Category Archives: Coeliac Awareness Week 2011

For the first time in a long time, me and Mike decided to brave Manchester city centre on a  SATURDAY! I don’t know what possessed us to do so, we try to avoid it like the plague because it’s so god damn busy!

We woke up late on the Saturday [no news there, or as my mother would say ‘give us news not history Saara’]  and rushed to get into town. Normally, I plan ahead when going in to town regarding places I am going to eat, but for some reason I never even thought until my tummy rumbled and the panic washed over me - where the chuff were we going to eat ??!?

Prior to my diagnosis, I would probably go for a McDonalds [I know, super healthy] or a Subway sandwich or something from Greggs, but having coeliac disease you are somewhat limited to what you can have, that will please both you and your boyfriend. Mike did suggest Greggs and was rewarded by a few death stares from me.

After standing in the middle of Piccadilly Gardens in silence, thinking of where to go and our tummy’s rumbling, we noticed Barburrito .  As I assumed they only did ‘burritos’, I honestly didn’t think they’d be any point in going in to see if they had any alternatives, but I’m so glad I did.

Barburrito gives you the option of having all your burrito fillings in a bowl, without having the wrap!  Mike would usually opt for the wrap but since it was Coeliac Awareness Week  - he opted for it to be in a bowl as well!

I know I look a bit of misery guts in the picture, but  I know it’s hard to believe but I can ensure you I was super happy!

You have so much to choose from in terms of fillings. You can opt for spicy beef [highly recommended] or  if you’re a veggie, you have a veggie alternative. You also have a choice of salsa - extra hot, hot, mild or medium - but being the pansy that I am, I opted for the mild salsa.

I’m so glad we found this gem as it’s now saved me from starving and worrying about where to eat. Please check out my ‘Gluten Free Restaurent’ section which details what foods are gluten free.

Friday night often results in a night out on the tiles, but with it being Coeliac Awareness Week, I roped some friends into going to Dough Restaurant in Manchester.

Dough is situated within the heart of the Northern Quarter in Manchester surrounded by all the cool swanky bars. Yet it still manages to stand out, with its huge windows, impressive decor - it really does ‘wow’ you when you walk past. Usually, when I see such a swanky restaurant, I always think they’re going to be quite steep in their price range, but Dough offers affordable pizzas to suit any purse.

Dough offers gluten free pizzas, starters and desserts! I was so shocked at the amount of gluten free food that was on this menu, usually you’re faced with a little selection but at Dough, you can pretty much pick any pizza and it’s gluten free!

For my starter, I roped my friend Joe in sharing a platter of twisted dough sticks with 5 dips. They were absolutely delicious and Joe couldn’t even tell they were made from gluten free flour - they tasted ‘normal’ gluten dough sticks.

My main course was in fact a pizza and being the boring bugger that I am, I opted for a plain and simple margarita pizza [obviously with a gluten free base!] but it was absolutely gorgeous!

but the crème de la crème was the dessert. Now I don’t usually opt for a dessert at a restaurant. I normally too full up or I can’t find anything on the menu that’s gluten free, but at Dough I had a huge choice, from gluten free chocolate cake to gluten free cheesecake [mmmmm!]

Look at that little piece of heaven on a plate and yep, you guessed it, that thing was eaten in less then a second!

I really do reccomend anyone who lives in Manchester or is planning to visit Manchester sometime to try out Dough.