Amazingly enough there are a growing number of restaurants that are offering gluten-free and allergen conscious food options on their menus, WIN! Of course there are somewhat obvious disclaimers that one should follow which are usually present on the menu itself. For instance, many restaurants do inform you that the food is all prepared in one place. So all the bowls and utensils, etc, are being used for gluten-FULL foods as well as gluten-FREE. Additionally, restaurants change their menus pretty frequently, so always check with your restaurant selection before hitting the road to see what will or will not work for you.
That being said, here are some local and national restaurants that are offering gluten-free menu options:
The Green Turtle- has a separate GF menu... no children's options, but some good things to choose from. They will sub grilled chicken breast for tenders in a kid menu option.
The Silver Diner- has a number of options for much healthier eating including GF Waffles and sausage.
Famous Dave's- has a handy dandy allergen menu.
Chili's- Full allergen menu, updated quarterly.
Applebee's- They have a allergen menu available when you ask which tells you just about every type of allergen there is. Kids menu options are scant but we found that they are happy to make a grilled chicken breast for the kid meal rather than a crispy chicken sandwich on request.
Burger King: Surprisingly, they do have a link specifically to tell guests about gluten-free options. The list is short and they are very careful to point out that those with serious gluten intolerance should practice care because the gluten contents can vary based on distribution. But, I do give them kudos as a fast food chain for trying.
Cheeseburger in Paradise: They actually have a complete list of items and it is probably one of kiddo's favorite places to go out to eat. Again kids menu options are slim, but when requested they do make substitutions.
Chipotle: As its a "choose your own adventure" style meal prep, you can choose items like corn tortillas to make it gluten-free, but Chipotle does offer their Gluten-free Menu to let you know the details to keep you safe.
Castiglia's (Fredericksburg, Va)- a restaurant local to our area which is kind of unique. I know that pizza is a total hit and miss on gluten-freeness and there have been very big debates publicly about larger chains trying to do this and really being able to say that they are truly gluten-free. I have been really happy at Castiglia's because my gluten issues seem to have become super sensitive and I have not reacted after eating at the restaurant, so they are ok in my book, well more than ok because the pizza is super tasty.
