Haunted Celiacs in Salem

We travel a lot. The hubby travels for work almost constantly, and the monkeys (read, our children) and I tag along whenever we can as well as try to visit family here and there. A huge part of my joy, and terror, each time we land in a new spot is seeking out good gluten free food.

Recently we've spent time in Nantucket, Salem, and Phoenix and I have buckets of experiences to share! Let's start with my favorite place in Salem, The Howling Wolf.

While they don't have a dedicated fryer (don't fall for the whole chips are gluten free in the morning thing or that fried items are on the GF menu - it's still the same fryer) and you will have to ask that your food be handled specially, they were very accommodating and the kitchen was otherwise very knowledgable. Taking the time to double check on the safety of a few things there was well worth it though. The stuffed jalapeños were amazing. They stuff them with cheese and chorizo, then wrap them in bacon, which was a brilliant, gluten free way to finish them and added immensely to the flavor and an even greater crispness than the usual breading. The textural contrast of crisp bacon to the creamy cheese was delightful, like the truffle of appetizers. The spiciness seemed to vary from pepper to pepper, but some had an awesome bite, which made them even better. The house-made pico with, I think mango, that they were served with was also fresh, flavorful and thoroughly yummy. I actually fantasized for weeks about driving all the way back to Salem just for the jalapeños. Now I just fantasize about making some... Oooh, I should do that!

Back to the food. I wish I had taken pictures, but the meal was too good to stop and click in the middle. The Hubby and the Monkeys had tacos and quesadilla on corn tortillas, which were good, but they were nothing to the cheese enchiladas, which had no sauce. Weird right? I first thought I was getting jipped for being a Celiac, as usual. But then I took a bite. Brilliance! Just the right combination of cheeses were all they needed to make the dish divine.

In the end, I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone who can't do cheese, or anyone who's not comfortable working with the waitstaff to be sure you only get safe GF food. But for the rest of us? The food was wonderful, the meal memorable, the decor very fun, the location very close to all the sites, the pricing moderate, and they didn't poison me! Huzzah!

The rest of Salem was a little scary in October though, and it wasn't the witches…
Amber waves of grain are the real stuffs of my nightmares.