Gluten/Wheat Free

I have Celiac disease and cannot eat any glutlen/wheat. I have read on this forum that some vegetarians on the maiden cruise had sardines and/or anchovies put on their salads.

Has this been fixed? Is the dining room better staffed and informed now?

This is a real medical issue for me not a whim or a fad diet.

Thank you. We're due on the October Barcelona to Venice cruise.

I have Celiac disease and cannot eat any glutlen/wheat. I have read on this forum that some vegetarians on the maiden cruise had sardines and/or anchovies put on their salads.

 

Has this been fixed? Is the dining room better staffed and informed now?

 

This is a real medical issue for me not a whim or a fad diet.

 

Thank you. We're due on the October Barcelona to Venice cruise.

If you have medical issue, then you should contact Viking directly and discuss it with them. Don't depend on hearsay and "they told me on Cruise Critic."

From the Viking website FAQs:

1. Can you accommodate my dietary restrictions?
   In most cases we can. Every meal has vegetarian options and our chefs will make reasonable efforts to accommodate requests. Guests requiring special diets (low salt, diabetic, gluten-free and low cholesterol) should alert us 90 days prior to departure and remind the Maître d’ when on board.
   
   
    
   
   

We just returned on Saturday from the Homelands cruise. My wife is celiac, and has soy and dairy aggergies too. And she doesn't like fish that much. Viking did a good job feeding her - mostly chichen and beef, but she did try fish too (liked the grouper, not the snapper). Our TA had notified Viking in advance, and I put it in the passenger Information Form. When we boarded, we met with Igor, a head waiter who was outside the Restaurant, and told him too. No problem - we got a copy of the dinner menu outside our cabin each morning, my wife would indicate which starters and entrees she wanted, and we'd deliver that to any head waiter we saw at breakfast (we did the buffet each morning). Igor was ok, but after a few days we started dealing with Tom, another head waiter in the Restaurant, and he was very, very good. We asked for his section each night. My wife had gluten free bread every morning and evening; she said it was ok. She also had gluten free pasta at dinner - it was ok in the dining room, good at Manfredi's.

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your dietary experience. It is greatly appreciated. I have informed Viking but I also wanted to hear from cruisers that had the experience.:)

I have Celiac disease and cannot eat any glutlen/wheat. I have read on this forum that some vegetarians on the maiden cruise had sardines and/or anchovies put on their salads.

 

Has this been fixed? Is the dining room better staffed and informed now?

 

This is a real medical issue for me not a whim or a fad diet.

 

Thank you. We're due on the October Barcelona to Venice cruise.

I saw/heard several people asking in World Cafe about whether specific items were gluten free. They got quick answers from knowledgeable staffers, often indicating "Yes." They seemed to be aware that this is a concern for passengers.

Thank you for posting this question, and thank you to all those who answered. I also have Celiac, and it is, of course, always a concern while traveling. I feel less worried now!

Does anyone know if any of the room service foods can be prepared gluten free?

Sorry.... Meant to isolate this question to Viking Ocean cruises.

Sorry.... Meant to isolate this question to Viking Ocean cruises.

Since this is a vital health issue for you, you should contact Viking directly at tellus@vikingcruises.com and ask them.

I did contact them and my booking reflects my strict dietary needs. I just wanted real life examples. Viking says gluten-free room service is "no problem" but sometimes they (as with any company) don't deliver on their promises.

We just returned on Saturday from the Homelands cruise. My wife is celiac, and has soy and dairy aggergies too. And she doesn't like fish that much. Viking did a good job feeding her - mostly chichen and beef, but she did try fish too (liked the grouper, not the snapper). Our TA had notified Viking in advance, and I put it in the passenger Information Form. When we boarded, we met with Igor, a head waiter who was outside the Restaurant, and told him too. No problem - we got a copy of the dinner menu outside our cabin each morning, my wife would indicate which starters and entrees she wanted, and we'd deliver that to any head waiter we saw at breakfast (we did the buffet each morning). Igor was ok, but after a few days we started dealing with Tom, another head waiter in the Restaurant, and he was very, very good. We asked for his section each night. My wife had gluten free bread every morning and evening; she said it was ok. She also had gluten free pasta at dinner - it was ok in the dining room, good at Manfredi's.

