The CCA’s GF 101 Sessions are normally  ‘Members Only’ BUT because we know that so many people need this kind of support, we have opened up the webinar to the public. Everyone welcome! Who is Ellen Bayens?

Communication is the key ingredient to every successful gluten-free restaurant meal. When diners, chefs and servers are able to collaborate on what is required and what can be reasonably delivered, there is cause for celebration!

But where to begin?

The following is a list of suggested questions to help Start the Conversation on Celiac-Friendly Dining©. In very short order, the responses you receive will allow you to gage any given restaurant’s degree of  gluten awareness – and willingness.  For the very best outcome, call ahead or take your host or server aside before ordering.

NOTE: Restaurants that have carefully researched how to serve us love going into detail. If your questions are met with impatience and exasperation – go with your gut. When restaurants get gluten free right, reward them generously!

Question #1

• Please tell me about the meals  you recommend to diners who need to eat gluten free?

Ingredients

• What ingredients will be used to make my order?
• How do staff  know whether ingredients are really gluten free?
  • Says so on labels?
  • Checked product website?
  • Called the manufacturer?
  • Checked with The Celiac Scene? The CCA?
• Will pure spices, prepared seasonings or soy sauce made from wheat be used to make my meal?
• What other food items are cooked in the oil that ‘gluten-free’ items are cooked in?
• How are sauces and dressings thickened?

Procedures

• How will my server communicate with the kitchen that a gluten-free order has been placed?
• How are gluten-free orders prepared in relation to the regular flow of the kitchen?
• Will staff wash their hands / change gloves / change aprons clean surfaces before preparing my order?
• How do staff ensure that all utensils used in preparing my food are free from any trace of gluten?
  • Separate or scrubbed frying pan? Griddle scrubbed? Aluminum foil barrier? Dedicated pots? Dedicated colanders?
• What other precautions do staff take to minimize / prevent cross contamination?
• How will my server confirm with the kitchen that the order they are collecting has been prepared gluten free?
• How will my server confirm that the order they are delivering to me is gluten free?
  

How did the restaurant learn how to meet the needs of gluten-free diners?

• Through The Celiac Scene? Canadian Celiac Association?
• Registered dietitian? Local health authority?
• Staff members with celiac disease?
  

Questions Specific to Pizza Restaurants 

• The risk of cross contamination with airborne gluten flour is HIGH. Partake only if strict protocols are in place to protect your safety.
• Are ‘gluten-free’ crusts prepared on-site? 
  • During regular operations? Before regular production? During downtimes / days?
  • See questions in Ingredient section above.
• Are pre-made ‘gluten-free’ crusts purchased from a dedicated gluten-free manufacturer? Who is the manufacturer?
• How are gluten-free sauces and toppings prepared?
  • During regular operations? Before regular production? During downtimes / days
  • See questions in Ingredient section above.
• How do staff ensure that all utensils used in preparing gluten-free orders are free of any trace of gluten?
• How are utensils, crusts, sauces and toppings protected from cross-contamination with gluten while waiting to be used?
• How will my order be protected from cross-contamination with gluten once it has been prepared and/or while waiting to be served?

If the prospect of grilling restaurants about their gluten-free friendliness feels intimidating, you’ve got options!

Visit The Celiac Scene for restaurants that enjoy an excellent reputation within Victoria and Vancouver Island’s celiac community.

Join Victoria’s Gluten-Free Foodies to dine with a gluten-free group at carefully vetted restaurants. With more than 100 Meet-Ups under our belts, choose from a huge inventory of tried and tested celiac-friendly restaurants.

Join Victoria’s Gluten-Free Foodies for Fabulous Dosas & Sauces at Dosa Paragon!

Thursday, March 19th at 6pm. 735 Yates Street – tucked inside St. Andrew’s Square Building – across from Cineplex Odeon.

RSVP to ellen@theceliacscene.com

DOSA – a cooked flat thin layered rice batter,  somewhat similar to a crepe.
PARAGON – a person or thing regarded as a perfect example of a particular quality.

• dosaparagon.ca • Facebook • Instagram • Contact • 778.440.2206
• Hours: Tues-Wed-Thurs 11-8:30 • Fri-Sat 11-9 • Sun11-8 • Closed Mondays.

• About Dosa Paragon
• Dosa Paragon Menu
• Order Online
• Take Out Menu
• Skip the Dishes

Thursday Special – Vegetable Biriyani

• A bold and flavorful Indian rice dish with bell peppers, peas, carrots and potatoes in a spiced rice dish made with turmeric, garam masala and other warm spices.

Friday-Saturday-Sunday Special – Chicken Biriyani

About South Indian Cuisine

• DOSA – a crispy savoury rice crepe cooked flat thin layered, made from fermented rice and lentil batter, then filled.
• UTHAPPAM – thick pancake made from rice and lentil batter, with different toppings.
• PAPADUM – a thin crisp disk shaped lentil wafers, made from seasoned black gram flour, either fried or grilled with dry heat.
• VADA – a savoury fried snack from India. It is made from lentils.
• IDLY – a savoury, steamed rice cake very popular in Southern India and Sri Lanka , from Indian subcontinent. IDLY are made by Steaming a batter consisting of fermented black lentils and rice. Learn more about this super food here.
• SAMBAR – lentils and Vegetables cooked with tamarind and blend of spices.
• INDIAN PICKLE- known as Achar, made from a variety of vegetables & fruits, preserved in brine, vinegar, edible oils and a blend of various Indian spices.
• Click here to view the complete menu.

Victoria Buzz Review by Brishti Basu ¹

• On July 8th, Prashant “Bob” Unnikrishnan and his wife Lathika quietly opened the doors to Dosa Paragon, a south Indian restaurant that is one of its kind in Victoria, and perhaps all of Vancouver Island. Unlike other East Indian eateries in town, this restaurant specializes in cuisine local to the south Indian state of Kerala and everything on the menu is made from scratch by the husband-and-wife duo. Bob, who has lived in Victoria for the past 6 years, brings his dishes straight from India after having worked in major cities like Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore. Before opening Dosa Paragon, he worked as a chef at several restaurants around town including Irish Times Pub, John’s Place, and Varsha Indian Kitchen.
• Some of their highlights include the Masala Dosa (a rice crepe stuffed with spiced potato), their Onion and Cilantro Uthappam (a savoury pancake topped with onion and cilantro), and for meat eaters, an aromatic and flavourful Chicken Biryani (a spiced rice and chicken dish). Of course, no Indian meal is complete without a drink to go with it.
• Those who prefer a cooler beverage may choose the thick, sweet concoction that is their mango smoothie. For those partial to hot drinks, the restaurant offers an authentic ‘masala chai’ or tea flavoured with a mix of spices and herbs.
• While Bob and his wife have done practically nothing to advertise their new restaurant, the small eatery always has a steady stream of customers to keep them busy – a testament to the nearly addictive flavours and aromas emanating from Dosa Paragon. They have been so busy, in fact, that the owners have had to extend their business hours up to 9 p.m. to keep up with the demand.
• “That’s our motivation,” said Bob when asked about how customers have been responding to his restaurant. “We just want to maintain that momentum as our main goal is customer satisfaction.”

• ¹ https://www.victoriabuzz.com/2019/08/victorias-first-south-indian-restaurant-is-now-open-on-yates-street

‘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!

Almond Shortbread Bunny Cookies & Hot Cross Buns!

B-glutenfreevictoria 100% Gluten-Free European Style Desserts and Artisan Breads will be at the 🌸 Bloom Market 🌸 March 25th 10am-3pm at Langford Station. Hope to see you there 💗

It pays to pre-order! 

• bglutenfreevictoria.square.site
• Instagram via DM
• bglutenfreevictoria@gmail.com
• 250-208-3646
• Pick up or delivery arranged when ordering.

Enjoy a selection of baguettes, bars , biscuits, bread, buns, cinnamon buns, coffee cakes, cookies, croissants, filled pastries, loaves (banana bread & orange cranberry,) muffins, pies & sourdough! Best of all! MINI DONUTS!

Listen to Tanja on ‘A Canadian Celiac Podcast!’

Look for the B-glutenfreevictoria’s Booth or ‘Green Gluten-Free Trailer’ at Island Markets:

• Langford Station Market – Saturdays 10am to 2pm – until end of April
• Moss  Street Market – Saturdays 10am to 1pm (10am to 2pm in summer)
• Goldstream Market – Saturdays 10am to 2pm – beginning in May
• Esquimalt Farmers Market Gorge Park – Mondays 4:30pm to 7:30pm – June through September
• Westcoast Outdoor Market at Mary Winspear Centre – Thursdays 5:30pm to 8:30pm.  Sundays 10am to 2pm – June through August

About Tanja!

