Another gf anecdote

That made me smile maw. We meet friends regularly in Leamington Spa. When we were ordering our meals they realised that they had no gf bread and sent someone over the road to Sainsburys.

An up date - the restaurant manager came and apologised profusely gave us a bottle of champagne and said that she will be giving the staff a refresher session on allergies.

I’m not saying this is your situation kittylester but professional kitchens would do well to remember this case.

news.sky.com/story/schoolgirl-15-died-after-eating-pret-a-manger-baguette-11506454

Offering GF especially when advance notice has been given should be the norm. And if you don’t have the necessary you send someone out to the Coop for it.
I was telling a friend about your situation this morning kittylester and he remembered when he and his wife were lunching at the Wolseley in Piccadilly and they had run out of gf rolls or some such to accompany their starter, so a minion from the kitchen was immediately sent out to Tesco in Jermyn St and by way of apology for the wait, all their drinks were taken off the bill.

My problem is the ignorance of the staff which could lead to someone being serious ill.

Absolutely, kittylester
It is not a fad as some think.

It can lead to all kinds of serious illnesses if undiagnosed.

Just a few crumbs could mean a few days' illness.

My dsis is coeliac and while visiting the US called ahead to the restaurant she intended to visit with some friends. When she arrived she was treated with utmost care..she had a separate waiter who looked after her needs while another one looked after everyone else. He checked everything with her making sure she was happy . It was a medium priced restaurant..not high end. It was a very enjoyable experience for her as she is more used to having to put up with the one thing on the menu that she can eat.
Pity she only got to go there once.

That is not me eazybee.

My problem is the ignorance of the staff which could lead to someone being serious ill.

Canadiangran, we are paying a lot of money to stay here and I don't get a reduction for the meals I can't eat. Also, the hotel was informed before we came.

merlot we have a saying in our family: 'it's always a bloody brownie' but, today, I had the most fabulous gf carrot cake at Snape Maltings.

Canadian Gran, you are absolutely right . I have two friends who are gluten free, and going out for a meal with them is a nightmare. We go to restaurants with special gf menus but the food is never acceptable and they want something off the main menu specially cooked for them. Not easily accommodated in a busy restaurant kitchen as the food has to be cooked separately and the chef usually comes out to explain this..
.

Going against the grain here (no pun intended), but eggs and ham, yoghurt, fruit would be available to you in most hotel breakfasts. You were hoping for cereal, most of which naturally contain gluten.

I don't think I would expect restaurants to have options that are unusual. It would be a bonus if they did, but I wouldn't complain if they didn't.

Ducking under the table...

Hi Ali08, Callistemon21 explained very well. Yes all about crumbs in the toaster. We only have one toaster but my toast goes in toastie bags so that’s fine. It can be very damaging in many different ways undiagnosed coeliac disease. I have got Osteoporosis as a result. Today we had a quick M&S lunch and I had a nice gf chicken salad sandwich and a nice bowl of chicken and mushroom soup I was very happy.

We bring our soy milk to every hotel we stay

It's so dispiriting when you are offered a limited choice or in some cases hardly any choice at all.

Back in the summer DGS's girlfriend took me to their local garden centre for coffee and a good old browse. There was a large selection of delicious looking cakes on display but nothing gluten free apart from the ubiquitous, mass produced, pre-wrapped chocolate brownie.

I felt like complaining but didn't want to spoil the day so I just mentioned it was disappointing that there wasn't even one gluten free cake available.

The assistant was quite put out and huffed, 'Well, Carrot Cake is almost gluten free!'

We went to an hotel in Cumbria which assured us that it catered for people on gf diets and their solution was just the same squiffy. It got very wearing by the end of the holiday.

We went for Sunday dinner at a very upmarket hotel for a special occasion. We checked beforehand that they could provide a gf meal and were assured that they could. Well, the solution to the problem was for them to omit the Yorkshire pudding, stuffing and gravy! The only suitable desert was ice cream. We were not very impressed, especially as it's 'the place to go' in our area! The irony is that they do afternoon tea - completely gluten-free!

Luckily I am only gluten intolerant and it's not the end of the world if I do have some. But, I work hard to avoid it especially when we are away as I like to be sure of loo locations!!

