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I just called Dick's Kitchen in Portland, a Paleo restaurant, to see whether they were generally safe for people sensitive to cross-contamination. I was told I probably wouldn't be safe there. They make their own potato buns, which contain wheat flour, and they don't seem to take precautions to prevent cross-contamination from that wheat flour to other surfaces in their kitchen. They do offer gluten-free buns (prepackaged), but I don't understand why they make their own gluten-containing buns. Why not buy locally-baked buns for their hamburgers, if they want a gluteny option for non-paleo eaters?

They go out of their way to offer vegan options on the menu, and yet they can't cater to the gluten-sensitive by simply not baking buns with wheat flour? Do paleo eaters really want buns that contain wheat flour, anyway?

Has anyone here who is sensitive to cross-contamination eaten there? If so, have you ever gotten glutened?

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 Because most people claiming ultra sensitivity to gluten have a psychological, not physiological condition? – Don Jun 30 at 17:54
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 Do you have something to back that claim up? That has not been my experience at all. I have repeatedly gotten sick (diarrhea) from walking into a bakery (not eating anything), and from drinking tea made in a bakery, when it couldn't have been from anything else. I've also gotten sick from foods that tested barely positive on my ELISA test strips which are sensitive to around 10ppm. If you read the celiac research literature, you'll see that there are variations in sensitivity, and the 200ppm or 20ppm limits don't hold for everyone. Destruction of intestinal brush border isn't psychological – Sara S. Jun 30 at 18:14
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 Also, plenty of restaurants (usually where the owner or chef knows someone with celiac disease) are able to accomodate by following good practices in the kitchen, just like they do for peanut and shellfish allergies (which also tend to be extreme, like celiac disease). Does anyone claim that shellfish and peanut allergies are psychological? – Sara S. Jun 30 at 18:16
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 Lastly, I want to mention that I have found no correlation between thinking I'm likely to get glutened and actually getting glutened. So I have reasonable assurance that I don't "make myself sick". I'm just really bothered by people who don't know any better saying it's all in someone's head. It's a way for people to dismiss the experiences of others. – Sara S. Jun 30 at 18:18
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 That's just beyond dumb - a Paleo restaurant that's not gluten-free and safe for someone with celiac disease? They are going to lose a lot of potential customers and a lot of respect from the Paleo community. Maybe you could start a campaign to ask them to change. Surely they could serve rice or gluten-free buns as a non-Paleo alternative for non-Paleo friends/relatives. Totally stupid marketing choice on their part. – Heidi Jun 30 at 19:01
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6 Answers

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How can a Paleo restaurant serve potato buns with wheat flour? How Paleo is this?

Paleo should be gluten-free, period. If they are not gluten-free/grain-free, they cannot be Paleo.

It is super easy to combine Paleo and vegan - not even vegetarian, vegan. Omit any kind of animal products.

It is super easy to combine Paleo and Primal - add some cream/butter.

But Paleo and gluten? What else do they add, Paleo MSG? How about serving Paleo vodka a la Caveman?

My Gosh - Paleo is really a broad term. Very soon they will be making Paleo Twix and Paleo Mars bars.

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 Agreed. It's entirely possible to be gluten-free without being paleo, but I wouldn't consider gluten-free products to be admissible under paleo. Isn't the point to eliminate unhealthy foods, not replace them with cute substitues that are equally unhealthy? – Corbab Jun 30 at 18:44
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 Vodka wouldn't be too bad though. I don't get a negative reaction from it like wheat. – primallykosher Jun 30 at 19:58
Been there....not super impressed with it. – Karin Jul 1 at 5:22
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Yep, paleo has jumped the shark. If I'm going to eat gluten, I'm not going to eat it as some culinary ghetto "caveman" restaurant, I'm going to eat some real french bread in Paris or pasta made by a top chef. And for burgers, there are so many burger bars everywhere, that I can just pick the best tasting one and order without the bun. I'm not some kind of "gluten is teh devil" person, but I do think it's beyond dumb to offer modern wheat at a paleo-diet centered restaurant. They could at least use spelt or einkorn or some other kind of heritage wheat.

