My Daughter's Birthday and the Celiac Dilemma

My husband takes my daughter out for her b day to the restaurant she picks. My son and I do not eat out at restaurants.

You making her favorite meal at home and her eating out with Dad and brother sounds like a great way to celebrate her special day .

Those of us with food limitations should not expect everyone around us to put our needs first every time. That’s the selfish part. Navigating the world takes flexibility, resilience and a generally pleasant temperament..celiac or not. Your daughter deserves her favorite restaurant. Go along with glee and enjoy a soda while everyone else dines!!! 

I say eat first, go to the restaurant and have a nice drink, and when the waiter asks for your order tell him there's nothing you can eat.  Celiac disease/Gluten intolerance is widespread enough that restaurants should at least be able to manage a salad or something.  I think when your daughter gets older she'll do these celebrations with her peers, and she'll be more understanding of your needs, but for now take her to her favourite place.  

i was diagnosed celiac at the age of 18 months. I am now 51. There have been MANY times that I have felt like crying (some where I actually cried) and many where I got angry because I could eat nothing on the menu at a restaurant or other gathering. Maybe it is age, or exhaustion, but for the most part it doesn’t bother me if I know that it is making others happy— especially my kids. 

I bake non-gluten-free for my family all the time, and I have had my share of salads while they eat delicious gluten-filled meals. Yah, it sucks. But it is a LOT bettee than it was when I was a kid in the 70s and my parents would take the family to an italian restaurant and my mom would bring me a bowl of gluten-free pasta in a litte repurposed margarine container! (truth)

if she loves the Italian place that much and it is sometbing that eill make you unhappy on her birthday, then maybe order take out from a couple of different places and eat at home!

Hallo! Same problem here!🖐️

I think you can go with her where she prefers and maybe eat something before - as previously suggested - which can be a good idea even to underline your problem to the restaurant's management.

But as I am Italian, may I suggest a couple of dishes that are my passe-partout? Risotto or Carpaccio, both typical and naturally gluten free! Have a nice dinner!

Unless your husband and children have all tested, don't just assume they don't have the Celiac propensity genes; HLA-DQA1-2 and/or HLA-DQ8. My husband carries the DQA1-2, which is the Dermtisis Hepetiformis, which he was not diagnosed until he was in his 60's and about the time we took the 23&Me tests. His kidneys were failing him and his doctors could not figure out why. Once he went gluten-free, he rapidly improved. That's when we realized our daughter and granddaughters rashes and skin ailments very likely were the same thing... they didn't improve as fast on the gluten-free diet, they had many gastric issues still. A few years, later 23&Me added the HLA-DQ8 information and sure enough I carry that, but I wasn't experiencing much other than occasional bowel problems and unable to lose weight, not the bloating and such that the girls have. My daughters liver was heavily damaged by Celiac, but now that she realizes, she can't even fudge a little, she is doing better. For some reason our 17 yo granddaughter had a colonoscopy and her intestinal villa are still damaged after 10 years virtually gluten-free. We are wondering if the Celiac was very pronounced in her from birth with no diagnose until she was 7, that the villa never had a chance to grow properly.

I really enjoyed this article.  There are so many restaurants that make me hateful because salad is the only option. We do have one restaurant called. Burtons (they are an east coast chain and one of the whets is celiac). They will serve almost anything gluten-free. The only place that I get fried Cali are. Yum.  I love to cook so being celiac is not a problem but I love my lunches at Burtons.  Must say I am not one of those people that makes a fuss when eating out(obnoxious demanding and ranting and raving). When I ever realize that a place is not doing gluten-free properly I just don’t go there. There are servers out there that don’t even know what a dedicated fryer is!

I've worked in Asian restaurants for 20 yrs. And I'm only just now discovering that the Asian markets carry rice noodles and alt-starch noodles in several different "styles".  And they were hiding on the BOTTOM SHELF the entire time!  (Not because they don't want you to purchase them, but because they're in slippery plastic packaging that can easily fall off the shelf... so why not make it so they don't fall so far when they inevitably do?) 

Normally, I'm super-duper-conscientious about what brand I buy.  Celiac taught me to be this way. (And don't get me started that the store only seems to get the Well Luck brand of fish-balls about once or twice a year!  Brands are less important to the Asian markets in my area, partially because of the distribution chain.) 

But these noodles... PHENOMENAL. I mean, they're better than the gluten-free noodles being market in regular grocery stores. If you actually follow the instructions and soak the rice spaghetti in warmer-than-body-temp water for an hour or two prior to cooking, they puff up and have a texture that either RIVALS or is BETTER than any of the gluten-free noodles I've tried from the standard grocery outlets.  Ingredient lists on these babies are super-sleek as well: Rice, water.  And then they're dehydrated for you to re-hydrate at your leisure.  JUST BE SURE TO FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS!  

The rice spaghetti I've purchased most recently has a definite "chew" to it when it's still fresh... and not only maintains it after re-heating, but also doesn't crumble the way the "grocery-store" brands do.  (Do you remember the last time you had "al-dente" noodles that weren't still crispy (because gluten-free)??? 

And the mung-bean and sweet-potato starch noodles are EVEN MORE EPIC in that they increase their length by 25% (compared to dried) and also don't get crumbly when reheated. The trick with these, however, is that you need to watch them like a hawk or they'll just disintegrate and leave you with a super-thick, chunky stew.  So, again, FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS and even, maybe, blanche those bean and sweet potato noodles before serving.  

17 hours ago, Guest Cri said:

Hallo! Same problem here!🖐️

I think you can go with her where she prefers and maybe eat something before - as previously suggested - which can be a good idea even to underline your problem to the restaurant's management.

But as I am Italian, may I suggest a couple of dishes that are my passe-partout? Risotto or Carpaccio, both typical and naturally gluten free! Have a nice dinner!

@Cri, I'm pretty sure she meant "Italian" and not ITALIAN.  Where I live, there is not a single "Italian" restaurant that serves risotto or carpaccio. These places are probably too cheap to even know what olive oil is. 

And, yes, you SHOULD be horrified.

Goodness!! I have Celiac!! Super simple solution to your “dilemma” Just eat before and go enjoy!! It’s not about you!

Hi There.   Happy Birthday to your daughter!   Your Salted Caramel cake sounds divine.

Just wanted to mention to you and or anyone in your audience, if you are ever in the Denver area, we just did a Spotlight video on Abrusci's Fire and Vine who caters to celiacs in their fine Italian Restaurant.   I've been there.   I live in Idaho but was visiting my brother.   Anyway if anyone is interested in watching the 4-5 minute video blog, go here:  Open Original Shared Link    Not selling anything but getting the word out to any travelers or Denver residents.  

I see you're in Atlanta area.   Scary stuff.   Hoping for yours and your families continued safety.   

Mary

Reminds me of the dilemma when there are church meals and family-style meals that only have a few choices. I just pack what I can eat and enjoy the company and whatever program they have that evening. Sometimes the meal is $20 and all I can have is a nice cup of tea. My mother apologized to me for passing on the celiac disease. I told her apology accepted, but not to worry. I just watch what I eat to control it! Blessings to you!