Gluten Free Atlanta – Heading Home & IKEA

Catching up on laundry and Easter festivities got the better of me for the last few days.  Back to Atlanta and last Thursday…..

We had so much fun with the cousins, doing touristy fun things and enjoying great meals out. I felt blessed to spend more time with Chris and blessed that travelling gluten free has gotten so much easier for us.  As Joe and I packed up the hotel room I made nachos for lunch and sandwiches for the drive home.  We packed up the cooler and even remembered the ice packs in the freezer to keep everything cold until dinner on the road.

We packed up the car and navigated to Zoo Atlanta with only one wrong turn!  After Monday’s hours of being lost this felt like total success.  Zoo Atlanta is a very small zoo, but so beautiful.  In all the zoos we’ve been fortunate enough to visit I’ve never seen Pandas as close up and seemingly happy as Zoo Atlanta.  The Red Panda napping in the sun on his roof was the sweetest and the Orangutans were enormous shaggy somehow gentle looking beasts.  Since Chris had to work a few hours after our hotel check out time the zoo was a great way to get some walking in before our car ride home.  Joe’s such a biology/zoology buff that I always learn so much about the animals we see, too.  Fueled by my success to the zoo, we zipped right up the freeway to Chris office with time to spare.  Next time a g.p.s. would make all the difference!

This just cracks me up.

Anyway, after picking up Chris we drove several hours toward home and ran into IKEA on the way home.  Oh how I wish IKEA wasn’t 2 ½ hours away from me.  The guys were tired but indulged me a few minutes – a very few minutes in the store.  There were a couple of things I needed for my kitchen and something gluten free I wanted. 

IKEA carries a gluten free tart called Almondy and they are so good.  They are served in the IKEA café so you can try a slice before you buy any whole tarts. I have to admit I was a bit disappointed as IKEA used to carry two other flavors of Almondy tarts but only stock this one now. Under the IKEA name there are now two very similar tarts of different flavors.  They read clean but are not marked gluten free like the Almondy brand so I didn’t bother with them until I can research them.

One of the Almondy Tarts made it to our Easter dessert table yesterday.  Two more are safely hidden in the freezer. =D

Gluten Free Atlanta – Day Four – Hotel Eats and Repeats

Wednesday was our last full day in Atlanta and it was great from start to finish.  There were threats of severe thunderstorms all day but we never saw a drop of rain. The light cloud cover kept the temperature just about perfect for walking and site seeing. Joe and I had a quiet morning catching up in the hotel room and Aunt Carrie picked up Joe and dropped off Kate just after lunch.    

Joe had a great time with Carrie and Kim and really enjoyed the Fernbank Museum exhibits and especially liked the IMAX Storm Chaser Movie. I love the pics Carrie took.  How they folded Joe up in the photo on the right just cracks me up.

I had the best time with Kate just wandering through the High and getting to know my fantastic niece. The museum is huge and has beautiful collections of varied art - we really had a great time looking at sculptures, paintings, etchings, furniture - even a blue glass iron from the early 1900's was interesting and surprisingly beautiful.

Kate is a super talented painter so it made perfect sense to take her picture with this sculpture of a painter. I loved hearing her talk about art and painting - she has learned so much and has such a gift.  It was really a nice way to spend the last of our cousin time together and made it all the harder to say good bye. 

Back at the hotel Joe was ready for a snack.  We made him a giant plate of nachos with groceries we’d brought from home.  In fact, many of our meals and snacks in Atlanta had been brought from home.  When we travel, which isn’t terribly often, we usually stay at a Residence Inn which a small kitchen.  We bring a cooler filled with groceries and plan most meals there. 

The kitchen in Atlanta, like most of them, had a two burner range, microwave, fridge and dishwasher.  There is usually a very basic set of pots, dishes and utensils.  You may want to pack up your own knives for slicing or specialty items like a peeler to make any meal prep a bit easier.  Since I don’t use a microwave at home and don’t worry about using for such short periods of time very occasionally it’s always fun to do microwave popcorn and other quick to heat items. If you choose not to use one, you’ll need to plan meals around the burners.

