What's Really Edible At Fast Food Places?

[violentlyserene]

I've been doing reasearch so i'm prepared when we go out to eat and while I'm finding menus for everywhere we go regularly, I'm still left wondering what it is I'm actually going to eat. Like Arby's for instance has roast beef that I really like but if I get it bunless, do they just wrap it up? How to you eat it? The same goes for Mcdonald's and Burger King. Salads are an option but i'm picky on those and am not fond of them, though i imagine I'll be learning to love them. My apologies if this is a stupid question, I've looked through threads here and other places and don't really see this addressed.

[shadowicewolf]

Imo, i'd just avoid them.

Arbys could have a huge CC issue with just the meat alone :<

I've heard that wendys chilli is gluten free.

[eatmeat4good]

At Arby's you have to be sure to mention it is an "allergy" or that it is serious. Sometimes they will forget and put it on a bun and then just remove the bun and send it back to you. Watch them make it. Or check your meat for crumbs. I tell them the bun can't touch the meat or I will be very sick. As for how you eat it ....pick it up with your fingers and raise it above your head and open your mouth like a baby bird...drop the meat in and wala! I'm saying that with a bit of jest...but seriously you can take each slice and fold it to a neat bite sized package and eat it as gracefully as possible...or you can ask for a fork...since they serve salads, they have forks. Enjoy!

[violentlyserene]

Imo, i'd just avoid them.

Arbys could have a huge CC issue with just the meat alone :<

I've heard that wendys chilli is gluten free.

I didn't mention wendy's chilli since that and taco bell are already on my main list (and how to eat it is obvious). It's good chili and i'm pretty ecstatic that it'll still be available to be but variety is nice. Thanks for the warning! The cc with the meat didn't occur to me, i'll have to talk to them about it. Arby's is actually pretty rare for me anyway but I like to overprepare.

[violentlyserene]

At Arby's you have to be sure to mention it is an "allergy" or that it is serious. Sometimes they will forget and put it on a bun and then just remove the bun and send it back to you. Watch them make it. Or check your meat for crumbs. I tell them the bun can't touch the meat or I will be very sick. As for how you eat it ....pick it up with your fingers and raise it above your head and open your mouth like a baby bird...drop the meat in and wala! I'm saying that with a bit of jest...but seriously you can take each slice and fold it to a neat bite sized package and eat it as gracefully as possible...or you can ask for a fork...since they serve salads, they have forks. Enjoy!

That's more or less what I imagined, just didn't want to be the only one ever to do that!

[organicmama]

I've been doing reasearch so i'm prepared when we go out to eat and while I'm finding menus for everywhere we go regularly, I'm still left wondering what it is I'm actually going to eat. Like Arby's for instance has roast beef that I really like but if I get it bunless, do they just wrap it up? How to you eat it? The same goes for Mcdonald's and Burger King. Salads are an option but i'm picky on those and am not fond of them, though i imagine I'll be learning to love them. My apologies if this is a stupid question, I've looked through threads here and other places and don't really see this addressed.

You really have to be careful with fast food. When we have eaten Wendy's on a road trip, even with safe foods, my kids were covered in eczema for several days. We always go inside, always mention allergies and getting sick (because they don't understand words like gluten or intolerance), and always ask that they change their gloves. More than once workers were offended at the glove bit, but oh well.

Pretty much, even if you exclude gluten foods, expect to get sick regularly. You are working with workers that don't understand and in highly glutened environments. Even if they have new gloves, they may sit your burger or chicken patty on the regular prep surface, or it may have been cooked where they cook glutened foods.

With that said, if you do need fast food, Chick-fil-a and Pollo Tropical seem to be especially concerned about allergies and have been recommended before on the forums.

[kareng]

Taco bell really has nothing that is gluten-free. Maybe a Pepsi. Open Original Shared Link

Whoops! They don't even list the Pepsi - just rice or beans

[Lilith]

Arby's has a salad that I would rate as the best fast food salad - at least at my nearby Arby's, it is fresh, the roasted chicken on top is flavorful and I really like the honey mustard dressing. Their jamoca shakes are also gluten-free.

Another good fast food place is In-n-Out Burger - they will serve your burger in a nifty lettuce wrap and the fries are safe because they don't cook anything else in their fryers.

A lot of fast food pizza places now have gluten-free crust pizza - Streets of New York, California Pizza Kitchen, Barro's (I think). Subway will make your sandwich in a bowl as a salad and I like that you get to see what they put in your salad.

Fast food places are tough - the choices are really limited. I download all the gluten-free menus that I can think of, am adding new ones frequently, and keep them handy as my husband likes to stop for fast food when we are out. Having the menu in front of me helps and I don't have to memorize each place's offferings. . . .

