The CCA’s GF 101 Sessions are normally  ‘Members Only’ BUT because we know that so many people need this kind of support, we have opened up the webinar to the public. Everyone welcome! Who is Ellen Bayens?

Communication is the key ingredient to every successful gluten-free restaurant meal. When diners, chefs and servers are able to collaborate on what is required and what can be reasonably delivered, there is cause for celebration!

But where to begin?

The following is a list of suggested questions to help Start the Conversation on Celiac-Friendly Dining©. In very short order, the responses you receive will allow you to gage any given restaurant’s degree of  gluten awareness – and willingness.  For the very best outcome, call ahead or take your host or server aside before ordering.

NOTE: Restaurants that have carefully researched how to serve us love going into detail. If your questions are met with impatience and exasperation – go with your gut. When restaurants get gluten free right, reward them generously!

Question #1

• Please tell me about the meals  you recommend to diners who need to eat gluten free?

Ingredients

• What ingredients will be used to make my order?
• How do staff  know whether ingredients are really gluten free?
  • Says so on labels?
  • Checked product website?
  • Called the manufacturer?
  • Checked with The Celiac Scene? The CCA?
• Will pure spices, prepared seasonings or soy sauce made from wheat be used to make my meal?
• What other food items are cooked in the oil that ‘gluten-free’ items are cooked in?
• How are sauces and dressings thickened?

Procedures

• How will my server communicate with the kitchen that a gluten-free order has been placed?
• How are gluten-free orders prepared in relation to the regular flow of the kitchen?
• Will staff wash their hands / change gloves / change aprons clean surfaces before preparing my order?
• How do staff ensure that all utensils used in preparing my food are free from any trace of gluten?
  • Separate or scrubbed frying pan? Griddle scrubbed? Aluminum foil barrier? Dedicated pots? Dedicated colanders?
• What other precautions do staff take to minimize / prevent cross contamination?
• How will my server confirm with the kitchen that the order they are collecting has been prepared gluten free?
• How will my server confirm that the order they are delivering to me is gluten free?
  

How did the restaurant learn how to meet the needs of gluten-free diners?

• Through The Celiac Scene? Canadian Celiac Association?
• Registered dietitian? Local health authority?
• Staff members with celiac disease?
  

Questions Specific to Pizza Restaurants 

• The risk of cross contamination with airborne gluten flour is HIGH. Partake only if strict protocols are in place to protect your safety.
• Are ‘gluten-free’ crusts prepared on-site? 
  • During regular operations? Before regular production? During downtimes / days?
  • See questions in Ingredient section above.
• Are pre-made ‘gluten-free’ crusts purchased from a dedicated gluten-free manufacturer? Who is the manufacturer?
• How are gluten-free sauces and toppings prepared?
  • During regular operations? Before regular production? During downtimes / days
  • See questions in Ingredient section above.
• How do staff ensure that all utensils used in preparing gluten-free orders are free of any trace of gluten?
• How are utensils, crusts, sauces and toppings protected from cross-contamination with gluten while waiting to be used?
• How will my order be protected from cross-contamination with gluten once it has been prepared and/or while waiting to be served?

If the prospect of grilling restaurants about their gluten-free friendliness feels intimidating, you’ve got options!

Visit The Celiac Scene for restaurants that enjoy an excellent reputation within Victoria and Vancouver Island’s celiac community.

Join Victoria’s Gluten-Free Foodies to dine with a gluten-free group at carefully vetted restaurants. With more than 100 Meet-Ups under our belts, choose from a huge inventory of tried and tested celiac-friendly restaurants.

Six Mile Pub pulls out all the stops for Gluten-Free Mother’s Day!  Enjoy eggs benedict, omelettes, hash browns, amazing desserts and more!

“Our Culinary team will plate food directly from the Kitchen, to avoid cross contamination at the Buffet, for no additional charge. We do ask for diners’ patience in case there is a wait due to high demand.”

Gear up with a Mimosa, a Caesar or even a gluten-free Bard’s Beer! Gots Kids? Ask to be seated in the Family Room and order from the Kids Menu!

Reserve now 250-378-3121!
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Six Mile Pub Believes in Great Food that Happens to be Gluten Free! 

• TESTIMONIAL:  Just had dinner last night at the 6 Mile Pub on Old Island Highway. Wow! I have eaten here before but was amazed again at the GF menu selection, presentation, deliciousness, and the feeling of safety eating there. We went with another family and it was so awesome that I could share food with others who easily ordered GF even though they aren’t Celiac because there is just so many good things to choose from. The calamari is the best I have had anywhere. All the deserts were gluten free. How is this possible I wondered? I asked the waitress and she told me the chef is Celiac! We need more Celiac chefs that are this creative!! I this has got to be best restaurant for dinner for Celiacs in the Victoria area.

Find Six Mile Pub at 494 Old Island Highway in View Royal, British Columbia
250-478-3121 • Free Parking • Accessible • Six Mile Pub • Facebook • Twitter • Instagram

Click for details

The 160 year-old View Royal pub that served the Gold Rush has set the gold standard for gluten free! Pub fare created with culinary flare, Six Mile is proud to serve ‘SIX-Nature’ chicken wings, deep-fried halibut and – wait for it –  safe french fries & yam fries cooked in a dedicated deep fryer!

Click here to view all menus!

Six Mile Pub’s Red Seal Chefs and their protégées pride themselves on meeting the needs of celiac diners and  anyone with sensitivities i.e. dairy, soy, nuts or shellfish.

