Gluten-Free Events Calendar
If it’s gluten free and happening in Victoria, Vancouver Island or the Gulf Islands, you’ll find it listed here! From tastings to contests, farmer’s markets to food trucks – this is your calendar to Gluten-Free Paradise! Join Victoria’s Gluten-Free Foodies and add a new restaurant – and possibly a new gluten-free friend – to your repertoire!
Stay Tuned for Summer 2020!
Join this fun gluten-free gang for their Annual Celiac BBQ on Sunday, August 25th in Nanoose. Everyone and their significant others are welcome! Arrive at 4:00 pm for appetizers, great conversation with dinner and yummy desserts to follow.
The menu is still under development but it is guaranteed to be gluten free and delicious. You won’t be disappointed!
Details and RSVP: annezahara@shaw.ca or call / text 250-240-0708. $16.00/person
BBQ Update! August 27, 2019
A big gluten-free thank you to the contributors who helped to make this event so special and to Anne and her Helpers for staging this very popular event!
• Bake My Day
• Eat Fresh Urban Market
• Epicure Selections by Laara Clarkson
• Lakeview Gluten-Free Bakery
• Nellie’s European Deli
• Rusted Rake Farm
Mid-Island Celiac Support Group Christmas Celebration!
• Sunday, November 24, 5-9pm
• Longwood Brew Pub at 5775 Turner Rd, Nanaimo
Join this happy gang for a 100% gluten-free buffet!
• 2 Salads
• 3 Hot Entrees
• Roast Potatoes
• Rice Pilaf
• Seasonal Vegetables
• Dessert Squares & Cakes, Tea & Coffee.
• $31.95/person – children charged by age i.e. $12 for 12 year-olds.
• Spirits extra.
Re-Gift Exchange!
Men’s to be wrapped in red. Women’s in white. If you bring a gift, you take one home with you. Always fun!
RSVP Annie 250-240-0708 or at annezahara@shaw.ca by November 18th.
Only 30 seats available in Longwood’s exclusive private dining room.
Known as the Jewel in the Crown of Longwood Station, the brewpub starts with stunning views of the Vancouver Island mountain range and spectacular sunsets nestled beside a cozy rock fireplace. It’s all set up to offer an environment to enjoy the brewing and culinary excellence they’ve become famous for, one of Nanaimo’s premier destinations.
‘Dining-in’ is back at 900 Degrees Wood-Fired Pizzeria Langford 4:30 to 8pm
Introducing 900° 2 Go! Contactless Take-Out & Curb-Side Pick Up.
900 Degrees offers delivery up to 7km distance. Enter your address at https://900degrees.moduurn.com for eligibility and to calculate your delivery charge (between $3.50 and $5.50.)
Build Your Own
Organic tomato sauce, house-made lemon olive, aged balsamic reduction, brie cream sauce, chilli oil, house-made pesto, fresh mozzarella cheese, basil, & pizza dough, to go!
Phone orders 250-590-4493. Special COVID-19 hours, open daily from 4:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Order online here
- 900 Degrees Wood-Fired Pizza 101B 2401 Millstream Avenue, Victoria (250) 590-4493
- Menu • Facebook • Instagram
- Contact Executive Chef & Owner Adrian Ortiz-Mena
My curiosity about 900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria was piqued when I read in the September Edition of Eat Magazine (page 27) that the owner’s son was a celiac. Executive Chef and Owner, Adrian Ortiz-Mena was quoted as saying,
- “I think the most innovative thing we have done is bringing really good gluten-free pizza to our customers. My son was diagnosed celiac when he was 5 years old … and he loved pizza. It broke my heart thinking that he could no longer have pizza, so I developed a gluten-free pizza dough just for him. It was a real challenge, a labour of love.”
The Celiac Scene needed to learn more!
I popped into this warm and inviting restaurant on a cold and rainy September night, hoping for the opportunity to speak to a chef or server about their gluten-free options.
I was pleasantly surprised when Adrian himself bounded from the back of the restaurant only too eager to share his son’s health journey and how he had worked at home to create a gluten-free crust that met his discerning chef standards. Using one of the best all-purpose gluten-free flour mixes on the market and few extra-special ingredients, he was able to create a crust that pleased his son – and one that Adrian believed would please his customers.
The details.
As our community well knows, it takes more that a crust to create a gluten-free pizza. Adrian set about to contact the manufacturers of every ingredient used in his entire operation to ensure that the components used in all of his pizzas were celiac-safe. Apart from the wheat flour used for his regular crusts and the garlic bread, every ingredient that 900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria in house is gluten-free.
What about the process?
Adrian brimmed with enthusiasm as he explained that gluten-free pizzas are entirely prepared in a dedicated gluten-free area, in a room away from the regular production area. Sauces and toppings are stored in dedicated containers and applied with dedicated utensils that are never used to dress regular pizzas.