Staying in a hotel with a kitchen makes travelling so easy. You can know what you’re eating is gluten free and you can eat at times most convenient for you.  Our hotel had a breakfast buffet each morning. There were a few options that appeared to or certainly were gluten free and it would have been easy to ask the kitchen staff but I preferred to have the banana bread or bagels I packed instead.  

For this trip I made a large casserole sized lasagna style pasta, cheese bread and rolls, banana bread, Kombucha, cookies and trail mix.  We packed cans of black beans, chips, cheese and some other odds and ends.  I find that kombucha helps keep our stomachs “happier” on the road. =D  There were grocery stores nearby to pick up some salad makings and sandwich fillings.

When it comes to dining out I usually do a search such as “gluten free Asheville” or “gluten free Atlanta” and generally find a lot of local restaurants and chains that will work.  Often there are reviews you can check out as well.  A couple of weeks ago I happened to ask a fellow Feingold member who lives in Atlanta if she had any recommendations.  Yeah Burger was one of Sarah’s tips and it turned out to be one of our favorites.  She also mentioned some things that were already on my list which confirmed them as good choices, too.

Planning ahead is always a good idea when you’re gluten free and really isn’t any harder for road trips.  Searches, friends, even hotel staff can give you great leads and make gluten free eating safe and fun.  I'd love to hear more ideas on gluten free traveling - so please comment if you have them!

I almost forgot to mention dinner!  I received a text from Chris while at the museum cafe with Kate asking if I wanted onion rings for dinner, so back to Yeah Burger we went!  This time I tried a chicken sandwich on gf bun and, of course, onion rings.   The chicken sandwich had a mild rosemary flavor - not my favorite herb - but it was still great.  The bun was completely out of this world. It's probably a good thing there is not a Yeah Burger within 400 miles of me!  The onion rings were as good as I hoped and so addictive.  

Our last night in Atlanta was a great one and I'll remember it with this picture Joe took of us at Yeah Burger.

Gluten Free Atlanta - Day Three - R Thomas Deluxe Grill & Chipotle!

Several years ago I read The Body Ecology book by Donna Gates.  It was there Donna discussed the unique  R Thomas Deluxe Grill in Atlanta.  It sounded like such a fun and healthy place to visit.  Getting to finally visit was a kick.  Joe and I walked there from the hotel yesterday and it was pretty easy to spot.  It was a gorgeous, sunny day in Atlanta and Mr. Thomas was out front working in the garden and was mulching and tinkering a few feet from us as we ate. That's him in the white shirt and jeans.

Love the crazy garden decor!

The restaurant is small and eclectic.  As you walk around the garden to the entrance there are cages of beautiful birds and shelves full of flowers and herbs.  

The enclosed patio is colorful and has a definite hippie vibe.  The staff is relaxed and attentive and also very knowledgeable regarding gluten free needs and other allergies. 

You can tell what type of place it is the moment you sit down.  The Celtic Sea Salt and Organic Pepper Grinder are a dead give away.  The sugar container had only raw sugar and natural stevia.  I got a bit excited about that.  Not one artificial sweetener to be found.  

The menu is varied and while there is something for everyone it is a very “healthy” restaurant.  I personally love that and they cook like I cook so it was a treat.  They happened to be out of a couple of our first choices but it wasn’t hard to find something else.  That said we ended up with some odd choices but it was really a yummy lunch. Joe enjoyed a big plate of hot wings and a huge mango smoothie.   

I had flax chips and guacamole and a salad.  Flax chips and crackers are so good and really easy to make but for some reason I haven’t done that in ages so I jumped at that one.  The salad and dressing were amazing – curls of daikon radish, cucumber and carrots were so crisp and fresh.  The southwestern style dressing was flavorful but not too spicy.

This is the kind of place you can go to several times and never have the same type of meal twice.  I would go back in a heartbeat.

After lunch we walked back to the hotel, grabbed the car and took off for the Georgia Aquarium which was just astounding.  

Then we cut through Olympic Centennial Park to take the CNN Tour which was a fun and fast behind the scenes look at how they produce 24 hour news.

We scooted successfully back to the hotel – no small feat for me and the Atlanta traffic and once Chris got home we went to meet the cousins at Chipotle.

