Triumph Dining Guide review

Okay, I'm hooked. When TRIUMPH DINING asked me if I wanted to look over their dining guide, my first thought was: "With a state as small as Rhode Island, is it really necessary?" And the answer is, "Hell, yeah!"

This guide lists name, location and phone number, types of food available, websites...everything you need to check out a new place before you go.

Next to the restaurant description, there are icons, telling you if a GF menu is available on-sire, if GF specialty items are offered (such as bread, beer, pasts, etc.), if it is a 100% Gf establishment, and if it is a chain restaurant. They also note the type of menu (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack), and give an idea of price range.

The beginning chapters of the guide advise you on "How to get a GF meal anywhere," explaning how to build short- and long-term relationships with restaurants, and they also offer a "Dining Out Checklist"  in the back of the guide. They also mention "dining cards," and explain how they can help.

 The major portion of the guide is the listings of restaurants by state. After listing restaurants by state, the last sections of the guide deals with gluten-free "lists" and menus available at chain restaurants. For those of you who haven't experienced it, some restaurants don't have a GF menu specifically, they have an "allergy book" or "allergy list," which tells you which of the major allergens (including wheat) that are in their products. Some lists are well-organized enough to tell you what you can eat for specific allergens, but other list just show a chart, specifying which of the allergens are in each menu item (which can be confusing as hell!)

As tempting as it is to just go directly to your state listings in the restaurant guide, don't forget to go back and read the first chapters. They are a valuable resource. and can help you understand how to interact with the staff and servers at a restaurant to get what you need, without being rude or unclear.

My only disappointment with this guide: The listings are set up by state, then the major cities, then all other cities. When you get to the "all other cities" part, the restaurants are listed in alphabetical order by name, which is great. But what if you just want to know what restaurants are available in a specific city, one that isn't a major city? I would have loved to see an index in the back, which listed the states, then the cities in alpha order, then the restaurants in alpha order, along with page number. So if I want to find a restaurant in Warwick, Rhode Island, I don't have to look through the entire listing of "other cities" to find it, I can go to the index, look up Rhode Island: Warwick, and then see just the names of restaurants by alpha order, with a page number. Then I go to that page number, and look up the Warwick restaurants I want and not have to search the whole "other cities" list trying to pick out the Warwick ones.

For your convenience, I've provided a click-through ad on my page for the Triumph Gluten-Free Restaurant Guide, in case anyone wants to check it out. They also have a Triumph Dining Gluten-Free Grocery Guide, and I've provided you a click-through for that as well. On their website, they also advertise GF baking guides, dining cards (to educate your servers), and GF stickers to mark your food if you live in a household which is not completely GF.

My final thoughts: I LOVE this guide! I can take it traveling with me, and feel secure in knowing wherever I go, I can find somewhere to eat and know what to expect. And my relatives will feel better knowing I can suggest places that we can go for dinner without feeling like I'm taking a crap shoot with my health! I've found places in my state where I didn't even know that they had a GF menu. Now I can explore, but with the knowledge and security of being properly prepared. Thank you, Triumph Dining, for doing all the work for me!