I think we’ve established by now how hard it can feel to find a restaurant that looks safe from an allergy perspective, and my search for a restaurant in Washington DC was no different. It feels constantly like a bit of a gamble – it looks okay on the website, but will it live up to what it says? Researching reviews and getting in touch beforehand are always good ideas, but can be time-consuming and not always feasible.
In this case, I searched ‘allergy friendly restaurants dc’ and the first website was Spokin, which I knew to be a great resource for people with allergies. They came up with a few options, and I researched them all to see what would be the best fit for me and my friends. In the end, I decided that Carmine’s looked like it might work – I was particularly encouraged by the fact that they had dedicated allergy menus for different allergies including garlic, wheat & gluten, and dairy & egg. The dairy & egg menu looked just right, and seemed to have several good options. For me, a menu item called ‘plain grilled chicken’ was really encouraging. As I’ve said before, I’m always most comfortable with the plainest option possible. I was properly pleased that they had it on offer without me needing to ask for adaptations to the dish. Plus, I felt optimistic about their attitudes to allergy when I read part of their allergy menu page:
“At Carmine’s, you’re among family. We’re committed to making the dining experience of every guest, including those with food allergies, an exceptional one. That’s why our chefs would be happy to prepare the following dishes without dairy or egg, upon request. Please let your server know that you have an allergy and would like one of these menu items prepared specially.”
That’s a really great indicator of how willing they are to make the effort to include you as a guest like any other and make your experience the best it can be.
When we arrived, I was given the physical allergy menu which was just the same as the website. There was a small hitch – I hadn’t realised that all of their dishes came as ‘family-sized portions’. I didn’t want to make my friends have the plainest dish on the menu, especially since they’re foodies – so I did get a little unsure at that point because they weren’t able to modify the dish size to be suitable for just one person. However, we decided to go ahead and get the grilled chicken, the Contadina roasted potatoes, and a separate pasta bolognese dish for my friends. It turned out that it was the perfect amount, because my friends had a bit of each and then I packaged up the leftover chicken and potatoes for my flight later that evening.
The food itself was exactly as described – and although I’m sure it was far too plain for most people, it was perfect for me. It was literally plain grilled chicken with a bit of olive oil and salt, and sliced roasted potatoes with just salt and some herbs. Given its plainness, it was great! Exactly what I needed that day. The staff were excellent – very understanding and nice, and I felt like they knew what they were doing.
All in all, a good place to find and I would recommend it to other people with allergies visiting DC. But you’ll definitely need to go with a group of you, or else you might find yourself with rather a lot of food to eat!
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