Eating out in restaurants, at social gatherings and while traveling are key concerns for those on special diets, greatly impacting each individual’s quality of life. Cutting edge global market research from AllergyFree Passport® and its affiliate GlutenFree Passport® reveals that the primary factors which influence special diet guests when eating away from home include:
In addition, individuals are also concerned about traveling, which includes eating out in restaurants, finding snacks, flying, choosing accommodations and communicating in foreign languages. At the same time, many restaurants and travel providers around the world are expanding their gluten-free offerings due to increased customer demand.
This resource addresses these considerations and facilitates safe eating experiences by empowering individuals and businesses alike. Focused on ingredients, food preparation techniques, hidden allergens and cross-contamination, this ebook can be used as a daily resource, a reference guide, an educational tool and/or a training manual depending upon your specific perspective.
The Let's Eat Out! series includes cuisine-specific guides, such as this ebook, multi-lingual phrases, print books, applications and other ebooks as described in the Appendix.
It should be noted that celiac / coeliac disease is an auto-immune disorder with a permanent intolerance to gluten, the protein found in wheat, rye and barley. Spelled celiac in North America and coeliac throughout the rest of the world, it can only be treated and controlled by the strict adherence to a 100% gluten-free diet. In addition, some individuals managing food allergies may be at risk to anaphylaxis which is a life threatening condition requiring immediate medical attention.
This award-winning series provides easy-to-use resources that are succinct and flexible to meet the various readers’ needs. The scope is the result of years of extensive global market research, consultations, analysis and personal experiences. The content approach and structure are based upon focus group testing/feedback by hundreds of individuals impacted by gluten-free diets, in-depth hospitality industry assessments and proven results with safe eating experiences worldwide.
The content of this ebook encompasses Italian restaurant cuisine which can be found in many cities and countries around the world. This innovative initiative focuses on what can be safely eaten when ordering meals in Italian restaurants based upon a “cuisine-specific” approach.
The restaurant cuisine details suggested dishes, meal descriptions and potential food allergen considerations. To determine the menu items provided in this ebook, thousands of menus and recipes from all over the world were researched to identify which items were most commonly found in Italian restaurants. Once established, each was then reviewed to determine which had the highest likelihood of being gluten and wheat-free. Then, ingredients, food preparation techniques, hidden allergens and cross-contamination concerns were defined for each menu item.
To ensure accuracy, rigorous quality assurance testing was also conducted with chefs, restaurants and culinary schools worldwide to confirm each of the descriptions, considerations and traditional/nontraditional culinary practices.
Other sections of the book focus on additional eating out guidelines including the proven guest and restaurant approach to safe eating experiences, the learning curve for special diets and the collaborative process.
Armed with the critical questions to ask, appropriate knowledge and preparation checklists, you now have the opportunity and freedom to safely eat in any Italian restaurant.
At the same time, eating establishments can ensure that potentially problematic ingredients, preparation techniques and cross-contamination concerns are addressed when preparing and serving special diet guests.
Sold in 50-plus countries, this innovative series reflects the collaborative efforts of hundreds of individuals and organizations around the world. The ebook chapters are categorized into the following areas for your reference.
The cuisine chapters highlight the following:
Gluten Awareness details the areas of food preparation that must be considered for gluten-free meals. These areas of food preparation are explained in detail and a series of requests are presented to help simplify the ordering process.
Allergen Considerations identify potential sources of hidden food allergens that may be present based upon both traditional and non-traditional culinary practices. There are many reasons why restaurants may incorporate non-traditional culinary practices into their cuisine. Lack of availability, associated costs of importing special ingredients and regular customers’ preferences can influence an establishment's approach to cooking.
Traditional Ingredients outline the most common types of foods and beverages that are found in the cuisine such as vegetables, meats, seafood, sides and seasonings.
Dining Considerations outline relevant service styles and what to expect from a dining experience based on meal schedules and cultural customs. Specific information about restaurant menus is also presented.
Sample Italian Restaurant Menu identifies the name of each dish in its native language along with the English equivalent. Ethnic cuisines often present each menu item in the language of the country you are in as well as the native language.
Italian Menu Item Descriptions summarize each dish's ingredients and the culinary preparation techniques involved in their creation. Specific areas of food preparation are detailed to show what items need to be confirmed with the restaurant for a safe meal. Each description also identifies common food allergens that could potentially be included as well as areas of food preparation that must be questioned to ensure safe gluten-free eating experiences. After each description, gluten-free factors are outlined.
As an example, under the Italian Specialty category, the sample menu item Risotto al Pollo (Arborio Rice and Chicken Dish) is detailed as follows:
Risotto al Pollo (Arborio Rice and Chicken Dish)
In Risotto al Pollo, arborio rice is boiled in fresh chicken stock. In a separate pan, white wine is simmered with garlic, olive oil, onions or shallots, salt and pepper.
Slices of chicken are then added, sometimes with aromatic herbs such as anise, fennel or rosemary. The chicken is then added to the rice, which has had fresh stock continually added to it as the moisture evaporates.
As the moisture continues to evaporate, butter, parmigiano reggiano and romano cheese are added. The dish is usually garnished with parsley.
Gluten-Free Decision Factors:
These chapters outline the learning curve associated with special dietary needs as well as the approach to dining out from both the guest and restaurant perspectives. The guest approach to eating outside the home and the restaurant approach to handling special diets detail specific “how-to” steps for each respective party. In addition, suggested questions are provided to help assess your level of preparedness along the way. The collaborative process then outlines the key components required for mutually safe eating experiences from the planning effort to table-side communications.
The appendix outlines extensive educational resources available to further assist in your search for information about eating outside the home as well as catering to guests with special dietary needs.
A variety of anytime, anywhere eating out tools and reading materials are also detailed including:
The on-line resources available from www.Gluten-FreePassport.com and www.AllergyFreePassport.com reflect thousands of gluten and allergen-free organizations, restaurants, bakeries, eating establishments, stores, manufacturers, airlines, products, labeling regulations, translation cards and websites from around the world.