When I was younger, I loved the freedom of the weekend. My friends and I would go out to dinner and then hang out with our friends. For many people, going out to eat is an exciting social experience. It could be lunch with the girls or a date night. Or even a quick drive-thru when traveling. But for people with Celiac Disease, dining out is filled with pure anxiety. Not knowing if your friends or family picked a place with gluten-free options. Not knowing if you’re going to be sick in a few hours. Not knowing if there is even anything you can sort-of-safely eat on the menu.
A couple years ago, my hunny and I were out on an unexpected shopping adventure. We decided to hit up a few stores, and before we went home, he asked about getting dinner on our way home. Because it was a spur of the moment trip, I wasn’t really prepared. We usually do more planning in advance. He asked if Steak n Shake was ok. I said yes, only because I knew they had an awesome salad I loved with apples, avocados, and chicken. Yummy!
Seth and I pulled up to the brightly lit drive-thru menu and the worker asked us for our order. As he placed his order, I scanned the menu and noticed the salad I get was not there. Panic started seeping in. I asked the worker if they had the salad. “It’s no longer available. It was just a seasonal menu item.” I looked at the menu again, trying to find something I could eat. So much fried this and breaded that. There was nothing I could eat, unless I wanted a plain piece of chicken breast and some fries (our Steak n Shake has a dedicated fryer just for fries). I didn’t want such plain food. I was hungry and I wanted flavor. There were people behind us, and I was clearly upset. I was trying not to cry. How hard can it be to order some food??? Seth asked if we needed to go somewhere else. I told him not to worry about it, and that I would eat something at home. He asked me probably five times if I was sure before he got his food. He’s a sweetie and hates eating gluten stuff in front of me, especially when I’m not able to eat.
Since then, I make sure we are prepared if we go out. We don’t go to drive-thrus unless I know I am taken care of. I also make sure to do my research ahead of time, something I continue to point out in my blogs. If we dine out, as we often do one night a week, it’s going to be one of three places: Chinese, Mexican, or Pizza. These are places that I know for sure are safe when I order.
But what about when your friends invite you to dinner--then what? Or what if you want to invite your friend with Celiac's out? Here’s some tips to make dining out with Celiac Disease just a little less stressful:
Ask questions! If someone invites you to dinner, be sure to ask where before saying yes. This gives you time to look up menus online. I like how many popular restaurants have gluten-free menus online, as well as nutrition information on their websites. This makes going to the restaurant so much easier because you know ahead of time what your choices are so you aren’t staring at the menu, wondering what the food is made of. Also, don’t be afraid to ask for a gluten-free menu at the restaurant. Another question that may come up is if the food will be cross-contaminated. Once you know your order, ask about how it’s prepared. I know you don’t want to ask too many questions and be an annoying date, but you do want to make sure you aren't going to be sick in an hour because that would clearly ruin the date!
Have a few safe places in mind. As I mentioned earlier, I know a few local places I can eat safely. This makes it easy when someone asks where to go, especially if there isn’t time to do some research. My favorite is a local Mexican restaurant, El Tapatio. The chips they serve are made from corn, not flour. The meal I get (made of rice, cheese, shrimp, and chicken) comes with a couple flour tortillas, but I use the chips instead. The Chinese restaurant I order from offers grilled chicken strips with the hot braised sauce (which is made with corn starch, not flour--I asked) instead of the usual breaded chicken. This way I still get good flavor instead of just boring chicken. I also order a lot from Domino’s. Our local Domino’s offers a gluten-free crust. However, they do advise that it is at risk of cross-contamination. I don’t know if our local place does a great job at keeping things clean or maybe it’s just not that much of cross-contamination, but I never get sick from their pizza--and it’s REALLY GOOD!
Fall back on salad! When I tell people I have Celiac Disease and that I’m going out to dinner, I often get this response: “Can you even eat anything they have or do you just eat salad all the time?” And I say, “Salads are amazing!” I’ve always enjoyed salad, especially the one they no longer have at Steak n Shake. Pretty much any basic restaurant is going to have some sort of salad, if they don’t have anything else that’s gluten-free. Don’t let that bore you! Make it fun! If you ever eat at Colton’s Steakhouse, they have a HUGE salad with bacon, eggs, cheese-the works. The best part is it only costs around seven dollars. Lots of places offer grilled chicken salads or chef salads. And if you’re worried about croutons, just tell them to leave them out. You can bring your own gluten-free croutons or crackers as a replacement (and restaurants can’t tell you no because it would be a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act).
While doing some research on restaurants, I came across this link. It has a ton of information on gluten-free menu items from a variety of chain restaurants across the country. The list is a couple years old, so I do recommend verifying its accuracy by calling a specific place once you find something you like. It still makes for a great place to start your own research when preparing to dine out with Celiac’s.
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Thanks for reading,
Brittany
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