Off the Menu: J. Black's

SO excited that one of the west 6th locations has jumped on the gluten-free bandwagon! Since starting my work with Smart Flour Foods I've been thrilled at some of the locations coming through the pipeline that are choosing to carry g-free pizzas and more. Find the menu items below!

Added bonus - they have fantastic happy hours and all toppings are gluten-free too! I know what I'm suggesting next time :)

Off the Menu: Hickory Street

I must talk about gluten-free dining too much (well, I know I do) because my classmates are starting to notice gluten-free menus for me. This week I was made aware that Hickory Street has got a gluten-free menu, which they change with the seasons! I had no idea that they would cater to  me, so I am definitely heading there this weekend to check it out. Enjoy!! A special thanks to Nathan Howry, owner, for helping get this into my hands electronically!


Gulf Shrimp Crab Cake

Shrimp Avocado Salad

Beer Battered Onion Rings (made with Red Bridge gluten-free beer batter)

Charred Sweet Corn Guacamole

Heirloom Tomato Salsa & Mozzarella

Chopped Salad

Duck Egg Salad

Arugula Caesar

Carrot Quinoa Salad

Gluten Free Fried Chicken (house hot sauce, basil and apple salad with yogurt dressing)

Short Rib Mac & Cheese

Chickpea Chili

Ribeye Meatloaf

Texas Fried Catfish Tacos (you can order with Corn Tortillas)

As always, make sure to let your waiter know that you are ordering gluten-free :)

Off the Menu: Garrido's

Garrido's is an authentic Mexican restaurant located right under the 360 building in downtown Austin. They have a great patio and can almost always accommodate large parties. Their menu is surprisingly almost totally gluten-free. I have received the following email from management:

Hi Jaime - we have quite a few gluten free choices. All of our tortillas are made in house and are corn so you can have the tacos. We are more than happy to bake some chips for you as well, we don't use flour in any of our sauces to thicken them and the only items on our menu which come into contact with flour are the bocaditos since we use flour to lightly fry for our oysters. Other than those items, most of our menu should be a safe choice for you. Feel free to ask your server if you have any questions while you are at the restaurant for the birthday dinner.

Thanks!

Garrido's 

Please find the gluten-free dinner menu below (they have them starred on the menu) - the lunch is almost the same with a few less options - as always let them know so you can make sure that your entire order is safe:

Antojitos (ask for tortillas for dipping or they will bake some chips for you):

Shrimp Cocktail “Acapulco”

Mushroom-Corn Quesadillas

Roasted Chicken Quesadillas

Ensaladas/y/Sopas:                                    

Spring Greens with seasonal vegetables  

House Vinaigrette or Chipotle Ranch Dressing                                           

Add to any Salad:

Mushrooms and Rajas

Grilled Chicken and Onions 

Steak and Onions

Tacos

Make it a plate with a choice of three tacos, rice and your choice of beans

Single / Plate                                              

Pork Carnitas t with lettuce, pico de gallo, grilled onions, queso fresco 

Coffee Marinated Steak with onion, jack cheese, chipotle-horseradish aioli

Roasted Chicken t with caramelized onions, cheese, lettuce and pico de gallo  

Mushrooms and Rajas t with ancho cream, julienne poblanos, grilled onions, cotija cheese, lettuce and pico de gallo and habanero-tomatillo salsa

Roasted Beef Brisket t  

Enchiladas

All Enchiladas are topped with queso fresco and crema

Chicken with habanero cream sauce, garnished  with guacamole and pickled red onions

Beef Brisket with morita chile sauce, garnished  with guacamole and pico de gallo

Potato and Rajas with julienne poblanos and habanero cream sauce, garnished with  guacamole and pickled red onions

Cheese with habanero cream sauce, garnished  with guacamole and pickled red onions 

Chile(Rellenos

Shrimp with polenta, corn, queso blanco topped with ancho crema

Beef Picadillo t and cheese topped with  habanero salsa roja 

Grilled Veggie and cheese topped with  habanero salsa roja

Chicken Tinga and cheese topped with morita chile sauce

Entrees:

Gulf Red Snapper t - Pan seared with guajillo caper butter sauce, polenta and seasonal vegetables

Entrees to Share (for two):

Pork Carnitas for Two t Slow roasted pork served with lettuce, habanero-tomatillo salsa, Gulf Red Snapper seared and finished with mojo de ajo butter, pickled red onions,  guacamole and cheese                         

Mojo Fish for Two  served with lettuce, pico de gallo, guacamole and salsa fresca

Sides:

Arroz Verde

Seasonal Vegetables

Side Guacamole

Charro Beans w/Bacon

Mexican Street Corn

Refried Black Beans

Salsa Trio

Dessert:

Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee

Thanksgiving Dinner Success @Maggiano's

First off, bravo Maggiano's for not only making so many of your dishes naturally gluten-free but for making my family Thanksgiving fantastic and full of options. I cannot tell you how impressed I was with their staff cooperation and my meal.

