Eating On The Road

[zus888]

We are going to be taking a trip this summer and I'm sort of panicked about where we are going to eat. It's going to be a camping trip, and it will take us two days to get to the site. So, there will be food in the car for the camping and likely some for the trip there as well, but nothing will be good anymore on our return trip. So, what are my choices. I'm used to going to McD's or Burger King drive through to make things fast. Also, we typically find a hotel that offers free continental breakfast (which is pretty pointless for me now). Now, I'm not sure what or where I can eat. I can't afford to go to Outback Steak house (or any other mid-range sit down restaurant) while we're traveling, not with time or money.

Any advice will be appreciated!!!

[srall]

Well, my suggestion was going to be Outback since that's the only chain I've found that I've had no issues with. It's very expensive for road food and certainly not quick. I guess I'd probably recommend stopping at a supermarket and buying fruit and lunchmeat maybe? And eating in the car or find a picnic area.

Thanks for starting this thread though. With summer road trips coming up I certainly need to expand our options beyond Outback.

[Poppi]

Can you pack up a package of non-perishable foods for your return trip home? Lara bars, juice boxes, gluten free cereals, Enjoy life bars and granola, Thai Kitchen noodle bowls. Then you can pick up milk, yogurt and fruit at a store somewhere.

I have a "survival kit" in the van in case of emergency or just getting stuck at someone's house and needing a full meal. It contains a box of Enjoy life chewy bars, a few lara bars, a bar of Cocoa Camino dark chocolate, 6 Thai Kitchen noodle bowls (you need boiling water for these), juice boxes, a box of rice crackers, a few individual size tins of fruit, some sesame snaps, a couple bags of chips, some tea bags and all the necessary utensils and cups. I've gotten in the habit of packing a thermos of boiling water when I go out as well. So in an emergency situation we'll have food and I only need to grab some cheese and fruit at a store to have a picnic.

If you do hit a McD's I believe you can have the Premium Southwest Salad (no chicken) and of course a pop/coffee/tea and a sundae or milkshake.

[Austin Guy]

We are going to be taking a trip this summer and I'm sort of panicked about where we are going to eat. It's going to be a camping trip, and it will take us two days to get to the site. So, there will be food in the car for the camping and likely some for the trip there as well, but nothing will be good anymore on our return trip. So, what are my choices. I'm used to going to McD's or Burger King drive through to make things fast. Also, we typically find a hotel that offers free continental breakfast (which is pretty pointless for me now). Now, I'm not sure what or where I can eat. I can't afford to go to Outback Steak house (or any other mid-range sit down restaurant) while we're traveling, not with time or money.

Any advice will be appreciated!!!

I just did a search and found this: Open Original Shared Link/

[kareng]

I don't know where you ae going but maybe you could hit a grocery store and restock somemfood for the way home? Back an extra bag of gluten-free crackers & get cheese, PB, yogurt, cold cuts, fruit, celery, carrots whatever. Chex cereal....

[Jestgar]

Even before this whole gluten thing I would go to a store and buy cold cuts and fruit/veggies for lunch. Why stop at a restaurant at all?

[Cara in Boston]

We are traveling this summer and since 1/2 of us are gluten-free, we are just going to skip the fast food and bring meal with us. No problem packing for day one, but day two and the return trip are kind of tricky. I'm thinking about getting several of the meals from GoPicnic. They look pretty good and are shelf stable. I have not tried them yet. They have several gluten-free options.

I called to ask about the shelf life and was told it is usually 90 days for the full priced ones. Items on sale have a 1 to 2 week shelf life.

Open Original Shared Link

Cara in Boston

[kareng]

I forgot: if you have a little grill or camp stove, you can stop at a rest stop or a park and cook some burgers or hot dogs that you pick up at the grocery. I have been at out grocery near a major highway and been asked where they can grill. I have seen them grill in the parking lot, but when I see that, I send them down the street to the park & playground. I think a camp stove may be in our future.

[mamaw]

When we stay at hotels/motels you can request a small fridge& a microwave.. Most are willing to put these in the room for free when you tell them a person has celiac .. I've done this many times with no extra charge or hassle. Breakfast buffets at hotels usually have fresh fruit, juice, milk for cereal, & a toaster... I take my own cereal use their milk, take my own bread & use a toaster bag to keep my bread free of CC. sometimes I even take waffles or pancakes & put them in my toaster bag as well. I also have found yoplait yogurt on the buffet......