I am surprised that this hotel is not on the ball. It always has been previously - which is why we keep coming back.

I wonder if the pandemic has had an impact on the quality of the staff available.

I'd love to opt out and eat fish and chips sar but the award winning chip shop here didn't do gf the last time I looked. It's a flipping minefield.

I'm sorry to hear that Kitty but unfortunately not surprised.
My husband has a severe intolerance to garlic and eating out has become a minefield.
We are staying in a lovely hotel in Suffolk at the moment but trying to find something that he could eat on the menu last night was hard work.
We have decided to go into the local town tonight, buy fish and chips and sit in the car and eat it.
There is much talk of labelling everything with all ingredients likely to cause problems but in reality trying to eat out in a restaurant is hard work.

kittylester

It's OK maw, I was offered cereal with barley in today.

Going to Tesco to buy my own and then will send stiffly worded letter when we get home.

We have been coming to this hotel for a break for 45 years and have never had less than exemplary service - or we wouldn't have continued to come back.

I'm really surprised that they are not better than this with all the knowledge available to them now, kittylester.

Going to Tesco to buy my own and then will send stiffly worded letter when we get home

A complimentary weekend comes to mind ..... with proper gf food provided.

I recently stayed at a Holiday Inn with a friend who is GF. At breakfast there was a small table which said to ask for gluten free options. He brought her out some bread for toast and said the sausages ( on the normal buffet) were gluten free but they weren’t labelled as such. Saying that there was only 1 toaster and who knows if the sausages had been cooked with other items.
Like you Kittylester she often takes along her own items but in this day and age shouldn’t have to.

It's OK maw, I was offered cereal with barley in today.

Going to Tesco to buy my own and then will send stiffly worded letter when we get home.

We have been coming to this hotel for a break for 45 years and have never had less than exemplary service - or we wouldn't have continued to come back.

ShazzaKanazza
I'm totally ignorant to all this so could you explain why a different toaster would be needed, please?

Ali08 if the same toaster is used then crumbs from ordinary bread with gluten could contaminate gluten-free bread.

Coeliac disease is an auto-immune disease where the body reacts to gluten in wheat, barley (it can also react to avenin in oats so gf oats can be a no-no too). Villi, which absorb nutrients, are destroyed and the person can become sicker and sicker.

Oh dear kittylester that is disappointing. I appreciate that hospitality has considerable staffing shortages post Covid but a hotel of the calibre you are staying at should be able to do better. ☹️☹️☹️

ShazzaKanazza

I’m coeliac and it really can be a challenge. If we stay in a premier inn they will do toast in the kitchen with a seperate toaster or under the grill I’m not sure but it’s great. I’ve never asked for any cereal there. Stayed in a Hilton on tower bridge in London and they had no gf cereal and couldn’t do me any toast. You’d think a large chain could buy a cheap little toaster. They were most apologetic.

ShazzaKanazza
I'm totally ignorant to all this so could you explain why a different toaster would be needed, please?
And also tell me what Coeliac is?
If you don't mind?

Gf cornflakes would be good really.

I did say that people generally don't choose to eat it so it's never going to be popular.

The menu in general has much less choice than when we have visited previously. Wonder if that's a trend

That’s really poor kittylester. - they could at least buy a box of individual sachets of GF Quaker Oats so Simple to keep in stock.

That’s really brilliant service. When we stayed at a hotel with friends a few years back the food was not great all stood under lamps for ages in gloopy lukewarm sauces but when I said I was coeliac they cooked me fresh grilled meat and fish every night. Everyone was so jealous.

I remember staying at a chain hotel and DD was with us. When she told them she was coeliac the chef came out and had a chat with her and assured her he would make sure that all her food would be gf and prepared in a separate area.
Well done to them.

I’m coeliac and it really can be a challenge. If we stay in a premier inn they will do toast in the kitchen with a seperate toaster or under the grill I’m not sure but it’s great. I’ve never asked for any cereal there. Stayed in a Hilton on tower bridge in London and they had no gf cereal and couldn’t do me any toast. You’d think a large chain could buy a cheap little toaster. They were most apologetic.