Where is Uncle Rick ?

I have been a customer of Uncle Rick's Wheat Gluten & Dairy Free Bakery for some years. (Ever since it was just at the Berwick location. A bit of a hike for me. Glen Waverley is where I usually visit)
Sad news has arrived over the last few months that Uncle Rick's is no more, having now become part of the Patties group.
Any visits to http://www.unclericks.com.au/ now redirect to http://www.patties.com.au/
(There was also an advert in the most recent Coeliac Society publication)
We wish Rick, Rhonda and the whole of the gang all the Very Best with the new venture. (I have no idea if they will still be involved with production at Patties or not)
Some of my favourite Uncle Ricks products are:

• Pies - The team at Uncle Ricks are very aware of fructose malabsorbtion and some of their pies do NOT contain onion.
• Pizza Bases (The best around, I think)
• Pikelets (I should have stocked up on these!!)
• Lamingtons

I am assuming that the pies will live on at Patties but I am worried about the availability of the other items which are regularly eaten by several members of my family.
Drop us a line at glutenfreevictoria@gmail.com if you have any news on the whereabouts of Uncle Rick and his excellent products.
Note: Again, I have no connection with Uncle Rick's other than as a satisfied customer. (Maybe EX-customer now)

Update:

A quick call to Patties found out the following:

• Rick & crew are still involved and work out of the Patties gluten free facility in Bairnsdale
• 16th of April will see a national release of 10 products to be made available via Coles.
  (You can find some Patties products in Richies and other independant supermarkets)

The 10 products are:

• Sausage Rolls
• Pizza Rolls
• Vegie Rolls
• Lamingtons (Hooray!)
• Apple Pies
• Sticky Date Puddings
• Meat Pies (Hooray again!)
• Party Pies
• White Bread
• Grain Bread

It will be up to each supermarket Manager as to which products they will stock. Ask the Manager if they don't have what you want.

Unfortunately, we weren't aware of Uncle Ricks closing down until after the fact and weren't able to stock up on our favourites. This was disappointing to us.
**Update**: Rick & Rhonda were at the 2011 Irresistible Gluten Free Show.
Keep an eye on what Rick is up to at http://www.rickgrant.com.au/

Why Am I Here?

Welome to the first post for the GlutenFreeVictoria.com site!

I have created this site to share my experiences with you as I live with various food intolerances. I closely follow a diet that is:

1. Gluten free - (Several tests have confirmed that I am not a coeliac although following a gluten free diet helps me greatly)
2. Dairy free
3. Fructose Free - Due to a Fructose Malabsorption problem
4. ??? - Some other things that I'm unsure about that affect my insides sometimes.

Finding off the shelf products; recipes and restaurants/cafes that can deal with this diet can be challenging, in the least. I live in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia so my blog entries will relate to my local area and the products and places that I have easy access to.

Hopefully, sharing some of my experiences might help others in a similar situation.

Your experiences may help me also.

Contact me at glutenfreevictoria@gmail.com to share your suggestions.

Standard Disclaimer applies: None of the content of this site can be considered as advice and is presented for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice.