Sometimes it amazes me how much misinformation there is out there in the food industry when it comes to gluten intolerances and celiac.
BROW- Barley, Rye, Oats, and Wheat – all contain gluten, along with soy sauce.
If you eat out and you are seriously sensitive to gluten, please do ask questions. We, in the restaurant business, are obliged to accommodate YOU, hence the name The HOSPITALITY business.
Last night my wife and I went to one of our favorite spots here in the UWS, which is organic and they have gluten-free options, always great food and service. They cook seasonally and since we are in spring, their menu had just changed.
One of the new GF (Gluten Free) dishes contained a dressing with soy sauce in it, so I, like the quirky foodie that I am and always concerned about my partner’s well being, asked if the soy sauce was the gluten-free variety (aka tamari), our server goes to the kitchen to find out and comes back with a not so sure “I think so”. This demands a change of action, now!
So then, we decide on a Tuna Tartar also branded GF, it came to us with three beautiful homemade potato chips as a garnish, again my brain went to kitchen operations, so I asked: “Did you fry these potatoes in a separate fryer?” (than the one you fry your breaded items). Our server doesn’t know, bus buy doesn’t either and then the manager gets involved, who by the way immediately offered to make a totally new dish and was very helpful and understanding.
My point is, please don’t be afraid to ask questions, your health is on the line and you are not being any kind of a pain in the butt concerning your well-being; trust me, in the restaurant business we want to know what makes you happy or unhappy. If anyone gives you ‘tude, then that is their problem number one, number two they should not be serving anyone, and number three they should not receive a tip from you for being such asses.
And if their bosses are employing them, they should not be in business; sorry if I’m ranting but, I think everyone should be considered when it comes to food intolerances and at the same time try to inform themselves, and by the way: yes, we are going back to this restaurant. I think we are onto a good path here.
Mushrooms are another ingredient you should be aware of, be careful with supermarket white mushrooms because of the medium where they are grown; and make sure to consume the ones that are of the wild variety, such as shiitakes or oyster mushrooms, even when you buy them at the farmers market, ask questions.
We went to the farmers market just recently and my conversation went like this:
– “Beautiful mushrooms (they were astonishing, I got culinary excitement), what do we have here?”
– “They are all blue and yellow oysters”
– “Wildly grown?”
– “No, greenhouse, the weather has not permitted it yet, but our media is great” (medium is the bed where these babies are harvested)
– “What is it made of, the medium I mean, any wheat derivatives in the compost? My wife is Celiac”
– “Little wheat, but some rye and barley stuff”
RED ALERT, if they are grown in it, they contain it!
– “I’ll pass this time, will you be bringing some that are grown on sawdust, wood, or cedar soon?”
– “As a matter of fact, yes, and I never thought about the gluten thing, I’ll make sure they know back at the farm”
– “Cool man, see you next time, I’ll be back to ask you if you got the gluten-free ones, have an awesome day!”
And I will go back, not only for his honesty but also because maybe he will recognize that I knew what I was talking about.
So, please inform yourself, ask questions and always put your well being before anything and anyone.
The most important thing in this GSD world is YOU!
Happy GSD Free!!!
Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you need help or have any questions.
Your Chef, Dietitian and Health Coach
Mario Landaverde, RDN