Tanja Blondin,  Owner / Operator of B-glutenfreevictoria, has been baking for as long as she can remember.  Her German heritage continues to inform the food that she creates.

With hospitality in her DNA, Tanja has done it all from baking to catering,  always with the best in presentation.

When her daughter was born, Tanja started a cake business that allowed her to work from home. The business was so successful that it grew into a full catering and pastry shop in Ontario. From there, she went on to manage  restaurants, including the Starbucks that she transferred to in Sidney, to be closer to family.

Seeking a change from the coffee business, Tanja assumed a position in the bakery department of Sidney Thrifty Foods. It was around this time that she began experiencing health problems that lead her, and her daughter, to be diagnosed with celiac disease. Her employer tried to accommodate her condition with a move to the cake decorating department, but the proximity to airborne gluten flour was too much for her.  Tanja had to resign, but that does not mean she stopped baking. Their loss was our gain!

What to do with decades of experience baking European pastries?  Tanja reimagined them using gluten-free, organic ingredients, freshly milled at the dedicated gluten-free Millstone Farm Organics in North Saanich:

• almond flour • baking powder • brown rice flour • buckwheat flour • chia • buckwheat flour • eggs (fresh!) • flax seeds • millet flour • potato starch • psyllium husk • oats (pure) • quinoa • sorghum flour • sliced almonds • tapioca starch • teff flour • xanthan gum • white rice flour

Tanja adapted her favourite recipes to gluten free in her dedicated kitchen, and set up a booth on Sunday’s Mary Winspear Centre to test the market. The response has been so positive that she has gone on to create a ‘B-glutenfreevictoria Food Trailer’ – a first for Vancouver Island and beyond!

View the possibilities and order online through bglutenfreevictoria.square.site, or stop by her trailer during her busy  market schedule this summer.

B-glutenfreevictoria 100% Gluten-Free European Style Desserts and Artisan Breads.

How to order! 

• bglutenfreevictoria.square.site
• Instagram via DM
• bglutenfreevictoria@gmail.com
• 250-208-3646
• Pick up or delivery arranged when ordering.

Enjoy a selection of baguettes, bars , biscuits, bread, buns, cinnamon buns, coffee cakes, cookies, croissants, filled pastries, loaves (banana bread & orange cranberry,) muffins, pies & sourdough! Best of all! MINI DONUTS!

B-glutenfreevictoria appears throughout greater Victoria, including Goldstream Market, Moss Street Market, Esquimalt Farmers Markets, Westcoast Outdoor Markets, Metchosin Farmers Market, Bastion Square Foodie Fridays and seasonal events!

Langford Station Market – 720 Station Ave
Saturdays 10am to 2pm – until April 29, 2023
General Information • Instagram

COMPLETE Market Schedule
TODAY’S Listings

About Tanja!

Listen to Tanja on ‘A Canadian Celiac Podcast!’

Tanja Blondin,  Owner / Operator of B-glutenfreevictoria, has been baking for as long as she can remember.  Her German heritage continues to inform the food that she creates.

With hospitality in her DNA, Tanja has done it all from baking to catering,  always with the best in presentation.

When her daughter was born, Tanja started a cake business that allowed her to work from home. The business was so successful that it grew into a full catering and pastry shop in Ontario. From there, she went on to manage  restaurants, including the Starbucks that she transferred to in Sidney, to be closer to family.

Seeking a change from the coffee business, Tanja assumed a position in the bakery department of Sidney Thrifty Foods. It was around this time that she began experiencing health problems that lead her, and her daughter, to be diagnosed with celiac disease. Her employer tried to accommodate her condition with a move to the cake decorating department, but the proximity to airborne gluten flour was too much for her.  Tanja had to resign, but that does not mean she stopped baking. Their loss was our gain!

What to do with decades of experience baking European pastries?  Tanja reimagined them using gluten-free, organic ingredients, freshly milled at the dedicated gluten-free Millstone Farm Organics in North Saanich:

• almond flour • baking powder • brown rice flour • buckwheat flour • chia • buckwheat flour • eggs (fresh!) • flax seeds • millet flour • potato starch • psyllium husk • oats (pure) • quinoa • sorghum flour • sliced almonds • tapioca starch • teff flour • xanthan gum • white rice flour

Tanja adapted her favourite recipes to gluten free in her dedicated kitchen, and set up a booth on Sunday’s Mary Winspear Centre to test the market. The response has been so positive that she has gone on to create a ‘B-glutenfreevictoria Food Trailer’ – a first for Vancouver Island and beyond!