When a gluten-free order is processed, the chef washes his hands – up to his elbows – before starting work on an the order. When complete, the pizza is placed on a dedicated gluten-free pizza peel (handle) and transported to the 900˚ pizza oven where it is cooked to perfection.
Here’s where it gets complicated.
At 900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria, pizzas are cooked directly on the hearth of their single pizza oven, where other gluten pizzas have also been cooked. The concern on my face prompted Adrian to escort me directly to the oven itself where he proceeded to sweep to the side the burnt, charcoal dust of the pizza crusts that had been cooked.
While Adrian whole heartedly agreed with me that deep frying food at a standard 325-375˚F does not destroy gluten, he maintains that incinerating to 900˚residual gluten crumbs and flour from previously cooked pizzas and then sweeping them aside, most assuredly does.
That said, 900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria is pleased to cook gluten-free pizzas on sanitized pizza pans for any gluten-free diner’s peace of mind. As a wood-fired pizza purist however, Adrian cautions that cooking pizza on a pan may generate different results.
Final consideration.
900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria is most assuredly a pizza lover’s pizzeria. Gluten pizza dough is thrown into the air with gusto, wheat flour coats the kitchen floor like dance dust and a fine coat of flour is evident on surfaces throughout the main preparation area.
That said after two years’ serving gluten-free pizza, Adrian shared that there have been no reports from gluten-free diners that they have experienced gluten contamination.
As Adrian is quoted as saying in the EAT Magazine article, “I don’t think we really did anything new – we just did it better!”
I would have to agree: for celiac diners who are comfortable with these practices or those who avoid gluten as a lifestyle choice, 900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria sets the gluten-free bar as high as I have seen it on Vancouver Island.
Love Pasta?
900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria stages occasional pasta specials and always offer the option of Italy’s Schar Gluten-Free Pasta to gluten-free diners!
Gluten-Free Beer?
900˚ Wood Fired Pizza is pleased to serve 100% gluten-free Forager Beer, made in Whistler from sorghum and rice.
“Where to Eat in Canada” adds @900.degrees to it’s list of worthy restaurants, calling their pizza “as close to perfection as it’s possible to get,” and one of only a handful of restaurants here in Victoria named “Good Buys”. Check out the full review on page 306 of the 2017-18 guide published by Oberon Press. Pick up your copy today!
Join Victoria’s Gluten-Free Foodies for the finest in authentic, Italian dining!
Click here for 900 Degrees’ Gluten-Free Menu & Pricing. In person, ask for the ‘Red Menu!’
Thursday, November 23 from 6 – 7:30 PM
RSVP to ellen@theceliacscene.com
NOTE from The Celiac Scene: Only gluten-free flour is used on the prep line and to dust the oven floor. Flour is denatured at a temperature of 900˚. In the event that residual flour might remain, it would be gluten free.
Open 7 days per week 11:30am to 8pm.
Reserve online or call (250) 590-4493
Order Takeout – Pick up at 101B 2401 Millstream Avenue.
Gift Certificates
900degrees.ca • Facebook • Instagram • contact@900degrees.ca • Regular Menu
Watch 900 Degrees on CHEK NEWS Order Up!
Deli Products – Enjoy 900° quality products and ingredients at home! 900° offers a variety of top-quality deli products, from our house-made organic and gluten-free pizza dough, organic tomato sauce, fresh pesto and house desserts. More info
See also 900˚ BiSTRO in Sidney!
Great gluten-free news from owner, Adrian Ortiz:
“We have now launched a dedicated FULL GLUTEN-FREE MENU! There are over 30 GF items on our menu, including appetizers, salads and pizzas.”
“We have also COMPLETELY eliminated gluten flour for our pizza prep line – which now significantly decreases the possibility fo gluten cross contamination.”
‘ “In other words, “The only thing that is NOT GF is our regular dough, which is now prepared completely separately. There is absolutely no gluten flour online, which is the main concern for potential cross-contamination.” ‘
“ALL flour used online (even the one we use to stretch our traditional recipe dough) is Gluten-Free. All previous protocols of using separate utensils, tools and equipment for our GF food items are still enforced.”
Click here to view menu
Click here to view menu
Click here to view menu
TESTIMONIAL: We bought 2 GF pizzas(+1reg) here for take out last evening. It was soooooo goooood! Mine was vegetarian with a pesto sauce – yum!!!! Highly recommend this spot! 10/10 maybe even 15/10 😍 … Gloria
Love Pasta?
900˚ Wood-Fired Pizzeria stages occasional pasta specials and always offer the option of Italy’s Schar Gluten-Free Pasta to gluten-free diners!
Read the Reviews!
