Domino’s Gluten-Free Offering. Is it Soy-Free?

The gluten free diet is taking off all around the world, it seems. People are keen to try a gluten free diet and see how they feel, which I think is great for our range of foods in the supermarket and restaurants.

The United States of America seems to be no exception here, with a major pizza chain, Domino’s Pizza releasing a gluten free crust pizza last Monday (7th of May, 2012).

Unlike the gluten free pizza base in Australia the one they’ve sourced over there seems to be soy free as well. I do know, however, that soy oil is used on the pans at Domino’s, Eagle Boys and Pizza Hut at least here in Australia so I’m assuming that this is the case over there as well. Thus, it probably is not an option for those on a soy-free diet.

There is also the concern of gluten cross-contamination. How careful are they? Have their staff been trained?

I’m sure this aspect of things will improve given time. I just wish they’d get rid of that darn soybean oil! Surely if they could make the effort to offer a gluten free crust, changing the cooking oil should be easy enough shouldn’t it?? Come on, Domino’s!

Do you live in the USA? Have you tried a Domino’s gluten free crust pizza? Let us all know your thoughts.

LL Wine and Dine

Recently, I travelled to Sydney (for that routine visit every year!). Staying around the Darling Harbour area, finding places to eat proved challenging (particularly around this region).  From beer-battered fries to hamburgers and hotdogs, we were surrounded by wheat and soy at every front. Meal options were somewhat scarce and I certainly did not want to have to prepare my own meals when away for only three days. So I made a little investigation before I went just to see what might be in store other than McDonald’s French Fries. I mean sure, their fries are nice and we’re lucky that they’re allergen-friendly at this time ‘down under’, but when it comes to actually having a decent meal finding places that can accommodate can become sooooooo tiring! Especially around Darling Harbour!

Not much was found in the way of gluten free fare in this area of Sydney, many of the closest places were restaurants way out by the Sydney Opera House or an hour’s drive away into the outer suburbs, with a few odd exceptions – one of which included LL Wine and Dine. This was the destination to which friends and family of mine came to on my final night in Sydney. Though I was unsure of what to expect (despite having heard excellent reviews), I had called them earlier in the day about bookings and had explained my soy and gluten free dietary requirements to the staff. Of course, there was no problem at all. Never (prior to my dining experience), did I think or suspect, that there was that the menu clearly marked ‘gluten free’, ‘soy free’ AND ‘vegetarian’!. What was even more interesting was that these were the only two allergens mentioned, as can be seen on their FOOD page, which also explains the types of meals served. As many of their Asian meals are cooked in a sophisticated manner, only a smaller number of items on the menu are actually marked as both, gluten free and soy free. I specifically ordered the House blend chilli, sea salt and pepper calamari as I’ve always liked calamari myself, however there are a variety of others to choose from as well!

It is important to notify the waiter of any specific dietary requirements you may have, when dining at this destination as with many restaurants as recipes may differ over time and the ‘gluten free/soy free’ status of the menu item may be slightly out of date. There is also the fact that the recipe may require adapting to create a soy free or gluten free version of the meal. All in all, I was very impressed and shall definitely return when I plan to visit Sydney this time next year again!

Turns out that at least I might not be the only Gluten Free, Soy Free Aussie on this planet after all!

Just a little teensy weensy rant!

Okay, I shall try not to make this long, as I do not intend for this blog to serve as a ‘rant base’ (there’re enough of them around on the net as it is! )

However, I just wanted to point out something that is VERY much of an issue with regard to gluten free catering here in Australia!

Tonight, I dined at one of my favourite restaurants. They have always catered well for my gluten and soy free diet in the past and serve very delicious meals, many of which are gluten free! YAY! Just about everything served on premises is soy free as well, so that part’s very easy.

But oddly (and not fortunately), this evening was a little like no other.

I had the meal I normally choose at this fine destination and was fine. As many do, I felt like some desert afterwards. So I ordered a dish that was seemingly soy and gluten free (it looked and tasted great!) but about half an hour later, had a really bad reaction (one often associated with my coeliac condition – bloating, stomach migraines and slight reflux). I called the restaurant to ask about the dessert and they assured me that it should be gluten free, and that the only ingredient contained in the ICE CREAM side served was wheat-derived glucose syrup!

Ah-HA! That would tell me why I am now experiencing such excruciating abdominal discomfort as I write this. I have now come to the conclusion that I have been glutened.  The restaurant was very apologetic and explained that based on guidelines from the Coeliac Society of Australia, wheat-derived glucose, dextrose, caramel colour, and MSG were gluten free!  My Goodness! I’ve heard it all before!  They were very kind over the phone and wanted to make it VERY clear that they did not intend to dismiss my allergies and assured me they’d not let this happen again.  So I shall try them out sometime again, perhaps when I’m not so busy it may suit better.

Just to be clear, I cannot tolerate ANY ingredients derived from wheat, rye, barley, oats or soy AT ALL!  Whilst I appear to not show obvious symptoms from VERY slight contamination from these ingredients, it is important that I do not take this business lightly!

I found a good article online that I may have already mentioned a time.  Or ten.  How ‘gluten free’ are you? by infonolan gave me some good insight to how some vs others may see the gluten free diet.

End of Rant.  Whilst I intend to be realistic, I shall also try to keep a positive light on the blog as much as possible.  I’m sure there’s more good news to look forward to, as well!  Happy gluten free/soy free living!