travel blog Archives - The Mindful Peanut

Oxford, England – Gluten Free & low-FODMAP

Written by themindfulpeanut on June 20, 2020. Posted in Posts, Travel.

I arrived in Oxford by bus from Heathrow and although I was a bit jet-lagged I was also immediately enamored with the beauty of the city. Gothic architecture, museums, a castle, green space and plentiful quaint cafes await in this lovely town. A little something for everyone. Here are some of the picture & foodie highlights of the long weekend away.

Upon arrival, I had a few hours before I could check in to my Airbnb so I had a walk to a nearby cafe called Cafe Loco. After a long day of travel and surviving basically off of protein bars, tea and sheer will & determination – I definitely need greens. These greens happened to come with halloumi on top. Happy days.

Grilled Halloumi salad with butternut squash and rocket at Cafe Loco

Things to See

The next day I was reunited with my Koala and we spent the day exploring Oxford. Naturally, I wanted to see the Bridge of Sighs. Along the way we also enjoyed the sights of Radcliffe Camera, Bodleian Library, and the Museum of Natural History.

Things to Eat!

We found so many yummy places in Oxford, many with Gluten free and Vegan options. Here is the collection of where we went and what I enjoyed on my low-FODMAP diet.

Handlebar Cafe & Kitchen
I’ll have a coconut pancake stack with my banana please! Maple syrup, shredded coconut, coconut oil & almond milk. And a TON of my favorite bananas.
They were also doing only plant based milks for veganuary.

Chez Mal
An entirely Gluten Free Afternoon Tea in a former prison! Koala honestly thought the gluten free scones were better than the regular ones.

Coconut Tree
Seriously put this place on the top of your list to visit. Pictured here is their treacle hopper with coconut ice cream. (Hopper = coconut milk pancake) This Sri Lankan tapas place was soo good. Vegan & GF!

Browns Brasserie
A huge gluten free menu welcomes you at this classic restaurant just a short walk from the center of Oxford. This salmon & potatoes was just what I needed after a long day of exploring. Great for a date night.

I would definitely recommend Oxford for a long weekend. Stay somewhere walking distance to the town center and you’ll have plentiful options at your doorstep. I can’t decide if my favorite part was the cream tea or Coconut Tree, but I’d recommend just do both. 🙂

Be well, Sara ♥

Antwerp, Belgium – Gluten Free & low-FODMAP

Written by themindfulpeanut on June 9, 2020. Posted in Posts, Travel.

A long weekend by train to Antwerpen made for a lovely birthday venture for my partner and I. Honestly I had somewhat selfish intentions, as my favorite electronic music band had a show at Lotto Arena, but we also managed to see a lot of the city even through cold November temps!

Firstly, take a look at our Airbnb – I think it may have been the most unique & fancy ‘bnb we’ve ever stayed in.

Happy Birthday, Koala! Here, have some 50 ft ceilings.

Belgian Chocolate!

Koala & I are huge chocolate fans, so being in Belgium we had to find something extra special to experience the city. We ended up doing a Chocolate Walk with a local, named Luis. A personalized tour of the city with stops to have a delicious Mexican hot chocolate. As well as chocolate tastings at Pierre Marcolini (great gifts as well). We even snorted chocolate. Yep, The Chocolate Shooter at The Chocolate Line.

Gluten Free / low-FODMAP food choices:

Our favorite healthy finds in Antwerpen.

Plant B

Here I enjoyed a glass of wine and avocado toast with courgette & hot sauce! =YUM.

Green Way

This was a random find we came across on a night spent walking around Antwerp! Delicious salads and just look at that GF Bread!

Divers

This was such a cute cafe find. Juices, coffees, healthy bowls and I treated myself to my favorite combo they named endearingly The Nutty Mister.

Things to Do:

After a short trip up to the top of the MAS (free, and the views are worth it!) We stopped into a quaint, classy beer joint (Dr. Beer) next door for a pre-dinner treat as I saw they carried Ginger Tipple. Ginger beer from a local brewery we didn’t have time to tour but I really wanted to try the product!