Bournemouth will always feel like home to me, having lived there for a few years at University. Now residing in Berkshire, Bournemouth is just over an hour’s drive and the perfect place to take our two children for a short break.
But when one of your children has coeliac disease, a chronic immune disorder triggered by gluten ingestion, planning such a trip can be tricky. Firstly, where to stay? Bed and breakfast is a no-no – the thought of our daughter being ill from the get-go is not how we wish her to remember her holiday.
And, as we all know, the UK isn’t exactly cheap right now, so eating out at breakfast, lunch and dinner is as full of holes as gluten-free bread.
Where to stay in Bournemouth in you have coeliac disease
Thankfully, Boho Beach House is a perfect choice. We stayed for one night last year and always planned on returning. With a charming host, this Victorian building that dates back to 1885 has character by the bucketful. Most importantly, the accommodation features a huge kitchen and dining space – perfect for preparing breakfasts and lunches.
That’s two fewer meals a day you have to worry about.
Of course, you can also cook dinner there and take advantage of the lounge area if you prefer not to retire to your enchanting bedroom too early, but when you’re five minutes walk from the beach and town centre, it would be rude not to venture out for the evening.
Family-friendly gluten-free restaurants in Bournemouth
Our first dinner stop was Urban Garden, located close to the beach in the Lower Gardens in Bournemouth town centre. Promising local, fresh, and seasonal food and booze from epic suppliers in Dorset and the surrounding areas, it didn’t disappoint.
Offering smaller portions of any dish at half price for children, their range of gluten-free dishes was impressive. Our daughter plumped for the burger and chips, and while the lack of a flag adorning the plate bothered us briefly, the attentive waitress had already gone to great lengths to reassure us that coeliac is taken seriously.
Our daughter loved the meal, especially the chips, and with no ill-effect afterward, we would certainly go back again and try other dishes. Our second meal was at the more familiar Côte to enjoy modern French food in Bournemouth, in the heart of town. We’d visited one of their restaurants in Newbury several times, so we had high hopes for a nice meal without the sickness.
Although not as broad as the menu at Urban Garden, Côte understands coeliac disease. Our daughter had the looks-simple-but-tastes-delicious Pasta Provençale, followed by two scoops of ice cream (apparently the highlight of her holiday). Once again, she suffered no ill effects.
While Côte and Urban Garden will test the purse strings, both take gluten-free diets seriously, and I can’t recommend both highly enough. But by staying at Boho Beach House, not having to remortgage to fund three meals a day could be priceless. And these days, feeding a family of four in a restaurant can be just as expensive as an overnight stay.
Besides, the beach is always free, and it’s always sunny in Bournemouth, right?
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