Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Has Anyone Been Glutened At Carrabbas?

hnybny91

By hnybny91
in Gluten-Free Restaurants

Recommended Posts

hnybny91 Rookie
hnybny91
Posted

I went to Carrabbas last Saturday because I found a gluten tree menu online. I picked out a gluten free alcoholic beverage (Carrabba-Rita), a gluten free salad (Insalata Fiorucci)and a gluten free main course (Pollo Rosa Maria). The only thing it said I had to do was ask that my chicken not be basted with grill baste. Waiter knew I needed to be gluten free and acted like he knew / dealt with it often. Half way through my main course I get INCREDIBLY sick and had to go into the bathroom to throw up. I am suspecting that my chicken really did have grill baste. I sent an e-mail off to the restaurant the next day because I felt like crap (did for three days actually) and the manager did call me back on Monday but I was not able to answer my phone. Anyone else had a problem at Carrabbas?

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Gemini Experienced
Gemini
Posted

I went to Carrabbas last Saturday because I found a gluten tree menu online. I picked out a gluten free alcoholic beverage (Carrabba-Rita), a gluten free salad (Insalata Fiorucci)and a gluten free main course (Pollo Rosa Maria). The only thing it said I had to do was ask that my chicken not be basted with grill baste. Waiter knew I needed to be gluten free and acted like he knew / dealt with it often. Half way through my main course I get INCREDIBLY sick and had to go into the bathroom to throw up. I am suspecting that my chicken really did have grill baste. I sent an e-mail off to the restaurant the next day because I felt like crap (did for three days actually) and the manager did call me back on Monday but I was not able to answer my phone. Anyone else had a problem at Carrabbas?

I have eaten at my local Carrabba's many times and never had a problem until this past Christmas. I went on Christmas Eve, between parties, so I could get a meal I could eat safely. We ordered and I must admit, the waitress was nice but ditzy. I went through the whole spiel about gluten free and when the meal came, I immediately knew there was something wrong. I have been gluten-free for 6 years and you develop a good sense just by looking at food whether it may not be right. The sauce on my chicken dish looked gluteny...it was thicker than I was used to there. I called the waitress over and told her I thought it was not right but she insisted, very nicely, that it was gluten-free. That annoyed me because a Celiac cannot take chances and the customer should be deferred to on food intolerance issues. I told her I was refusing the meal as it was Christmas Eve and no way was I going to get sick.

At this point she took the meal away and told me they would re-do the dish. I was kind of nervous because, although we worked it out in a polite manner, I still insisted that they take it away as I was not going to eat it. As it turned out, the manager came over and I explained to her what happened. She disappeared and came back saying she spoke with the chef and as it turned out, it was NOT gluten-free and he had made a mistake on the order. The waitress (the ditz) did not mark the order as gluten-free and they used the dreaded grill baste on it! What annoyed me the most was they never offered to take the meal off the bill....that's good business practice over such a huge mistake. I got my second meal and it was gluten-free and really good and I was not sick at all.

Moral of the story....a restaurant is only as good as it's employee's. This was the first waitress that I was not sure of and it turns out I was right. She was just a bubble head and screwed up my order. I have no idea why because she saw me holding and ordering from the gluten-free menu and I mentioned it more than a couple of times. I am not as confident about Carrabba's now but at least I can spot the non-gluten-free meal easily enough. It does happen but, luckily, it's not the normal experience I have had there.

hnybny91 Rookie
hnybny91
Posted
  • Author

Thank you for your reply Gemini. I suspect that it may have been the grill baste as well. I even mentioned to my husband that it seemed a little overly spiced but since I had never had that dish before I was not sure. Funny thing is, I never threw up over gluten when I was eating it but I supect now that I have purged my body of gluten it just wanted it out PRONTO...lol.

MaryJones2 Enthusiast
MaryJones2
Posted

I eat at Carabbas quite often when I travel. I've never really had an issue but I do ask the manager to stop by the table and let them know that I need gluten-free and they can then followup with the kitchen.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. Wheatwacked
      - Wheatwacked replied to Jane02's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      22

      Desperately need a vitamin D supplement. I've reacted to most brands I've tried.

      That is the goal, after all.
    2. Wheatwacked
      - Wheatwacked replied to Heatherisle's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      34

      Blood results

      Celiac Disease causes more vitamin D deficiency than the general population because of limited UV sunlight in the winter and the little available from food is not absorbed well in the damaged small intestine. Taking 10,000 IU a day (250 mcg) a day broke my depression. Taking it for eleven years. Doctor recently said to not stop. My 25(OH)D is around 2...
    3. Known1
      - Known1 replied to xxnonamexx's topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      6

      FDA looking for input on Celiac Gluten sensitivity labeling PLEASE READ and submit your suggestions

      Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I respectfully disagree. You cherry picked a small section from the page. I will do the same below: The agency is seeking information on adverse reactions due to “ingredients of interest” (i.e., non-wheat gluten containing grains (GCGs) which are rye and barley, and oats due to cross-contact with GCGs) and on ...
    4. Wheatwacked
      - Wheatwacked replied to catnapt's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      31

      results from 13 day gluten challenge - does this mean I can't have celiac?

      Here is a link to the spreadsheet I kept to track my nutrition intakes. Maybe it will give you ideas. It is not https so browsers may flag a security warning. There is nothing to send or receive. http://doodlesnotes.net/index3.html I tracked everything I ate, used the National Nutrition Database https://www.foodrisk.org/resources/display/...
    5. Wheatwacked
      - Wheatwacked replied to catnapt's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      31

      results from 13 day gluten challenge - does this mean I can't have celiac?

