alberta

Back now from Portugal, just wanted to thank you again for your advice and give an update. It turned out that we were in Lisbon the weekend of Saint Anthony's festival day (as well as Portugal Day, and the day of Portugal's first world cup game), so the city was hopping. Sardines were being grilled by the hundreds everywhere--and I mean everywhere. Not only in every restaurant but on every front stoop, every balcony, every square inch a makeshift charcoal grill could be set up in a corner of a little square in Alfama. Amazing. And, happily, terrific for me since whole grilled fish seemed to pose no risk of gluten contamination. And they do it so well, loading it up with rock salt and charring the outside so that when you pick the meat of the delicate bones you get some of that char and salt and juices from the outside all over it... It turned out that Portugal was easy gluten-free eating over all, as I could build amazing meals from olives, cheese (serra de estrela is great), fish/meat, boiled potatoes, cabbage or salad, almost anywhere. My husband also really enjoyed açorda, and farinheira, and we had a fantastic cabrito asado in a little riverside restaurant in Tomar. At any rate, thanks again! Best, Anne

also really great to know. many thanks. i leave tomorrow, so i'll get a chance to taste the delicious sardinha grelhada very soon! Best, Anne

Hello, My husband and I are planning a trip in Portugal, visiting Lisbon, Sintra, Obidos, Coimbra, the Serra de Estrela mountains, and the Douro river valley, and finishing up in Porto. I've been lurking in this forum for a while reading all the great recommendations for dining in at least some of those places. Thanks for all of that, it's making my mouth water. I have a very specific question, though, and I was hoping some of the resident Portugal experts could help me out: I am gluten intolerant, which, if you're not familiar with it, means that I cannot eat anything made of wheat or its relatives (rye, barley, spelt). That includes, obviously, bread and pastries and pasta, but also even the tiniest bit of flour added as a thickener in a sauce, or lightly coating a fish about to be fried. I'm highly sensitive to it, like an allergy (though technically it's not an allergy, it's an intolerance). In general I've worked out how to eat out very well, I know obvious things to avoid, and it's not a problem travelling when I speak the language. But, while I can read Portuguese I can't speak it really at all, so my question is: can you point out some things that might contain wheat that I wouldn't necessarily expect? For example: -Do some people use wheat starch to thicken a flan or custard in Portugal? (I have heard of this in general as a danger, but I wonder about Portuguese habits in particular.) -What about sausage? I know there is at least one specialty sausage made with flour or bread, but should I worry about things like that being added to other sausages? -When fish is fried, including sardines and bacalhao, do people flour it? I'm just talking about average, traditional, seafood and grill type places, of the sort that so many people have recommended in the Portugal threads. Obviously a more upscale restaurant is less predictable. And don't worry about giving me wrong advice--if I get glutened it won't be life-threatening, I'll just be unhappy for a few days. Thanks, I'd appreciate any guidance. Anne