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!
‘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!
Meet Tameet! Vancouver Island’s one and only Eritrean-Ethiopian Food Truck! 100% Gluten Free!
Facebook • Instagram • Contact
Look for Tameet at Rib Fest!
A 3-day Food & Music Festival for people of all ages at Cumberland Village Park. Event Details …
Look for Tameet’s eye catching food truck for a gluten-free, vegan / vegetarian alternative to the carnage!
- Entry by donation in support Strathcona Sunrise Rotary Club‘s local Accessible Bike Park Project.
- Friday, August 25th to Sunday, August 27.
- Friday 12-9pm • Saturday 11-9pm • Sunday 11-7pm. Instagram
Tameet Food Truck Regular Schedule
- Home base: 3274 3rd St in Cumberland See map.
- Sunday-Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday 12-8pm. Fridays 4-8pm
- Music by cub.space on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Saturdays 9am-1pm at Comox Valley Farmer’s Market • Facebook • Instagram.
- Saturdays 4-8pm cub.space
- CLOSED Thursdays
Injera, a staple of Eritrean-Ethiopian food, is a fermented pancake-like flatbread with a slightly spongy texture. Think moist & flexible on a scale that our community rarely encounters. Injera is made with just two ingredients – teff flour and water.
Barley is often added to inherently gluten-free teff flour to save costs, however Tameet has elected to forego any savings in order to ensure that their food truck operation is authentic AND 100% celiac safe. Tameet sources its spices from single ingredient processors in Ethiopia – no gluten on site.
In some stretches of time where supply falls short, teff flour processed in a facility that also processes barley may also be used. Tameet will make sure the community is aware of the change in supplies until celiac safe teff arrives.
Tameet speaks our language!
More about Injera!
A teff and water sourdough starter is fermented for 2 days before it is called into action! Like any sourdough, Tameet keeps its ‘starter’ alive and well, setting aside enough for each future batch. Teff flour is added to the starter to create a dough that is then cooked in a large, flat pan. The result a thin, crepe-like ‘tortilla.’ On its own, injera offers a strong, flavourful sour bread. Paired with the Tameet’s rich sauces, they offer a delicious nutritional meal, high in protein, dietary fibre and iron.
Onion and tomatoes form the foundation of Eritrean-Ethiopian food. From there, Tameet offers six slow simmered, flavourful sauces & stews to go with their delicious injera. Enjoy a rotation of beef, lamb, chicken and on special occasions, goat!
With every respect and consideration, Tameet takes care to offer 4 vegan alternatives within the confines of their kitchen. Scroll down for menu.
Tameet’s Back Story
To say that founder Adem’s food truck trajectory is heaven sent is an understatement. The son of an impoverished family in war-torn Eritrea, his parents invested the sum of their resources in their children’s education.
Husband and wife teachers from Cranbrook, BC who happened to teach at Adem’s school in Eritrea, saw something that moved them to sponsor him to come to Canada. Adem made the most of this amazing opportunity, upgrading his high school and going on to gain a professional status as an engineer.
In a serendipitous coincidence for our community, the gluten-free planets aligned!
- a current colleague of his also has celiac disease, as does her daughter
- Adem’s partner, Julianna, has a family member with the diagnosis
As a result, Adem has a deep and personal understanding of the challenges that celiacs face in enjoying safe and delicious food. His entrepreneurial spirit, coupled with the support of his siblings, partner and her family, his food truck now employs the sister and brother who have joined him here.
Tameet 100% Gluten-Free Eritrean-Ethiopian Food Truck is here to serve our community at farmer’s markets, food truck meet ups and festivals in the Comox region and beyond.
Available for special events! Contact tameetfoodtruck@outlook.com
Meet Tameet! Vancouver Island’s one and only Eritrean-Ethiopian Food Truck! 100% Gluten Free!
Facebook • Instagram • Contact
Look for Tameet at Rib Fest!
A 3-day Food & Music Festival for people of all ages at Cumberland Village Park. Event Details …
Look for Tameet’s eye catching food truck for a gluten-free, vegan / vegetarian alternative to the carnage!
- Entry by donation in support Strathcona Sunrise Rotary Club‘s local Accessible Bike Park Project.
- Friday, August 25th to Sunday, August 27.
- Friday 12-9pm • Saturday 11-9pm • Sunday 11-7pm. Instagram
Tameet Food Truck Regular Schedule
- Home base: 3274 3rd St in Cumberland See map.
- Sunday-Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday 12-8pm. Fridays 4-8pm
- Music by cub.space on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Saturdays 9am-1pm at Comox Valley Farmer’s Market • Facebook • Instagram.
- Saturdays 4-8pm cub.space
- CLOSED Thursdays
Injera, a staple of Eritrean-Ethiopian food, is a fermented pancake-like flatbread with a slightly spongy texture. Think moist & flexible on a scale that our community rarely encounters. Injera is made with just two ingredients – teff flour and water.
Barley is often added to inherently gluten-free teff flour to save costs, however Tameet has elected to forego any savings in order to ensure that their food truck operation is authentic AND 100% celiac safe. Tameet sources its spices from single ingredient processors in Ethiopia – no gluten on site.
In some stretches of time where supply falls short, teff flour processed in a facility that also processes barley may also be used. Tameet will make sure the community is aware of the change in supplies until celiac safe teff arrives.
Tameet speaks our language!
More about Injera!