      Hello @catnapt, That's so true. Every person with Celiac Disease has different symptoms. There are over 200 that it mimics. Too many still believe that it is only a childhood disease you outgrow. Or it's psychosomatic or simply a fad. Idiots. It's easy to get angry at all of them. You just have to pick at the answers until you find...
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,414
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    EBeloved
    Newest Member
    EBeloved
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.6k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Wheatwacked
      Desperately need a vitamin D supplement. I've reacted to most brands I've tried.

      By Wheatwacked · Posted

      That is the goal, after all.  
    • Wheatwacked
      Blood results

      By Wheatwacked · Posted

      Celiac Disease causes more vitamin D deficiency than the general population because of limited UV sunlight in the winter and the little available from food is not absorbed well in the damaged small intestine.  Taking 10,000 IU a day (250 mcg) a day broke my depression. Taking it for eleven years.  Doctor recently said to not stop.  My 25(OH)D is around 200 nmol/L (80 ng/ml) but it took about six years to get there.  Increasing vitamin D also increases absorption of Calcium. A good start is 100-gram (3.5-ounce) serving of salmon,  vitamin D from 7.5 to 25 mcg (300 to 1,000 IU) but it is going to take additional vitamin D supplement to be effective.  More importantly salmon has an omega-6 to omega-3 ratio 1:10 anti-inflammatory compared to the 15:1 infammatory ratio of the typical Western diet. Vitamin D and Depression: Where is all the Sunshine?
    • Known1
      FDA looking for input on Celiac Gluten sensitivity labeling PLEASE READ and submit your suggestions

      By Known1 · Posted

      Thank you for sharing your thoughts.  I respectfully disagree.  You cherry picked a small section from the page.  I will do the same below: The agency is seeking information on adverse reactions due to “ingredients of interest” (i.e., non-wheat gluten containing grains (GCGs) which are rye and barley, and oats due to cross-contact with GCGs) and on labeling issues or concerns with identifying these “ingredients of interest” on packaged food products in the U.S. “People with celiac disease or gluten sensitives have had to tiptoe around food, and are often forced to guess about their food options,” said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, M.D., M.P.H. “We encourage all stakeholders to share their experiences and data to help us develop policies that will better protect Americans and support healthy food choices.” --- end quote Anyone with celiac disease is clearly a stakeholder.  The FDA is encouraging us to share our experiences along with any data to help develop future "policies that will better protect Americans and support healthy food choices".  I see this as our chance to speak up or forever hold our peace.  Like those that do not participate in elections, they are not allowed to complain.  The way I see it, if we do not participate in this request for public comment/feedback, then we should also not complain when we get ill from something labeled gluten-free. Have a blessed day ahead, Known1
    • Wheatwacked
      results from 13 day gluten challenge - does this mean I can't have celiac?

      By Wheatwacked · Posted

      Here is a link to the spreadsheet I kept to track my nutrition intakes.  Maybe it will give you ideas. It is not https so browsers may flag a security warning. There is nothing to send or receive. http://doodlesnotes.net/index3.html I tracked everything I ate, used the National Nutrition Database https://www.foodrisk.org/resources/display/41 to add up my daily intake and supplemented appropriately.  It tracks about 30 nutrients at once.
    • Wheatwacked
      results from 13 day gluten challenge - does this mean I can't have celiac?

      By Wheatwacked · Posted

      Hello @catnapt, That's so true.  Every person with Celiac Disease has different symptoms.  There are over 200 that it mimics.  Too many still believe that it is only a childhood disease you outgrow.  Or it's psychosomatic or simply a fad.  Idiots.  It's easy to get angry at all of them.   You just have to pick at the answers until you find the ones that work for you.  I too suffer from not being able to take the drugs that work for "everyone else".  SSRIs make me twitch ane feel like toothpicks are holding my eye open, ARBs cripple me.  Statins cause me intestinal Psuedo Obstruction.  Espresso puts me to sleep.  I counted 19 different symptoms that improved from GFD and dealing with my nutritional defecits.  I couldn't breath through my mouth until I started GFD at 64 years old.   My son was born with celiac disease, biopsy diagnosed at weaning.   So why are we the one-percenters.  Why, after being silent for so long, does it suddenly flare? There is the possibility that you have both Celiac Disease and Non Celiac Gluten Sensitivity.  NCGS was not established as a diagnosis until 1980.  NCGS is diagnost by first elimating Celiac Disease as the cause, and showing improvement on GFD.  Nothing says you can't have symptoms from both.  Wheatbelly: Total Nutrition by Dr. Davis was helpful to me. We come to the forum to share what we've learned in dealing with our own symptoms.  Maybe this will help someone. Speaking of which if you don't mind; what is your 25(OH)D vitamin D blood level?  You mentioned a mysterious Calcium issue. Vitamin D, Calcium and Iodine are closely interactive. It is not uncommon for postmenopausal women to have insufficient intake of Iodine.   (RDA): Average daily level of intake sufficient to meet the nutrient requirements of nearly all (97%–98%) healthy individuals; often used to plan nutritionally adequate diets for individuals You are a one-percenter.  You may need higher intake of some essential nutrient supplements to speed up repairing the damages.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.