Fussy eater in italy

[Lovehummous]

I will be taking my 11 year to italy in June, it's our first holiday abroad! I want to be excited but I'm too preoccupied with worrying about what he's going to eat for 5 days. He has autism and is very picky. Currently he eats - chicken dippers, turkey dinosaur, garlic bread, naan bread, Yorkshire puddings, popcorn chicken. That's it. We will be visiting molfetta for 2 days and then visiting san michele salentino for 3 days. Is anyone familiar with these places and know any supermarkets/restaurants nearby that will have English food? Or food that is very similar

Just ignore the ignorant posts.

Imagine saying my wheelchair using child can only walk on this terrain etc and someone popping up and asking if it was a wind up that they had never walked anywhere else.

Oh give over. I hâte this lazy tell me without telling me business.

Drum roll ....

I am autistic and used to havé food issues as a child.

Could you just write a supportive post then?

When did people get so nasty in response to a genuine poster asking for tips?

Is that really all he'll eat? And I don't mean that in a mean way, but more like are you sure there's nothing else such as particular breakfast foods or certain fruits? I can't imagine he's having naan bread for breakfast for example but if he'll eat toast you have an option there as supermarkets will all have bread. You'll probably find breaded chicken too but maybe not dipper or dino shaped if that's important to him. As per a pp I also don't recall seeing too many typical children's menus, perhaps in Italy most children are just served smaller versions of the adult dishes.

I found most of the places in Italy I've been to fairly traditional but (and I love them as a country so I say this with adoration still) also fairly inflexible with deviation from the menu. Hopefully you don't have the experience but it was very much a "no, this is how we serve it" response to asking for things plain or served differently.

Clearly you didn't read properly. If you've got nothing constructive to say, why take the time out of your day to be such an arse, does it make you feel good? This was also a last minute holiday for a family members birthday. Hence why I've come here to ask questions. I booked flights yesterday, it's not like the holiday has been booked for months.

I hate passive aggressive dramatics about pitying all the things the poor child is missing out on.

If you have actually experienced this (and I'm skeptical tbh) why not just be empathetic and keep your judgy remarks to yourself?

Some kids absolutely will not eat eventually. I remember the district nurses telling me that when dd was 2. I naively listened. 4 days later when she eventually collapsed she was admitted.

The only hope I can offer you is that dd is now 15 and eats enough "safe" foods to get by without holidays being too much of a stress point. What really helps her on holidays is an inclusive buffet, strangely. No menus, no waiting, no pressure and she can look at the food from every angle before committing 😆. We only do AI now for this reason. Good luck!

No, this is not true at all. An autistic friend of DS's ended up in hospital being peg fed due to refusing to eat.

The paediatric dietician we are under said that how he feels about food is how I would feel if someone served me a sandwich made with live wriggling worms. It's a sensory thing- and for those without sensory issues (or those without a child who does) have literally no idea what it is like.

Just had to look up Arfid because it wasn’t really a thing when I grew up. I am allowed an opinion which is, I would do everything in my power to ensure that my child did not live on highly processed non food .

It’s quite easy then Isn’t it? If your child is so severely affected food wise and you are confident that they won’t eat any of the choices available, then don’t book a holiday where you know that is likely to happen!

But no, instead let’s pander, be precious and spend the whole time worrying… no brainer isn’t it?

I'm not sure why people are being so hostile.

You may be lucky and find that he becomes more adventurous if something is novelty. My sibling, who would only eat specific plain sausages, specific crisps, mini baguettes etc, wolfed down two plane meals when he had never eaten a plated meal in his life. We were all astounded. If we'd offered up a shepherd's pie at home he would've politely declined and opted for starvation.

I think some people are underestimating how restrictive and also uninterested in food autistic people can be.

As others have said, you should be able to find nuggets or similar in the supermarket. Many restaurants will also serve breaded chicken and garlic bread. Can you try and see if he'll tolerate margarita pizzas? Pasta might be problematic if he has texture issues.

