Published: April 24, 2006 Going gluten-free Janet McKenzie Prince's home has been a gluten-free zone for the past six years.Now she wants to extend that zone throughout her new hometown. Writer Prince has celiac disease, in which the body reacts badly to a substance found in gluten in wheat, rye and barley. Since moving to just outside Knoxville last year, she's come up with a new mission: showing people they can eat gluten-free and still eat well -- both at home and in restaurants. "I like to eat out, and I like to eat well," Prince said. The former travel correspondent and photographer, who's eaten in restaurants all across the country, didn't eat restaurant food for about a year after she was diagnosed with celiac. She had a "fear of being poisoned" by food preparers and servers who didn't understand how serious celiac disease is or how to prevent foods containing gluten from "cross-contaminating" those that don't. When she finally began eating out again, she gradually realized "a little restaurant card that said I needed a gluten-free diet wasn't enough," Prince said. "I wanted to explain why and also to share with them the seriousness of the diet." So she prepared a brochure, "Miss Janet's Gluten-Free Zone," that explains celiac disease and guidelines for "safe" gluten-free cooking, and she began distributing it to chefs and managers in restaurants across the country. Response "has been excellent," Prince said -- including in Knoxville-area restaurants, where she's distributed a stack of the pamphlets over the past year and spent time talking to chefs and managers about gluten-free menus. "Every chef that I've talked to, they're passionate about their food, and they want to share fine food with their fellow human beings," Prince said. "Here's someone who really wants good food, and only they, at that very moment, can prepare food that's safe." Prince said she has the best success with privately owned restaurants, such as the Orangery, Lakeside Tavern, the Northshore Brasserie and restaurants in the Connor Concepts Inc. chain, which includes Chop House restaurants and Connor's Steak House and Seafood. But more and more, large chain restaurants, such as Outback Steakhouse (which also owns Bonefish Grill and Carrabba's Italian Grill) and P.F. Chang's, are making gluten-free menus available, Prince said. "It's nice knowing that when I'm traveling and I just want something casual, I can go into a P.F. Chang's restaurant, ask for a gluten-free menu, and they know all about it," Prince said. "It's just so comforting to be able to have that 'normal' feeling again when you go to a restaurant." Although she expects gluten-free diets to one day be as common as low-salt or low-carbohydrate diets, she cautions that the concept may still be a new one at many restaurants. "I'm sure everyone who's on a medically restricted diet has had the same experience," Prince says, "where you sit down and you explain things, and the waitress says: 'Oh, I know all about it. My cousin has that!' -- and then brings me the salad with the roll on top of it. And I say, 'No, I don't think you've quite got it yet,' and she says, 'Oh, not a problem!' -- and takes the roll off the salad and says, 'There you go!' "Once it's been contaminated, it's been contaminated, and they don't (always) quite get that. But that's only been a few times." If you're going with a group to a buffet where cross-contamination is possible, or a busy chain restaurant where it's unlikely harried staff will take time to deal with your needs, there's no shame in taking your own food, Prince said. "I have become very comfortable with it," and rather than giving her a hard time, restaurant staff generally appreciates not having to worry about giving her food that might harm her, Prince said. "Put it on your clean plate, have a glass of wine and enjoy yourself." Before being diagnosed, Prince wrote a number of books, including some cookbooks. Now she's working on a guide, tentatively titled "Living and Loving the Gluten-Free Lifestyle," that will focus on functioning with celiac, including resources for shopping and eating in the Knoxville area. Prince, who's in the process of building a house outside Knoxville, hopes to have the book completed by next year. By that time, she hopes, she will have built relationships with chefs all over the area -- and can recommend their restaurants to others who need gluten-free diets because of celiac disease or other conditions. "You have to be able to trust the people behind the swinging doors," she said. "Hopefully, they're taking your needs seriously." Kristi L. Nelson may be reached at 865-342-6434. She is health writer for the News Sentinel. |
