My Gluten Free weekend in Milan began with where I stayed. Before I get into the review of the 4* Enterprise Hotel I want to say that I didn’t realize that staying in a hotel was a luxury for people with Celiac Disease, until my son could no longer consume gluten.
It is not easy finding accommodations that offer a breakfast, lunch or dinner, guaranteed against cross contamination. Almost all of our travelling over the last few months has been in rented apartments because of this.
Renting an apartment means SOMEONE has to cook, make coffee, make toast, clean etc…..etc…etc…. and that someone is most likely me! When you REALLY want to relax, a hotel is the perfect getaway because you can forget about the mundane daily chores and be pampered. However, that isn’t always possible or safe when traveling with a gluten intolerance, which is why our stay at the 4* Enterprise Hotel in Milan was fantastic.
This series is dedicated to exploring MILAN as a real TOURIST, without worrying about preparing a brown paper bag lunch in the morning, rushing back to your rented apartment to make a gf dinner, or finding a grocery store with gf options…..time suckers when you have a limited amount of days in a new city. This is about being gluten free in Milan and enjoying all the city has to offer to the fullest.
The 4 star Enterprise Hotel in Milan offers a gluten free breakfast and this is my honest review for anyone planning a visit to Milan for EXPO 2015 this year, or a weekend getaway to the city as part of a trip to Italy.
The Enterprise Hotel – Corso Sempione, 91, Milan
Location
One of the things you will notice is that the Enterprise is further away from the “centre” of Milan than many of the other 4 star hotels. At first I thought this was going to be inconvenient because everything I wanted to see was closer in the centre, however, the location turned out to be great!
The hotel offers parking, which was so convenient. I recommend getting around Milan by public transit, so it is best to park your car and rely on how connected the city is.
Yesterday I shared a post about Milan’s beautiful vintage trams that runs along the “Linea 1″ – “One Line”. This takes you directly from the Enterprise’s door to the centre of Milan in about 10 minutes! Buy your ticket from the tabacco shop near the hotel (the hotel clerk will direct you) and you’re on your way! Plus, this is a VERY AUTHENTIC Milan experience that I would recommend to anyone. The tram stops directly in front of the Castello Sforzesco, Milan’s historic castel which I’ll be sharing about this week as well.
This is a map of Milan’s “Linea 1″ tram line, which stops directly in front of the Enterprise Hotel.
This is a FAST, CONVENIENT and FUN way of getting to the the centre of Milan, and stops include the Castel and even the Piazza Duomo, where you’ll find Milan’s famous Cathedral.
The Rooms
I hate being disappointed when I book a 4 star hotel only to find that the services offered and the attention to detail in the room are lacking. Anyone that has ever stayed in New York knows what I’m talking about. You pay a lot of money for what?
The Enterprise did NOT DISAPPOINT. Their rooms were comfortable, large, clean and featured all of the extra details that someone would expect a good hotel to have; big closets, double sinks in the washroom, a bidet (ever so important for Italians!), a big CLEAN tub, large closets, a safety deposit box etc. Not to mention the welcome bottle of wine !
We have never travelled without our son since he was born, and always book a child’s cot for him. his cot fit perfectly in the room and there was also a high chair available for him in the breakfast lounge…which leads me to the gluten free breakfast!
The Gluten Free Breakfast
The whole reason we stayed at the Enterprise Hotel was because of the promise of a gluten free breakfast. I’m not sure what my expectations were, but they were exceeded!
At first I was a little put off by the fact that everything was packaged. There were no freshly baked gluten free cakes etc. And then I realized that their strategy has a purpose. I would NEVER trust a gluten free item in a hotel if it was not labeled. In Italian the words Gluten Free are “Senza Glutine”, and all packaging will contain a universal no Gluten symbol.
There’s no need to fear cross contamination from utensils being used from non- gf cakes and bread. AND THE GREATEST part of the breakfast is that if you ask the head waiter they also offer freshly baked gluten free bread!
This should not go unnoticed. The head wait staff all speaks English and was very accommodating, so if you ask for their freshly baked, hot gluten free bread “pane senza glutine”, they will bring you “glutens” bread in an oven-proof sealed bag. This is BAKED and not microwaved so it arrives soft, warm and perfect for spreading on some cheese, jam, butter or other condiment.
Please note that it does take around 10 minutes for the bread to bake so I recommend ordering as soon as you arrive in the restaurant hall. I always like to order a fresh, real cappuccino (and will not drink the machine cappuccino!). So I recommend you order a fresh cappuccino and your bread at the same time and have a yummy, filling GF breakfast!
They even made my son his own coffee-free cappuccino, which he LOVED!
Along with the huge variety of fresh fruits, there were plenty of things on the non-gluten free table to enjoy at your own risk. The only recommendation i would make is perhaps the option of some packaged gluten free deli meats like ham to offer guests, however, I realize that this may not always be possible when dealing with such a large hotel and frequency of visitors.
Aside from that, the hotel staff are VERY accommodating and if you plan on having lunch in the hotel a simple gluten free pasta and sauce dish can be prepared, however, we did not have the opportunity to try their lunch.
Overall, I would highly recommend staying at the Enterprise Hotel Milan for anyone visiting Milan and especially anyone visiting with a gluten allergy or sensitivity. The location is much closer to the future site of the EXPO2015 in Milan than hotels in the centre of the city, making it that much more fantastic an option.
This review is part of a new series that I’m very excited to share, dedicated to gluten free travel in Italy. If you follow along you know that now that my son has a severe gluten sensitivity our lives have drastically changed. I want to show that you CAN TRAVEL with a gluten intolerance or Celiac Disease and that Italy is a great option!
Please note I was not PAID in any way for this review, I did receive a discounted rate for my stay, and I’m glad the Enterprise recognized the value in partnering with me as a blogger for the Gluten Free in Milan series.
If you want to really follow along on our daily GF adventures feel free to follow me on these new social media accounts.
On these social networks I will be sharing much more detailed information over the next few months like recipes, places to stay, where to eat, guides and other resources and blogs for GF travelers coming to Italy.
Twitter – @gfinitaly
Instagram – @glutenfreeinitaly
Facebook – Gluten Free in Italy
Pinterest – GF in Italy
If you would like more information on the 4* Enterprise Hotel here is their contact info:
Website – http://www.enterprisehotel.com, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/enterprise.hotel , twitter: https://twitter.com/enterprisehotel and Instagram: http://instagram.com/enterprisehotel
They are located at Corso Sempione 91, Milan, a short distance from Milan’s stunning public gardens surrounding the Sforzesco Castle!