Hillside Music Festival

Guelph Lake Conservation Area
Guelph, Ontario

Okay, Hillside is not really about the food, but I look forward to the food every year. This festival is granola crunchy in tenor but the music ranges from rock to hip-hop to country and folk. Every year, I am introduced to new bands, and typically a couple of CD's leave the festival with me (this year, Kim Churchill and Adverteyes, both great). Online ticket sales are typically brisk, so don't wait around if you are considering a weekend pass.

What about the food? Well happily, there is real gluten-free variety.  This is one of the rare events where I don't need to pack food, and I love that.  Bye-bye, Popeye lunch pail!  So prepare for African peanut stew and gluten-free cookies from Green Table Foods, enjoy pure teff injera from Laza Catering, gobble down gluten-free sausages and grilled corn from Sausage Brothers, and snack on yummy home-made chips from Studs N Spuds (though verify no co-fried contaminants with each visit).  Dessert?  How about all-corn tortillas and chocolate from Chocosol?  Pass me no napkin; I'm gonna lick these fingers.

So, yep, hanging out all weekend and listening to tunes is nothing to complain about.  But doing it while feasting on delicious gluten-free food?  Fabulous!  Check it out each July.

Amsterdam Beer

Okay, it's not all from Amsterdam, but that's where I encountered it.  Given the challenges of finding gluten-free grog, I take it when I can get it.  I tried three o' the fellas.

Yummiest, yummier, and yum.

The first, Mongozo Premium Pilsener, brewed in Belgium for a Dutch company, is the closest thing to 'real' beer I shall likely encounter.  It tasted like real beer, so much so that I thought "Molson?"  But I was told by a current real beer swiller that it was more of a Heineken, and as it has been a while since I have partaken of the real stuff, I must defer.  But here is why it might taste that way:  it contains barley malt.  I can tell you it took me a bit of surfing before I had the confidence to drink it.  The brewery indicates that they have a process which removes the offending protein, and they have it tested by an independent lab.  They even provided a pdf from said lab to another web denizen.  They have won kudos from at least one actual organization and have a GF seal with a registration number.  All of it could be bunk, but I chose faith and really enjoyed it.  I don't obviously react (in the short term) to gluten, and did not react negatively to this drink.  I would probably drink this all the time were it available, but I would also actually invest in a test kit to set my mind at ease.  The fear is just too ingrained at this point.

The second, a Riedenburger Gluten Free from Germany, I found to be very similar to the sorghum-based brew of New Grist, although it is actually millet based.  It had a nice malty flavour, a good presence, without an unpleasant aftertase.

Finally, St. Peter's Gluten Free Beer from the UK, gets a few points for having a nifty old bottle. It certainly wasn't a bad pint, with a pleasant bitterness and just a slight but not prolonged aftertaste. I wouldn't say no to another although I'd prefer either of the first.

Bottoms up!

Proeverij 274

Prinsengracht 274
Amsterdam, Netherlands
+31 20 4211848

Description:  The is a great little restaurant, and we actually returned to it on a second occasion rather than risk disappointment at another establishment.  The menu lists a moderate number of dishes and local fair is used.  The dishes are just off the traditional track, but stop well before reaching too trendy.  The wait staff was exceptionally friendly, and well tolerant of a 6 month old, although we are always careful not to disturb fellow patrons.   

We were thus able to try a handful of dishes.  A starter of white asparagus with chive sauce and poached egg was excellent the first night, as we caught the tail end of the local season.  The second night I had a delightful herring with beets and a vodka jelly, while my comrade-in-forks was exceptionally pleased with the cold lentil soup, which was a new take on gazpacho with a little island of diced tomato and cucumber topped with raita floating in the centre.  For the main, I reprised a variation on beef, which was done to tender perfection and accompanied by tasty vegetables on both occasions.  My fellow diner had a succulent guinea fowl with raison-wine sauce and a creative but not off the wall poppy-seed croquette accompaniment.  Dessert for me was a delicious chocolate mousse, while the rhubarb cake was good. 

As noted, the staff were patient regarding gluten inquiries, and they were wonderfully friendly without being overly intrusive.  The restaurant itself is in an old building (an unremarkable fact in Amsterdam) with plenty of beautiful wood and a warm, homey, intimate feel.  We debated whether this restaurant was 'just' excellent or was outstanding, but the consensus was that anything short of outstanding would be unfair.  If you are in Amsterdam, eat at Proeverij 274.

Amsterdam

We have had the great fortune to visit this lovely city in the Netherlands, as well as some nearby cities on day trips.  It is a great place, although it is not as good as others in terms of gluten-free dining.  The prevalence of celiac disease is lower here, although underdiagnosis likely contributes to this.  In fact, the whole darn country seems slim and fit, so maybe they all have it.  At any rate, gluten awareness, while not terrible, does not match my Canadian, American, or other experiences.  I encountered no gluten-free bakery, although others have reported fresh products at one chain. 

Keizersgracht, Amsterdam.  If only home were this pretty.

Conversely, English is almost universal, so communication is easy.  Furthermore, several health food stores, as well as the ubiquitous Albert Heijn, have excellent GF supplies.  The latter also has a clear GF symbol on its GF products, which I much appreciated.  In addition, more than one restaurant had a GF list they would consult on inquiry. 

Words to watch out for? Tarwe, rogger, and gerst are wheat, rye, and barley. I did get burned on malt on one occasion. If you are reading labels, beware barely malt, gerstemout. Finally, haver is oats.

Don't worry, all Dutch cheese is fat free. 

You won't suffer for food, however.  The selection of Dutch cheeses is excellent.  The olives are the good ones the Europeans don't export to us North Americans, and the wine is a wee spot better priced than that of the LCBO.  Our typical lunch (left) also included fresh little red currents, which I have rarely encountered in my Golden Horseshoe shopping.