How do you handle gluten-free customers?

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Permalink Reply by Marcus Guiliano on December 26, 2010 at 8:30pm

Great advice. I have been cooking mostly gluten-free for 10 years now.  It has been a major asset to my business.

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Permalink Reply by Sandra Robins on December 28, 2010 at 2:19pm

Great! What are the most popular gluten-free dishes at your restaurant?

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Permalink Reply by Alex Montanez on March 8, 2011 at 12:22pm

I have an Italian restaurant and I would be really interested to get your feedback on Gluten Free meals that would work in my establishment.

 

Thanks,

 

Alex

Rovali's Ristorante

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Permalink Reply by Alex Montanez on March 8, 2011 at 12:22pm

I have an Italian restaurant and I would be really interested to get your feedback on Gluten Free meals that would work in my establishment.

 

Thanks,

 

Alex

Rovali's Ristorante

Read more: http://fohboh.com/forum/topics/how-do-you-handle-glutenfree#ixzz1G2...

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Permalink Reply by Howard Appell on January 22, 2011 at 7:20am

Here is an article that appeared in my newspaper, Today's Restaurant www.trnusa.com  in December. It gives you the basics of Gluten.

 

What is Gluten?

By Sarah Goldberg


Gluten is a protein that grows on grains like wheat, rye and barley. Whenever we hear about gluten we always think of it in a negative light, but gluten isn't necessarily all bad.

Gluten is found in breads, baked goods, pasta, crackers, cereals and everything that contains wheat, barley and rye. Gluten may also be found in the unexpected like soy sauce, chocolate chips and baking soda. Gluten helps flour stick together and gives it the ability to to be light and airy. Without gluten, wheat products and baked goods have a different texture. Without gluten, breads for example become sticky, crumble and may not hold its shape. Since gluten is naturally in wheat you will probably never see it on the ingredient list. Whole wheat still contains gluten.

Why Gluten Free?

For most people gluten is not a problem. After all, gluten is in most foods that you eat every day. Sandwiches, muffins, pizza, almost all processed and baked goods have gluten unless said to be gluten free.
Having a gluten intolerance can be anything from slight digestive discomfort to an extreme problem called celiac disease, where the slightest amount of gluten can cause severe illness.

Some people might find that when they remove gluten from their diets, they feel less bloated and have far fewer digestive discomfort. Since they feel better they may decide to eat gluten free or keep things gluten "light". With so much talk about gluten these days more and more gluten free products are showing up on grocery shelves.

 

What else is there to eat?

Believe it or not, gluten free food is everywhere. Plant food is gluten free.
Vegetables, fruit, beans, and even certain grains are naturally gluten free.
Lean animal products like chicken and fish are gluten free.
Grains such as quinoa, millet, buckwheat, and brown rice do not contain gluten. Therefore these grains are wonderful choices. Not only are they gluten free but they are whole grains and contain large amounts of protein. Recently there are more and more items such as bread and baked goods which are gluten free. They contain flour made from these grains as well as from corn meal which is also gluten free.

Why is there a sudden increase in Gluten free Products?

No one really knows why there is this sudden increase in people making a choice to go gluten free. There might be an increase in people being diagnosed with celiac disease, others might be making the choice because they feel better without gluten and going gluten free usually results in weight loss. Either way, gluten free products are on the rise.

When should you choose to be gluten free?

There are many illnesses that require a gluten free diet and for those people there is no choice. For others gluten free comes with many choices.
If you are looking to move towards a whole food diet consisting of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans and nuts, this could be a very viable choice. But if you choose to eat factory made products you will find that many of those products are over processed and may not necessarily be great choices. If you are choosing to go gluten free, your best choice is to keep it clean and choose whole foods.

Sarah Goldberg is a Certified Holistic Health Counselor.   When working with a client Sarah finds the food and lifestyle that best supports her client and helps them to make lifelong changes that enables them to reach their health goals. 

Sarah offers individual health and nutrition counseling , group workshops, and has a monthly e-mail newsletter.

You can visit Sarah's website at www.ToYourHealthWithSarah.com. or sign up to be a fan on Facebook at To Your Health With Sarah.

Sarah can be reached at slg680@gmail.com or phone at 561-703-9700.

 

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