How to Order Gluten-Free Food in a Restaurant

Ordering gluten-free food in a restaurant is well covered territory with hundreds, if not thousands of articles on the topic. Most of these articles cover the same territory – research the restaurant beforehand, ask questions to the manager or chef, and tip well. I’m not sure I am going to be able to add anything new, but I’m going to try.

If you don’t want to eat out, or are afraid due to cross-contamination risk, I totally understand because studies have shown that restaurant food is often contaminated. At the same time, I would hate to think that this disease is stopping anyone from living their lives. So, if you are satisfied not eating out, that's great, but I like eating out, so I’ve come up with the following ideas.

Timing is Everything When Ordering Gluten-Free in Restaurants

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I recommend that you go to the restaurant during off-hours. In other words, don’t go to the hottest gluten-filled restaurant during the busiest time, which is usually on the weekends. The kitchen is usually slammed then, mistakes can be made, and shortcuts can be taken. Though none of this may be done on purpose, we are still the ones who will pay the price for their mistakes. Try going to dinner at 6 pm on a Thursday night, or even 5 pm or 9 pm on a weekend night. The kitchen will be less busy, and they will be much more likely to take extra time to care for your meal.

Ordering Gluten-Free Smartly

Ordering a burger without a bun and a baked potato is going to be a safer bet than ordering fried chicken when the restaurant doesn’t offer gluten-free fried chicken. That being said my general rule of thumb is to stay away from pasta or pizza places, but if you can cover it in your questions you might be okay, but I stay away from these places almost 100% of the time. I generally try to order something grilled, not marinated and without any sauce unless the sauce is gluten-free, and plain sides. This approach will keep you safer than anything else.

It's important to tell the person who takes your order that your food should be cooked in a separate area on the grill from where bread or gluten items might be made, for example where they heat buns, and to mark your order “gluten-free” and make sure the chef sees this on the ticket.

When talking to the servers, ask specific questions. Don’t ask if the fries are gluten-free, ask if they fry other fried items on the menu in the same fryer as the French fries. Don’t ask if the pizza crust is gluten-free, ask if they cook in in a dedicated area in the oven, or keep the gluten-free toppings in a separate area, or if the same preparation area is shared with both gluten and gluten-free pizzas. Likewise, do they cook their gluten-free pasta in the same water as their wheat pastas? Don’t ask if the butter sauce is gluten-free, ask if they use flour or corn starch to thicken the sauce. For soups marked gluten-free, or ones that can be made so easily – like french onion soup, I ask if they make the stock in house or if they buy it. Purchased, pre-made stock is more likely to contain gluten than a stock that they made in house where the chef knows how it was made. These questions require some knowledge of cooking. It is good knowledge to have even if you never cook, because in situations like this, you can ask smart questions to get the answers needed to keep you safe.

Become a Regular When They Get Your Gluten-Free Order Right

I love a particular local restaurant. After a few times asking for gluten-free items and being safe, the restaurant will get to know you and your needs. Hopefully, they will keep their gluten-free menu items to keep you happy and returning. Make sure to be a good customer and tip well too.

Higher End Restaurants May Do Gluten-Free Better

Go to the highest end restaurant that you can afford. The nicer the restaurant the more likely it is that you will get a truly gluten-free meal.

I was at a restaurant one time that has steak frites–steak and French fries–but it wasn’t marked as gluten-free. They had gluten-free fried items, so I knew they knew what they were doing regarding fried items. I asked why the steak frites was not gluten-free. It turns out that they marinated the steak in a non-gluten-free soy sauce. This is an item that I thought would be safe, but wasn’t, so always, always ask questions.

The bottom line here is that someone should only eat where they feel safe. There are lots of precautions we can all take and we have a 2 out of 3 chance of getting a safe meal. So enjoy eating out if you are willing to take that risk, and if you are, follow some of the steps mentioned here so that you can stay safe whenever dine out!