Good luck-

Lilith

[sa1937]

There have been some concerns lately about California Pizza Kitchen and CC. I don't have one in my area. You might like to read Open Original Shared Link

[violentlyserene]

Arby's has a salad that I would rate as the best fast food salad - at least at my nearby Arby's, it is fresh, the roasted chicken on top is flavorful and I really like the honey mustard dressing. Their jamoca shakes are also gluten-free.

Another good fast food place is In-n-Out Burger - they will serve your burger in a nifty lettuce wrap and the fries are safe because they don't cook anything else in their fryers.

A lot of fast food pizza places now have gluten-free crust pizza - Streets of New York, California Pizza Kitchen, Barro's (I think). Subway will make your sandwich in a bowl as a salad and I like that you get to see what they put in your salad.

Fast food places are tough - the choices are really limited. I download all the gluten-free menus that I can think of, am adding new ones frequently, and keep them handy as my husband likes to stop for fast food when we are out. Having the menu in front of me helps and I don't have to memorize each place's offferings. . . .

Good luck-

Lilith

Thanks, I'll keep that salad in mine. I'm collecting menus since I'm indecisive anyway. My stack is currently sitting under my laptop. So far it looks like for quick food for my area, Taco Time is the best. My favorite salad there is naturally lacking in gluten so I don't even have to change orders which is really nice for someone who despises change. They've been very accommodating in the past towards switching the sauce to something less spicy so I'm fairly confident that they'll be good with switching gloves and such for me.

[teacherkd]

Arby's has a salad that I would rate as the best fast food salad - at least at my nearby Arby's, it is fresh, the roasted chicken on top is flavorful and I really like the honey mustard dressing. Their jamoca shakes are also gluten-free.

Another good fast food place is In-n-Out Burger - they will serve your burger in a nifty lettuce wrap and the fries are safe because they don't cook anything else in their fryers.

A lot of fast food pizza places now have gluten-free crust pizza - Streets of New York, California Pizza Kitchen, Barro's (I think). Subway will make your sandwich in a bowl as a salad and I like that you get to see what they put in your salad.

Fast food places are tough - the choices are really limited. I download all the gluten-free menus that I can think of, am adding new ones frequently, and keep them handy as my husband likes to stop for fast food when we are out. Having the menu in front of me helps and I don't have to memorize each place's offferings. . . .

Good luck-

Lilith

Subway salads are iffy because of how their serving line is set up-- always bread first, and the Sandwich Artists have been touching bread, spreading crumbs, and reaching into the veggie bins with the same gloves for every customer in front of you. About the only way that you can ensure clean food is if they get out entirely new bins of every veg. that you want on your salad. Good luck on that, especially at lunch rush.

[teacherkd]

I've been doing reasearch so i'm prepared when we go out to eat and while I'm finding menus for everywhere we go regularly, I'm still left wondering what it is I'm actually going to eat. Like Arby's for instance has roast beef that I really like but if I get it bunless, do they just wrap it up? How to you eat it? The same goes for Mcdonald's and Burger King. Salads are an option but i'm picky on those and am not fond of them, though i imagine I'll be learning to love them. My apologies if this is a stupid question, I've looked through threads here and other places and don't really see this addressed.

McD's you can have ice cream without nuts, drinks, yogurt parfaits, hamburger patties, and eggs and sausage a la carte. And that is IF they understand about CC. Forget the fries, the frying oil is not gluten-free.

Burger King, though, is actually quite flexible. They will do any sandwich as a "low carb" item in a bowl. My daughter calls it a hamburger salad.

[MindytheOrganist]

We've always had good luck with Wendy's, and have had McDonald's fries with no problems. I'd watch out for Hardee's (Carl's) though. I treated myself to my favorite combo and found an onion ring in the fries. Hubby is celiac, I am not, so it was big deal.

We just make sure we have enough food in the car with us, in case we cannot find any place that is safe.

I also have a "kit," a lunch box containing safe salad dressing, safe bacon bits, safe soy sauce, safe butter, and what I call "safe supplemental carbs." To date, no restaurant has ever made a fuss about my box.

[violentlyserene]

Subway salads are iffy because of how their serving line is set up-- always bread first, and the Sandwich Artists have been touching bread, spreading crumbs, and reaching into the veggie bins with the same gloves for every customer in front of you. About the only way that you can ensure clean food is if they get out entirely new bins of every veg. that you want on your salad. Good luck on that, especially at lunch rush.

I used to work at subway and had a regular with very specific needs. Don't recall them ever explaining why but they wanted new gloves, new containers, etc. They never came in during a super busy rush so i was more than happy to do it but I wouldn't trust them now unless it was a desperate situation. It helps that I can't stand subway anymore and neither can my husband. The closest thing to a sandwich either of us ever eat is cheeseburgers.

[lovegrov]

We've always had good luck with Wendy's, and have had McDonald's fries with no problems. I'd watch out for Hardee's (Carl's) though. I treated myself to my favorite combo and found an onion ring in the fries. Hubby is celiac, I am not, so it was big deal.

