being contaminated by gluten.
Of course you can always go a different route entirely. Sometimes the destination can be the journey if you stay at a bed and breakfast!
I've had two experiences with bed-and-breakfasts: one great and one more recent that wasn't too hot.
But the thing about B&Bs is that they are usually family run so you get to explain your dietary restrictions to a person, not a corporation, and most are happy to comply since they want your stay to be pleasant.
Also, some of them are only a little bit more expensive than a hotel room and sometimes cheaper (and nicer) than the nicest rooms hotels have to offer since things like a mini fridge and microwave are included.
I've only had two experiences with B&Bs and my first was definitely better than my second.
My first was called The Lime Kiln, where my Mister took me to right after our wedding reception and we had officially become Mr. and Mrs. (Okay so maybe I'm a bit partial because of that!)
The innkeeper took such an interest in preparing gluten-free meals for me that I felt pampered.
These breakfasts had the works and it was so much food that frankly we ate all we could until we were stuffed and we still hadn't finished the entire thing!
It was such a good experience that upon consideration deserves a very good review so look for that coming up!
Our second experience was a little less... generous. During our recent weekend we decided to stay an a relatively inexpensive B & B close to where we were visiting. Even though my Mister was just as cautious about stating my dietary restrictions, this place was slightly less understanding than our previous experience yet still more accommodating than a hotel would have been. I mean at least I was openly allowed to heat up and eat food in our room and we had plates to eat off of.
We also never got the "breakfast" part of our deal. While they only stated that my gluten-intolerance would be a bit of a problem, they never actually said whether they were able or unable to comply. As a result of this miscommunication, when we arrived we only found bottles of water, a basket of fruit, boiled eggs, and some slices of homemade sweet bread that was not gluten-free. That was all the "breakfast" we received in our two-night stay and it wasn't replenished for the second day so it wasn't nearly as satisfying.
Needless to say we were glad we packed food!
Despite that bad experience, I would still recommend B&B's in general as a way to get a decent gluten-free meal or in my case, gluten-free snacks.
And due to our bad experience I won't recommend nor name and identify this place other than to say it was near the Kemah Boardwalk.
And due to our bad experience I won't recommend nor name and identify this place other than to say it was near the Kemah Boardwalk.
Stay tune tomorrow for Part 3 of my "road trip traveling while gluten-free" series!
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