Friday, February 15, 2013

News & Notes: February 15, 2013

Dos Gringos Mexican Kitchen in Media (113 S. Olive St., 61-565-7794) has marked gluten-free items on its menus.

Also in Delaware County, Pappy's Crabhouse in Folsom (902 E. Macdade Blvd., 484-494-7991) can prepare gluten-free crab cakes with advance notice. (Thanks, Amy F.)

The new Corner Foodery near Rittenhouse Square (1710-12 Sansom St., 215-567-1500) has an entire fridge full of gluten-free ciders and beers. including Fox Tail Ale, the first gluten-free beer in a can.

The Dinner A'Fare kitchen in Chadds Ford (100 Ridge Rd., 610-358-2470) can now prepare gluten-free meals. The menu changes monthly, but in February the Feta Tomato Basil Tilapia, Cranberry and Goat Cheese Chicken and Flank Steak with Cognac Sauce dishes are gluten free, and the Malibu Chicken, Pecan Crusted Pork Tenderloin, Mini Meatloaves, Black Bean Enchiladas and Greek Chicken Pitas can be modified to be gluten free. The kitchen does not have a separate gluten-free area but does keep separate measurements for gluten-free meals. (Thanks, Tara H.)

Reader Brian K. let me know that Washington Square West's Percy Street Barbeque (900 South St., 215-625-8510) has overhauled its menu this month and, unfortunately, it's much less gluten-free friendly than the previous iteration. The sauces are no longer gluten free and the only safe meats are the smoked brisket and barbeque chicken. (UPDATE 7:16 P.M.: The management will be going back to gluten-free BBQ sauces, but ask your server to be sure.)

California Pizza Kitchen is planning to test a gluten-free pizza crust later this year. Hopefully, the testing will iron out the cross-contamination issues that forced the chain to pull the plug on a similar offering back in 2011.

Some fancy macaroni and cheese is coming. Good Tastes is rolling out two gluten-free varieties: Carmelized Onion & Herb (with Cheddar, Monterey Jack and Gorgonzola) and Four Cheese (made with Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Parmesan and Ricotta). The products are made in a certified gluten-free facility. You'll find them in the frozen food aisle at Whole Foods markets.

Whole Foods will open its first Cherry Hill location at the Ellisburg Circle Shopping Center at Route 70 and Kings Highway. The grocer will occupy a 47,000-square-foot section of Ellisburg Circle's 267,000 square feet of total space and is expected to open in 2014. By way of comparison, the Cherry Hill store will be slightly larger than the chain's Plymouth Meeting location that opened in 2010.

FreshDirect is a shop-at-home grocery delivery service out of New York City that recently entered the Philadelphia region. In addition to servicing Center City homes and businesses, the company now delivers to Camden and Burlington counties in New Jersey. I tried out the service and was pleased at the quality of the produce and meat and the selection of fresh, refrigerated and frozen gluten-free items. Right now, new customers can choose from several offers: $25 off an order of $99 or more with code AFCN8, 15% off a $75+ order with code AFCN5, or free delivery of a $50+ order with code AFCN32. You can also combine the first two offers with the purchase of a two-month Delivery Pass trial (unlimited free deliveries) for just 1 cent. (Purchases made through the above links help support Gluten Free Philly.)

As I wrote on Tuesday, there are many new gluten-free products debuting for Passover, including a chocolate chip cookie cereal, red velvet macaroons and another line of matzos.

The Greater Philadelphia Celiac Support Group is having a vendor fair in conjunction with its upcoming semi-annual meeting on Friday, March 15 at Abington Memorial Hospital. The vendor fair runs from 5:45 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Vendors interested in participating should email Ellen Gaffney to reserve space. The meeting itself will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will feature Dr. Keith Laskin of the Paoli Celiac Center, speaking on non-responsive Celiac Disease.

It's not too late to RSVP for CHOP's pediatric Celiac Disease education day on Sunday, March 17. Call 215-590-2985 to register.

Have a great weekend!

- Michael
Comment using:

No comments: