Let’s face it, when we want a tasty dessert, eating gluten-free, shall we say, can be challenging to put it mildly. Unless you are eating at a dedicated gluten-free restaurant, dedicated bakery, or a gluten-free friendly establishment, your choices of gluten-free desserts can be limited to none.

When we are eating in a category other than desserts, our food choices are much more diverse and far-reaching. With so many food choices, eating gluten-free can be fun and push us out of our box to explore and create new dishes and desserts. Being gluten-free can even make us an advocate for gluten-free that tastes good!

When you’re out and about, whether shopping or dining, keep this list handy! Although extensive, this is not a complete list of all gluten-containing foods. Your best defense is to be an informed, excellent label reader and check out the label before you buy every time you shop. Don’t ever assume that a jar of nuts or trail mix doesn’t have gluten because it says gluten-free on the box. Make sure to read through all the ingredients, then look to see if there is a warning for cross-contamination.

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Confused about how to find great gluten-free restaurants around you or when you travel? Find out tools you can use to find amazing gluten-free friendly and dedicated gluten-free restaurants to eat at on New Year’s Eve. If you're new to the gluten-free scene or you've been gluten-free for a while, you can still have a hard time finding a great restaurant. Whether you are a foodie or not, looking for a restaurant at home or on vacation, getting a good gluten-free meal at a nice restaurant can be daunting.

There are several tools you can use when you want to find a great restaurant for you and your family and friends! Filter for price, type of food and ambience. Learn how to cross-check your choice of restaurant, find out the difference between a gluten-free friendly restaurant and a dedicated gluten-free restaurant. Additionally, listen in to find out which three questions to ask when calling a restaurant to find out if they are safe for celiacs.

Opentable
One of the resources I love to use is OpenTable. OpenTable is a reservation site and I use this resource because it’s easy to filter and find restaurants and reserve online instantly. You can use opentable’s online website or their mobile app to book a table. Your account setup is free. Find restaurants and make reservations through OpenTable and receive points when you dine at that restaurant using a reservation from OpenTable. When you reach a certain level of points you will receive rewards through OpenTable.

Find Me Gluten Free App
Find Me Gluten Free is available online and as a mobile app. Look for gluten-free friendly, dedicated gluten-free restaurants, places to eat with dedicated fryers. Find different gluten-free features

 Insist on Your Choice of Restaurant

Do you really need to be selfish when it comes to eating out? YES, mainly if you have limited choices because of your dietary restrictions. Feeling bad because you think others are loosing out? Drop that feeling of guilt because that other person wouldn't feel the same about the situation if they were in your shoes. 

People who aren't GF don't understand what we go through, they think it's silly or our digestive discomfort isn't that bad, and we should just put up with it. Seriously? When is the last time anyone enjoyed having pain and stomach cramps for three days because they ate a doughnut? Maybe some twisted masochist, but for the rest of the living comfortably crowd, we would instead feel good and eat good food, just like everyone else.

Take that gluten-free app, your restaurant guide, or your friend's advice and insist you eat at the restaurant which you CAN eat. The person that says "Well, hey, they have salads!", tell them the last time you checked you were not a manatee. 

Be your gluten-free selfie-and own your GF status! Be bold, fearless and insist on your choice of eating establishment because, after all, your tastebuds need to be satisfied just like everyone else!

​For great advice on how to travel gluten-free, grab my Guide to Traveling Gluten-Free on Amazon today!

One afternoon while driving home, it came to fruition how finding a good restaurant with options is similar to finding a good guy to date. At first glance, you may wonder how I came to connect these two (you may also wonder about my sanity, but that's a subject for a different kind of blog). 

No. 1
Comfort
When looking for a good restaurant, you want to find a place that makes you feel comfortable. Your date should also make you feel comfortable as well, because, if he (or she) seriously isn't then you're not going to go back out with that person again, at least you shouldn't. Who wants to spend time at a restaurant (or on a date) in an uncomfortable situation? Only masochists, and I for sure, do not fall into that category!

No. 2
Smell and Taste
One of the very first senses that picks up good food is your sense of smell. If the food smells good, then for the most part, it will taste good. We all like to eat food that tastes good, no matter what foods we cannot eat. For those of us who are gluten-free, we are limited, but still look for yummy food! Like your food, your date