A Gluten Free Road Trip + Eco Friendly Pizza.

You mix three dietitians who like eating and go on “field trips” to find new food….

What have you got?

A road trip that I considered calling:

“A Gluten Free Getaway”

OR

“I made it to Jersey and left without Gluten”

Oh wait…I like that last one.

I can keep goin…I’ll spare you.

This was Jen’s idea (friend Jen-yes you’re now officially in my blog!). She enjoyed the concept behind Pizza Fusion where she stumbled upon it via the internet while likely googling Gluten Free places to Dine (Click HERE for more resources).  We all know how stressful it can be for someone with Celiac disease to Dine out in fear of cross-contamination or if you have food allergies and need to avoid specific ingredients. Perhaps you just want a different kind of pizza!

Pizza Fusion

This pizza place is a joint effort between two men who had a concept but wanted to take it a step further by making an impact or rather LITTLE OR NO impact (we all know the term carbon footprint now, RIGHT?) on the environment. The vision included providing diners with healthy options (big fan here) and being LEED certified-which is an approach to sustainability from the whole building process (ground UP!). I was intrigued enough via the website and I love pizza, SO off we went.

The SCENE

Located in Ridgefield, New Jersey (Thank god for navigation cause we would’ve ended up in Canada…too much chatting!) right across from a Whole Foods (Love!) you’ve got a tastefully decorated Pizza Fusion.

Fun fact: There are locations in 7 States and Internationally in Saudi Arabia.

It’s very organic looking (pun intended) via the color scheme using bamboo and grassy green colors made it very inviting. Even the bathroom was a bit more serene than your typical pizza joint.  We immediately consumed an entire corner right in front. The staff was super friendly as soon as you walk in.  Our waitress was very attentive and willing to answer any questions regarding the menu. Bonus, cause we ask a lot of questions.

The MENU

Love the menu!  And much to my delight they have a smart car that matches the entire theme of the place for pizza delivery! First peek at the menu items and much to my rumbling stomachs’ delight it wasn’t hard to find something to chomp on. You have three crusts to choose from; multigrain, gluten-free (mainly using rice flour), or an organic traditional white.  We didn’t hold back on ordering and decided it was best to TRY AT LEAST THREE!? (all personal sizes by the way, we’re not piggies!)

Pizza line-up.

Our choices?

• The Very Vegan: Soy cheese, gluten-free crust,veggies, mushrooms and roasted garlic. My favorite!
• The Farmer’s Market: roasted artichoke hearts, red onion, roasted zucchini androasted portobello with tomato sauce, mozzarella, provolone, and parmesan.
• The Founders Pie: Free range chicken, kalamata olives, roasted red onion, tomato sauce, parmesan, mozzarella, provolone and gorgonzola.

Opposite end of line-up.

Of course we ordered some salad, HELLO three Dietitians!?

The thin, crispy crusts really pleased my palate. After all, what you really want is a good crispy crust that doesn’t overpower the toppings, right?  We were able to speak to the manager, Jeff, who was more than willing to share the fact that the stores use separate cooking equipment for the “gluten-free” menu items.  Nice to know it’s completely Celiac friendly. Superb.

Dear Pizza Fusion, when will you be in Westchester?

A dessert may have made it to the table, such as a gluten-free brownie.

I knew immediately they used rice flour because of its distinct grittiness. I will personally try most things once, the brownie was a nice touch for someone on a gluten-free diet who wants something sweet but is held back by a majority of restaurant desserts. I think I could’ve passed it off to the husband, but not sure. I’ll let ya know how that works out. In the meantime…

Reasons To Go:

• Prices are definitely reasonable.
• Friendly staff.
• Trusted Celiac Friendly Kitchen.
• You can easily mix and match crusts, toppings. etc. Make YOUR OWN! Variety!
• You can feed your kids something new, healthy, and guilt free.
• Good for after a workout, family place, three dietitians exploring, or you’re just hungry  and you know you’ll find something “healthy.”!

Cute lil Smarty

WANT TO LEARN MORE?

WEBSITE HERE:

Pizza Fusion

Other resources you may ENJOY READING?

Gluten Free

I’ll have pizza…but hold the crust

HAVE YOU BEEN TO PIZZA FUSION? HAVE YOU MADE YOUR OWN GLUTEN FREE PIZZA? DO SHARE!