Chipotle

Chipotle is our favorite local fast food – healthy and natural and easy, easy gluten free meals.  Pretty much everything on the menu is gluten free except for the flour tortillas used for the burritos.  Like our local Chipotle, the one we visited near Atlanta had a staff well aware of gluten free diners.  They switched out their gloves and communicated the need to keep our meals separate.  Joe’s crunchy tacos and my burrito bowl (all the burrito fillings but no tortilla) were the usual Chipotle deliciousness but I didn’t take a picture.  We were having too much fun catching up with family we don’t get to see nearly often enough.

Gluten Free Atlanta - Day Two - Mellow Mushroom

The plan for today didn’t quite go as scheduled but it was a great one anyway.  Got a “little” lost and arrived at the cousins way too late to drive up and visit Kelsey’s beautiful campus and go to the Mellow Mushroom near there. It was great to get out of the car finally, see our family and crash for a bit.  Kate showed me her new painting which is amazing and I'd love to show it to you but I need to make sure she's okay with that.  We got to meet their new cute little cats. But because we were soooo late everyone was pretty hungry. Aunt Carrie knew of another Mellow Mushroom very near their house so we still made it for pizza with Carrie, Kate and Kim. 

Kelsey called during lunch and we got to pass the phone around – not quite as good as her being with us but still very nice.

Joe catching up with Kesley

I was very impressed with Mellow Mushroom.  Our waitress was friendly and knowledgeable about gluten free orders.  Just a bit of the kitchen was visible from our table but it was enough to see the care the kitchen staff took.  They changed gloves and opened the pre-wrapped crusts as far away from the other pizza making as possible.  Our waitress carefully delivered our gluten free pizza after the cousins’ pizza was already on the table.  No chance of the gluten containing pizza getting crumbs on ours.

Joe ordered a plain cheese and I had some artichoke hearts on mine.  They were huge and really enough for two people - if one of those people is not Joe. =D  Joe made fast work of his – it was a little crispy – almost like a flat bread and really good.  Mine wasn’t browned so was still soft and foldable - which is exactly what Joe did when he helped me finish it.

Notice the girls are hiding behind him?

After the huge lunch we went back to the cousins and hung out, did a little shopping and got to fit in part of Kimmy’s softball game.  Yep, that’s my niece sliding safely into home!

Way to go Kim! 

Tomorrow we are planning to get to R. Thomas Grill for lunch.  I first read about it about seven years ago and can’t wait to check it out.

Gluten Free Atlanta - Day One - Yeah Burger

Delicious burger on gluten free bun conspicuously missing.

Today Joe and I drove to Atlanta with Chris to see the sites over our spring break.  I already miss Marc and Elle Belle at home but it's exciting to be able to get see the cousins and check out this beautiful city.  We're fortunate to spend some extra time with Chris during his work week, too.

Thanks to the amazing Sarah of Sarah Kate's Bakery our first stop after checking in was Yeah Burger.  Yeah Burger is an all natural burger spot that any burger lover would go nuts over. Bison, Beef, Turkey, Chicken or Veggie - all natural, mostly local.  They looked great.  But I didn't get one.  Wasn't the least bit interested despite the gluten free buns and toppings.  I only wanted one thing.  The one and only thing I still miss after my six plus years being gluten free.  GLUTEN FREE ONION RINGS!  Yes, gf onion rings made in a dedicated fryer.

Joe's big dogs on teeny gf buns!

Chris tried the burger on a whole wheat bun and an onion ring/fries combo while Joe woofed down two all natural beef hotdogs on gluten free buns.  I assume they loved their meals because they were gone in seconds.  I probably should have asked them but I was far too preoccupied with my onion rings.  Chris' meal wasn't gluten free so no pics of that. =D

Are these gorgeous or what?

They were crispy and crunchy and just greasy enough. The side salad was really fresh. Somehow they worked together and made for a wonderful meal.  It may finally be time to break down and buy my own deep fryer because I certainly can't wait another six years to enjoy more!  Actually I won't have to wait that long - we'll be back to Yeah Burger this week. =D

Tomorrow - Mellow Mushroom gluten free pizza with the cousins!