Albuquerque

I'm sitting on my couch after a great Association of Rehabilitation Nurses' conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I picked up (another) sinus infection somewhere along our trip. Despite our best efforts, I didn't get to try all of the restaurants on my list. Here are a few experiences us nurses had in Albuquerque.

Wednesday
For lunch we checked out Nick's Cafe, on Route 66. Since we'd gotten up at 3am to catch our early flight, we were starved. We found Nick's after wandering down part of Central Ave. I had strips of lamb kebob on a salad. I am not completely sure if it was soy-free, as well as gluten-free. (I had a few little bumps and some IBS.)

For dinner, we ate at the Doubletree restaurant. We were practically delirious when we sat down, after looking at posters and visiting vendors. I had a fabulous goat-cheese salad with chicken. The Doubletree proved to be a great GF friendly spot. Our waitress 3/4 times were there was really nice, too.

Thursday
Breakfast was "continental" at the conference. For gluten-eaters, that meant pastries, yogurt with granola, and fruit. For me, it meant the Bumble Bar (delicious!) that I brought along and fruit.

For lunch we wandered back toward central and ate some great sushi at Sushi King. The only problem with Sushi King was that the first time we ate (this lunch), A Baby Story was on, featuring a live birth.

At dinner, all of us Shepherd nurses dined at the highly recommended Tucanos Grill. We started with a round of very tasty mojitos. When we moved it over to the table, the kitchen manager came out to talk to me about gluten and soy-free. He took my on a tour of the side item food bar and told me what each thing was and why or why it was not gluten/soy-free. It was great to have someone really take the time to take me aside and make sure that I was taken care of. The manager also provided me a list of the 3 meat dishes coming around that I should avoid eating. All of the food- meat parade and side bar was incredible. I even enjoyed their collard greens (my least favorite vegetable in the South). Their beef was perfectly cooked, each time it came around in varying forms. I ate until I was past full, and loved every minute of it.

Friday
Breakfast this morning was minus the fruit. I was still hungry after my chocolate Bumble Bar. Ugh.

For lunch, Jamie and I kept it simple and ate together at the Doubletree. I had presented that morning, and she was up after lunch. Yummy as usual.

Dinner on Friday was tacos at the Museum of Natural History, an ARN function. Although the lines were long, I think we made the best of it by enjoying an adult beverage and talking. I asked one of the servers if she knew what was gluten-free, and she told me that if she was asked about food allergens, she should let the manager know to come talk to the patron. Having a plan for individuals with food allergies is a great way to manage big events.

Post Ghost tour drinks were had at Elevated Lounge in Downtown. My friend Jamie and I joined up with a nurse from Madonna in Nebraska. The lounge was very trendy and open. The first while was good fun, but when club time started, we couldn't hear each other talk over the DJ.

Saturday
I insisted on a real breakfast, so we dined at the hotel again. Mmmmmmmmmm bacon, eggs, and hash browns cooked in olive oil.

In between dashing out the aquarium and Rio Grande and another round of lectures at conference, Jamie and I check out a great gelato/sorbet place called Sweet Berry. I tried the pineapple sorbet. It was light, fruity, and sweet. Heaven. That was definitely the best snack we had the whole trip. I wish I could import them to Atlanta!

For lunch we ate at the Church Street Cafe. I have never had such a bad GF experience. The server was incredibly rude and short-tempered in regards to my food needs. He made no attempt to be accommodating, but did cross his arms over his chest. I was so insulted, I wrote an email to the restaurant when I got home. I received a very prompt response. The manager explained that they take pride in being able to cater to people with food allergies and even have charts to ensure food safety. If I find myself in Albuquerque, I'll see if I can have a new gluten-free experience. The burger was good, and my gluten-eating counterpart said the Indian frybread was absolutely fabulous.

Exhausted after wandering, we went back to Sushi King. I tried the roll that involved fish and green chilies. I loved it! I wonder how I can get that here in the ATL...

What I Missed
There are three restaurants that I missed eating at, who all responded to an email inquiring about their GF friendliness. These restaurants are: Slate Street Cafe, Garcia's Kitchen, and Bumblebee's Baja Grill. So, if you find yourself in Albuquerque, try them out, and let me know how great your GF eating experience was.

