This is what happens when you use free airline miles. The ticket = free (yay!). The schedule = insanity (NOT yay!).
We spent the night at a nearby hotel and used one of my iPhone apps to find a gluten free dinner in the area. There weren't many options (apparently Miami is a bit behind the times in the world of gluten free food), but there was one that caught our attention:
Naked Pizza!
Made with fresh, organic, and often local ingredients, I've heard from several folks that the pizzas at Naked Pizza can't be beat. Naked is a national chain, and their website offers a gluten free menu and a video of a chef preparing a gluten free pizza. It looked amazing.
By the time we pulled up to the restaurant it was nearly 10pm and this pregnant girl was STARVING. Still, I asked all of my usual questions: "How do you prevent cross-contamination in your kitchen? Are all the ingredients gluten free?" etc.
I was a little worried about cross-contamination, even with the manager's helpful and thorough explanations, because everyone in the kitchen (even the manager) was wearing a black apron covered in flour. It looked like they had a flour fight. It made me SO nervous.
Still, the manager explained everything well and promised that our pizza preparer would wash his hands and put on new gloves. It was 10pm and there were no other restaurants in the area that had gluten free food, and we were starving, so we went ahead and ordered a gluten free pizza with green peppers and pineapple.
We waited hungrily, our mouths watering at all the yummy pizza smells. When we got it, we booked it back to our hotel and got ready to dig in.
The pizza did not last long!
It was really yummy, and the crust was obviously gluten free. The box was labeled with "gluten free" stamped on the receipt, so we were pretty sure all was well.
Then about half an hour passed.
Then I spent the next eight hours in the bathroom feeling utterly miserable. I had been glutened. It was the WORST.
Not just because getting glutened is terrible, but because I had an EIGHT hour plane flight in the morning!
I pulled myself together and got to the airport, thanks to my very loving husband, but not without another awful bathroom stop. By the time our plane took off I was feeling a bit better, but still really exhausted, achy, and plagued with stomach cramps.
My only regret is that we didn't call the store to complain. I just honestly didn't have the energy, and it was all my husband could do to get himself, my pregnant-and-glutened self, and our many suitcases to the security line.
We will not be eating at Naked Pizza again. Ever.
Have you ever eaten at Naked Pizza? How did it go?
I haven't eaten at Naked but your post brings something up for me that maybe you or others have found a way around. I have been places, had that bad feeling, went ahead and ate and got subsequently glutened and then beat myself up over it for not going with my gut (no pun intended). It certainly doesn't help and it doesn't change anything - I, too, haven't complained because I've just felt crummy and my anger (yes, anger) usually subsides with my reaction. By then I've decided the best they will do is apologize (and at worst give me some guff about not being able to guarantee no cross-contamination, which would make me angry all over). Have you found a similar reaction? If so, how do you cut yourself a break?
ReplyDeleteNicole
Oh no!!! Boo. I would still email them after the fact just to let them know; boo again. I hate this happened!
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