Road Trip! Breakfast with Amanda of GlutenFreeMaui.com
We took a field trip to Makawao for breakfast with Amanda of glutenfreemaui.com. We’ve been following Amanda on Twitter (@gfreemaui) for some time now so it was nice to have the opportunity to meet up in real life and talk story at Market Fresh Bistro.
Amanda has lived on Maui for about 7 years and attends University of Hawaii Maui College. She loves her Maui lifestyle and is a member of the Maui Amateur Radio Club. About three years ago Amanda determined that she was gluten-intolerant by doing an elimination diet. After narrowing down her symptoms to gluten products, she has removed gluten from her diet and lives a happy gluten-free life Upcountry Maui. Her recommendation for anyone who thinks they might have celiac disease is don’t change your diet, talk to your doctor for testing first.
Amanda’s blog focuses on living a gluten-free lifestyle on Maui, showing that it’s not the end of the world. Her honesty on her blog is evident. Take a look at the Dining page and you’ll find Amanda’s experience with some of Maui’s eateries. As she pointed out to us, “Integrity in blogging is very important especially if you have celiac disease. If it’s sugar-coated, it’s probably floured coated too.”
If you’re a restaurant on Maui you may want to listen to this advise from Amanda, “The great thing about being able to serve gluten-free customers is that their friends and family eat where they eat. When my friends go out to eat, they say where can you eat and I’d say Market Fresh Bistro, Star Noodle…” She recommends you get your restaurant certified and get it in the database at different organizations people with celiac disease trust. Her research shows that there is not one Hawaii restaurant that has gone through the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness’ GREAT Program (Gluten-Free Restaurant Education & Awareness Training) and is listed in their database. Through the educational program GFRAP (Gluten-Free Restaurant Awareness Program) you receive a sticker for your door. There is also the Gluten-free Food Service Accreditation Program. For more information on celiac disease you can also visit gluten.net and celiaccentral.org.
Besides being a student and blogger, Amanda is ham radio certified. Ham radio user (Amateur Radio), according to Wikipedia,”is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purpose of private recreation.” This was something new and fascinating to us so we got more information from Amanda. She shared with us about licensing with two tests per year, Maui Amateur Radio Club and Maui ham events.
We hope you enjoy the show!