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...or almond/flax flour. Or a lettuce wrap. – VB Jul 1 at 19:29
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Basically this isn't an actual Paleo restaurant... Just one willing to market itself as one and offer some Paleo options. While I fully understand needing to appeal to a wide audience to 'make it' in the restaurant industry, offering pseudo-paleo offerings will destroy their credibility...

Checked out the menu, and it appears to be primarily a burger and dog joint with a few paleo and vegan options. They do use grass fed beef and offer some interesting sides, but I'd really like to see a Paleo restaurant that has some innovative salads and focuses on stews, soups, meat, seafood and veg prepared in creative dishes.

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 This. No reason to be upset about it, they are just offering some Paleo-friendly options. I don't think they're claiming to be a Paleo-specific restaurant, how could you if you're going to use buns for everything and offer tempeh burgers?! But I'd be relieved to have a place like that in my town that at least made some efforts in that direction. – Karen P. Jun 30 at 19:47
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I have indeed eaten at Dick's Kitchen, but I'm (seemingly) not gluten intolerant. However, since I've been eating (mostly) Paleo I really haven't eaten any buns. Even if it's a potato bun I'd avoid just because of the extra carbs.

I like the idea of the petition though. Overall I had an enjoyable experience at Dick's and think they generally have their head in the right place (I loved the meat options there, what other restaurant can you find venison burgers at?). If they could eliminate the gluten cross-contamination or the gluten at all, I think I might find myself eating there more often. Everything is a work in progress right??

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 I wasn't considering eat the bun. I'd just like to eat there with my friends like I have been at Widmer, Berlin Inn, Otto's, Corbett Fish House, and Jade. Cutting down cross contamination seems pretty doable in this town. And I think the only reason their kitchen is unsafe is that baking with flour without careful cleaning can lead to cross-contamination. That Dick's Kitchen isn't comfortable standing behind their kitchen hygiene makes me suspect they've had complaints in the past. – Sara S. Jul 1 at 5:26
I think that's a really great point that I haven't considered! It could definitely go beyond cross-contamination. Huh... Now I am a little suspicious of Dick's! – Sean14 Jul 10 at 18:42
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I'm not saying whether it's right or wrong or fair or unfair, but I think it's expensive/difficult to guarantee no gluten cross-contamination. I believe it's much easier to offer paleo options and vegan options than to be able to guarantee some dishes in the kitchen have no gluten cross-contamination.

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 Loads of places are able to do it. Baking with wheat flour in a small kitchen seems a quick and easy way to be unable to, though. – Sara S. Jul 1 at 5:31
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Why cater to vegans over the gluten-intolerant? Because vegans probably outnumber (real) gluten-intolerants 10 to 1, at least amongst those who eat out.

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 Celiacs account for approximately 1% of the population, and a bit more are simply gluten-sensitive/intolerant. A CNN poll in 2002 showed that 0.2% of adults in the US are vegan. That number will be a bit higher in Portland, but I don't know by how much. – Sara S. Jul 1 at 5:29
There are tons of gluten intolerant/gluten sensitive people who do not know they are gluten-intolerant. Wheat flour is a PROCESSED FOOD and ALL OF US are PROCESSED FOOD INTOLERANT. – VB Jul 1 at 5:36
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 There are also plenty of gluten-intolerant vegans. I had to go GF when I was still vegan, and damned if I could find ANYWHERE to go out to eat. You can do both. Why not make a GF restaurant that both caters to vegans and paleo? It wouldn't be that difficult. – blueballoon Jul 1 at 12:56
Guys, I'm just saying. Heck, I wouldn't open a restaurant that caters specifically to fringe groups like paleo and vegans. :P – Matt Jul 1 at 18:57

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