Can We Eat That?

Gluten Free Concessions at the Stadium

Yesterday, March 31st, 2011, marked the opening day of baseball season, so I thought I'd do a little research and try to put together a complete list of MLB stadiums that now offer gluten free concessions at the game. I found that there are also five NFL stadiums now offering GF fare as well.

Last year, my 6 yo son went to his first baseball game at Turner Field to see the Atlanta Braves. Because both he and my husband, J., are gluten free, they got tickets right near the gluten free concession stand on Aisle 106. Each had a "delicious" hamburger with a GF bun and J. had a Redbridge beer. My father (not GF, but a good sport) had a hotdog with a GF bun and suggested that the hamburger may have been a better choice because of the way it's steamed with the bun, keeping everything tasty.

What gluten free experiences have you had at sports arenas and stadiums?

I found the following baseball stadiums will offer gluten-free food and beverage options this year:

• U.S. Cellular Field, home of the Chicago White Sox
• Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs
• Dodgers Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Dodgers
• Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies
• Oriole Park at Camden Yards, home of the Baltimore Orioles
• Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies
• Citi Field, home of the New York Mets
• Turner Field, home of the Atlanta Braves
• Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks
• Yankee Stadium, home of the New York Yankees
• Safeco Field, home of the Seattle Mariners
• Progressive Field, home of the Cleveland Indians
• Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals
• Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres
• Target Field, home of the Minnesota Twins
• Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays

More Specifically:

AT&T Park, home of the San Francisco Giants, has new gluten-free items at the Budweiser Pub.

New York Mets: Citi Field has a Kozy Shack Gluten Free Stand on the Field Level within the World’s Fare Market.  This stand is said to have Kozy Shack pudding, hot dogs, burgers, beer and more. 

*Seattle Mariners: Safeco Field has Gluten Free Awareness Night on Friday, August 26^th, 2011 (that night is also fleece blanket night)! 

*Chicago White Sox: U.S. Cellular Field has gluten free options at a variety of concession stands. 

*Chicago Cubs: Wrigley Field just announced they are offering Enjoy Life Foods  gluten free/allergy friendly foods. 

Restaurant Spotlight: Chateau de Saigon Vietnamese

Let me tell you a well-known secret. This is the best vietnamese restaurant I've ever been to and the food never fails to make us happy.

The menu is gigantic and the chef just started using all gluten free soy sauce in everything and potato starch instead of flour (for all but the specifically battered and fried items.) Just ask, they know all about the GF community in Atlanta because they've had a deluge of customers with this request in the 2 years or so that they've been open on Buford Highway not far from Clairmont Rd.

Or bring your own GF soy sauce and corn starch if you are concerned, and they will make the dishes with that instead.

Our favorites include the Pho of all varieties, the rice paper spring rolls, the fried tofu shrimp rolls, all manner of flat rice noodle dishes with various proteins, the crepes are supposed to be fantastic, the sweet potato shrimp appetizer is great. The dipping sauces--hoisin, peanut, sweet and tangy, sirracha, etc. are all GF.

Everything is fresh, the space is nice, clean and well decorated, and it's inexpensive!

Tell your server you are GF, ask about items you'd like, and they will work with you. 

"Drawing on a rich French and Southeast Asian heritage,  Chateau de Saigon showcases a different side of  Vietnamese cuisine – one that displays a blend of flavors and textures unique to the region and its roots.   Time tested favorites are paired alongside unique regional specialties.   Whether it be a more refined approach to a freshly caught seafood, or a more rustic clay pot creation, every dish features an elegant blend of traditional techniques without sacrificing any flavor.   The lengthy menu features an array of favorites, from a lively mix of effervescent Cantonese entrées, to subtle and savory Vietnamese classics."

http://www.chateaudesaigon.com

Closed on Tuesdays.

