Traveling/new Job

[jasonD2]

Hey All- some of u may recall my previous posts. i have a new sales job that requires me to do a lot of traveling. anyway, i'm one month in and am finding it impossible to avoid all the foods im supposed to avoid. truthfully I dont care anymore because the amount of stress involved in ordering a plain meal isnt worth it. I dont have Celiacs, but am slightly gluten intolerant...I still do my very best to avoid gluten...no bread, bread crumbs, fried foods, sauces, etc but its hard to cut out all the other foods im supposed to avoid. its seriously an eat or starve and loose weight situation and i prefer to eat and have energy. Thankfully there are plenty of Whole Foods markets around my accounts so even if i skimp out on lunch, i can still make up for it later in the day by eating an extra meal that i know is free of all the triggers. Also now that im traveling on my own it will be easier. ive been with other people training so i had less freedom to be picky

The other day i was in nowhere, NC and had to take a client out. he chose a nasty chinese buffet and all i ate was plain white rice and canned peaches while he inhaled 3 servings of nastiness i cant even put into words.

Im not supposed to eat eggs (my blood allergen test was very hight for eggs) but I still had an omelette and figure its ok everyonce and a while, right? I mean how strict do i have to be? I cant live my life in fear and analyze every ingredient, i just can't.

Anyway, i'd be curious to hear more recommendations on where i can eat while on the road. I heard Outback is gluten free, so im making that one of my safe restaurants.

thanks

[cupid]

The Outback has an awesome gluten-free menu and so does Chicago Pizza Uno Grille, Bonefish Grille, and Carrabas. Ck out glutenfreerestaurants.com. I'm still new to this myself and had planned to eat @ a local greek restuarant this wk that has great gluten-free selections before a meeting but they were closed. Initially started to panic but went to the grocery store bought paper bowls(which I will now keep in my car), hormel grilled chicken(not only gluten-free but also preservative free) and hummus plus a bottle of water which I ate in my car. Yes, I threw half of it out but it was still cheaper than what I would have spent on lunch and I was satisfied enough to make it through to dinner. Have been told need to plan better and carry more non-perishables w/me, anyway, good luck!

[cupid]

oh, not to scare you but eating eggs if your allergic can be fatal so not a good idea.

[gfgypsyqueen]

Next time you are stuck at one of those chinese buffets, order a meal of steamed meat and veggies with plain steamed rice - NO SAUCE. I have never been glutened off of this meal. I usually bring any kind of sauce to help - soy, sweet and sour, salad dressing, bbq, I mean anything works to me. Some Chinese buffets have shrimp, crab claws, snow crab legs (steamed plain) and those are usually ok. Not my first choice, but if you are stuck there.

You might want to invest some time researching all the fast foods and common places along highways. Hardy's, Wendys (good list), Moe's (not so great for gluten-free/CF options), Chipolte's (good list), Shoneys, Sunny's, Waffle House breakfast was always good a few years ago (eggs, bacon, hashbrowns), Chili's (I don't have luck here), Famous Daves (NOT GOOD gluten-free/CF list), Pollo Tropical, etc.

For Client's:

Outback, PF Chang's, Caraba's, Lee Roy Selman, Cheeseburger in Paradise all have gluten-free menu.

Seafood restaurants - shrimp, Crab Claws or Crab legs, baked potato.

Maybe see if GIG has a list of restaurants that they have worked with to create gluten-free menus.

[pixiegirl]

I travel too and I get on the internet and look at restaurants before I go. If I have time and I often don't I'll e-mail a few places with nice menu's and ask them if they can cook gluten-free for me. This works pretty well, after years of traveling I've only had a couple of places say no, can't help you.

I don't let clients pick the restaurants in most cases, or I just tell them I have some allergy issues so give me a few choices and I'll pick the one I think is best for me. That gives me a little control. I'm 100% gluten free and I have some other food intolerances too and I can do it. After years of it, its not even that much of a hassle any more.

I posted in another thread.. my teenage daughter works in a restaurant and she tells me that about 75% of the meals they serve are "special orders" whether its leaving ingredients out for food allergies or sauce on the side for preference, everybody wants it their way and most restaurants, especially in this business climate of uncertainty and recession, want you as a customer.

Susan

[Guest digmom1014]

I too am in sales and also new to the gluten-free lifestyle. I have a print out of the gluten-free restaurants and what I can order in my trunk. It only takes a little preparation and sales people are always going in their trunks or briefcases anyway so...

[Helena]

re: the egg allergy. it is possible you are not allergic. both the skin prick tests and the RAST (blood) tests have a high rate of false positives. And a high positive doesn't necessarily correlate with a strong reaction. (That's why the tests need to be interpreted by an allergist with reference to the patient's medical history.) If you don't react to eggs, I'd mention the fact to the allergist and ask about what you should do. On the other hand, if you do react and are judged at risk of anaphylaxis, eating eggs is not a good idea.