Romio’s Pizza, Seattle

When we went to Disneyland last week, I could not have predicted that the best gluten-free meal I’d have would be virtually on my doorstep. We landed around 9pm on Saturday and by 10pm, we were at Romio’s on Greenwood in Seattle. I’d heard tale of gluten-free food available there and I was quite excited to see what they had to offer.

Gluten-free dining in the past 6 years has typically been a choice of just a few items. Typically a meat, some form of veggies, and maybe some gluten-free pasta. There are only so many bunless burgers one can eat before growing weary of the boringness of a patty and cheese. Meh.

So with some trepidation and certainly with no great hopes, I sailed into Romio’s and asked for the gluten-free menu. When the hostess brought one over, I thought she’d grabbed the wrong menu. This was a full-size, multi-page menu filled with dozens and dozens of choices. I flipped to the front to verify that it was the gluten-free menu. It was! In addition, there is a little GF symbol next to each menu item.

I knew that they had gluten-free pizza but I was rather shocked at the myriad of choices available to me. More than a dozen different pizzas. An entire page of subs and grinders. Half dozen paninis. Multiple pasta dishes. And several low-carb “no-pasta” pasta dishes. For the first time in 6 years, I had a big problem.. what to order?! Not because I didn’t want to choose from the few blah options available – but because I was overwhelmed with the sheer number of items available to me.

It took a good 15 minutes to finally come to a decision. Hubby said that he would order gluten-free as well so I could sample his meal – what a great guy! I ended up ordering a ham and swiss panini and a pizza. The waiter said that we could do two different pizzas in one – they would do it half and half. So we chose Plato’s Special (tomatoes and feta) and my eternal favorite, Samos (canadian bacon and pineapple).

When the food arrived it looked much better than I’d anticipated. Panini’s became a big thing after I was gluten-free so this was my very first experience with one. And it was utterly delicious. Crispy with gooey cheese and super soft ham. The pesto sauce was a bonus and the entire package was fabulous! What a great experience for my very first panini.

The pizza was also incredible. Compared to the pizza I had in San Diego at Sammy’s Woodfired Grill, this was a masterpiece. Nice and chewy crust, no grit, no denseness. Just pizza crust the way it should be! I felt like a pig at the trough as I noshed on one great slice after another. Yum.

Dinner was followed by a moist brownie. It was better than most gluten-free brownies I’ve had, but not as rich and decadent as my own. However, as gluten-free desserts go, it was very good.

We’ll be heading there again in the next week or so and plan to go to Seattle monthly so I can work my way through the menu.

If you’re in the area, you *must* go to Romio’s. Best gluten-free fare anywhere!