Celiac Snack

Triumph Over Celiac with Free Dining Cards

Bill Banks — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 02:10:22 +0000

Kelly at Triumph Dining dropped us an email to let us know their outfit is helping the celiac cause by way of helping individual celiacs like you and me. The $10,000 Challenge for Celiac Awareness is a great idea from an organization that has done much for the celiac community. From their site:

If we get 15,000 people like you to sign up for free dining cards, we’ll make a $10,000 donation in support of a national celiac disease awareness campaign. When we hit our goal of 15,000 dining cards in August, we’ll ask the gluten free community to help us decide which non-profit(s) receives the donation.

This effort dovetails with Celiac Snack’s effort to educate restaurants at all levels; from server to owner. Drop by their site today to order your free cards and do your part to raise Celiac Awareness.

$10,000 Challenge for Celiac Awareness [thanks Kelly]

Is Sysco the way for change?

Michael Kiser — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 04:45:30 +0000

Having worked in a number of restaurants over the years, I’m surprised this hasn’t occurred to me before. Asking restaurant management to be more conscious of gluten-free foods may not be the most effective way to change the industry. Many mid-level managers who run the day-to-day have little impact on the foods and ingredients they buy, even if they have completely control over the menu. That’s because anything they put on the menu has to be sourced from a distributor, and for an overwhelming percentage of restaurants, that distributor is Sysco. This occurred to me as I sat in an airport restaurant looking at a box of Sysco kosher crackers. Sysco is the brand, the manufacturer and the distributor of most foods we eat in restaurants.

This means that while a restaurant manager might see the advantages in offering celiac-friendly menu items, his first attempt to devise such n offering is likely to be discouraging when dealing with the industrialized offerings of Sysco. While Sysco adapts to trends - they have a nutrient calculator and vegetarian diet offerings delineated on their site - a simple search for celiac, or even gluten, returns zero hits.

Helping restaurants might mean helping Sysco. While Sysco could easily seem like the barrier here, seeing them as the ultimate vehicle is more productive. Because in some cases, a gluten-free item doesn’t need to be a special manufacture, it can be the standard, and that’s music to Sysco’s ears.

Contact Sysco

Shopping Gluten-Free at Peapod

Bill Banks — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 02:53:12 +0000

Tonight, I present my second post in my two-part series, “Ra-Ra Corporate America!”®

First, it was Kraft and their surprisingly candid and helpful reply to my email. Now comes Peapod, a grocery delivery service found in a dozen or so US markets.

Similar to Amazon Fresh, Peapod offers gluten-free browsing. They call it NutriFilter®. Poor branding aside, it’s a great little tool. This lets Peapod shoppers walk through their “aisles” with gluten-free blinders on, something I wish Whole Foods handed out when I walk through their doors.

I haven’t used Peapod in a couple years, but when I did I was pleased. I’ve been testing search results for about 15 minutes with accurate GF results so far, but soon I’ll give this full test run and let you know how it goes.®

http://www.peapod.com

Kraft gets it right

Bill Banks — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 01:18:33 +0000

I wrote an email to Kraft Foods regarding their use of maltodextrine in their dry-roasted peanuts. I’d felt a mild reaction to something I ate during the day, and wanted to rule this out. Thanks to some handouts my nutritionist gave me, I knew maltodextrine could be wheat or corn-based. I was hoping it was the latter.

I received the following reply from Kim in their customer service department within three to four hours; the best reply from any food manufacturer that has even bothered replying to my inquiries. Read on…

Hi Bill,
Thank you for visiting http://www.kraftfoods.com/.

We understand how important it is for people who have been medically diagnosed with gluten sensitivity to have accurate information about foods to help plan their meals and diets. Therefore, it has been a long standing policy for all Kraft and Nabisco products to list ingredients that contain gluten on the ingredient statement. These items will be listed using commonly known terms such as Wheat, Barley, Oats or Rye. For other ingredients that contain gluten, the grain source will be declared in parenthesis after the ingredient name. For example, if the ingredient “natural flavor” contains a gluten source, the label would read: natural flavor (contains rye). Other ingredients that contain gluten are: Triticale, Spelt, Kamut, Mir or Farina (also known as Far or Farro).

For Kraft-branded products that contain vinegar, information from our vinegar suppliers assures us that the vinegar we use in our products is gluten free. All vinegar is distilled and through the distilling process protein gluten is removed.

Therefore if the Maltodextrin used in any of our products is from Wheat, we will declare as ‘wheat maltodextrin’ on the label.

We encourage our consumers to look at the packaging as formulations may change from time to time, the most up to date information on the product will always be the product packaging.

I hope this assists you in making food choices that are appropriate for your personal needs. If you have additional questions about your personal dietary needs, please consult your doctor or a registered dietician.

Lastly, here’s a link for more information on Choosing Gluten Free Foods.

http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/HealthyLiving/Articles/FoodAllergiesSensitivities/GlutenFreeFoods.htm

Thank you for contacting us and please add our site to your favorites and visit us again soon!

Kim McMiller
Associate Director, Consumer Relations

I can’t speak to Kraft’s overall corporate reputation, but they did good in this round. So listen up, food companies; this goes to show how a rather simple gesture will ensure repeat customers.

Da Lucianos - Gluten-Free Menu, Family Style

Michael Kiser — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 17:00:07 +0000

The Libreri family recieved a wake-up call when they found out that their four youngest daughters were Celiacs. The owners of a traditional Italian restaurant, much of their own menu was suddenly off-limits. But they didn’t let that stand between them and their love of Veal Parmigiana, Pasta Primavera and Pizza.

