Sometimes, I just don’t want to cook. But finding a good place where Pookah can stick to his gluten free/wheat free diet can be a challenge. Since Pookah is allergic to wheat, what should be spontaneous trips to eat out turn into planning and research sessions and making sure I have the epi pen just in case. But over the last year, we’ve found a few places that are sure fire places that have gluten free/wheat free menu items. And one of those places is….
Courtesy of goldencorralcoolsprings.com
The Golden Corral.
Don’t judge!
Yes, I know this place is better known for the overeating that goes on there, but if you are not into overeating, you CAN find healthy things to eat there. We like to think of it as variety! Just seeing the eating carnage that goes on at tables right next to you is enough to make you have one plate. And more importantly, we can find things that fall into the gluten free/wheat free category for Pookah to eat there.
When we go out to restuarants, I have already looked at the website for any nutritional/allergen info. Luckily, Golden Corral provides just that. If the item has wheat in it, it’s listed. Right next to it. Pookah can eat the baked chicken, the rotisserie chicken, the baked fish, the grilled steak and almost all the fruits and veggies.
As with any restaurant, I stay away from menu items with sauces because most of them contain some form of wheat. Like the teriyaki steak I had. If you didn’t know, most teriyaki sauces have soy sauce as an ingredient. Soy sauce contains wheat.
Wheat=anaphylaxis for my child.
No bueno.
Anyhoo. We ventured out to Golden Corral. Pookah had fries, baked chicken, a taste of my brocolli, a bowel of peaches and vanilla ice cream for dessert.
And since he is under 3( until November) he ate free!
I always get a salad, the grilled steak and a baked potato.
CDub is on a diet. A low carb one. So he ate well too.
So basically, it was a win win for everyone.
One last thing. I KNOW that some items there can be crossed contaminated. But that would be true anywhere. The important thing is to be aware. And to carry Bendryl and the epi pen with you JUST IN CASE!
I’ll be back next month with another restaurant where we frequently find gluten free/wheat free items for Pookah to eat.
Notice: I was NOT paid by Golden Coral for this review. AS IF! I just thought it was worth mentioning as a place we go to to feed a person who needs/follows a gluten free lifestyle.
Melissa @ Completely Eclipsed
Tuesday 4th of September 2012
I've never been to one before...I'm not even sure if we have them in ny/nj. Boo because it sounds yummy.
Stopping by from SITS
Toia
Tuesday 4th of September 2012
It's a blessing to find a place where you and your family can enjoy; And that can also accommodate specific needs. We have one in Charleston, SC. Hope to visit again soon!! :)
Kate
Tuesday 4th of September 2012
That's great you are finding places you can eat out! I haven't heard of Golden Corral (I'm in Canada, maybe we don't have them here) but where I live quite a few restaurants have started including gluten free menu items. We also have a bakery that is completely gluten free, although it's kind of expensive. It seems more and more comment that people can't eat gluten, so hopefully you'll see more options opening up where you live, too :)
Whitney
Tuesday 4th of September 2012
We frequent Golden Corral too, but good to know Pookah has a place where he can eat.
karen
Tuesday 4th of September 2012
so glad you found a place that he can eat. I know it's hard to find dairy free meals at most places, often there is cross contamination and cooking with butter.
rosesdaughter
Tuesday 4th of September 2012
yes, the cross contamination is always a scary thing for me to wonder about. His last scare was a cross contamination one I believe. But nothing has happened so far, and I am so careful to examine everything BEFORE it goes in his mouth!