we are going to venice rome and florence next
month. wiuld like to know if anyone has experiance with eating at restaurants with
the situation of not being able to eat any
gluten grains wheat rye barly etc.

In Sicily, I met a Swiss woman, travelling with her husband, who had the same allergy. Although it was in a small agriturismo (24 guests maximum), they were happy to oblige by preparing a risotto for her or a soup with rice instead of pasta. And Sicily, heaven knows, is about as far as one can get from the home of risotto in Northern Italy.

The pasta course (the primi) is the one most likely to cause problems. The person I met simply said, "Non posso mangiare la pasta. Vorrei per favore qualcosa al riso." ("I cannot eat pasta. Please, I would like to have something with rice.&quot That seemed to do it for her. I'm not entirely sure that preparing a phrase with a complicated explanation of gluten allergy would be any more effective, as I imagine very few Italians have it and probably even fewer know what it is.

There is unlikely to be anything among the antipasti, the secondi (main courses) or the contorni (side dishes that are ordered to accompany the main course) that would contain gluten grains. The dolci (desserts) may, of course, but some kind of fruit is always available, either alone(pineapple, strawberries, raspberries; plain, with lemon juice, with liqueur, with whipped cream) or in a fruit salad ("macedonia&quot.

Polenta (corn meal) is also widely served in the north of Italy. It is often served with meat or fish, cheese, and/or vegetable and is always delicious.

My husband has Celiac Disease(Gluten intolerance) and we travel a lot. The National Celiac organization puts out a great book that lists gluten-free products by name brand, and it has a multilingual page in the back with a brief request in many languages for food that has been prepared without gluten. Venice and Florence offer many menu selections that don't even involve pasta, and even in Rome, it should not be difficult to get risotto. All of Eloise's suggestions are good ones and should allow you to select a varied menu. Also, remember to order gluten-free meals for your flights, but carry your own peanuts or snacks, as few planes offer them, and you certainly can't eat pretzels. We found small bags of gluten-free pretzels at a health-food store before our last trip. We usually take a piece or 2 of fresh fruit on the plane(it must be discarded upon landing if you don't eat it) Hope this helps, have a great trip!

Another primi that you might be able to eat is gnocchi, made with potato. It is delicious and widely available in Rome, especially on Thursdays.

I'd be careful with gnocchi as some recipes use a little flour.

I have just realized that what I said about the secondi (main courses) is not completely accurate.

There are many dishes, mainly fried ones, in which the meat is lightly dredged in flour before being cooked: fegato alla veneziana in Venice, scalloppine al limone or al vino bianco almost anywhere, saltimbocca romana in Rome, and probably many more. A fritto misto of any kind, meat or fish, will be coated in batter. (The same would hold true for contorni -- vegetables, basically -- that are listed as "fritto" or "fritti.&quot

Barb's suggestion of getting the book put out by the National Celiac organization is a good one for two reasons: it has a brief request for food that has been prepared without flour (some of the dishes above can be prepared without dredging the meat in flour), and it lists local dishes that can be ordered safely. Another alternative is to order only main courses that are listed as "alla griglia" or "alle brace," i.e., grilled or cooked over charcoal.

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