Wings and Football in Tallahassee

Friday night we went to the uh-mazing Kings of Leon concert at Phillips Arena. Having previously seen KOL at the intimate Tabernacle, I did not think I would enjoy such a big venue for their show. Their show was a solid well-attended success; however, I did wish we were in a smaller setting so I could be closer to the band. After the concert, my boyfriend and I headed to Tallahassee.

This round of Tallahassee time was to visit Desi again, but this time for the Florida State VS Georgia Tech game. Nick and I stopped in Albany on Friday night. We stayed in a dingy seedy hotel for $35. The room was a great price, but we definitely got what we paid for. As soon as we pulled into Desi and Sean's driveway, we said our hellos and ran straight for the shower.

We packed up an incredible tailgate at with two other couples that have FSU season tickets and parking passes for tailgating. The tailgate consisted of two tents, a high def tv, and Mexican food. Although it monsooned after we pitched tent #1 at around 3pm, the weather was flawless the rest of the tailgate. We visited with other friends and family, including (but now limited to) Nick's aunt, uncle and cousin, and one of my friends from high school.

The 8pm game started with each team scoring on back to back possessions. And then came the rain delay. After the rain delay, FSU and GT fought it out over a long long long game. With points being scored back to back, and amounting to about as much as a low-scoring basketball game, GT finally eaked out a win. We were thrilled. Our friends? Not so much.

Sunday we had a day of recovery and more football. Before the 4pm Falcons game we all decided on wings for lunch/dinner. While Desi, Sean, and Nick all ordered from a local wings joint that was not not GF friendly (with my sanction), I cooked up some wings of my own.

With the help of Google, I found a few BBQ sauces that are gluten free:
* Sweet Baby Ray's (found on a GF forum post but unconfirmed via the co.'s website)
* Cattleman's Classic, Smoke House, & Sweet and Spicy (confirmed by their website)
* Bone Suckin' Sauce Regular, Hot, Thicker, Hot Thicker, Mustard, Hiccupin' Hot, and Seasoning Rub (verified via their website. Their sauce comes complete with a GF section of their website)

At the local Winn Dixie I found Cattleman's sauce and some chicken wings. Now, I've never successfully made wings before. (My prior attempt at GF wings were a fail because the sauce was disgusting.) I did some guessing (we had time constraints with game time) at how to make them. The wings turned out great and were ridiculously easy. Here is what I did.

Emergency Game Day Wings
* GF BBQ Sauce of your choice
* Wings
* EVOO

1. Heat enough EVOO in a skillet to sear your wings in. Preheat the wings to 350 degrees.

2. Fry the wings in the EVOO until the outside of the wings are cooked (seared).

3. Place wings in a baking dish and cook in the preheated oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes (or until the wings are cooked through, and you do not desire them to be crispy). Up the heat of the oven to broil, and bake until the outsides of the wings crisp a bit, for about 10 minutes, if desired.

Patriots Game at Meehan's

The Meehan's Public House (http://www.101concepts.com/articles/category/meehans-sandy-springs/) near the house happens to be a Patriots bar. This week was the Falcon's bye week, so Nick and I chose to head to Meehan's to support our other favorite team battle it out in an all-Pats atmosphere.

Meehan's is owned by 101 Concepts, as in Food 101 (a restaurant I have previously reviewed on here). Their menu has so many great things to choose from. I was really looking for something meaty, so I asked our waitress, Christen, about the Farmstead burger. When I explained to her my food restrictions, she brought over Shane, another waiter. Shane also has Celiac Disease, and pointed out a few of his favorites on the menu for me. He highly recommended my burger choice, with a side of spinach. I paired the food with Meehan's Sunday special bottomless mimosas- a little strange, but very delicious.

The organic Farmstead burger features a bison burger, with cheddar cheese, a fried egg, bacon, lettuce & tomato. Shane had the kitchen staff add extra lettuce, to make a lettuce bun. This burger was amazing. It has to be one of Atlanta's best burgers. I highly reccomend sampling this one. I know Nick and I will be going back for more food and football this season.