- https://issuu.com/garyhynes/docs/eat_magazine_sept-oct_2017
- https://issuu.com/garyhynes/docs/eat_magazine_march_april_2017
- https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=1308429
- http://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=615313
100% Gluten-Free, Vegan CHURROS & MOR
What are churros? Think Mexican donuts, only better! A crispy exterior with soft, chewy insides, Jorge uses Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free flour to make them. Deep-fried, then rolled in cinnamon and sugar, topped with your choice of strawberry, chocolate or caramel sauce. If you love ice cream, order the ‘Blizzard!’ CHURROS Instagram
Find CHURROS & MOR Food Truck at the Cook Street Village Food Court between Mercedes Lane and Hot & Cold Cafe See map
Enjoy picnic table seating underneath patio canopies and imagine yourself in Mexico.
Open Monday & Thursday 12 – 7 • Friday 11 – 8 • Saturday & Sunday 10 – 8 • Closed Tuesday & Wednesday
Sample Menu
- Churros, House Churros, Churro Bites & Blizzard Churros
- Dips: Chocolate, Strawberry, Caramel
- Toppings: Marshmallows, Graham Cookies, Chocolate Chips, Whip Cream
- Drinks – Chocolate, coffee, pop, bottle water, tea
About Jorge
While pursuing a poli-sci degree, Jorge (pronounced ‘Hor-he’) was inspired to start his own business. What better motivation than to share the recipes that his grandmother developed for his celiac father. CHURROS & MOR was born!
Yes! Celiac Disease and the gluten-free diet literally run through Jorge’s veins. His niece in England also shares the diagnosis. Her family has chosen a vegan lifestyle, so Jorge knows first hand how challenging it is to find delicious gluten-free AND vegan delicacies!
CHURROS & MOR 100% Gluten-Free, Vegan Food Truck
Mother’s Day Market
Saturday, May 11, 2024 – 10:00am – 3:00pm
Outside Hillside Shopping Centre at 1644 Hillside Avenue
About Mom Market • Instagram
What are churros? Think Mexican donuts, only better! A crispy exterior with soft, chewy insides, Jorge uses gluten-free flour to make them. Deep-fried, then rolled in cinnamon and sugar, topped with your choice of strawberry, chocolate or caramel sauce. Ask for ‘Roses’ if you love (vegan) ice cream’
churrosandmor.com • Instagram • Facebook
contact@churrosandmor.com (250) 986 9455
325 Cook St in the Food Court
Mon & Thurs Noon – 7.00. Fri – Sat – Sun 10.00 – 20.00
Closed Tuesdays & Wednesdays. Hours may vary by season.
Now available via Uber Eats, DoorDash & SkiptheDishes!
When the CHURROS & MOR Food Truck is not parked at the Food Court. find them at community gatherings, festivals, public events & exclusive celebrations. Vegan & gluten free, there’s always something for everyone!
CHURROS & MOR MENU (click on images for more information)
Traditional Churros
House Churros
Churro Bites
Churro Roses
ADD-ONS: Chocolate Dip | Strawberry Dip | Caramel Dip | Marshmallows | Graham Cookies | Chocolate Chips | Sprinkles
BEVERAGES: Chocolate Drink | Drip Coffee | Pop | Bottled Water | Tea
NEW! CATERING & MOR – Book the Truck
- Perfect for events of all sizes! Weddings. Birthday Bash. Corporate Event. Simple celebration. Surprise Party.
- Customizable Delights! Tailor your churros to suit your event’s theme and preferences: classic cinnamon sugar, gourmet dipping sauces & toppings.
- Guilt-Free! Dedicated to always be vegan and gluten-free! A delicious experience for everyone.
- Stress-Free! Professional team ensures a seamless catering experience from setup to cleanup.
- Interactive Sweet Station! Skilled ‘churreros’ craft delectable delights right before your eyes.
- contact@churrosandmor.com
When the CHURROS & MOR Food Truck is not parked at 325 Cook St in Food Court find them at community gatherings, festivals, public events & exclusive celebrations. Vegan & gluten free, there’s always something for everyone!
TESTIMONIALS
- “We just visited the Food Truck this morning. Amazing food & amazing service!! My husband is not celiac so he’s tried churros multiple times in Mexico and locally. I ‘allowed’ him a couple of bites and he said they are the best he has ever had!” Kathy P.
- “To die for! What’s not to love … cinnamon … sugar… crunchy … strawberry sauce … marshmallows … chocolate chips … he even has a little baby flame thrower to roast the mallows! Family run business, so sweet. Very kind folks!” Tanja Blondin, B-glutenfreevictoria
About Jorge
While pursuing a poli-sci degree, Jorge (pronounced ‘Hor-he’) was inspired to start his own business. What better motivation than to share the recipes that his grandmother developed for his celiac father. CHURROS & MOR was born!
Yes! Celiac Disease and the gluten-free diet literally run through Jorge’s veins. His niece in England also shares the diagnosis. Her family has chosen a vegan lifestyle, so Jorge knows first hand how challenging it is to find delicious gluten-free AND vegan delicacies!
