Gluten Free at Applebee's!

I know there aren't a lot of eating out choices for the food allergy bunch. However, planning ahead has saved me from getting sick!

Applebee's website has a list of food products that are dairy, soy, nut, and gluten free. http://www.applebees.com/downloads/allergen_info.html

I was disappointed that the Spinach and Artichoke dip isn't gluten free. That's usually a staple. They also didn't list the Oriental Chicken Salad with some minor changes, it is gluten free. I put grilled chicken instead of breaded chicken and then no crispy noodles. The dressing is listed as gluten free.

They did have several other salads listed as gluten free. If a salad doesn't sound good, the only other choice is an appetizer as a meal or a steak. Make sure to watch the sides with the steak becuase some of the sides do have gluten.

Happy eating!

Gluten Free at Jason's Deli

I was sooo excited to eat at Jason's Deli when I found out they had a Gluten Free Menu! The menu wasn't limited to potatos and salad's either! The one in my area had gluten free bread! I had an awesome turkey sandwich with avocado, tomato and lettuce.

Here's the link to their locations and menu's. http://www.jasonsdeli.com/restaurants

One idea is to call ahead and find out if they have a gluten free menu. If they don't great back ups are the amazing salad bar, the giant baked potatos, or a drink with free ice cream!

Taco Time: Updated Allergy Information

A few months back, I posted about Gluten Free items at Taco Time.

While I was in Taco Time today, I spoke to the Director of Operations for many of the Salt Lake City Taco Time locations. I had a great chat with him about the "old days" of Taco Time (my husband and I both worked for and managed Taco Time restaurants while we were in high school). I asked him about the spices and seasonings and the potential that they may have gluten.

He referred me to a nutritional chart that is also on their website.

The flaw in the chart is that it does not specify "gluten" but it does specify "wheat."

Here's the run-down:

Everything has "wheat" except crisp ground beef taco's, pork street tacos (be careful, the chicken street tacos do have wheat), ground beef enchiladas, chips, cheddar fries, mexi fries, mexi-rice, and refritos. (Be careful to avoid the stuffed mexi fries as those do have wheat.)

Everything has "soy" marked. This is probably in one of the seasonings.

Everything has "dairy" except pork and chicken street tacos, chips, mexi fries, and mexi rice.

Eggs is only listed in the chicken BLT and the chicken rancherito.

This list was updated on Taco Time's website on Sept 2010.

Happy Eating!!

Gluten Free at Taco TIme!

I don't know how long I have loved Taco Time. Coincidentally, my husband and I both worked at Taco Time's when we were in high school.

We love how fresh the food is! The salsa fresca is made fresh and the condiments are always kept in good shape.

The downside is that most of their burrito's are made on a flour tortilla.

Recently they added Street Taco's! These are made on soft corn tortilla's! I looked at their Allergen Guide and saw that the Pork Street Taco's do not contain wheat. The chicken must have a wheat additive in the seasoning. I tried the chicken and did not have an adverse reaction, however my sensitivity is not as severe as others.

For sides: rice, beans, mexi-fries are all wheat free. The stuffed mexi fries, do have wheat.

I'm excited to add one more eating out option to my list!

Eating Out at IHOP minus Gluten

General tips I have about eating out without Gluten is a post I'll start sometime. I just wanted to share how I did G-free at IHOP.

When the waitress first approached for our order, we explained the wheat allergy. We asked if she knew of any entrees that were wheat free. She said they could do an omellette without the mixture that has wheat (I would have guessed an omellette was g-free to begin with!) and just eggs and then the toppings. That was her only suggestion.

Then I looked through the offerrings. I don't eat eggs, so I would have to use egg substitute for the omellette and that hasn't worked well in the past. I started looking at how I could replace things that I knew had wheat (pancakes on the side replaced by fruit).

I settled on the classic sampler with egg substitute and fruit instead of pancakes. I double checked the ketchup to make sure it didn't have any gluten and used that with the hashbrowns.

So far, no stomach ache! We'll see how eating out for dinner goes!