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Mexican Restaurants

mookie03

By mookie03
in Gluten-Free Restaurants

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mookie03 Contributor
mookie03
Posted

Hey guys,

when i first went gluten-free i understood that mexican was generally a "safe" food to eat if you are dining out bc they dont use much wheat in their food. But i was just wondering how safe it is. I mean, i know eating out is always a risk, but do u guys find that the tortilla chips are generally safe? And what about seasoning/spices? I know i should always ask but i find it difficult often to communicate w/ people in mexican restaurants- "no wheat"- "NO MEAT???" :P

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tarnalberry Community Regular
tarnalberry
Posted

actually, I worry most about mexican restaurants. cross contamination of the chips can be a big problem if they fry their own, as well as dealing with even the corn tortillas being heated up on the same grill as the flour. beyond that, I'm concerned about the sauces - enchilada sauce and other thickened sauces can be made with wheat - and meat that's been marinates - it often has soy sauce. if I can get plain, unmarinated, grilled meat with fresh veggies, and think I can communicate the tortilla issue, then I feel safe-ish, but not totally.

nothungry Contributor
nothungry
Posted

I see that you are in NYC Mookie. Just north of Poughkeepsie in Tivoli there is an absolutely fabulous mexican restaurant, Santa Fe, that is part of the gluten free awareness program. It is a four star restaurant and almost their entire menu is gluten free. So, if you feel like taking a short drive upstate there is yummy mexican available.

Guest Rad
Guest Rad
Posted

The Southwest is the heart of Mexican food country. Am very partial to New Mexico with all its' mom and pop restaurants going back 3 or 4 generations. It's just normal here to go to Mexican restaurants at least twice a week, maybe more. New Mexico is the Land of Enchantment, but it's also the land of a wonderful variety of excellent restaurants. The first words I said when finding out I had Celiac Disease were: no more burritos, no more sopaipillas (puffed fryed bread with honey), no more Mexican beer. Guacamole should be okay with corn chips. Am looking in a cookbook, and tamales look okay, but asking would be a good idea. There are Mexican seafood restaurants. And just made my first batch of refried beans; definitely have some to work to do, to get even close to the locals for taste. Did have a Naturopath tell me recently I am sensitive to hot spices, so between the two allergies am pretty limited to the the guacamole, refried beans, mild huevos rancheros, corn chips and mild tacos. Also am worried about cross contamination. Have made my own tortillas before and will try it with the gluten free flour. Anyone traveling to New Mexico, let me know as I have a list of great restaurants and places to visit.

Buenos Dias . . .

Dianna

celiachap Apprentice
celiachap
Posted

I see that you are in NYC Mookie. Just north of Poughkeepsie in Tivoli there is an absolutely fabulous mexican restaurant, Santa Fe, that is part of the gluten free awareness program. It is a four star restaurant and almost their entire menu is gluten free. So, if you feel like taking a short drive upstate there is yummy mexican available.

Sounds good, but 95 miles, which is the distance from NYC to Tivoli, is not really a "short drive upstate". There must be some gluten-free Mexican places in Manhattan, or the Boroughs, that are decent.

I havn't used my Triumph Dining Cards yet, but when the weather gets better we'll see:

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jkmunchkin Rising Star
jkmunchkin
Posted

Hey Ms. Met ;)

I've eaten mexican twice now and was fine both times. Although I admit the communication is a tad bit harder than some other restaurants. The 2 I went to are Rosa Mexicano (there are a couple in the city) and Casa Maya (in Scarsdale - in that shopping center by the A&P, next to Spiga).

mookie03 Contributor
mookie03
Posted
  • Author

thanks guys! Yea, that restaurant sounds really good but is quite far being that i dont have a car! I've been to Rosa Mexicano several times before dx (theres one right next to fordham law) but i havent tried it yet. I went to one mexican place in vegas and was ok, but i ate the chips w/o giving it a second thought and realized afterwards that there was a high chance of CC and i shouldnt have done that. I didnt get sick (and i am very sensitive) but that doesnt necessarily mean i didnt damage my body!

There are tons of mexican restaurants in NYC and ive always been a fan of the simpler things anyway (i dont like enchilada sauce or a lot of the other foods that may have gluten. My main concern is the chips! i cant imagine going out for mexican w/o being able to snack on them!!!

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grantschoep Contributor
grantschoep
Posted

I have to add...

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There is a great mexican place down the road from me. I must advertise them... they have been so great for me.

They have been great to me. I think all staff know me by now. I remeber when I first went their, one day, I had green chili on my plate delivered too me(their green chili has wheat) and it was intercepted by my waitress as the plate was being set down. She said something in spanish to the server(I only understand a little bit of spanish) and the plate was fastly removed and the next plate was announced as Gluten Free.

The server also said right away(when I first walked in and made the "uncomfortable gluten annoucement"), you probaly should not eat our corn ships, as they are made in the same vats as wheat things. That was cool.

Simply put, I would never say any chain/ethnic/whatever is safe. Is completlly based on the staff. Especially if its a non chain type store. Learn the staff. Teach the staff. and of course, when they do well tip em nice.

Mahee34 Enthusiast
Mahee34
Posted

you always have the mexican chains like qudoba and chipotle that have gluten free options.......i know they can't compare to an authentic mexican restaurant but sometimes are a nice substitute!

mytummyhurts Contributor
mytummyhurts
Posted

I don't know if you have a Chevy's were you are. They may just be on the West Coast. But they have a gluten free list here Open Original Shared Link as well as many other restaurants on that site. The chips there are fried with wheat containing items, so they are a no-no. I know what you mean about them being hard to resist. I used to love chips and salsa at Mexican restaurants.

I had a mexican place I used to love and I don't eat there anymore because they don't speak English that well and I don't like eating out much at all anymore. You could learn the Spanish word for wheat. I did that with beans, because it was hard to get across "no beans" so I went back and said "no frijoles" and they totally understood. But, of course, it's not as simple as no wheat. Otherwise our lives would be much easier, right? ;)

Spanish word for wheat is: trigo

Gluten: gluten :lol:

free translator here:

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