Celiac/Gluten Friendly Restaurants

I have visited or frequent the following restaurants that are kind to gluten free folks. The best thing to do is to order meat or chicken and ask questions about the coatings and sauces. If you are a vegetarian and have no choice but to eat pasta, then call ahead and warn then of your arrival so the chef is prepared to help you! Tell them that Mary sent you! (They are in no particular order)

1) Washington Park in Nutley - owned by my cousin Anthony! See you on a Friday night! Great food, reasonable prices and friendly people .
2) La Piazza in Nutley and in Little Falls. Little Falls has gluten free pasta on hand and a beautiful new dining room. Nutley is cozy and Tony can memorize all my nitpicker orders!
3) Cafe D'Amici (the old Bella you know what) in Clifton by Styertowne. Pretty and cozy dining room with great food! Closest you'll get to grandma's Sunday dinner flavor.
4) Torino North in Nutley- feels like a NYC restaurant, attentive service, great selection
5) Bella Notte's Alta Cucina in Little Falls - unique atmosphere and attentive service
6) LuNello in Cedar Grove - Fabulous fine dining experience! Chef has gluten free pastas, food was delicious, elegant ambiance and the service was great. Go for lunch, less crowded.
7) Luna Rosa in Seaside Heights-beautiful outside dining or inside ambiance, Cousin Gerard Esposito sings there on Sunday nights.
8) Francesco's in West Paterson - haven't been there in awhile but the food was good and they were nice
9) La Courrone in Montclair -adorable place by Watchung Ave, delicious food.
10) Leone's in Montclair -large dining area, family friendly, great food and pizza
11) On Top of Spaghetti in Seaside Heights - Grandma's house with an artsy twist. Great food & nice people.
12) Il Giardinello in Normandy Beach - great vodka sauce, nice servers

Banquet Halls: Nanina's in the Park/Belleville NJ

Places that did NOT accomodate me:
I was disappointed that Gianna's in North Caldwell would not accomodate me even though I had a table for 8.
Was also disappointed that the Brownstone in Paterson would not accomodate me at a party they catered at a VFW. I don't think "Caroline" the NJ housewife would have turned me down!

Mary's Gone Crackers

I love these crackers for two reasons 1) I can pretend I make them and 2) they are really good. These crackers are gluten free and made from nuts and seeds. My guests always try to eat my special crackers! Mary's crackers are very crispy and taste great with a soft or hard cheese. I love to have the Trader Joe's herbed goat cheese on these crackers. I also grind the crackers and mix them with my gluten free bread crumbs for a crispier coating for my eggplant parmigiana. The crackers come in a variety of flavors including Black Pepper, Herb, Onion and Original.

Hot Baked Bread

Try the "Unwonder" Bread at the Montclair Bread Company on Walnut Street in Montclair. They make it fresh every Wed and Fri afternoon. It is the closest you WILL ever get to eating "real" bread. They also have gluten free/sugar free banana-coconut muffins which are very tasty. I am sugar free but my 13 year old daughter enjoys the gluten free brownies. I also get gluten free/yeast free pizza. They have both vegan and cheese gluten free pizzas! If you go there, tell them you read about them on my blog. They know me if they see me but I'd like for them to know that I am sending readers to their bakery. I want to keep them in business!!

Miss your Cheez Doodles! Try Barbara's Puffs!

Barbara's Bakery Jalapeno Cheese Puffs and Barbara's Cheese Puff Bakes/Original are both excellent gluten free snacks. The Jalapeno puffs are not hot (actually, I can hardly taste the jalapeno!) and they are the next best thing to Crunchy Cheez Doodles (off limits to Celiacs). These are delicious and your fingers won't turn orange with toxic food coloring.

The Cheese Puff bakes are more like traditonal Cheez Doodles and they are delicious. I cannot open a bag in front of my family without having it devoured. Again, no orange fingers which makes Mom happy.

I have purchased these at Whole Foods, Natural Foods in Toms River and on-line @ Amazon.com. You can also try glutenfreemall.com