Friday, September 21, 2012

What's For Dinner?

Going out to eat, I have found, is one of the hardest things about Celiac disease.  I feel so high maintenance asking so many questions and needing special accomodations.  And, I am the type of person that would NEVER send food back (even if I was brought the wrong thing).  I guess working as a waitress in a horrible, cheap Mexican restaurant really made me sympathize with other servers.  But, now I am forced to be so picky about my food (the ingredients, how it is prepared, the sauces involved). 

Fortunately, I have found several places in Mississippi that accomodate for gluten allergies (it is so much easier to say gluten allergy than Celiac disease). 
  • Tabella: A very nice Italian restaurant that has a gluten-free menu with several pasta options and even dessert, a little on the pricey side, but such a nice, relaxing atmosphere
  • Mellow Mushroom: Pizza place offering a gluten-free pizza and you choose your own toppings (just ask for extra sauce b/c they don't put enough), they also have a stuffed mushroom appetizer that is gluten-free and very yummy
  • McAlister's Deli: I have downloaded a gluten-free menu onto my phone that tells me all the salads, baked potatoes, and soups available at McAlister's (I love baked potatoes, so I eat here a lot!)
  • Sweet Peppers Deli: a very similar menu to McAlister's, I tend to stick to the baked potato though (there is probably a gluten-free menu, but I haven't gone here enough to search for one)
  • Jutamas: a little Thai restaurant in downtown that says they can make Any of their food gluten free, I'm a little weary of it, but I have eaten here without getting sick (the drunken noodles are the best ever!)
  • Jimmy John's: A sandwich place that can make all of their sandwiches into an "unwich" (which is a sandwich using lettuce as a substitue for bread, just tell them you have a gluten-allergy and they will all change their gloves and make sure the lettuce doesn't touch a surface that bread has (the Beach Club Unwich is so good!)
  • Chick-fil-A: So far, the only fast food chain that I have found that cooks their fries in completely seperate fryers and oil from their chicken (and their fries just happen to be my favorite), they also have grilled chicken nuggets or you can get the chicken sandwich without the bread, their honey mustard, ketchup, and honey roasted BBQ sauce are gluten-free (there may be more, but those are the only 3 that matter...)
  • Surin of Thailand: Another Thai place that I have eaten at succesfully, but we go here soley for sushi. The waitress we also ask for (Jan) seems to understand the gluten-allergy and makes special rolls just for me (except the last time we went there, there was crab in one of my rolls and I couldn't eat it, and of course I wouldn't sent it back)
  • PF Chang's: This is a Chinese restaurant that has a gluten-free portion to their menu, they prepare all gluten-free meals in a separate area of the kitchen and use special plates, so You Know your food is gluten-free (and delicious)
Of course I have eaten at other places succesfully, but I usually have to order a salad or some plain meat and vegetable dinner. I may also just be forgetting something (blame is on the pregnancy).  If you know any other places I should try, please let me know!  It is so frustrating to realize we have no food at the house and only a handful of places to choose from to eat.

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