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| 3 Corner Bar & Grill is a new favorite. |
This past week I wrote to a few popular Springfield
restaurants, asking about their gluten-free offerings. Following is the basic
note I sent. You’re welcome to copy and paste it into your email or Facebook queries:
“Hi! My
family would like to dine at your restaurant. I have celiac disease, however,
and cannot eat gluten. I was wondering if your restaurant has a gluten-free
menu or if your wait-staff can make recommendations about which dishes are
naturally gluten-free.”
Here are their responses to my questions:
Gem of India’s
Navi Kaur wrote:
“Hey Linda, I
would say half of our menu is or can be gluten free! Just come on in and we can
help you out to find your desirable meal.”
Since I love
Indian food, I will definitely give Gem of India a try. The restaurant is
located at 211 W. Battlefield.
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| Carry your own soy sauce! |
Blu Sesame-Asian Diner & Takeout also gave a favorable response:
“We do offer
Vietnamese noodles that are gluten-free. Our pho is gluten-free, too. We do not
have gluten free soy [sauce], but we do offer low sodium sauce.”
I also like
pho, and since this restaurant is in easy walking distance from my house, I’ll
be checking it out as well. Blu Sesame is located at 431 S. Jefferson Ave.
To solve the
problem with Asian restaurants that don’t provide gluten-free soy sauce, I
ordered some cute little purse-sized containers to take along with me. Most
sushi is naturally gluten-free (excluding tempura-style and sushi made with
imitation crab meat), but I’ve found that many restaurants do not carry GF soy
sauce. You can order Little Soya gluten-free soy sauce or other GF soy sauce packets on Amazon.
PaPPo’s Pizzeria’s response was not to my liking: “We
unfortunately do not have any gluten-free options. I am so sorry!” PaPPo’s
Pizzeria is located at 221 E. Walnut (in case your gluten-eating friends want
to check it out without you … )
So much for
that!
Maria’s Mexican Restaurant: Since I am very familiar with Maria’s
regular menu—they have many, many gluten-free offerings, my favorite being El
Nacho with Chicken—I thought I’d just ask about their tamales. Their Tamale
Tuesday is very popular, and I was hoping I could take part. Here is Sophia Al-Roubaie’s response:
“Hi there. We
use masa to make our tamales. Masa is traditionally gluten-free. However, it
may be processed in a plant that also produces flour. Let me know if you have
any other questions. Thank you!”
So the ball
is back in my court regarding Maria’s. So much do I love tamales—I used to love
even those greasy, high-calorie canned versions—I think I’ll take the risk and
give Maria’s tamales a try. Maria’s is located at 406 South Ave.
3 Corner Bar and
Grill: This restaurant has become a favorite. Chef Riad can make many of
his menu items gluten-free—and he even offers a gluten-free bun for his burgers
and sandwiches. I love the kebabs with rice and grilled vegetables. This
restaurant is located on the corner of South and Walnut.
Rebecca Grille:
Sadly this wonderful restaurant has moved away from the Springfield area.
Santa Fe Grill is
now Springfield Gourmet Taco Company.
Santa Fe Grill had many wonderful gluten-free selections, but they have now
changed to Springfield Gourmet Taco Company. I’m waiting to hear back from them
about gluten-free menu items. Located at 3120 E. Sunshine.
The HyVee dietitians are keeping a running list of
restaurants with gluten-free offerings contributed by attendees at the monthly
HyVee Support Group meetings. The following is the list is from the September
9, 2013 meeting. I’ve placed an asterisk beside my personal favorites.
Alexandria’s Cupcake Cottage
Arris’ Pizza
Aviary Café and Creperie*
Bambu
Bibya
Carlos O’Kelly’s
Chick-Fil-A
Chili’s
Chipotle*
Cracker Barrel
Cravin’ Pizza*
Culver’s
Dickey’s BBQ
Enoch’s BBQ
Famous Dave’s BBQ
Farmers Gastropub
Flame
Flo Eatery & Wine Bar
Florentina’s Ristorante Italiano
Gem of India
Gilardi’s*
The Grotto
Houlihan’s
HuHot Mongolian Grill
Incredible Pizza
Longhorn Steakhouse
Maria’s Mexican Restaurant*
McAlister’s Deli
Michaela’s
Metropolitan Grill
Migulito’s Wrap & Roll
Mr. Yen’s
Muscle Maker Grill
Nonna’s *
Olive Garden
Outback Steakhouse
Qdoba
Red Robin*
Ruby Tuesday
Tea Bar and Bites
TGIFriday’s
Wendy’s
Zio’s
And you thought you couldn’t eat out!
Please let me know if you have any outstanding experiences,
good or bad, at these restaurants, and I’ll pass the news along.