You should be able to find a grocery store that you could purchase a few things , deli meat,cheese, fruit, snacks..& a few safe fast food joints....

Another option is to buy the gluten-free long term foods that heat up in their own little bags. This is good if you are in a remote area.... There are several sites to buy this food....

Go Picnic has many grab & go , sorta like lunchables.....

hth

mamaw

[GlutenFreeManna]

Like everyone else mentioned I stop at grocery stores instead of fastfood places. If gluten is your only restriction you have more options too. You can find a lot of edible thigns in gas stations along the way as well. Big truck-stop gas stations often have fruit and refriderated sections with cheese, lunch meat, etc. You can alos pick up things like Wisconsin beef sticks, Lays potato chips, fritos, snickers bars, etc. It's not exactly healthy but it's safer in my experience than trusting a fast food place to not cc you. You might want to compile a list of convienece store foods that are gluten-free (always double check the ingredients however) so you can go in quickly and find things you can eat.

ETA: Also about the hotel continental breakfast--sometimes they offer hardboiled eggs, yogurt and fruit (wash anything besides bananas before eating). Juice (if from those juice machines) should be safe. You can call ahead and ask if your hotel will have these things on their breakfast bar. They may also have some vending machine items you can eat--some very friendly hotels will open the vending machine and let you check ingredients if you explain you have a food allergy and want to know if you can eat something before buying it. It can't hurt to ask anyway.

[jenngolightly]

I was on a very strict diet last summer - had around 15 foods on my list - and my son and I did an 8 day road trip around New Mexico. It's definitely doable! We skipped the fast food restaurants entirely and brought our own food with us in cooler and boxes. I couldn't do the continental breakfasts, but I could make my own cottage cheese with blueberries and bring it to the dining area while he ate. That's okay, they serve awful food at those breakfasts anyway. Very fattening and full of sugar, grease, and gluten. No one puts out fruit anymore. Most of the rooms we stayed in had a microwave. We took a little gas grill, too. I was really nervous because I had such a restrictive diet, but we did it and I was never hungry. And we had a great time!

[K8ling]

I'm headed to Florida and will be 6 months pregnant and traveling with a toddler... I am planning on packing my cooler full of PB&J, Udi's, fruit, cereal, some milk... And I'll get some fries at Chick fil A if my pregnancy cravings get the best of me LOL

Anyway, I'm planning on surviving in thai kitchen stuff once I'm there...jsut gotta get down there...

[eatmeat4good]

I have a little electric skillet I take with me so I can fry up breakfast in any motel room to avoid continental breakfasts. Still have to do a grocery store stop, but it's inevitable when you travel gluten free. I watch for grocery stores now instead of restaurants.

[cap6]

I can't survive on Lara bars cause I'm still hungry so I take stuff like tuna, canned beans, chili & progresso soup. Peanut butter, crackers and cheese are good too. Some fruit will last. I also take a loaf of bread - the rice bread that is preserved till the end of time or until you open it (I take my own toaster.

[navigator]

I'm just back from a camping trip to Orkney, which involved an overnight at hotels on the mainland on the way to and back from Orkney. I didn't have any difficulties with hotels. I told them that I was coeliac and they immediately informed me that they could provide gluten free breakfast and ensure there was no cross-contamination. I don't know if it's the same in the USA but here gluten free cooking and cross-contamination form a module of catering/chef qualification, so there's a high level of awareness.

For the camping part, we stopped at Tesco and loaded up on gluten free cereal, rolls, cold meat, cheese, fruit and cereal bars.

[GlutenFreeManna]

I'm just back from a camping trip to Orkney, which involved an overnight at hotels on the mainland on the way to and back from Orkney. I didn't have any difficulties with hotels. I told them that I was coeliac and they immediately informed me that they could provide gluten free breakfast and ensure there was no cross-contamination. I don't know if it's the same in the USA but here gluten free cooking and cross-contamination form a module of catering/chef qualification, so there's a high level of awareness.

For the camping part, we stopped at Tesco and loaded up on gluten free cereal, rolls, cold meat, cheese, fruit and cereal bars.

It is NOT the same in the US. Very few hotels (in my experience) even know what celiac disease or gluten free mean. I have to tell hotels I have food allergies instead (which I do so it's a good startign point for me) because using the word "gluten" gets me everything from a chef that will look for "gluten" in the ingredients and when it's not there declare even the wheat bread is "gluten free" to a hostess that will vehemently declare "no honey we don't use any GLUE in our food to a person that confuses gluten with glucose and goes back to see if their cake is safe for diabetics. Awareness is growing here...slowly...but we are no where near that good yet. You are very fortunate to live where you do.