Sorry I should have listed what he will eat for breakfast and snacks! It does sound like I meant that's all he eats. I was just wondering what i could get out in italy for lunch and dinner. For breakfast he will eat cereal, he likes toast, he likes pancakes and waffles. For snacks he will eat yogurt, crisps, bread sticks, crackers, banana chips, cookies, he likes most nuts. The foods I listed are basically what he eats for lunch and dinner.

My kids only had this type of food at someone’s party or at soft play or at a very rare outing to Kentucky Fried chicken.

Ah I thought you meant he only ate the foods on the original post.

That’s easier said than done though. For many children those highly processed foods are safe because they are reliable. You can get 20 packs of Birds Eye chicken nuggets and they will all be the same. Any two apples can be different.

There again ds has arfid and our main problems came because he can’t eat high calorie foods. His oral intake most days is limited to apples and pears - hence the need for him to be tube fed. It has nothing to do with how he was weaned (his first holiday when he was 1 he loved the mousakka and anything else he could get his hands on) it’s just the nature of the disorder. It’s horrible but that’s what it is.

Your point being? You seem to be showing your privilege, dear. You don't understand what ARFID is so either educate yourself and be helpful or don't comment.

Thanks for that helpful contribution. I am sure the OP appreciates it very much.

You won't find any of these in Italy : chicken dippers, turkey dinosaur, garlic bread, naan bread, Yorkshire puddings, popcorn chicken. Never seen in shops or restaurants, not even on the international shelf in a supermarket.. You will have chicken nuggets maybe. Or a McDonalds somewhere. Indian is not a popular cuisine, so very rare in Italy, even more Southern Italy. Sushi is as exotic as you can get.

Garlic bread as sold in UK isn't Italian. They do a bruschetta, which has nothing to do with the frozen bloc sold and heated in UK/Australia. In Pizzerias, you can ask for the pizza base, with nothing but oil and salt, and depending on the region, it is called fornarina or schiacciatina. Make sure to say no rosemary, niente rosmarino, if you want anything on it. Italian restaurant do not have kids menu. You ask for half portion for very young kids. You can try around tourist attractions or monuments, and look for a restaurant that has a display of photos. That will be a touristic restaurant serving frozen food and they might have nuggets. Italian people do not eat in those places.

If he is ok with pasta if nothing else is available, you ask for "pasta in Bianco" (white pasta) and then specify with butter " con burro" or oil " con olio" . Make sure to say " niente formaggio" (no cheese) if you don't want cheese, because it will likely come out of the kitchen with parmesan sprinkled on top.

Your best bet is around Molfetta train station and look for those Kebab shops open at night. Those are the ones serving junk food you won't find in Italian restaurants. Those are shitty places whose main income is not the food they serve, but they do have frozen food.

It is only 5 days. One can live off gelato for 5 days. Ice cream is delicious in Italy. There are also amazing patisseries , with "mignon" you can select from a display for such a ridiculous price of less than 1 euro each. Those are mini version of classic pastries.

Try to post in this section https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/living_overseas there might be a MNetter living there that can help you.

Thanks for your understanding. I came on here to ask for advice and people are just being rude. They clearly don't understand anything at all about autism and food issues. It can be a serious issue for some. Another prime example of the judgey mums on mumsnet.

I would just pack a load of his safe foods that travel well then. Make sure he has access to them easily and then hopefully with no pressure he will find things there he is able to try and maybe even like.

for one week take the less stressful route even if it means mainly eating cereal and breadsticks.

Gently, perhaps now is not the right time to take your child abroad? It sounds like you have a difficult time as it is. I don't think I'd go as it would be too stressful for your child and you.

Garlic bread and pollo Milanese should do him nicely

You might be surprised....Italy has amazing food and it can be bland....let your child led the way...any safe foods you can bring from home?

That’s good to know, hopefully that reassures the OP.

I think I would accept he's going to pretty much only eat garlic bread at dinner and just order that.

Take a load of snacks, though you'll easily get bread sticks at supermarkets and I think you'll get some form of breaded chicken - whether or not it will be chicken dippers is another question.

If you're eating at the villa, can he have cereal for breakfast and toast or waffles for lunch/dinner?