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Jackie brings up a very good point, with her experience in 
restaurants that can deal -- or not -- with GF requests.  However, 
I've now adopted the point of view that our requests are often a way 
of ferreting out the restaurants that are really good, versus those 
that are just ordinary.  (I was going to say separating the wheat 
from the chaffe, but  ... well ...)

I don't know what restaurant Jackie was in, but I have found that it 
is often the difference of a restaurant that prepares their food 
FRESH, from SCRATCH -- and those that prepare "batch" food, 
especially for a busy lunch.  I also believe, more often than not, it 
is also a sign that a place is likely a really good restaurant and 
one that is chock-a-block.  If they know what goes into their food, 
they can usually feed us.  If they really don't know what goes on 
back in that kitchen, they cannot.

I went to the most popular Thai restaurant in our city and had the 
exact same experience that Jackie did -- only I actually arrived a 
full half-hour before the busy lunch hour!  We were the only people 
in the restaurant when I was asking about my food.  And I was still 
treated with total rudeness by the owner/manager.

But, after some probing about the situation, I came to understand 
that they pre-prepare ALL their lunch selections in large batches. 
And, fact is, no one had any idea if any were GF, because the sauces 
are all prepared by an earlier shift.  (I think: don't they even have 
the recipes available?  Not a good sign of kitchen control, to me.) 
In this restaurant, there is no such thing as a prepared-from-scratch 
meal during lunch.  Well, NO WONDER I couldn't get answers about my 
food!

Now, personally, I am not impressed when a restaurant (great reviews 
or not) actually makes nothing-zero-nada to order during their lunch 
time.  I also came to find out -- just as aside -- that they make 
100% of their dishes with soy sauce.  I don't know if others on this 
list enjoy Thai food, but traditionally prepared Thai food almost 
never uses soy sauce, but rather fish sauce (for a salty taste), 
which is GF more often than not.  Gosh, it is in fact why I would go 
to a Thai restaurant, thinking I can find safe food.

That was it for me!  This restaurant is fooling everyone in this city 
into thinking they are a real Thai restaurant, and their food is 
prepared fresh to order.  NOPE!  And here was the kicker -- I even 
had a restaurant card written in Thai.  Not a single person in the 
restaurant could read the Thai language side, because NO ONE in the 
restaurant was from Thailand!  Not even the owner or the chef.  Thank 
you very much, but I really much prefer going to a non-chain ethnic 
restaurant to be owned/run by people of that ethnicity.  And, in 
fact, the owner was even more flustered/more rude when I handed him 
the card, because he then had to admit no one associated with the 
restaurant was actually Thai in nationality.  There is an English 
version on one side, however, and he was also ticked off at that, 
because the writing was so small, he had to go fetch his reading 
glasses.

I did get a meal, which consisted of plain boiled rice and a very 
plain grilled chicken breast -- all devoid of any spices, even salt 
and pepper.  I am sure it was specially prepared gruel for 
punishment.  And should I have worried that they spiked it with a 
little spit? ;-)

I am not afraid to mention the name of this restaurant.  It is 
Sawasdee, in Indianapolis.  I know others in this town who eat GF and 
rave about it.  They must go at dinnertime ... but I will never go 
back at any time.

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