[navigator]

I'm really surprised - I imagined that the USA would be ahead of us! Although I was only diagnosed three weeks ago, I've been wheat free for over six months. We tend to eat out twice a week and I've never had any problem. I've even had an occassion when I was out with colleagues and as the waitress was taking the orders further up the table I was explaining to person next to me about the wheat. Without saying a word the waitress disappeared for a few minutes. When she came back she handed me a copy of the menu which the chef had written on detailing the ones that I could have as they were, the ones that I could have variations of to make it gluten free and the ones that I couldn't have at all.

As long as it's a restaurant or hotel with a proper chef who is cooking and not the kind of pub food where it's pre-made, I've not had a problem. My daughter has been coeliac for two years and her experience as been the same. It must be so difficult for you to have a relaxed meal out!! Come to Scotland on holiday

[GlutenFreeManna]

I'm really surprised - I imagined that the USA would be ahead of us! Although I was only diagnosed three weeks ago, I've been wheat free for over six months. We tend to eat out twice a week and I've never had any problem. I've even had an occassion when I was out with colleagues and as the waitress was taking the orders further up the table I was explaining to person next to me about the wheat. Without saying a word the waitress disappeared for a few minutes. When she came back she handed me a copy of the menu which the chef had written on detailing the ones that I could have as they were, the ones that I could have variations of to make it gluten free and the ones that I couldn't have at all.

As long as it's a restaurant or hotel with a proper chef who is cooking and not the kind of pub food where it's pre-made, I've not had a problem. My daughter has been coeliac for two years and her experience as been the same. It must be so difficult for you to have a relaxed meal out!! Come to Scotland on holiday

That sounds really wonderful! I'm lucky to live in a big city where there are many restaurants offering gluten free menu options. However, the level of knowledge about prventing cc and staff trained varies significantly. I only have about two (maybe 3) restaruants that I trust and have not had any problems with. Most of the gluten-free menu places are hit or miss--I mean it's about 50/50 whether I will get a waiter or a manager that knows what it means when I ask for the gluten-free menu. When the hostess has a confused look in her eyes when I ask for the gluten-free menu I know it's a bad sign. I went to an Italian place once where they have gluten-free pasta. I had read all about how the pasta was pre-made and just reheated to avoid cc issues. I had eaten naturally gluten-free meals at this place before--things like steak, potatoes and steamed veggies that are hard to mess up--without problems. Anyway, when the watress took my order she had a confused look on her face but she nodded that she understood my needs to be gluten free. When she brought me my pasta it tasted good--too good! She had brought me regular pasta. I got very sick from just a few bites. I don't dare go to a place that doesn't have a gluten free menu.

[txplowgirl]

I am a truck driver and I rarely eat in restaurants. I have an electric skillet and a microwave in my truck. Plus i carry a camping stove when i travel in my pickup. like a couple of weeks ago i went to the back country of colorado. i took a lot of canned goods, brown rice, meats and i did some fishing.

[Skylark]

When I'm traveling I always bring gluten-free bread with me. It keeps just fine for a week-long trip. Then I can go to a grocery store and buy lunch meat, some raw veggies, and a piece of fruit for a decent meal. There are grocery stores pretty much everywhere. If all else fails, I can usually find a convenience store with fruit and some packaged nuts.

Wendy's is gluten-free heaven. Chili, Frostys, salads, and baked potatoes are all gluten-free. Open Original Shared Link

Boston Market is another chain to look for because their chicken and many of the veggies are safe. Open Original Shared Link

Most salads at fast food joints are OK without dressing and croutons. If I remember correctly we can eat the BK chicken breast salad. Many Burger Kings also have dedicated fryers for their french fries. McDonald's fries are also OK for most celiacs. There is a little controversy about McD fries and hash browns because they use a wheat-based flavor in processing. The fries have been independently tested and test gluten-free. Make sure they're using a separate fryer though.

For breakfast, I usually go to a restaurant and get eggs over easy (so I know there is nothing in them), maybe with some bacon. You can also get the scrambled eggs and sausage at McDonald's and have them leave out the bread. Then I have my gluten free bread with the eggs.

[vegoutpittsburgh]

Chipotle has many gluten free options for fast food. They list on their site what is gluten-free; if I remember correctly all the burrito bowls are ok.