View the possibilities and order online through bglutenfreevictoria.square.site, or stop by her trailer during her busy  market schedule this summer.

B-glutenfreevictoria 100% Gluten-Free European Style Desserts and Artisan Breads.

How to order! 

• bglutenfreevictoria.square.site
• Instagram via DM
• bglutenfreevictoria@gmail.com
• 250-208-3646
• Pick up or delivery arranged when ordering.

Enjoy a selection of baguettes, bars , biscuits, bread, buns, cinnamon buns, coffee cakes, cookies, croissants, filled pastries, loaves (banana bread & orange cranberry,) muffins, pies & sourdough! Best of all! MINI DONUTS!

B-glutenfreevictoria appears throughout greater Victoria, including Goldstream Market, Moss Street Market, Esquimalt Farmers Markets, Westcoast Outdoor Markets, Metchosin Farmers Market, Bastion Square Foodie Fridays and seasonal events!

Langford Station Market – 720 Station Ave
Saturdays 10am to 2pm – until April 29, 2023
General Information • Instagram

COMPLETE Market Schedule
TODAY’S Listings

About Tanja!

Listen to Tanja on ‘A Canadian Celiac Podcast!’

Tanja Blondin,  Owner / Operator of B-glutenfreevictoria, has been baking for as long as she can remember.  Her German heritage continues to inform the food that she creates.

With hospitality in her DNA, Tanja has done it all from baking to catering,  always with the best in presentation.

When her daughter was born, Tanja started a cake business that allowed her to work from home. The business was so successful that it grew into a full catering and pastry shop in Ontario. From there, she went on to manage  restaurants, including the Starbucks that she transferred to in Sidney, to be closer to family.

Seeking a change from the coffee business, Tanja assumed a position in the bakery department of Sidney Thrifty Foods. It was around this time that she began experiencing health problems that lead her, and her daughter, to be diagnosed with celiac disease. Her employer tried to accommodate her condition with a move to the cake decorating department, but the proximity to airborne gluten flour was too much for her.  Tanja had to resign, but that does not mean she stopped baking. Their loss was our gain!

What to do with decades of experience baking European pastries?  Tanja reimagined them using gluten-free, organic ingredients, freshly milled at the dedicated gluten-free Millstone Farm Organics in North Saanich:

• almond flour • baking powder • brown rice flour • buckwheat flour • chia • buckwheat flour • eggs (fresh!) • flax seeds • millet flour • potato starch • psyllium husk • oats (pure) • quinoa • sorghum flour • sliced almonds • tapioca starch • teff flour • xanthan gum • white rice flour

Tanja adapted her favourite recipes to gluten free in her dedicated kitchen, and set up a booth on Sunday’s Mary Winspear Centre to test the market. The response has been so positive that she has gone on to create a ‘B-glutenfreevictoria Food Trailer’ – a first for Vancouver Island and beyond!

View the possibilities and order online through bglutenfreevictoria.square.site, or stop by her trailer during her busy  market schedule this summer.

B-glutenfreevictoria 100% Gluten-Free European Style Desserts and Artisan Breads.

How to order! 

• bglutenfreevictoria.square.site
• Instagram via DM
• bglutenfreevictoria@gmail.com
• 250-208-3646
• Pick up or delivery arranged when ordering.

Enjoy a selection of baguettes, bars , biscuits, bread, buns, cinnamon buns, coffee cakes, cookies, croissants, filled pastries, loaves (banana bread & orange cranberry,) muffins, pies & sourdough! Best of all! MINI DONUTS!

B-glutenfreevictoria appears throughout greater Victoria, including Goldstream Market, Moss Street Market, Esquimalt Farmers Markets, Westcoast Outdoor Markets, Metchosin Farmers Market, Bastion Square Foodie Fridays and seasonal events!

Langford Station Market – 720 Station Ave
Saturdays 10am to 2pm – until April 29, 2023
General Information • Instagram

COMPLETE Market Schedule
TODAY’S Listings

About Tanja!

Listen to Tanja on ‘A Canadian Celiac Podcast!’

Tanja Blondin,  Owner / Operator of B-glutenfreevictoria, has been baking for as long as she can remember.  Her German heritage continues to inform the food that she creates.

With hospitality in her DNA, Tanja has done it all from baking to catering,  always with the best in presentation.

