As the second part of our two part series discussing the collaborative process between guests and restaurants, this month we focus on understanding a restaurant’s approach to handling special diets and how this can help you in effectively communicating your gluten-free needs. Over 100 million Americans or approximately one-third of the US population requires some type of specialized allergen-free diet with 2 to 3 million Americans requiring gluten-free diets due to celiac disease. For this large portion of our society, eating out at restaurants is the most frequently cited concern, as it affects each individual’s quality of life.

Some very positive changes have been taking place recently to address these concerns including state-wide allergen awareness initiatives, new culinary school curriculum about specialized diets, standardized gluten/allergen-free restaurant procedures and even restaurant-specific training programs for all personnel. While it is becoming easier to eat out with specialized diets, we still have a way to go in improving awareness and understanding of the gluten-free diet in the restaurant and hospitality industry. Communicating our special gluten-free needs effectively can and will help in increasing this awareness.

As a guest, you need to keep in mind that just as there is a learning curve for those of us following gluten-free diets, the restaurants have a learning curve as well. The process of gaining the necessary knowledge to successfully handle special dietary requirements and the path to empowerment is similar for both parties. At the highest level, eating out is comprised of two components–the planning effort and table-side communications. The guest and restaurant perspective are outlined in the chart below.

Previous Articles July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006

The planning effort for both parties focuses on education and should be completed prior to any interaction between the two. Based upon where guests are in the learning curve, their approach to successfully dining out and interacting with the restaurant staff will vary. It is important for restaurants to understand the spectrum of guests’ general knowledge about their diets; just as the individual impacted by special dietary requirements needs to understand how different restaurants approach handling allergen-free meals.

Interaction, collaboration and communication during the meal are the keys to success. These help you as the guest ensure that your meal is safe as well as help restaurants make sure that the meal served to you is safe for guests to eat. The process also helps to educate a restaurant’s staff on gluten and allergen-free diets; thereby, making it easier to handle special requests from future guests who need to eat gluten-free at that restaurant!

While fully understanding the collaborative process may seem daunting for both guests and restaurants, developing the knowledge to safely be served and effectively serve guests with special dietary requirements respectively will be worth the effort. You will enjoy delicious, safe gluten-free meals and the establishment will benefit from being recognized as a socially responsible business. From a revenue standpoint, they will also enjoy a new repeat-customer base- you, the gluten-free guest.

Seven Steps to Ensuring an Allergen-Free Experience for Guests: the Restaurant Perspective

For restaurants, tableside collaboration helps to ensure that guests are served an enjoyable, gluten and allergen-free meal. Appropriate training and procedures for handling special diets also need to be in place in the establishment. Having a protocol for addressing special needs that is understood by all restaurant personnel will produce a consistent gluten and allergen-free dining experience for each and every guest.

In order to successfully handle special diet requests, a restaurant needs to follow seven key steps.

1. Educate the staff about special dietary requirements

2. Identify restaurant-specific ingredients and preparation techniques to be potentially modified for specialized diets

3. Understand the guest’s special dietary needs and discuss menu

4. Facilitate accurate understanding of the order and special requirements

5. Ensure fulfillment of special order

6. Deliver and confirm meal

7. Follow-up with your guest about service and ensure satisfactory dining experience

While the seven key steps addressed above outline a proven and very effective approach to handling guests with special dietary requirements, training and protocols vary widely from restaurant to restaurant. Not all restaurants follow these procedures! You need to determine your own personal comfort level with how effectively a restaurant handles your special dietary needs when dining out. Any good restaurant will make the effort to serve you a safe and enjoyable meal; however, communication and collaboration between you and the restaurant staff will greatly improve your dining experiences on a regular basis.

Until the terms celiac and gluten-free are universally understood, we have to make statements about our diet that clearly convey our needs. In the case of restaurants, it may be better to discuss the term allergy instead of intolerance, specific ingredients and food preparation techniques, rather than make blanket statements about gluten. Even though it seems that restaurants have been slow to respond to our concerns as a community, we are continuing to see major improvements across the industry. Improved media coverage and industry awareness of celiac and food allergies have resulted in an increased understanding of gluten within the hospitality industry and even more gluten-free menus around the country.

Remember that clear and effective communication is the key to ensuring a safe and enjoyable gluten-free dining experience. If the concerns you have about your diet are understood and restaurants continue to take our requirements seriously by initiating better training and protocols to handling our gluten-free needs, we will all see an improved quality of life by having the freedom to eat out anywhere around the corner and around the world!

Restaurant Spotlight

Wildfire

Wildfire is one of the popular "Lettuce Entertain You" restaurants. There are currently six locations in the Chicago, Illinois area, and even a new restaurant now in Atlanta, Georgia. The settings are reminiscent of the aura of a 1940's dinner club. The vintage jazz music and photos of star entertainers complete the atmosphere at Wildfire and make it a fun night out when you are in the Chicagoland area or Atlanta.

The cuisine is classic American Steak & Seafood, with a few menu items incorporating Mediterranean and other international flavors. For lunch, you can sample the Field Greens and Wood Roasted Vegetables or try the Peppercorn Tenderloin Steak Sandwich served on a gluten-free bun. At dinner, there is a wide variety of steaks and chops, like the 22 ounce "Chicago Cut" Prime Rib. Or you can have great seafood dishes, such as the Cedar Planked Salmon. To finish your meal, you may want to try the Flourless Chocolate Cake, which is always a treat for the gluten intolerant appetite.

All of the Wildfire restaurants feature a gluten-free menu, which is adapted from their regular menu with minor modifications. Menu items may vary from location to location, and the hours of operation may also be different. Be sure to check their website for hours of operation, menu item availability and additional information.

Wildfire

159 W. Erie
Chicago, IL 60610
United States
Tel: 312-787-9000

http://www.wildfirerestaurant.com

Kim Koeller and Robert La France, President and Executive Vice President of GlutenFree Passport™, are the authors of the Let’s Eat Out! Your Passport to Living Gluten and Allergy Free book series, 2006 Benjamin Franklin Award finalist for Best Health, Wellness and Nutrition Book and Best First Book Non-fiction. For more information and free educational materials, please visit http://www.glutenfreepassport.com.