Wife has celiac. Manageable or reconsider Sri Lanka?
3 Answers from travellers
Manageable but requires vigilance. Sri Lankan cuisine is largely rice-based (naturally gluten-free): rice, curry, coconut, most sambols, most sweets are rice or coconut-flour. Gluten sneaks in via: soy sauce (occasional in Chinese-influenced dishes), kottu (wheat roti), samosas, wheat rotis, cookies. Print a Sinhala + Tamil allergy card for celiac (multiple templates online). Communicate clearly. Chain restaurants (Cinnamon hotels, Barefoot cafe) understand celiac well. Street food = high cross-contamination risk, skip. Kade = ask carefully about which curries have any wheat. Real celiac (not just sensitive): stick to mid-range up hotels. Not reconsider trip. Adjust approach.
^ this. Chef here. Also: rice-and-curry buffets are minefield for cross-contact (shared serving utensils). Order plated meals not buffets. Ask restaurants to prepare fresh, not reheat. Communicate 'no wheat, no soy sauce, no bread'. Most Sri Lankan kitchens are actually LESS wheat-focused than Western kitchens - the cross-contact risk is smaller than you might fear.
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