gluten/lactose free diet in NY city
 

I will be in Ny for two weeks in June and am concerned about my ability to access food that I can actually consume.
I was hoping for three bits of information
1.The name of any accommodating restaurants. Is there a practice of ringing a restaurant and asking them if they provide gluten free food?
2. I have the use of a kitchen and would love to know whether there are any bakeries that do gluten free bread, where to buy lactose free milk.
3. Any supermakets in my area- 5W31st street?
Thanks

W 31st and 5th is in the heart of the business area, lots of shopping and a bunch of restaurants mosly fast food, but some nicer on 5th and alot more heading east on 3rd Ave. I think the closest supermarkets will be on 3rd from 26th to 32nd Sts several of those up the avenue.

You won't have a problem finding lactose free milk at the grocery stores, there are actualy several brands available.

Gluten and lactose free in restaurants might be more of a challenge. I'd stick to some of the seafood restaurants in the area, and there are again alot of those, especially if you like sushi/Japanese food.

IchiUmi is a really good seafood buffet restaurant on 32nd between 5th and Madison, and all you can eat seafood with the owner told me 140 different things to eat, including salads and deserts.

There are several good restaurants heading up 3rd Ave including just about every cuisine you can think of, starting at 23rd street and heading north.

I'd suggest getting a Zagat guide to restaurants here, so you have restaurant info and phone numbers so you can call. Most of the restaurants here will go out of their to accomodate your requests.

Hope this helps.

Have a look at menupages.com. It allows you to search for specific foods as well as cuisines and by neighborhood as well as look at actual menus.

In my experience finding a gluten free restaurant is hit or miss. Many, many places are very aware of the presence of gluten in recipes (even hidden sources of gluten), while others are completely clueless. The ones you need to be careful of are those where the server gives a simple answer to a yes/no "does this item contain gluten" question. As I'm sure you know from home it's not as simple as omitting bread and pasta. Many servers have no idea of all the ingredients that contain hidden gluten, down to even soy sauce & many gravies and sauces.

A call to the restaurant to ask them is an acceptable practice - be sure to get a list of a few things on the menu that are gluten free, and don't rely on what may be an uninformed general yes or know answer.

Risotteria is a gluten free hangout.

http://www.risotteria.com/

I believe OPUS on 2nd in the 80's is gluten free.

I am gluten free not dairy free and have no problem navigating NYC restaurants, you just have to ask. of course, in nyc like any town, i find more casual and less expensive restaurants sometimes have no clue about gluten-free, but new york diners are sophisticated and complicated and most restaurants are used to having people ask about allergies and ingredients, just ask and ask your server to ask the chef if you really have questions.

also, check out WholeFoods grocery stores, there's one in Chelsea and one in Union Square which would be the two closest to you. They have a great buffet/salad bar area with lots of food and everything is labeled so you can see for yourself exactly what is in the food. I especially like it for breakfast when I can pick up some eggs or bacon and not have to worry about toast being automatically included with a dish. Though if you have the use of a kitchen, you can avoid this problem.
they also sell gluten free breads and cookies, etc.

Do call ahead for details rather than asking after you've gotten there, but I found this:

http://www.ehow.com/list_6059644_glu...rants-nyc.html

Whole Foods do have GF stuff. Are you from an area without Whole Foods?

You might also try Five Napkin Burger, I ate at the one on the UWS and they do their regular burger with a gluten-free bun. The GF bun was only so-so, but still to be able to eat in a restaurant knowledgeable about GF and a burger with a bun was great.

What is the issue with gluten?

Mozzarelli's makes gluten free pizza (apparently the best of its kind in the City)

Ruby Foos in Times Square has a gluten free menu

Baby Cakes for dessert

Sarabeth's-call to confirm

Bistango

You can also do a search on Yelp-not for the review but for the list of gluten-free restaurant. There are 24 listed

http://www.yelp.com/search?find_loc=...lt=gluten_free

Thank you to everyone for your great advice. I am from Sydney so we don't have Whole Foods. I have a lot to work with here and am most grateful for all the helpful suggestions.
Stimps

I am from Sydney so we don't have Whole Foods.

That is why you can afford a trip to the States.

Sarabeths- oh how I loved Sarabeth's tomato soup in my pre gluten-free life. In fact, eating their soup without asking if there was flour in it was how I finally realized I had issues with gluten. Anyway, unless you want eggs or a really expensive salad, I'd stay away. Maybe it's just me, but on some level it depresses me to go to a restaurant I used to love and not be able to eat the food anymore. I would love to eat their tomato soup and have a scone.

And if I'd known about Mozzarelli's last week when I was in the city and gluten-free pizza, I would have been all over that.

Stimps - Whole Foods is fondly referred to as 'Whole Paycheck' and for good reason. On the other hand they provide a great selection in pretty much all their departments and the deli is great for if you're trying to save a buck by not dining in restaurants.

For the dairy issue, why not bring along some Lactaid pills? I am also lactose intolerant but just take a pill if I am having dairy. They are great.

You can shop at Trader Joe's near Union Square;they carry gluten free products.

Rich - many people have issues ranging from gluten sensitivity to coelicac's disease. Symptoms can range from mild to life-threatening depending on the individual, and, for many, a very serious consideration when dining anywhere but at home.

Thanks . . never heard of that

There's a website called GlutenFreeTravelSite ( http://www.glutenfreetravelsite.com ) where you can go to get information about gluten-free dining in NYC and anywhere else in the U.S. -- and around the world. It's a review site, so you get feedback on the restaurants from others on a gluten-free diet...it's not just a listing. There are quite a few NYC places reviewed. Click on Search Reviews, then select NY from the U.S. pull-down menu. Then you can even narrow your search to a specific city or zip code and the results will come up on a map. They also have a page that lists chain restaurants with gluten-free menus.