The Thanksgiving menu was family style and I could eat multiple things from almost every course (minus dessert and bruschetta). Here's a quick snapshot of the menu:

I made a reservation through Open Table and put in the notes that we had a gluten-free diner. After that I proceeded to call them and talk to a sous chef who walked me through the Thanksgiving menu and made sure that I felt comfortable with their knowledge of gluten-free dining, I was surprised to find out that I had options beyond just the gluten-free pasta, whoo!

First course was salad and I could have both the Caesar and Italian salads with just the croutons removed. Since the family style allows you to choose two from each portion of the menu we got the Caesar with croutons on the side for me and the glutenous eaters got the Chopped salad.

Next course was the full-on Thanksgiving style meal, yes even Italian restaurants do it traditionally! The options for meats were turkey with gravy and stuffing, ham with mashed potatoes and tilapia. When the sous chef came out to talk me through it (awesome!!) he said that I could have both the ham and turkey meats and that they would simply make me a small plate of plain without the stuffing and gravy so there wouldn't be any cross-contamination. It came out on a HUGE plate and I even have some turkey leftovers. The family also got the tilapia which was breaded so that was out, but I was happy. In addition we got to choose two sides and two pastas. I could have the following: creamed corn, creamed spinach, mashed sweet potatoes and garlic mashed potatoes - we chose the creamed spinach and garlic mashed potatoes, yum! For the pastas they allowed my family to choose two and made me my own side of the gluten-free spaghetti and meat sauce. I could've also gotten gluten-free versions of the rigatoni, ziti or gnocchi.

I was so full by this point I wasn't even disappointed that I couldn't have the huge piece of chocolate cake or pumpkin cheesecake. My whole family was impressed with the food and it worked out so well that I could have a full meal and they could have their traditional Turkey Day food. So, bravo Maggiano's you did great!! I would definitely come back for Thanksgiving in the future and suggest it to all of my blog readers :)

One-Year Later...

Today marks the one-year anniversary of my Celiac diagnosis. I feel like I accomplished something this year...not just a gluten-free diet but an entire life change that has effected not only myself but also my friends, family, co-workers and various restaurant staff members.

After my diagnosis one year ago I was lost and unsure of how I would handle this on top of everything else that occupied my time, however, I discovered the world of blogging and everything took a turn for the better. My biggest challenges are were those within myself. Feeling self-conscious, annoying, out of place, frustrated...I could go on. Blogging has allowed me to step outside of my head and put my feelings out there with an added bonus of helping others along the way.

On July 31, 2010 I could have never imagined that Austin would have over 80 locations with gluten-free options (and growing) or that I could find friends and acquaintances that are struggling with the same lifestyle as I am. This diagnosis has made me realize how much everyone I surround myself with cares about me. I never could have guessed that I would receive the amount of support I've gotten: calling restaurants, sending me g-free food, mentioning g-free menus and simply being there when I've gotten upset and overwhelmed by a situation.

My own confidence and security isn't the only thing I've gotten from this experience, I have had the pleasure of teaching people everyday about Celiac disease and the gluten-free lifestyle. You don't know how many times people have asked me to elaborate, explain and teach them about what it means and how to handle it. That expansion of knowledge and learning can only help with the development of menus, products and even someday...a cure.

I'm about to embark on a new journey this year as an MBA student, which means I have another 300 people to teach about Celiac disease :) As some of them already know, I will have to bring my lunch every day, call ahead when we go out, and bug the McCombs staff for information group outings...but I feel so much better about it now. I no longer fear that I won't find anything to eat, will starve or will not be supported by those around me. My goal is to continue blogging and expanding my knowledge base through my blog and Twitter account, as well as establish some connections to move into the gluten-free world "officially" when I graduate school.

Thank you for all of the support from my best friends to my readers. It has meant the world to me and I hope what I have shared has made a positive impact on you.

Off the Menu: Abel's on the Lake

As an undergrad at UT Cain & Abel's was the place to be on Tuesday nights, however, once we graduated it was quite awkward to be the older individual surrounded by frat guys and sorority girls. Luckily, the owners of C&A decided to open a second location that is PERFECT for us "older folks" - Abel's on the Lake.

Since they've opened I've been there many times for drinks, to hang out by the water, etc. but numerous times have been disappointed that they didn't have gluten-free menu items. However, our MBA class went there for Sunday brunch and I was thrilled when the waitstaff told me they had finally put together and printed out a gluten-free menu...and a pretty good one at that!

Starters:
- Oysters on the Half Shell
- Poached Shrimp Cocktail

Salads:
- Spinach Salad (grilled chicken incl.)
- Southwest Chicken Salad (no tortilla strips)
- Texas Chopped Salad
- Salmon Salad

Entrees:
- Atlantic Salmon w/ red potatoes and asparagus
- Chicken Under a Brick - w/ rosemary potatoes and pan jus
- Grilled Airline Chicken Breast - w/ mashed potatoes, asparagus and chicken jus
- Skillet-Roasted Ribeye - w/ bleu cheese mashed potatoes and green beans
- Beef Short Ribs - w/mashed potatoes
- Trout Almondine - w/ vegetables

Enjoy the view and the food!