Restaurant Inspection 2009

Have you been wondering what happened to GFNYC's annual round-up of restaurant inspection results from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH)?

Wonder no more.

As always, the restaurants on this list—New York City eateries on the roster of the Gluten Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP)—continue to be way ahead of other Big Apple restaurants in recognizing the health concerns related to gluten in their foods.

The lower the number score, the better the inspection results, with a score of 28 or higher constituting a failing grade.

Topping the list are Asia de Cuba (albeit with a rating from 2007) as well as Tuttoriso, Candle 79, and Risotteria. Many restaurants did worse this year than last year, but (unlike last year) none received a failing grade. Not available at this time is an inspection report for Nizza.

02 11/21/07 Asia de Cuba (Manhattan) no new inspection
04 01/16/09 Tuttoriso (Staten Island) newly inspected
09 01/08/09 Candle 79 (Manhattan) up 7
10 06/12/08 Risotteria (Manhattan) unchanged
12 03/20/09 Sambuca (Manhattan) down 7
13 12/05/08 Peters' (Artaki) (Manhattan) up 4
13 03/10/09 Lili's 57 (Lili's Noodle Shop) newly listed
15 01/04/08 Outback Steakhouse Chelsea (Manhattan) no new inspection
15 07/17/08 Outback Steakhouse Brooklyn (Brooklyn) up 65
18 11/12/08 Bistango (Manhattan) down 2
18 09/08/08 Outback Steakhouse Queens Boulevard (Queens) down 9
19 11/29/08 Outback Steakhouse (Staten Island) down 3
20 12/22/08 Outback Steakhouse Third Avenue (Manhattan) down 2
20 12/05/08 Lumi (Manhattan) down 10
22 11/20/08 Carrabba's (Staten Island) down 1
22 03/09/09 Gus' Place (Manhattan) down 14
25 05/14/08 Friedman's Deli new to list
25 11/03/08 Outback Steakhouse Bell Blvd. (Queens) down 12
25 01/05/09 Lilli and Loo (Manhattan) down 14
27 03/16/09 S'MAC new to list
27 09/22/08 Gusto Grilled Organics new to list
27 04/29/08 Bloom's (Manhattan) down 14
NA --/--/-- Nizza no inspection found

For the most current DOH inspection records, click here.

GFRAP restaurants can be found here.

RESTAURANT INSPECTION!

And now for the annual round-up of restaurant inspection results from the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH). The restaurants on this list—New York City eateries on the roster of the Gluten Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP)—continue to be way ahead of other Big Apple restaurants in recognizing the health concerns related to gluten in their foods, which still doesn't seem to be a concern of the DOHMH.

The lower the number score, the better the inspection, with a score of 28 or higher constituting a failing grade. Topping the list are Asia de Cuba, Sambuca, and Gus' Place; at the bottom (with the only failing grade) is Outback Steakhouse Brooklyn. Not available at this time is a score for Tuttoriso, on Staten Island.

02 11/21/07 Asia de Cuba (Manhattan)
05 01/18/08 Sambuca (Manhattan)
08 04/24/07 Gus' Place (Manhattan)
09 03/14/07 Outback Steakhouse Queens Boulevard (Queens)
10 03/19/07 Lumi (Manhattan)
10 12/26/07 Risotteria (Manhattan)
11 04/04/07 Lilli and Loo (Manhattan)
13 12/26/06 Bloom's (Manhattan)
13 12/07/06 Outback Steakhouse Bell Blvd. (Queens)
15 01/04/08 Outback Steakhouse Chelsea (Manhattan)
16 01/30/07 Bistango (Manhattan)
16 08/19/07 Candle 79 (Manhattan)
16 07/31/07 Outback Steakhouse (Staten Island)
16 11/14/06 Tini (Lentini) (Manhattan)
17 06/11/07 Peters' (Artaki) (Manhattan)
18 09/27/07 Outback Steakhouse Third Avenue (Manhattan)
21 05/08/07 Carrabba's (Staten Island)
?? --/--/-- Tuttoriso (Staten Island)
80 01/30/08 Outback Steakhouse Brooklyn (Brooklyn)

For the most current DOH inspection records, click here.

GFRAP restaurants can be found here.

NEWSWEEK: WAITER, PLEASE HOLD THE WHEAT

Now online: "Waiter, Please Hold the Wheat," a well-researched Newsweek article [September 17, 2007] about celiac sprue.

Written by Anne Underwood, the piece begins with the story of Alice Bast, founder of the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA). She suffered fatigue, migraines, depression, weight loss, hair loss, dental problems, GI symptoms, and tingling in the extremities as well as a traumatic failed pregnancy before she received her accurate celiac diagnosis—after seeing nearly two dozen doctors.

The article refers to Dr. Alessio Fasano's 2003 estimate that about 3 million Americans (1 in 133) have celiac sprue, but notes that the condition "remains vastly underdiagnosed." It mentions that symptoms (such as anemia, osteoporosis and failure to thrive in young children) can go well beyond the digestive tract, and offers an explanation as to why Dr. Peter Green (pictured) would say, "Name the organ, and celiac disease can affect it." Underwood writes that, in response to gluten, the immune system in an affected individual "generates antibodies to an enzyme called tissue transglutaminase. This enzyme is an innocent bystander that acts on gluten in the lining of the intestine. But because the enzyme is also found throughout the body—in the skin, heart, thyroid, bones and nervous system—antibodies that attack it can direct their fire at any of these other organs, too."

Underwood emphasizes that the longer someone with celiac sprue remains untreated, the more problems are likely to develop, and also makes the point that, among autoimmune conditions, celiac sprue is one of the easiest to treat, as it involves maintaining a diet instead of undergoing surgery or treatments. (See this post for information about people who were diagnosed with celiac sprue and then mistakenly told they could safely eat gluten.)

The article also asserts that maintaining the diet is easier than ever due to the creation of new products and the rising number of restaurants offering special, gluten-free menus. Mentioned are the Outback and Carrabba's chains, with Risotteria scoring a photograph and Bistango depicted as the site of a lunch between Heidi Collins (pictured) and Celiac Chick Kelly Courson. Each restaurant is part of the nationwide Gluten-Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP), which, I'm sorry to note, is not recognized in the article.

The article ends with a mention of honeymooning blogger Shauna James Ahern and a description of her forthcoming book Gluten-Free Girl as "a delightful memoir of learning to eat superbly while remaining gluten-free." According to Amazon, the book will be out on October 5, 2007.

ADDENDUM People seeking more information about celiac sprue may find the following links useful:

Celiac Disease Foundation
Gluten Intolerance Group
The Mayo Clinic
Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Celiac Center
University of Chicago Medical Center Celiac Disease Center
University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research
NIH Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign

Newsweek cover image: PRNewsFoto/NEWSWEEK