Gluten-free on ABD?

[TravelJunkieHubby]

My family is still at least a year away from traveling internationally - but during quarantine we discovered a gluten sensitivity in our family. I was wondering if anyone who prefers/must avoid gluten did ABD Japan?

How well did ABD accommodate dietary requests? In the past when we have requested vegan or vegetarian food on ABD trips it has been hit or miss (Italy definitely easier than Australia).

From a gluten-free/vegan standpoint, do any particular ABD trips stand out?

 

[Mathmagicland]

My family is still at least a year away from traveling internationally - but during quarantine we discovered a gluten sensitivity in our family. I was wondering if anyone who prefers/must avoid gluten did ABD Japan?

How well did ABD accommodate dietary requests? In the past when we have requested vegan or vegetarian food on ABD trips it has been hit or miss (Italy definitely easier than Australia).

From a gluten-free/vegan standpoint, do any particular ABD trips stand out?

Can’t speak to the gluten situation l but I have a couple of dietary issues and was amazed at the accommodations made by AbD during the Japan trip. One example- I can’t eat cabbage, and in Hiroshima there is a dinner stop at one of the many okonomiyaki (cabbage pancakes) restaurants the area is famous for. I’d told AbD I would skip and eat something later, as I did not want to insult our hosts. So, I was quite surprised to see that, after the chefs had cooked up the meal for everyone else (the meals were cooked as we sat and watched) they then made a chicken & noodle version just for me.

When we did the Osaka food tour the next evening, one of the guides wrote out my allergies for me in Japanese so that I could show it to food vendors to be sure I’d be OK, which was an unexpected and gracious surprise.

We had some vegetarians in our group and they always seemed happy with their dining options at the group meals.

While AbD says they will try but cannot promise they can accommodate all food issues, I was very impressed with my Japan experiences.

 

[AquaDame]

I have no doubt the guides will do their best, but you will not always be with them and in Japan it can be really hard to always know what has gluten in it. There are gluten free soy sauces, though mostly they will have wheat in it these days, but there can also be gluten in miso, mixed with vinegars, etc. Japanese kitchens (even restaurant ones) are tiny, which doesn't often allow for special preparation and cross contamination is a real concern. How well you fare may depend on how sensitive the person is. Soy sauce is in so much and if you're going over the summer mugicha is very popular so you may be handed tea without knowing it's barley..!

https://www.legalnomads.com/gluten-free/japan/