Dining In or Dining Out With Celiac Disease

Unlike dining in at home, dining out does pose some challenge to those intolerant to the gluten. Though many restaurants nowadays serve gluten free food, not all places are aware of it. So here are the few things to know before going out to dine.

• Know about gluten free diet- it is primarily the duty of person suffering from gluten intolerance to know about all the food products that may contain gluten, it is especially important to know the food items with hidden gluten in them. Never assume any item to be gluten free.
• Call the eatery before hand- if the visit is planned, then it is a good idea to choose the eatery that is known to serve the gluten free food, in the age of information there are many online resources providing information about such places. But if you do not have an option of such place, then call them to know more about their menu. Ask them if they know anything about the gluten free food. Give questions regarding the content of seemingly gluten free food, like fish, poultry or meat items to make sure that none of them contain the sauces having gluten or wheat flour.
• Ask the staff about gluten free food-  once you have arrived at the eatery, do not hesitate in asking the direct questions to the serving staff about the food items. If it seems that serving staff is unsure, you can even request them to ask the cook to ensure that your food does not contain items known to have gluten.
• Don’t hesitate to ask for modification- there are many items in the menu that may contain small quantities of gluten containing product like wheat flour, they may be well-prepared even without it. So do not hesitate to ask for a modification of the recipe, some of the chefs would be more than happy to do that.
• Look for hints in themenu-certain items with added words like crisp or mentioning word saucehave higher chances of having gluten in them.
• Know what alcohol drinks to order- Though most of the alcohol drinks are gluten free, be cautious with beer, as most of them contain varying amount of gluten. Though some restaurants may offer gluten free beer.