Featuring one of the most comprehensive gluten-free menus we’ve seen, Da Lucianos is very aware of gluten-free needs and even have plans on starting a gluten-free frozen foods store (with Web ordering) soon.

We’ll be making the trip to River Grove soon. But in the meantime, tell us what your experience was like! Drop us an emial or leave your review in the comments.

Da Luciano Gluten-Free Menu

Vrai Amour - More to Love

Michael Kiser — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 01:24:54 +0000

We stopped in to a new “gourmet foods & fine drink store” tonight and were happy to find Chopin potato vodka on sale. Vrai Amour, on Webster and Sheffield, just under the el tracks in Depaul’s campus area, specializes in upscale sausages and truly fine liquors and wines.

We inquired about the beer selection, which was solid (Unibroue, Sam Adams and Goose Island). Currently no gluten-free beer options, but the owner, Matt Somsky was happy to take suggestions on expanding the beer options. He knew three gluten-free options off the top of his head (encouraging), mentioning New Grist, Redbridge and Green’s. He plans on inquiring with his distributor next week to see what he can get for the shop. If he succeeds in getting any gluten-free beers, you’ll find out here first. If you stop in, tell him Celiac Snack sent you.

Balanced Kitchen - Have you Been?

Michael Kiser — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 04:31:18 +0000

We’ve recently heard about a new restaurant/store concept on Chicago’s north side, called Balanced Kitchen. Anticipation seems to be just as high around the architecture, as for its food. Designed by 2 point perspective, the space is LEED certified to be “green,” and they claim the same about the menu. Both vegan and gluten-free, the restaurant is an outgrowth of G-Free-V LLC, a company deeply committed to gluten-free foods. Under the mantra “Food Without Limits, for People Living Without,” the company conducts gluten testing and certification as well.

A restaurant willing to go completely gluten-free is a refreshing idea. When you walk in the door, you know that everything is safe. Peace of mind for sure.

Have you been to the Balanced Kitchen? If so, let us know. We’ll be posting a formal review soon, and we’d love to know what others thing as well. Please comment by clicking on the link above…

Rice Chex Going Gluten-Free

Bill Banks — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 00:47:29 +0000

Nancy Lapid over at About.com is reporting that Rice Chex, a cereal that comes oh-so-close to being gluten-free if it weren’t for the barley malt, is changing its recipe. General Mills has tweaked the recipe and will be introducing the new GF version in the coming weeks. The new boxes will declare “Gluten-Free” under the Chex logo (see my circle on the box).

It’s worth reiterating Nancy’s warning; make sure you’re buying the GF version, as the older recipe will still be on the shelves for some time I’m sure.

Rice Chex Going Gluten-Free [About.com]

Rice Chex page on GeneralMills.com

Review - Adobo Grill

Bill Banks — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 01:17:13 +0000

Mexican food, which prior to my diagnosis was not a favorite of mine, is often a relatively easy go-to food for celiacs. Many of its staples are naturally gluten-free (save the flour tortillas), and if done right can be an eclectic meal. That being said, I’ve had more than my fair share of Chipotle burrito bowls, so I’ve been looking for something a little more tantalizing.

Enter Adobo Grill, a daVinci Group restaurant with locations in Chicago, Lombard, IL and Indianapolis. During my recent meal at Adobo’s Wicker Park location, I was pleased by the dedicated gluten-free menu, as well as our server’s knowledge of - and respect for - the GF menu and its patrons.

The table ordered some guacamole, which was made table-side and the best I’ve had since my trip to Mexico in 2005. While the gluten-abled friends enjoyed the corn chips (which the server told me were not gluten-free) I tried jicama chips for the first time. They were actually very refreshing, and I dare say I preferred them over GF chips I’ve had in restaurants.

After perusing Adobo’s extensive gluten-free menu, I narrowed my options down to the chicken skewers. Prepared with a tamarind-chipotle salsa, the dish itself was delicious and beautifully presented. My only gripe was the portion size, but I reminded myself I didn’t order from the Platillos Principales section of the menu. Much like Ben Pao, our server delivered my meal with, “your gluten-free chicken skewers”, which is a small but nice touch and let me just enjoy the meal with my friends.

Last but not least, I’d be doing you a disservice if I didn’t mention their margaritas. With dozens of 100% agave GF tequila variates in stock, one can easily find a marg to their liking. Of course, you have to be careful with some mixers, but the bartender was just as knowledgeable as the server and assured me my Cazadores margarita was gluten-free.

I hope to go back soon to try their other intriguing GF menu options. When I do I’ll let you know what I find!

Adobo Grill’s Gluten-Free Menu [Adobo Grill]

Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free List

Michael Kiser — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 02:56:47 +0000

A list of gluten-free foods I found in a Trader Joe’s last week has shown up on the company’s web site as part of an overall labeling initiative. As a private label store, selling more than 80% of its products under the store brand, Trader Joe’s is in a unique position to help its customers find appropriate items for special diets, including vegan, kosher, low-sodium, even 15min quick meals.

According to the grocer:

Our dedication to you as a valued Trader Joe’s customer is to provide you with helpful information to make informed buying decisions because we know that you have specific dietary concerns.

While not what I would call reader-friendly, the list is a long one, which should be exciting for anyone tired of the treasure hunt.

Gluten-free foods at Trader Joe’s Trader Joe’s labeling system