When her daughter was born, Tanja started a cake business that allowed her to work from home. The business was so successful that it grew into a full catering and pastry shop in Ontario. From there, she went on to manage  restaurants, including the Starbucks that she transferred to in Sidney, to be closer to family.

Seeking a change from the coffee business, Tanja assumed a position in the bakery department of Sidney Thrifty Foods. It was around this time that she began experiencing health problems that lead her, and her daughter, to be diagnosed with celiac disease. Her employer tried to accommodate her condition with a move to the cake decorating department, but the proximity to airborne gluten flour was too much for her.  Tanja had to resign, but that does not mean she stopped baking. Their loss was our gain!

What to do with decades of experience baking European pastries?  Tanja reimagined them using gluten-free, organic ingredients, freshly milled at the dedicated gluten-free Millstone Farm Organics in North Saanich:

• almond flour • baking powder • brown rice flour • buckwheat flour • chia • buckwheat flour • eggs (fresh!) • flax seeds • millet flour • potato starch • psyllium husk • oats (pure) • quinoa • sorghum flour • sliced almonds • tapioca starch • teff flour • xanthan gum • white rice flour

Tanja adapted her favourite recipes to gluten free in her dedicated kitchen, and set up a booth on Sunday’s Mary Winspear Centre to test the market. The response has been so positive that she has gone on to create a ‘B-glutenfreevictoria Food Trailer’ – a first for Vancouver Island and beyond!

View the possibilities and order online through bglutenfreevictoria.square.site, or stop by her trailer during her busy  market schedule this summer.

B-glutenfreevictoria 100% Gluten-Free European Style Desserts and Artisan Breads.

How to order! 

• bglutenfreevictoria.square.site
• Instagram via DM
• bglutenfreevictoria@gmail.com
• 250-208-3646
• Pick up or delivery arranged when ordering.

Enjoy a selection of baguettes, bars , biscuits, bread, buns, cinnamon buns, coffee cakes, cookies, croissants, filled pastries, loaves (banana bread & orange cranberry,) muffins, pies & sourdough! Best of all! MINI DONUTS!

B-glutenfreevictoria appears throughout greater Victoria, including Goldstream Market, Moss Street Market, Esquimalt Farmers Markets, Westcoast Outdoor Markets, Metchosin Farmers Market, Bastion Square Foodie Fridays and seasonal events!

Langford Station Market – 720 Station Ave
Saturdays 10am to 2pm – until April 29, 2023
General Information • Instagram

COMPLETE Market Schedule
TODAY’S Listings

About Tanja!

Listen to Tanja on ‘A Canadian Celiac Podcast!’

Tanja Blondin,  Owner / Operator of B-glutenfreevictoria, has been baking for as long as she can remember.  Her German heritage continues to inform the food that she creates.

With hospitality in her DNA, Tanja has done it all from baking to catering,  always with the best in presentation.

When her daughter was born, Tanja started a cake business that allowed her to work from home. The business was so successful that it grew into a full catering and pastry shop in Ontario. From there, she went on to manage  restaurants, including the Starbucks that she transferred to in Sidney, to be closer to family.

Seeking a change from the coffee business, Tanja assumed a position in the bakery department of Sidney Thrifty Foods. It was around this time that she began experiencing health problems that lead her, and her daughter, to be diagnosed with celiac disease. Her employer tried to accommodate her condition with a move to the cake decorating department, but the proximity to airborne gluten flour was too much for her.  Tanja had to resign, but that does not mean she stopped baking. Their loss was our gain!

What to do with decades of experience baking European pastries?  Tanja reimagined them using gluten-free, organic ingredients, freshly milled at the dedicated gluten-free Millstone Farm Organics in North Saanich:

• almond flour • baking powder • brown rice flour • buckwheat flour • chia • buckwheat flour • eggs (fresh!) • flax seeds • millet flour • potato starch • psyllium husk • oats (pure) • quinoa • sorghum flour • sliced almonds • tapioca starch • teff flour • xanthan gum • white rice flour

Tanja adapted her favourite recipes to gluten free in her dedicated kitchen, and set up a booth on Sunday’s Mary Winspear Centre to test the market. The response has been so positive that she has gone on to create a ‘B-glutenfreevictoria Food Trailer’ – a first for Vancouver Island and beyond!

View the possibilities and order online through bglutenfreevictoria.square.site, or stop by her trailer during her busy  market schedule this summer.

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

• http://issuu.com/page-one/docs/yam_mayjun2015/1
• http://issuu.com/page-one/docs/yam_mayjun2015/21