Jesse - often there are good choices at GF friendly sushi and Vietnamese and Thai places. Just watch out for the soy/sauces.

My best guess is if she's speaking out in a work situation, there are heavy-duty medical reasons and she'd like to be able to do her best job for her employer and participate in the meeting.

My best guess is if she's speaking out in a work situation, there are heavy-duty medical reasons and she'd like to be able to do her best job for her employer and participate in the meeting.

When I was in Chicago for a daylong meeting at the AMA, they served us breakfast and lunch, and I told my boss ahead of time that I needed to eat gluten-free, and gave examples of what I *can* eat. She told me that for the breakfast there would be fruit and pastries, and that they got some gluten-free pastries. When that morning rolled around, she told me "The bakery didn't mark which ones were gluten free, but I'm sure you can figure that out," and waved her hand vaguely, and rushed off to take care of something else.

Since I don't have magic powers and had no idea which pastries were gluten free (if any), I ate fruit and the granola bars I had stashed in my purse because I anticipated this.

I really don't try to be a pain in the ass with my dietary needs, but I'm also trying to avoid a literal pain in my...well, not ass, but GI system.

I'd like to see a note from her doctor.

No note no food, or you're just curious to see such a note? Because being prepared to make someone sit through a meeting without eating when everyone else gets fed unless they have medical dispensation seems unnecessarily cruel. If they aren't going to eat that stuff it hardly matters why - provide something else. It's not like every item that is available has to meet her criteria.

My sister can't do wheat, my mom is vegan, and I have my assortment of allergies and am always on a diet. Choosing a catering menu that will work for all of us takes some effort, but isn't really that hard, and we do not lack for deliciousness, believe me. Although doing it where we can't eat raw vegetables would definitely be harder.

Yeah, I was gonna take you out for a drink but I thought I'd wait until after Bora Bora.

Yes, let's do this. That would be nice.

I am so totally unready, and yet so very ready, I just can't even.

I'm 100% right there with you.

So now I have to go there and listen for the tiny tiny quiet tile beep.

This sounds like a very frustrating game of Marco Polo.

I really don't try to be a pain in the ass with my dietary needs

Edited: When people DON'T have dietary restrictions, I find they generally don't understand the amount of effort that goes into it.

My keys are found!

Hooray keys!

I really don't try to be a pain in the ass with my dietary needs

When people have dietary restrictions, I find they generally don't understand the amount of effort that goes into it.

That's why I proactively do things like suggest what I *can* eat (as opposed to "I can't eat gluten; I bet you don't even know what that is, since it's not something you have to deal with, but hey, you can just figure it out but if you can't I'll be a dick about it!"). Since I *do* know how much effort goes into it, I tell people upfront what might work best, to cut down on the work they need to do. If I'm eating at someone's house, I offer to bring things. Voila: no work for the host. If we're eating out, I suggest restaurants/types of cuisine that work best. I don't leave people to flail around.

When people have dietary restrictions, I find they generally don't understand the amount of effort that goes into it.

Ok. Fair to say that some may not understand, some do and very much so?

The latter often do not want to put people out, often refuse invitations or carry emergency food / fake eating so as not to upset their host, carry emergency meds in case of contact, and are immensely grateful when an accomodation is made. This goes from peanut allergies to Celiac and beyond.

When my mom and stepdad were super-strict with their vegan eating, they would just gracefully decline food made with cheese, etc., or bring their own. They never made any fuss about it. (They've moved to ovo-lacto vegetarianism, which makes dining out a lot easier for them.)

I think my posts are devolving into #notallfoodallergicpeople

I suspect shrift meant that people who don't have restrictions don't understand the work involved in dealing with them.