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Pf Changs

Moongirl

By Moongirl
in Gluten-Free Restaurants

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Moongirl Community Regular
Moongirl
Posted

Im having mixed feelings about going to PF Changs, i know they have a gluten-free menu, but im nervous about them screwing up my meal with someone else, cause Im going with a bunch of friends.... Im thinking of avoiding dishes with sauce all together, but that wont taste too good....

Any opinions about it....Im specifically going to the one in Boston, MA.

Thanks.

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Looking for answers Contributor
Looking for answers
Posted

I just ate there on Monday and had a yummy lemon chicken dish and didn't get sick at all. At the location I went to, they seemed well-trained on gluten-free.

Sillyyakdidi Apprentice
Sillyyakdidi
Posted

i've been there, never had a problem, they're VERY good and safe! if it makes you feel better, speak with the manager, but it is a safep lace to eat, have fun and relax!

flagbabyds Collaborator
flagbabyds
Posted

just to say if you do go there and bring some of your food home dish it up yourself, MAKE sure to do this! i got sick cause they use the same spoons for everything when they dish up the take home food so make sure it is your own silverware that you use

Sillyyakdidi Apprentice
Sillyyakdidi
Posted
just to say if you do go there and bring some of your food home dish it up yourself, MAKE sure to do this! i got sick cause they use the same spoons for everything when they dish up the take home food so make sure it is your own silverware that you use

oh wow, thanks for posting that, although i never let anyone take anything out of my sight in a restauraunt once i have it lol that is a good tip to think about. (i used to be a waitress, and some of the things that go on in any kitchen would blow your mind, esp cc wise)

VegasCeliacBuckeye Collaborator
VegasCeliacBuckeye
Posted

Bronco's Top 3 Recommendations for Safe Eating at PF Chang's (Follow or suffer the possible consequences) :)

1. DO NOT GO AT PEAK TIMES - This will increase the chance of CC and getting sick. Go for a "late lunch" or early dinner Like 1:30 p.m. or 4:30 p.m. If you go between 11-1 or 5:30 and 7:30, Good Luck - you will need it.

2. SIT AT THE BAR - My mother detests this, but it is the safest place for Celiacs. Why? For a few reasons. First, you can sometimes see the kitchen and the workers. Its not like much you can change much, but its reassuring for me. Secondly, I always get better service at the bar. At the bar, your server (bartender) is always in front of you and you usually develope a kinship or relationship with the person. I usually end up talking with the person by their first name. This creates a bond and the bartender is normally likely to take better care of you. Lastly, its no secret that the best servers in a restaurant are given the chance to be bartenders. Sure, the bartenders could have been hired in off the street, but at chain restaurants (like PF chang's), the bartenders are normally people who used to be the best servers.

3. In addition to ordering "Gluten Free", modify the dish so it can be visually differentiated from the other "unsafe" dishes. A good example is are the lettuce wraps. Often, Celiacs can get sick from these because at any given time 10 orders of lettuce wraps can be ordered att he same time. Hence, the possibility of someone taking your "gluten free" order and leaving an unsafe order is higher than we would like. When I order my lettuce wraps, I order them "gluten free" and with the rice noodles "on the side". This way I have another layer of security. Plus, if the order comes over to me and the noodles are not on the side, I know right away that this is likely an "unsafe" order and can send it back without excessive worry that I am "being a pain"

Hope this helps,

BB

NicoleAJ Enthusiast
NicoleAJ
Posted

I agree with Broncobux. I've had several great experiences there, but I did sit at the bar once when it was totally packed 8pm on a Friday night. I thought that the bar would be safer, but it was so crowded that this didn't make much of a difference for me--again, peak times are aweful. My lettuce wraps came out with the sauce that I double checked was gluten free (this was my first time there, so I didn't know what color the sauce should be). The bartender came running out a few seconds after I ate my first bite of the lettuce wrap with a little bit of sauce and said that he had accidentally given me the gluten-containing sauce, and he replaced everything. I was annoyed that he said that he double-checked and then went to double check after I already started eating, but ultimately, I only had a mild reaction from my single bite with a bit of sauce. I was just glad that he was honest about it so that I didn't proceed to eat all of the sauce. That was pretty responsible to check on the sauce at such a busy time. I've been back multiple times, at off peak hours, and I've never had another problem.

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JayT Rookie
JayT
Posted

I have actually talked to the owners and they have a seperate kitchen area with seperate pots. You can check out my review of them on my site if you click my name. I am not self promoting just giving you some info ;-).

tarnalberry Community Regular
tarnalberry
Posted

I haven't had a problem at any of the ones I've been to, but I understand that it can vary slightly from location to location. On the whole, however, they are one of the better chains.

katrinamaria Explorer
katrinamaria
Posted

i've only eaten there once because it's about 2 hours from where i live but i'm itching to go back... i ordered the garlic sauteed snap peas and they were SO good. i also got the flourless chocolate dome (which was obviously quite tasty if you're into that :) ) and i didn't have any problems, but i guess my stuff didn't have any sauces on it...i probably would have been more nervous if they did... good luck!

