Not sure what part of the country you're in, but here in New England a hearty beef stew would be a suggestion. It would travel easily in a cooler for the ride and you could reheat in a crock pot once there. Bring regulat & GF breads & a good butter to serve with it.

Scalloped potatoes and ham or pork chops.

ok, great! Thank you amck2 and two25acres for the suggestions! I initially thought of beef stew or scalloped potatoes with ham, but worried they might be too old-fashioned or too ordinary or something. lol! I'll go with one of those and a nice green salad.

gardengal, a beef and barley stew sounds fantastic! I will definitely make that for myself sometime, regardless of whether I take it there. :)

And you can easily keep that stew safely hot in a pot in a stryofoam coller well padded with newspaper.
My first thought was a nice white meat chicken salad, with cut up apples and dried cranberries.... a green salad with a simple vinaigrette in another container and some nice dinner rolls.

Chicken and rice? You could go Southwestern style w/ cumin, oregano, peppers & tomatoes, or Mediterranean style w/ carrots, celery, leeks, fennel, wine & savoury herbs - garlic goes w/o saying. Boneless, skinless thighs make it super easy.

PM, good food is never too ordinary. Going with what you know and like is always a good idea. If you don't have enough newspaper for insulation, heavy towels and even puffy jackets also work very well, as well as any kind of cooler you pot fits in, or even a cardboard box and a lot more insulating layers.

Partymusic, just in case, if the person allergic to wheat has celiac, skip the barley because it contains gluten. I agree with pllog, I would not rule out something just because it is ordinary. There can be great comfort in "ordinary" food.

Roasted vegetables, cooled to room temp, heat up and hold for quite a while in any kind of pan, in a steamer basket and a tad of hot water, on low. I tend to go with my fav veg - parsnips - but carrots, onions, winter squash, celery, garlic, and tomatoes all taste fantastic when oven roasted. For the protein you could make a pot roast then slice it for serving with hot gravy (use cornstarch for the thickener not flour). A mixed fruit salad keeps nicely for several hours in an insulated bag (don't use bananas). These may be ordinary - but do remember that it always tastes better when someone else makes it.

Thank you all for the replies!

lindac, the weather looks to be cold and windy, so hot food sounds better at the moment.

carolb, I also thought of some variation of chicken and rice. I think my final decision will be based on what's available and what looks good to me when I go to the store.

plllog, thanks for the additional packing tips!

Tish, it's definitely a wheat allergy and barley is ok, as is rye.

nancyofnc, pot roast and roasted veggies sounds great too... a lot depends on what's available in the meat dept.

Thanks for all the confirmation that comfort food is good (if it's good ;^)