Littlenecks
Red 36

Red 36

2 Washington Street, Stonington, 06378, United States Of America, MYSTIC

Seafood • American • Fast Food • Sandwiches


"Gluten-free eaters, beware. I have Celiac Disease. I can’t have gluten, full stop. When I walked into Red 36, I saw a sign on the wall identifying not only the 9 major food allergies, but also the safe handling practices a kitchen should follow for each one. Great! This is a sign that tells people with intolerances that we will be taken care of here. Once seated, I told the waitress about my intolerance, and she immediately brought me a gluten-free menu. Another good sign. I ordered the gluten-free tuna burger, which (according to the gluten-free menu) is supposed to omit the bun, fries, and anything else containing gluten. When my plate came out with fries, I knew something was off. I asked the waitress, and she apologized, confirmed that the fries were not gluten-free and offered to bring me a side salad instead. Separately, I started eating the tuna, but was surprised to find (buried beneath the fish and a pile of coleslaw) crispy egg noodles. I stopped eating and again asked the waitress if my order was gluten free. She returned to the kitchen and informed me that, (1) the crispy noodles were not gluten free, (2) despite having apparently put “gluten free” on my order, the whole meal was not gluten free, (3) the same thing happened at the table next to ours, despite having notified the kitchen accordingly. So, having unknowingly eaten gluten, I now have to wait out a week or more of painful symptoms of my Celiac Disease. I expect a lot more from restaurants that purport to exercise care for people with food allergies. It’s one thing if a kitchen is not equipped to cook according to dietary restrictions—I can manage my expectations. It is quite another when a restaurant is equipped to safely serve people with intolerances, communicates this to the patrons, and then fails to do so twice in a matter of an hour. There’s a lot of trust I have to put into restaurants, and I regret doing so in this instance. I’m beyond grateful that my intolerance doesn’t send me into anaphylaxis. I hope that, wherever the breakdown happened between ordering and serving, it gets resolved before other folks with food intolerances get sick. TL;DR gluten free diners, proceed with caution. Dietary restrictions: Purports to be gluten-free. See review."