10 Strategies for Safely Eating at Restaurants Gluten-Free

More and more restaurants are catering to customers like us who need gluten-free options. These restaurants don't necessarily advertise it, but they have gluten-free menus for the asking. Below are links to gluten-free restaurant directories which may help in finding celiac-friendly restaurants.

As a rule, I always ask for a gluten-free menu (even if the restaurant did not have one the last 10 times I ate there!). What the menu represents is some careful thinking and review of ingredients by people in a position to know the ingredients in the restaurant's dishes. These menus typically only have a few items and they include special preparation instructions (for example, "substitute veggies for rice pilaf and no onion straws").

A gluten-free menu is a great starting point; unfortunately, those preparing your meal can (and will) still screw things up from time to time. On several occasions I have ordered from a gluten-free menu only to have the regular gluten-filled version delivered to the table. In the past month I have ordered off of the gluten-free menu and received my food with breaded onion rings on top and on another occasion a hamburger with a "poison" bun. Sometimes it is obvious what they have done (breaded onion rings) and sometimes not obvious. If it is wrong, nicely explain why you can't eat it and send it back.

Unlike the crazed gluten-eating masses who typically have several dozen menu options, gluten-free dining means resigning yourself to just a handful of dishes. I am happy if I have just 2 or 3 good gluten-free dishes to choose from.

If you let yourself get worked up over the lack of options, you and those dining with you will not have a pleasant experience.

This is the most important thing you can do to ensure that your meal is gluten-free.

Ideally, you called the restaurant in advance (when business is slow) and confirmed that they have a gluten-free menu or talked with the chef about gluten-free options.

As you are being seated, ask if the restaurant has a gluten-free menu. Your server likely did not seat you, so begin the conversation again when you meet your server. Typically, the server will ask about drinks and appetizers. This is a good time to start the conversation. Explain that you have a "serious wheat allergy and can't have gluten". Explain that this means you can't have anything breaded or that contains wheat flour. Next, ask them something about an item on the menu (if you have a gluten-free menu, show it to them as you ask the question. Aside from getting information, the goal is trying to get your server to help you to avoid gluten.

When it comes time to order your meal, ask all of the questions you may need to answer, or simply order off the gluten-free menu. Again mentioning your need to avoid gluten . I believe it is important to restate your need to avoid wheat & gluten almost every time you talk with your server; this is because your server may be very busy helping with several tables and may simply forget if not reminded. Don't order until you are satisfied that the meal being ordered is gluten-free.

The good news is that typically your server is anxious to help you because your server is working for a good tip. In most circumstances this mutual interest in your satisfaction should lead to a good experience.

From painful experience I have developed one important rule here: if you cannot speak with someone fluent in your language, LEAVE! No matter how well-intentioned the server or chef may be, if you cannot communicate completely, you risk your health by eating there. Without communication, you are not safe as you cannot anticipate all of the ways gluten may have slipped into a meal.

Restaurants find ways to add wheat flour/gluten to everything. This is why it is so important for you to communicate with your server and to ask questions.

Two of the most surprising foods I have seen restaurants add gluten to are baked potatoes and omelets. I once ordered a steak with with a baked potato, thinking that would be safe. WRONG! They battered and deep-fried my baked potato. I sent that back. Many people are not aware, but IHOP adds waffle flour to their omelets to make them more fluffy. In the old days, this was not disclosed in their menu, but that has been changed now. Other risks of eating out come with cross-contamination of fried foods cooked in the same oil used for breaded items or from preparing foods on same surfaces as breads are worked with.

Sometimes you don't know the right questions to ask, so you have to make sure your server understands that you can't have wheat/gluten so that they can look out for your needs.

You may talk with your server and either receive no help identifying gluten-free foods or simply conclude that you can't trust what they told you. Leaving the restaurant may be a good option, but if you are going to stay and place your order anyway, there are a few things you can do to minimize risk.

Always avoid the soups. Soup has so many different ingredients that may include gluten. Some popular chicken broth has gluten. Wheat is often used as a thickener. Even if you talk with the chef, they may not really understand your needs (for example, there may be barley in veggie soup and the chef may not know that contains gluten).

Salads can be a great choice when eating out, but you need to be careful. First, the obvious: no croutons. ALWAYS remind your server not to put croutons on your salad. Don't stop with that. Restaurants find ways to place all kinds of gluten-filled morsels on your salad, so ask what else is on there. You may find onion rings, nuts, breads, "rice" noodles (which may contain wheat) etc. Tell your server to keep them off.

