Happy Thanksgiving! 5 GF Restaurants and 5 Books that I'm Thankful For

Hi everyone! Welcome back to Let's Cook GF and Book AF! I am SO excited that Thanksgiving is this week, it is by far one of the best holidays! Nothing beats quality time with family and quantities of food that nearly make you explode! We always have Thanksgiving at my house, so I am always guaranteed GREAT gluten-free options (like apple pie and mashed turnips! (not together though ew)).

A few days ago my roommates and I had a little "friends"giving, and it was quite a treat because I got to have a second Thanksgiving with my friends! Everyone made something different for the festivity, and we sat together like a little family for a couple hours laughing, eating, and surprisingly not looking at our cell phones. I made gluten free apple crisp that I made a few weeks ago for this blog, because everyone loved it the first time. I also made corn muffins using Bob's Red Mill gluten free corn bread mix. They were so delicious and easy to make! My friends contributed cheese and crackers, a rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes, homemade GF mac and cheese, and string beans. Needless to say, we were very full girls by the end of the evening.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving,  I am going to be discussing 5 gluten free restaurants and 5 books that I am thankful for!

5 GF Restaurants that I'm Thankful for

1. Senza Gluten

Senza Gluten, as you all know from my last post, is one of THE BEST gluten free restaurants in NYC because of its 100% GF menu. Read more about it here. 

2. Lilli and Loo

Lilli and Loo has some of the best GF chinese food around! Although it isn't entirely gluten free like Senza Gluten, it still has its own gluten free menu. This place is amazing because I can literally think of no other place that has GF sesame chicken or dumplings. This has been a go-to spot for dinner for years now. 

3. Bareburger

Bareburger is a burger chain that is everywhere nowadays. All of their food is locally-sourced and organic, so I feel healthy while shoveling an 8 oz. chunk of meat in my mouth. They have great GF buns!(📷creds: Find Me Gluten Free)

4. Otto's Tacos

Otto's is one of my favorite places to eat with my friends! It's quick, cheap, and the flavors are out-of-this-world. Otto's uses corn tortillas, so the tacos are naturally GF! Also, the food is just so darn instagrammable it's not even funny. (📷creds: Just Opened NYC)

5. Sprinkles Cupcakes 

Sprinkles offers two gluten free cupcake flavors; red velvet and lemon blueberry! They are so dense, moist, and the icing is unbelievable. If you go, definitely go on a semi-empty stomach because they are so filling! (📷creds: GF in SF)

5 Books that I'm Thankful for

1. Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter is one of my all-time favorite book series. I am thankful for this story about the famous boy-wizard because it opened up my imagination and introduced me to a whole new world filled with magic, beautiful characters, and non-stop action. (📷creds: HookedUpon)

2. Beartown by Fredrik Backman

I read Beartown earlier this year and I absolutely loved it. I was not expecting to like this book as much as I did, because of its focus on a high school boy's ice hockey team (there was no way I thought I would be interested in this). However, the book exceeded my expectations because of its ability to deeply discuss themes of community and sexual assault. (📷creds: Simon & Schuster )

3. The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom

I am thankful for this short but sweet novel because it pushed me to think. The story takes place in the aftermath of an accident where a ferris wheel car falls on elderly pier maintenance man Eddie. After this unfortunate death, Eddie goes to heaven and learns about 5 people who had the biggest impact on his earthly life. His five people ranged from people who he was close with, like his wife, to people who he had very little interaction with, almost strangers. This made me think about who could potentially be my "Five People,". (📷creds: Goodreads)

4. A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

A Dog's Purpose is one of the most heartwarming stories that I've ever read. It centers around a single dog, or more like a dog spirit, as it goes through different lives in different bodies. The dog starts out as a runaway stray, then becomes Buddy, a boy's best friend, and later becomes a rescue dog. Each life of this dog has a different purpose (Buddy's purpose was to make his boy happy). I am thankful for this book because it helps me feel less sad about my own pets who have passed because I know that they achieved their purposes in this world. (📷creds: Scholastic)

5. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Margaret Atwood's terrifying tale about the sexual enslavement of women basically hasn't left my mind since I read it a little over a year ago. Although the story itself seems extreme, its themes of sexism and strict governmental control are based in reality. I am thankful for this novel because it opened my eyes to many harsh realities of this world. (📷creds: Penguin Random House)


Thank you all for reading! If you have 5 restaurants and/or 5 books that you are thankful for, comment them below!

Happy Thanksgiving! 💛

Your GFF (gluten free friend),
Mary