Generic Apprentice
Generic
Posted

I love the flourless choclate dome. Sometimes I order one just for take out. LOL

-Laurie

Cynbd Contributor
Cynbd
Posted
I just ate there on Monday and had a yummy lemon chicken dish and didn't get sick at all. At the location I went to, they seemed well-trained on gluten-free.

Hi there,

I noticed that you are in Orange County -- Which PF Changs did you eat at? I am in Orangy Cty too, and have been a little afraid to try PF Changs because they are always so crowded -- makes me a little nervous on the possibility of CC.

I ate at the Fish Market at the Spectrum on Sunday and they were great, I went for an early lunch so the restaurant was almost empty when I got there. (I was trying to decide between PF Changs and the Fish Market, and decided I was more comfortable going to the Fish Market.)

olalisa Contributor
olalisa
Posted

I've eaten at two PF Changs locations (Raleigh and Durham, NC) and have had great experiences at both. The wait staff seems to understand and I've never gotten sick there. I probably go about once or twice a month. Some of my favorite dishes are the spicy chicken and whatever the shrimp dish is on the gluten free menu--can't remember it at the moment.

I agree that avoiding peak times is always a plus--at ANY restaurant.

Enjoy!

casnco Enthusiast
casnco
Posted

I love PF Changs! One of the things I do is when my food is served I ask, "this is the gluten free meal, right?" The server is almost never the person who took my order. They always go back and double check. There have been several incidents where this tactic has helped. With the Chicken Wraps, Gluten Free one's are lighter in color than their gluten wraps.

Good Luck. Just clarify your order when it is served. I also really liked BroncoBucs suggestion to make it a special order by having the rice noodles on the side. Good idea I plan on employing in other situations also.

runnerjen Apprentice
runnerjen
Posted

I just went to the one in Boston on Friday night. We ordered the chicken and lettuce wraps. I kept asking if they were really the gluten-free ones, and was assured they were. I ordered the lemon chicken, which again, I was assured was gluten-free. I ended up with a migraine the next day. I've only been gluten-free for a little over a month now, but I haven't had a migraine since I started and I used to get 1-2 a week. So I don't know if I was glutened or not, maybe it was just a coincidence. It sure tasted good though!

Looking for answers Contributor
Looking for answers
Posted
Hi there,

I noticed that you are in Orange County -- Which PF Changs did you eat at? I am in Orangy Cty too, and have been a little afraid to try PF Changs because they are always so crowded -- makes me a little nervous on the possibility of CC.

I ate at the Fish Market at the Spectrum on Sunday and they were great, I went for an early lunch so the restaurant was almost empty when I got there. (I was trying to decide between PF Changs and the Fish Market, and decided I was more comfortable going to the Fish Market.)

Sorry for the delayed response . . .haven't checked the board in a few days. I visited the LB Aquarium and ate at the PF Changs next door and had no problems. Have you ever tried Pei Wei in Irvine (on Jeffrey and Alton) or Newport Beach (Off McArthur)? It's a sister chain of PF Chang's and is really good . . .they have a couple gluten-free options, the Spicy Chicken Salad (minus the spice) is my favorite!

Lymetoo Contributor
Lymetoo
Posted

I had my first experience with PF Changs at Christmas in Texas. It was awesome!!! Next time I will order the lettuce wraps only. They were great!!

I did have a mishap, but it had nothing to do with gluten.

I ordered the salmon and it had some kind of sauce on it. I took one bite and began choking. It was NOT because it went down wrong. It was an allergic reaction. SOOOO, they had to take it back and bring me another order of salmon without the sauce. I was fine.

Does anyone know what is in the sauce that might have caused trouble for me? I'd like to know!!!!

tarnalberry Community Regular
tarnalberry
Posted
I noticed that you are in Orange County -- Which PF Changs did you eat at? I am in Orangy Cty too, and have been a little afraid to try PF Changs because they are always so crowded -- makes me a little nervous on the possibility of CC.

I used to live in HB and have eaten at the PF Changs in Long Beach and Irvine (not to mention a bunch of other places around the country), and never had a problem.

Cynbd Contributor
Cynbd
Posted
Sorry for the delayed response . . .haven't checked the board in a few days. I visited the LB Aquarium and ate at the PF Changs next door and had no problems. Have you ever tried Pei Wei in Irvine (on Jeffrey and Alton) or Newport Beach (Off McArthur)? It's a sister chain of PF Chang's and is really good . . .they have a couple gluten-free options, the Spicy Chicken Salad (minus the spice) is my favorite!

Hi there,

No I haven't tried Pei Wei yet... it sounds like I should. I go to school at the CSUF - Irvine campus so I am up that way quite a bit these days... hmmm

Chicken salad sounds good right now --

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