The next area of risk is in the salad dressings. I once got very sick using Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing which contained gluten (though not disclosed on the label); while their recipe may have changed and labeling laws may have changed, I will never use any Hidden Valley Ranch product again. The point is that there are a lot of risks in dressings. I have found that vinaigrettes are usually good for me (I know there is some debate about gluten-free vinegars, but I have not found a problem here). Another option is to bring your own dressing. Many restaurants have an excellent house dressing and can tell you all of the ingredients. Lemon juice, salt and pepper is not bad.

Sauces of all varieties are the enemy. Wheat flour has been used as a thickener in many sauces so beware. As a general rule, avoid all sauces with which you are not very familiar. Sauces have many origins: some are homemade, some are made from mixes and some are pre-made. If they are homemade and you have talked with the chef, then it may be OK (but keep in mind that the next time you visit this restaurant there may be a different chef using a slightly different recipe). If they are from mixes or pre-made, then there is an ingredient list to look at.

Many sauces contain soy sauce, which can be a source of gluten. Personally, I have not had any problems with wheat-based soy sauce (perhaps I have a higher threshold of gluten tolerance), but some do have problems with soy sauce. It is best to avoid all sources of gluten and have them leave the sauce off.

Another place for hidden gluten is drinks. Smoothies and shakes should also be carefully scrutinized. Smoothies or similar drinks are often made with mixes that contain wheat. Shakes are often made with mixers that are not cleaned between uses and many specialty shakes use cookies etc. Of course, avoid malts altogether.

The simpler your meal is, the less risk that it contains gluten. I always think steak and potatoes. When it comes to steak, nothing on it. When it comes to potatoes, baked (but even that can be a problem if it is then breaded and fried). Simpler dishes also have less risk of cross-contamination. The preparation process with less handling would provide fewer opportunities for exposure to other foods in the kitchen.

For some, speaking up and returning food "poisoned" with gluten is very difficult. It is important that you send it back, but do it the right way.

Be nice! Explain exactly why you need to send the food back and exactly what you need the server to do for you. For example, if you ordered a salad with no croutons and the salad you received had croutons, then tell your server something like: "Excuse me, I think this is the wrong salad. I ordered a salad with no croutons. I have a severe wheat allergy and this will make me sick even if I pick the croutons off. Could you please have them make me a new salad?" Granted, you may find a more diplomatic way to say these things, but these are the important elements of this conversation: 1. the dish served is not what I ordered; 2. I cannot safely remove the croutons (or whatever is on there that should not be); and 3. I want you to have a new one made that is safe for me to eat.

While the medical world is still working on a magic pill to protect against gluten, there is scientific evidence that one active ingredient in cranberries (D-Mannose) binds with gluten, possibly making gluten harmless to those with celiac (this was laboratory observation, not a clinical study). Drinking cranberry juice with your meal MAY help minimize the risk from eating small amounts of gluten. I also take D-Mannose pills with me just in case. Another nice thing about cranberry juice is that it does other good things for your health.

It appears that it won't be too long before there is an enzyme pill developed that will help protect against exposure to small amounts of gluten. I will update this list when it becomes commercially available.

If you have celiac disease, then your good health depends on avoiding gluten. From time to time you will not be able to get comfortable that the food being served in a restaurant will be safe for you to eat. There are only two answers to that problem: leave or order nothing.

If you with a group, you may choose to stay, but not order (however, this may make others uncomfortable). It is best to leave if you can or wait to eat until later.

If leaving, then explain to someone in a position to change things why you are leaving. This may lead to greater sensitivity to gluten-free dining.

If your server takes good care you you, make sure that you show your appreciation with a good tip and a kind word. Tips represent the primary source of income for those who work so hard to serve our food and paying them for a job well done is simply satisfying a deserved expectation. Possibly more importantly, tipping well reinforces the idea that servers should take an extra interest in our dietary needs. If you were fortunate enough to encounter a server who understood your situation and provided excellent service, this may be because another diner educated them and followed up with a decent tip.

As a community, celiacs can do many things to get restaurants to better accommodate our needs. In addition to tipping, return to a restaurant that took good care of your needs (and remind them why you are back). It doesn't hurt to tell your friends that you love that restaurant and tell everyone you know who had celiac that the restaurant took good care of you.