We just make sure we have enough food in the car with us, in case we cannot find any place that is safe.

I also have a "kit," a lunch box containing safe salad dressing, safe bacon bits, safe soy sauce, safe butter, and what I call "safe supplemental carbs." To date, no restaurant has ever made a fuss about my box.

Hardee's does NOT cook its fries in a dedicated fryer (or they didn't use to) so their fries are definitely NOT gluten-free.

richard

[love2travel]

I cannot fathom feeling safe enough to eat at a fast food restaurant! But then I never have in the past so I feel like I am not missing out on anything exciting.

[Gfreeatx]

Chipotle is one of my regular go to places for fast food when I have to eat out. Most locations I've gone to are very aware of cc as well. If you mention you have celiac disease or a wheat allergy they will wash their hands, change gloves and walk your food all the way through the line so no one else touches it. Some others are Wendy's, Chick fil a, and Five Guys, although I try not to eat at fast food too much since I think it is much riskier than eating in a full service restaurant.

[MaryJones2]

McD's you can have ice cream without nuts, drinks, yogurt parfaits, hamburger patties, and eggs and sausage a la carte. And that is IF they understand about CC. Forget the fries, the frying oil is not gluten-free.

The oil is gluten free and the fries are gluten free. The fries and hash browns are cooked in dedicated fryers.

[mushroom]

I cannot fathom feeling safe enough to eat at a fast food restaurant! But then I never have in the past so I feel like I am not missing out on anything exciting.

I am a dittohead here It is the last thing I would think of doing

[violentlyserene]

Chipotle is one of my regular go to places for fast food when I have to eat out. Most locations I've gone to are very aware of cc as well. If you mention you have celiac disease or a wheat allergy they will wash their hands, change gloves and walk your food all the way through the line so no one else touches it. Some others are Wendy's, Chick fil a, and Five Guys, although I try not to eat at fast food too much since I think it is much riskier than eating in a full service restaurant.

Sadly, no chipotle around here. Reducing fast food as we eat out way too much anyway is definitely part of my plan but I like to have options for days when I don't feel like cooking, when we're out and about and most especially for events with friends though those are mainly at places like applebees.

[RacerX35]

I like to go to Chipotle as often as I can (which really isn't too often). I tried Five Guys, but didn't think much of it. I like In-N-Out so much better, they at least can do a (Protein style) lettuce wrap, Five Guys gave me shredded lettuce . They only fry potatoes as well. I will brave McDs and Carls' Jr. with my kids. Carls Jr. does show gluten free options on their web site. Surprisingly to me, they do not list their grilled chicken salad. I don't go to Jack in the Box anymore. I used to like their grilled chicken strips as an option, but one morning we stopped by for breakfast and I ordered two hashbrowns for the trip to the mountains for sledding. Needless to say, I had a minor seizure at the base of the mountain and pulled over to inform my wife that she was now driving the rest of the day. I had another couple of seizures after that.

So there are my picks of fast food,

Ray

[love2travel]

I am a dittohead here It is the last thing I would think of doing

Same. I was at a fast food restaurant once in the last four years as far as I can recall. Perhaps our FF restos in Canada are inferior?!

[mushroom]

Same. I was at a fast food restaurant once in the last four years as far as I can recall. Perhaps our FF restos in Canada are inferior?!

Or maybe we're just food snobs

I ate at a McDonalds in 1980 Hub buys FF drinks all the time, sometimes some food - never seems to get glutened.

[love2travel]

Or maybe we're just food snobs

I ate at a McDonalds in 1980 Hub buys FF drinks all the time, sometimes some food - never seems to get glutened.

Yes - I was going to mention the food snob thing before! I admit it. I am a food snob. I took my niece to McDonalds many years ago but didn't have anything. 1980 - that is funny! I'm proud of you. I was a kid then but even so did not enjoy fast food. By the time I was 10 I was doing all the preserving, canning, making things like dacquoise, artisan chocolates, doughnuts, etc.

However, I used to enjoy street food in other countries but not one single restaurant chain interests me. I love cooking too much to even think about it.

[teacherkd]

The oil is gluten free and the fries are gluten free. The fries and hash browns are cooked in dedicated fryers.

Sorry, but I just got Open Original Shared Link

French Fries:

Potatoes, vegetable oil (canola oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, natural beef flavor [wheat and milk derivatives]*, citric acid [preservative]), dextrose, sodium acid

pyrophosphate (maintain color), salt. Prepared in vegetable oil (Canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil with TBHQ and citric acid added to

preserve freshness). Dimethylpolysiloxane added as an antifoaming agent.

CONTAINS: WHEAT AND MILK.

*(Natural beef flavor contains hydrolyzed wheat and hydrolyzed milk as starting ingredients).

It's that natural beef flavor that gives McD's fries their distinctive taste, but unfortunately, we can't eat it. BTW, TBHQ is a Open Original Shared Link that has some rather nasty side effects.