Viking does take passengers' food sensitivities quite seriously. It is so much easier to keep passengers well than to deal with them when they are ill. Well-fed passengers are happy passengers--and a lot of the time passengers spend on board on the port-intensive itineraries that is not sleeping involves food and Viking puts a lot of effort into making it a happy experience.

I saw/heard several people asking in World Cafe about whether specific items were gluten free. They got quick answers from knowledgeable staffers, often indicating "Yes." They seemed to be aware that this is a concern for passengers.

We were on the Viking Star last October. I am a celiac who gets very ill when I consume any gluten. I had no problems dining in the restaurant and like another poster I got the menu the night before. However, I was very careful in the World Cafe. Viking staff are very eager to please and when I asked one server about gluten free options he told me everything was gluten free! I would advise walking around the Cafe and looking for the head waiter on duty. They are the ones that can safely guide you to gluten free options.

We were on the Viking Star last October. I am a celiac who gets very ill when I consume any gluten. I had no problems dining in the restaurant and like another poster I got the menu the night before. However, I was very careful in the World Cafe. Viking staff are very eager to please and when I asked one server about gluten free options he told me everything was gluten free! I would advise walking around the Cafe and looking for the head waiter on duty. They are the ones that can safely guide you to gluten free options.

Make them your best buddies; they will take care of you.

Thanks for the advice Port Hope. I too am very sensitive to gluten (Celiac). I will make the head waiter my best friend and reward him with a generous tip if he comes through for me.

I had such a good experience on the Grand European river cruise. The kitchen even baked up gluten free croissants for me. I was in heaven! That is one reason I am sticking to Viking.

Any more tips on gluten-free dining is welcome. Were you able to eat in any of the speciality restaurants?

Thanks for the advice Port Hope. I too am very sensitive to gluten (Celiac). I will make the head waiter my best friend and reward him with a generous tip if he comes through for me.

I had such a good experience on the Grand European river cruise. The kitchen even baked up gluten free croissants for me. I was in heaven! That is one reason I am sticking to Viking.

Any more tips on gluten-free dining is welcome. Were you able to eat in any of the speciality restaurants?

The Chef's Table might be a problem because it is a set menu that changes every three days. That is one of the reasons that we did not eat there when we sailed in June. We figured that with four of us we would never find one meal that we would all eat and we just did not even try (too many picky eaters with too little patience among them). HOWEVER, DH and I are looking forward to trying it in December and my plan is to sit down with the maitre'd and the menus to see if there is a meal that I can/will eat (or that can be prepared without my problem ingredients) before we make reservations.

Manfredi's leans towards the northern Italian making it easy to choose a pasta free meal without feeling like you have been deprived. I am looking forward to a return visit so I can continue to work my way through the menu.

BTW, bring lots of cash, there are multiple 'head waiters' with whom you will be dealing. :D

Thanks. I appreciate the little insights that only experience brings.

Thanks for the advice Port Hope. I too am very sensitive to gluten (Celiac). I will make the head waiter my best friend and reward him with a generous tip if he comes through for me.

I had such a good experience on the Grand European river cruise. The kitchen even baked up gluten free croissants for me. I was in heaven! That is one reason I am sticking to Viking.

Any more tips on gluten-free dining is welcome. Were you able to eat in any of the speciality restaurants?

We did eat in each of the specialty restaurants. Manfredi's was no problem; the Chef's Table was more challenging and they had to bring in a substitution from the Restaurant for me.

Our experience is from a Viking river cruise, but might be applicable to ocean, too.

We had a person traveling in our group who had a 3-page list (I'm not kidding) of food allergies. I advised her to have the travel agent send the list to Viking and, when we got on the ship, the chef met with her to plan out our friend's meals. He met with her every morning to go over the menu and arranged to have her breakfast sent to her room. And, when there were special events with meals off the ship, Viking worked with the venue to make sure there would be something for her to eat, too.

Amazing service above and beyond!