Take Our Survey About Dining Out with Food Allergies
==> TAKE THE 10 Q RESTAURANT SURVEY
it's just 10 questions!!
Even LIttle Foodies Could Read the Menu
Photo Courtesy of WZZM13 (pictured Baby Depenbrok & Anicia Rauwerda LatterAs I think about our first Tender Foodies Eat! Event in May, I can't wait to plan our 2nd event in July. About 20 Tender Foodies (foodies with food allergies) & their Friends stopped by San Chez Bistro in Grand Rapids. WZZM13 made a surprise visit, too, and did a little story on the event.
We all had a great time chatting about everything from food, life events, and of course dining out on a restricted diet.
San Chez Bistro is a pioneer in serving people wtih food allergies. They have several allergen-free menus - including those that eliminate each of the "Big 8" and also a few less pervasive allergies, such as garlic and capsicum (peppers). They include a vegan menu, which pleased some of the non-meat eating folks in the crowd.
My personal experience with San Chez was a good one and I was probably the most difficult patron. The manager patiently walked me through the menu to find something that would work for me (reading across several menus is a challenge). One of the difficulties was that, along with gluten and dairy allergies, I have a strange reaction to white pepper. In light of this, the manager conferred with the kitchen and found that their "chef salt", which was used in preparation of most items, contains white pepper. This narrowed down my choices considerably, but at no point did the staff or manager become impatient or annoyed. I left hungry, but what I was able to sample was very tasty. This inspired an immediate plan to return, but next time I'll call ahead to expand the options on my plate.
The highlight of my own experience was the drink. The bartender had suggested, a Caipirinha, a cachaça (pronounced [kaˈʃasɐ]) (sugar cane rum), sugar and lime. Distillation is supposed to break down any gluten in grain alcohol, however, this is an ongoing debate in the gluten-free community of Tender Foodies. I've not had a great deal of luck with grain alcohols, myself, so the bartender did a little on the spot research with the brand of cachaca. He found that it was, indeed, 100% pure sugar cane rum. No grains. He cheerfully and carefully double-checked. This is what I like about San Chez. They know their ingredients. They work with you, they care about their food, and they care about you. And they make great drinks.
Another Chance to Take the Survey!!
Our next event will be in July and I'd like to ask the Tender Foodie Community for some feedback.
===> TAKE OUR 10 Q RESTAURANT SURVEY
We always choose restaurants who have experience, care and know-how in serving people with food allergies (but remember, only you know your bod and allergies best). We'll let you know when our next event will be (in July) and we'd love to have you join us.