Gluten Free in Bonaire December 26, 2007

I’ve been able to find some gluten free products and gluten free friendly restaurants while we’re in Bonaire so I thought I’d share some for other people who might need the information.

I always bring some gluten free pasta with me.  We can always enjoy a home cooked pasta dish.  I also pack some spices so that I don’t have to buy big spice containers for a few weeks.  I brought some “Mighty Tasty GF Hot Cereal” this time, too.  I add apples, raisins and walnuts for a hearty breakfast.  I have found rice cakes at a few grocery stores.  I have a rice cake with some almond butter I brought with me, which is quite filling.  Sometimes I find rice noodles at the More For Less store which also has organic vegetables.  I also make an open-faced sandwich with a rice cake, some Dutch cheese and some cucumbers and tomatoes.  The cheese is the secret to a tasty sandwich like this.

We went to BobbeJan’s barbeque and I ordered sateh.  Somehow I miscommunicated and also got a barbequed chicken breast with barbeque sauce.  The peanut sauce on the sateh seemed to have soy sauce and I only ate one small piece.  I ate more of the chicken breast.  I also ate all of the rice.  I felt sick in the morning.  Jim loves BobbeJan’s so I told him he can get take-out and I’ll make myself something but I won’t eat there again.

The next night we tried The Old Inn.  I had the local Bonaire beef stew.  The chef assured me there was no wheat.  It would have tasted good if it hadn’t been so salty.  The beef was nice and tender and cooked in a spicy broth.  I had rice with it.  White rice of course, which is all I ever see on the island.  I don’t know why they don’t ever use brown rice.  I was fine after this meal.

Last night we went to a new Peruvian restaurant called Plazita Limena.  I had grilled catch of the day, wahoo.  It was covered with some tasty spices which were a new combination for me (I’ve never eaten Peruvian food before) and the fish was very fresh.  It came with rice and I asked for vegetables and I got onions and potatoes which were sauteed and fresh.  I feel the dish was gluten free.  I’d like to try this restaurant again, there were many items on the menu that looked good.