Nopi: Ottolenghi I'm in love!

Having recently experienced the seasonal deli delights of Ottolenghi's in Islington, I was very excited to hear about the opening of his more formal restaurant, though they call it a brassiere, Nopi.

What a beautiful place. It reminded me of a greek toga. All white with little gold trimmings. So peaceful, calming and luxurious, this would come pretty close to what a brasserie in heaven would look like.

I was presented with a gluten free menu (white with a touch of gold, naturally), with that day's menu on. The menu changes with some frequency, as the the food is fresh seasonal fare. It's fantastic that somewhere that changes their menu regularly makes the effort to have a gluten free one that is up to date.

We had a delicious Gruner to drink from Austria, don't knock Austrian Wine, the gruner is an excellent alternative to a sauvigon blanc, crisy and citrusy.

I pretty much wanted to order every single thing on the menu.

When you are bored with all of the french and modern european fare, Nopi is a breath of fresh air. Totally inspired food. Asian and middle eastern influences, with fantastic ingredients and ingenious combinations. The silver mullet could not have been happier than beside a salad of green papaya, mint, mango and peanuts.

The Presa iberica carpaccio with manouri and pine nuts was so pretty and colourful, and didn't need to be chewed, it melted in your mouth that easily. Clean and simple.

Seared prawns with fennel, white oregano and feta blew my mind - hearty yet delicate, such an exciting and addictive mix of flavours I could have licked the pan they were served in.

I'm not a big dessert fan but was tempted by my companion to share a palate cleansing sorbet - Melon and Elderflower. It positively sang and danced in my mouth making me shriek a little in delight. Totally my sort of dessert. Like all the food at Nopi, it was all about clear interesting flavours at their best.

I am now totally addicted and in love, and am plotting on how I can eat Ottolenghi's delights weekly without going broke. If you fancy taking me out to dinner there, let me know. That is, if I ever find my way out of the marvelous mirrored bathroom.

GFF in Lanzarote: "Are you a celiac?"

I was getting fed up of the recent freezing weather and hopped a bit of an impromptu flight to the Canary Islands for some weekend sun.

I thought it was worth a mention from the gluten free side of things in case any of you were making a trip there, or were clawing at the snowy London walls wanting to escape. Plus Lanzarote is not at all like you would think - no high rises, beautiful scenery, lovely beaches, very quiet and no yobs.

The fact that Spanish food is relatively GF friendly aside, I was very pleasantly surprised at the awareness of celiac disease on the island.

My hotel - the lovely NH Hesperia Lanzarote - provided gluten free bread at the breakfasts - I only requested it once, after that they noted down my room number so that each morning when I came in they would go and get it for me. It wasn't the softest, but who on earth is complaining when you can smother it with nutella and honey. It felt very naughty. I loved the fresh spanish omelettes and large array of high quality cured meats - serrrano ham with my eggs: yum. That and loads of fresh fruit, ahem. And free champagne. Which is always gluten free! (The picture of the champagne with breakfast is all I took - not too relevant. But note the sun!)

I didn't stay there for dinner - but check it out on the dining bit of their website - they mention the gluten free food they provide. I like!

We took a trip to the nearby Puerto del Carmen for dinner, picking Puerto Bahia in the old town harbour area on the basis that it had the nicest views and a black ink paella on the menu.

When I asked if the scampi on top of the paella had any flour on it the waiter said "Are you a celiac?". I nearly missed it - it was my companion that heard him say it - me being so unused to hearing such a thing. He came back and said that it was gluten free, and asked if I would like some gluten free bread. It was soft and warm and fantastic. I may have eaten a bit too much of it before receiving the massive, freshly prepared and scrumptious squid and scampi paella, but what the hey, it's so rare!

The next night we found a great mexican restaurant, Las Margaritas in Puerto Calero, owned and run by a mexican, who managed to find some gf corn tortillas for my fajitas.

I'm not sure if I was just having some super gluten free holiday luck, but I'd say definitely worth the trip. I will be going back for sure ( *starts looking up flights*).

A Tale of Two GF Teas: Part 2: Claridge's

I was invited to the new gluten free tea at Claridge's, using the delicious fresh baked Genius gluten free bread.

It couldn't have been more different than the truly dire Ritz situation.

Delicious, lovingly prepared sandwiches that were beautifully presented - chicken with lemon remoulade, smoked salmon with horseradish and dill, Dorrington ham, egg and watercress. Light and fluffy bread, with high end, well prepared and tasty fillings. Gluten-free delights.

Genius, the breadmakers who make the gluten free bread that Claridge's uses, have the motto "yummy.... hooray!" - the idea being that your first thought when eating something should be that it is scrumptious. The hooray bit comes because it's also gluten free. But the yum should always come first. I entirely agree with this principle.

Oh and boy was it a "yummy... hooray" situation with the gluten free scones. Scones! Pour moi? Oh, Claridge's, wiz all ze's gluten free treats you are really spoiling us (note to the Ritz: this is how you should feel). I haven't had a scone in 14 years. It was delightful. With strawberry jam and a delicate cornell of Devon's finest clotted cream. I very nearly melted at the taste.

The raspberry and rosewater macaroon was, ah, heavenly! Light, a deep raspberry flavour, with some sort of custard cream in the middle, and fresh raspberries around the edges. Weep. I finished my feast with a delicate fruit tart, and some devilish chocolate cake concoction.

Most of all I just felt delighted. And like it was really special. Everything was beautiful to look at, and beautiful to eat. You could tell it had been lovingly prepared. Someone cared.

When it comes to an occasion like Afternoon Tea, I want to be made to feel really special, and to have something any non-celiac would be jealous of.

Mission accomplished Claridge's.

Next time it's my sister's birthday I know exactly where I'm going to go to rub her gluten-eating face in it.

La Porchetta: Woohoo - edible GF pasta!

Well done to the folks running La Porchetta- they have gluten free pasta on the menu, and, more astonishingly - it actually tastes good!

I was absolutely delighted upon reading the menu at this cheap and cheerful restaurant in Camden to see that I wasn't limited to the usual Italian restaurant "I-can-only-eat-a-salad" scenario (salads can be so tedious, can't they? I'll just munch away gratefully on some leaves whilst watching melted cheese from your fresh baked pepperoni pizza dribble down your chin. Lucky me!).

That great big honking pasta section that is usually an irritating waste of space? Add in a gf pasta option and it's transformed like magic into a thing of beauty! The amount of gf pasta sauce options were excellent, unlike the unfortunate Carluccio's situation. I had the Rigatoni Sofia - spinach, ricotta and tomato sauce. Scrumptious! The pasta didn't taste gluten free at all, in fact, it was so good that I couldn't believe it was true and asked the waiter to check that it was actually gluten free (making a bit of a PITAC fool out of myself!).

I'm looking forward to going back to try out some of their other sauces - there's a salmon and cream one, and another that has chorizo and prawns. And at under £7 a dish, it's a place you can eat at on a regular basis.

And for those of you not in the Camden area there are four other branches; Islington, Clerkenwell, Holborn and Finsbury Park.

Next stop - gf pizza bases? If I ask nicely? Pretty please?

For now, go and enjoy the world of gluten free pasta in a restaurant, my coeliac friends!