Open all other days 11 AM to 10 PM

4300 Buford Hwy NE

Atlanta, GA 30345

404-929-0034

AllergyEats Founder Offers Tips for Dining Out with Food Allergies & Intolerances | Business Wire

Press Release, March 14, 2011 

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Dining out is one of America’s favorite pastimes, but for the millions of people with food allergies and intolerances, the experience can often be frustrating and stressful. Paul Antico, founder of AllergyEats (www.allergyeats.com), the biggest and fastest growing source for finding allergy-friendly restaurants, understands these challenges first-hand, from dining out with his three food allergic children. Over the past year, AllergyEats – a free, peer-based resource – has significantly improved the way food allergic and gluten-intolerant individuals find “allergy-friendly” restaurants. Now, Paul is sharing his personal tips for dining out with food allergies and intolerances.

“Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a completely allergy-safe restaurant. While many restaurants have gone to great lengths to be as allergy-friendly as possible, food-allergic individuals – or their caretakers – still need to take 100% responsibility for their own safety,” Antico continued.

As the father of three food-allergic children, the founder of AllergyEats, and a proactive food allergy advocate, Antico offers the following advice based on his personal and professional experience:

• Do some homework in advance. Find dining recommendations from others within the food allergy community through an online resource like AllergyEats (www.allergyeats.com). Check menus and allergen information on restaurants’ websites, which is also available on AllergyEats. Call a restaurant with any questions before you leave the house.
• Try to dine at off-peak hours when restaurant staff is less harried and better able to take the proper precautions with your order.
• Once you arrive at the restaurant, inform the host/hostess and server about your food allergies. Be very clear, but polite. Ask them how they will be able to accommodate your specific needs. If you do not feel completely confident after speaking to the server, ask to talk to the manager and/or chef. Most importantly, if after speaking to the restaurant staff, you don’t feel comfortable, leave and find another restaurant.
• When you speak with the restaurant staff, you should receive confident answers to any of the following questions: What protocols do you have in place to serve food-allergic individuals? Which items on your menu are not safe, given my specific food allergies? How are diners’ allergies communicated to the kitchen and other staff? How is the kitchen set up to prevent cross-contamination? Is separate equipment used to prepare orders for food-allergic individuals? What kind of oil will be used in the preparation of my order and is it safe, given my allergies? Can I see the list of ingredients for a given menu item?
• When you receive your meal, politely ask the server if he or she is sure that this food is safe for you and if there was any chance of cross-contamination.
• Stop and look carefully at your meal to see if any of your offending allergens are present (i.e. grated cheese, pesto, nuts, etc.). This may sound obvious, but Antico has found that some restaurants follow all of the “rules” to accommodate a food allergy, and then mistakenly do something as obvious as grating cheese on top of a dairy-allergic diner’s salad.
• If the restaurant answered all of your questions and accommodated your special requests, be sure to thank them, leave a generous tip and let them know you’ll return thanks to your positive experience.

Whether your experience was positive or negative – or somewhere in between – do the food allergy community a great service by rating the restaurant on AllergyEats (www.allergyeats.com). Rating a restaurant is simple and quick (it takes less than a minute) and helps other food-allergic individuals determine which restaurants to visit, based on the peer ratings and feedback.

AllergyEats, a free website, lists well over 600,000 restaurants nationwide, which food allergic diners can rate. The site also offers information on restaurants’ menus (including gluten-free menus), allergen lists, nutrition information, certifications, web links, directions and more.

This free, user-friendly website provides valuable peer-based feedback about how well (or poorly) restaurants accommodate the needs of food-allergic customers. The peer ratings and feedback allow food-allergic and gluten-intolerant diners to quickly and easily find restaurants that will cater to their special dietary requirements – and avoid the ones that won’t.

Most restaurant review sites include information about establishments’ food, ambiance or service, but AllergyEats is singularly focused on food allergies, with peer reviews spotlighting where people with food allergies or intolerances have more comfortably eaten.

AllergyEats has been endorsed by highly-respected food, health and allergy organizations, including the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, Gluten Intolerance Group, Massachusetts Restaurant Association and more. Antico serves on the Board of Directors for the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, both nationally and for the New England Chapter, and he’s a passionate advocate for food allergy awareness and education.

For more information, please visit www.AllergyEats.com.

via www.businesswire.com