A teff and water sourdough starter is fermented for 2 days before it is called into action! Like any sourdough, Tameet keeps its ‘starter’ alive and well, setting aside enough for each future batch. Teff flour is added to the starter to create a dough that is then cooked in a large, flat pan. The result a thin, crepe-like ‘tortilla.’ On its own, injera offers a strong, flavourful sour bread. Paired with the Tameet’s rich sauces, they offer a delicious nutritional meal, high in protein, dietary fibre and iron.
Onion and tomatoes form the foundation of Eritrean-Ethiopian food. From there, Tameet offers six slow simmered, flavourful sauces & stews to go with their delicious injera. Enjoy a rotation of beef, lamb, chicken and on special occasions, goat!
With every respect and consideration, Tameet takes care to offer 4 vegan alternatives within the confines of their kitchen. Scroll down for menu.
Tameet’s Back Story
To say that founder Adem’s food truck trajectory is heaven sent is an understatement. The son of an impoverished family in war-torn Eritrea, his parents invested the sum of their resources in their children’s education.
Husband and wife teachers from Cranbrook, BC who happened to teach at Adem’s school in Eritrea, saw something that moved them to sponsor him to come to Canada. Adem made the most of this amazing opportunity, upgrading his high school and going on to gain a professional status as an engineer.
In a serendipitous coincidence for our community, the gluten-free planets aligned!
- a current colleague of his also has celiac disease, as does her daughter
- Adem’s partner, Julianna, has a family member with the diagnosis
As a result, Adem has a deep and personal understanding of the challenges that celiacs face in enjoying safe and delicious food. His entrepreneurial spirit, coupled with the support of his siblings, partner and her family, his food truck now employs the sister and brother who have joined him here.
Tameet 100% Gluten-Free Eritrean-Ethiopian Food Truck is here to serve our community at farmer’s markets, food truck meet ups and festivals in the Comox region and beyond.
Available for special events! Contact tameetfoodtruck@outlook.com
Meet Tameet! Vancouver Island’s one and only Eritrean-Ethiopian Food Truck! 100% Gluten Free!
Facebook • Instagram • Contact
Look for Tameet at Rib Fest!
A 3-day Food & Music Festival for people of all ages at Cumberland Village Park. Event Details …
Look for Tameet’s eye catching food truck for a gluten-free, vegan / vegetarian alternative to the carnage!
- Entry by donation in support Strathcona Sunrise Rotary Club‘s local Accessible Bike Park Project.
- Friday, August 25th to Sunday, August 27.
- Friday 12-9pm • Saturday 11-9pm • Sunday 11-7pm. Instagram
Tameet Food Truck Regular Schedule
- Home base: 3274 3rd St in Cumberland See map.
- Sunday-Monday-Tuesday-Wednesday 12-8pm. Fridays 4-8pm
- Music by cub.space on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Saturdays 9am-1pm at Comox Valley Farmer’s Market • Facebook • Instagram.
- Saturdays 4-8pm cub.space
- CLOSED Thursdays
Injera, a staple of Eritrean-Ethiopian food, is a fermented pancake-like flatbread with a slightly spongy texture. Think moist & flexible on a scale that our community rarely encounters. Injera is made with just two ingredients – teff flour and water.
Barley is often added to inherently gluten-free teff flour to save costs, however Tameet has elected to forego any savings in order to ensure that their food truck operation is authentic AND 100% celiac safe. Tameet sources its spices from single ingredient processors in Ethiopia – no gluten on site.
In some stretches of time where supply falls short, teff flour processed in a facility that also processes barley may also be used. Tameet will make sure the community is aware of the change in supplies until celiac safe teff arrives.
Tameet speaks our language!
More about Injera!
A teff and water sourdough starter is fermented for 2 days before it is called into action! Like any sourdough, Tameet keeps its ‘starter’ alive and well, setting aside enough for each future batch. Teff flour is added to the starter to create a dough that is then cooked in a large, flat pan. The result a thin, crepe-like ‘tortilla.’ On its own, injera offers a strong, flavourful sour bread. Paired with the Tameet’s rich sauces, they offer a delicious nutritional meal, high in protein, dietary fibre and iron.
Onion and tomatoes form the foundation of Eritrean-Ethiopian food. From there, Tameet offers six slow simmered, flavourful sauces & stews to go with their delicious injera. Enjoy a rotation of beef, lamb, chicken and on special occasions, goat!
With every respect and consideration, Tameet takes care to offer 4 vegan alternatives within the confines of their kitchen. Scroll down for menu.
Tameet’s Back Story
To say that founder Adem’s food truck trajectory is heaven sent is an understatement. The son of an impoverished family in war-torn Eritrea, his parents invested the sum of their resources in their children’s education.
Husband and wife teachers from Cranbrook, BC who happened to teach at Adem’s school in Eritrea, saw something that moved them to sponsor him to come to Canada. Adem made the most of this amazing opportunity, upgrading his high school and going on to gain a professional status as an engineer.
In a serendipitous coincidence for our community, the gluten-free planets aligned!
- a current colleague of his also has celiac disease, as does her daughter
- Adem’s partner, Julianna, has a family member with the diagnosis
As a result, Adem has a deep and personal understanding of the challenges that celiacs face in enjoying safe and delicious food. His entrepreneurial spirit, coupled with the support of his siblings, partner and her family, his food truck now employs the sister and brother who have joined him here.
Tameet 100% Gluten-Free Eritrean-Ethiopian Food Truck is here to serve our community at farmer’s markets, food truck meet ups and festivals in the Comox region and beyond.
Available for special events! Contact tameetfoodtruck@outlook.com
