Outback In Greenwood, In (near Indy)

[weathertopmama]

So Dh and I went there for our anniversary last month, the first restaurant we'd gone to since going gluten-free a year ago.

I printed the menu from the website, chose what I'd have, tried to act relaxed but was scared to death (it is extremely hard for me to take care of 4 little boys when I get glutened....brain fog is horrible but living in the bathroom all day....anyway).....

The server was great. As soon as I said "gluten-free" he was totally on it LOL He knew everything, was going ahead of my questions to assure me that the food was safe.

I enjoyed every bite of that meal. Grilled shrimp, alice springs chicken, baked potato, chocolate thunder down under....like dying and going to heaven. We tipped very generously so's to encourage them to keep up the good work. How NICE it was to go out to dinner with my husband again!!!

A few weeks later, ds#1 was planning his 10th birthday. We don't take the boys to restaurants because of the expense and the uncertainty, but after our good experience at Outback he wanted to go. That was the only present he wanted, bless his heart.

So we took 4 little celiacs to the Outback, early Saturday evening. We drew alot of attention with our big family, all boys, requesting gluten-free meals all around LOL The server was awesome. He brought out a menu and helped us make our choices, he was personally really taking care of our whole experience. He understood that we needed to keep the boys safe, and have a good time.

We had a wonderful meal. A 'normal' experience of going out to dinner as a family. The boys were also very impressed because the owner came out to talk to us! He welcomed us, asked if we liked the food, etc. and told us how interested he was personally in celiac disease and gluten-free dining. He 'wants' the reputation of being a very safe Outback Steakhouse for gluten-free diners. Told us about the new gluten-free beer they are getting soon, asked us to tell all our celiac friends LOL'

Not one of the boys got sick, and two of them are extremely sensitive. So we're telling all our celiac friends, go to the Outback on 31 in Greenwood, just south of Indianapolis.

The server asked if he'd see us again in about two weeks I wish we could afford it. We live on one blue-collar income and eating out is almost impossible. But I'm seriously thinking of reconfiguring the budget to go out once a month, especially to this Outback. Will also be investigating the Carabba's in town.

We planned to use the jr. high and high school years to teach the boys about navigating life with celiac disease. Including shopping, cooking, calling companies and restaurants, eating out, travel, staying with friends, etc. It will be a big job.

[jenvan]

Amy-

Hi! I am from Indy and got on and caught your post. We have several Indy groups. If you are interested, send me an e-mail and I can give you info. We have get togethers too, and I will be hosting a greater Indy gluten-free pitch-in next spring. We also have an e-mail listserv for the local group that is helpful. So drop me a line if you have any interest in these things! (Pls e-mail me, as I am not cking the forum very often at this point).

[linz7997]

thats great...fyi...the avon one is really good too...as well as the avon texas rdhouse

[weathertopmama]

Thanks, Jen! We've gone without local support (other than HFS staff LOL) for the past year but we'd love to meet others with this delightful condition! Emailing you

linz, I didn't know there was an Outback in Avon! Oh, wait, down by JoAnn's, Bonefish Grill, etc. Well, good! We have friends on that side of town that would probably rather meet there than go all the way to Greenwood. Never tried Texas Roadhouse, thanks for the tip!

[capawa]

Outback in St. Louis is great too. Never had a problem there. They bend over backwards to make sure everything is okay!!!! and they know what gluten free is (yeah).

[FeedIndy]

Waving hello from North Indy! I didn't realize there were so many Hoosiers around here. The gluten free pitch-in sounds heavenly! I'm struggling so much with our 2 T-Day pitch-ins to be sure there is enough for my little one to eat.