The kudos continue  – it is not necessary to call ahead to announce a gluten-free diner, but those with additional sensitivities will be treated like royalty if you let the chefs know at 250-478-3121. They’ve yet to meet an allergy they have not been able to accommodate.

• Six Mile Pub Videos – click here.
• Proud to serve 100% Gluten-Free Bard’s Beer
• Six Mile Pub Celebrates 160 Years in View Royal

There’s a cozy corner,  a sun-drenched patio or a pool table just right for you. Families are welcome with a menu made with the celiac child in mind. The family room, open daily until 9pm also makes a great space for group functions.

Gluten-free pizza is a Happy Hour feature everyday from 3 – 5pm made with Six Mile’s Signature Sourdough Crust.

Six Mile produces its own light and fluffy gluten-free buns with a Celiac Scene Approved Secret Ingredient!

DID YOU KNOW?

• That all the Pastas, Breads and Corn Tortilla Chips we serve are made fresh, right here in our own kitchen.
• That we keep our own Honey Bees in our Riverside Culinary Garden and Apiary to produce pure, unpasteurized honey for our Bar syrups and desserts.
• That one of our goals is to foster a healthier community by serving only wild Ocean-Wise seafood, “Drug-Free” meats and Organic produce wherever possible and practical.
• That it is important to us to help sustain the Local Economy by providing local employment and purchasing from Local farms such as Parry Bay Sheep Farm, Laughing Ducks Farm and Saanich Organics.
• That because of the purity of our food, many of our guests with Food Allergies and Sensitivities are now able to enjoy a proper “restaurant” meal.
• That we long for the day when ALL our Guests will already know that EVERYTHING we serve is made from scratch, on-site, and that we will no longer need to use terms like “house-made” and “fresh” to describe our food.

A Very Special Gluten-Free Mother’s Day Brunch & Dinner
at Union Street Bar & Grill in Courtenay
(scroll down for menus)

BRUNCH NOTES: Enjoy the Shrimp Omelette gluten free or adapt the Back Bacon English Muffin with a gluten-free English muffin. Brunch is 11-4

DINNER NOTES: all items are gluten-free or can be adapted to gluten free. Dinner 5-9

Reserve: 250-897-0081 • 477 5th Street in Courtenay
unionstreetgrill.ca • Facebook • Twitter
Menu • Music and Events • About Union Street Grill • Testimonials • Blog

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Print Brunch Menu • Print Dinner Menu

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Anyone tuned into Vancouver Island’s gluten-free dining scene has heard the call of Union Street Grill & Grotto’s amazing celiac-friendly menu – with its extensive selection of gluten-free appetizers, entrees and desserts.

Union Street Grill’s recipe is simple and effective – provide the Comox Valley with three essential ingredients! Good Food, Good Drinks and Good Times!

Check out their daily gluten-free specials here!

SUNDAYS AFTER 5PM: Kids’ meals are $2 off. Seniors receive a 10% discount. Frequent Diners earn double points!

Hertel Meats is celebrating summer this Saturday at Thrifty Foods’ new Belmont location! They’re cooking up their very best bacon – always gluten-free, dairy-free with no added MSG! Catch them outside at 3011 Merchant Way in Langford.

Country Fresh, Naturally The Best!

Established in 1967, Port Alberni’s Hertel Meats pioneered the curing of meats without MSG and lead the way with dairy-free, gluten-free, preservative-free sausages. Their bacon? To die for! Who needs chocolate!

Hertel Meats – Member of  Thrifty Foods ‘Pick BC First Hall of Fame!

Hertel Meats Ltd. was created in 1967, a small family enterprise, providing slaughter, cutting & wrapping, and further processing, of beef, pork and game for local farmers and hunters.

• In the mid 80’s, Tom Hertel recognized and responded to a need he saw in his customers, developing Hertel’s now renowned line of fresh sausages processed without wheat gluten, lactose (milk) products, or artificial preservatives. 
• He also created a naturally smoked bacon cured without the use of sodium nitrite, nitrate or other chemical preservatives which quickly established itself as a top seller and remains in high demand today.
• Hertels was also a pioneer in the production of products seasoned without the use of Monosodium Glutamate. (MSG), a trend that was soon imitated by many other major meat processing plants.

Hertel Meats is renowned among Vancouver Island and Lower Mainland Grocery Retailers for the freshness and availability of their top quality wholesale fresh pork cuts.

Hertel Meats is a proud sponsor of The Celiac Scene and the Canadian Celiac Association’s Gluten-Free Living Classes.

• HertelMeats.ca
• Where to Buy
• About Hertel Meats
• Hertel’s Product Listing
• Cooking & Carving
• Facebook • Instagram
• Contact 1-866-723-9698
• Order Form

SAUSAGES*

Pork Sausage • Breakfast Sausage • Cocktail • Honey & Garlic • Apple & • Cinnamon • Maple & Brown Sugar • Bratwurst • BBQ Bratwurst • Hot Italian • Mild Italian • Chorizo • Turkey

• *British Bangers, Tomato Basil and Rosemary Garlic Sausages contain wheat crumbs. Careful practices are in place to prevent cross contamination.

BACON

• Thick Cut Bacon • Uncured Bacon • Ayreshire Bacon • Back Bacon • Piece Bacon • Piece Back Bacon •

HAM

• Bone-In Ham • Boneless Ham • E-Z Carve Ham • Smoked Picnics • Cottage Roll • Kassler Loin • Smoked Pork Chops • Smoked Ribs • Smoked Jowls • Smoked Hocks •

Where to Purchase Hertel Meats Products