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Carrabba's Italian Grill
1400 E. Independence Blvd.
Matthews, NC 28105
(704) 844-0464
~ gluten-free menu is available online
www.carrabbas.com
Directions: It is near the Independence & 51 intersection!
1400 E. Independence Blvd.
Matthews, NC 28105
(704) 844-0464
~ gluten-free menu is available online
www.carrabbas.com
Directions: It is near the Independence & 51 intersection!
Charlotte Celiac Connection - Event #5!
When? Saturday ~ August 20, 2005
Time? Noon !
Where? Carrabba's Italian Grill
on Independence near 51 (Matthews, NC)
When? Saturday ~ August 20, 2005
Time? Noon !
Where? Carrabba's Italian Grill
on Independence near 51 (Matthews, NC)
Summary
Hi Everyone!
Well, there are no words to describe what I would call a luncheon event that was an absolute
SUCCESS! Carrabba's was incredible, the service, the food, the atmosphere - it was as they say in
Italian - amore! The conversation and fellowship was, as always, perfect! The surprise of the day was
the bread. Manna from Anna is truly bread from heaven!
I met with Dan, the manager of Carrabba's just before everyone arrived. I gave Dan my restaurant
folder, which contains a thank you letter, important celiac information and eating out challenges. Dan
was
wonderful and listened intently. Of course, Carrabba's is an Italian restaurant so I had to share the
fact that celiac is very prevalent in Italy and every child gets tested before the age of 8. I explained
our challenges and fears of eating out. Dan understood and he and his staff went above and beyond the
call of duty! I ordered the "Pollo Rosa Maria" and I have to say, I think this was the best meal I have
had out in over two years. Thank you Carrabba's!!!!
MANNA FROM ANNA IS A GIFT FROM GOD!!! If you have not tried it, then what are you waiting
for??? Here's the web-site www.glutenevolution.com I'll tell you the story so you know I am not just
being dramatic but telling you, that someone has finally got it!!! As most of you regular maelstrom
readers know, I published my web-site a few weeks ago (www.charlotte-celiac-connection.org). Well, I
had quite a few companies who wrote and asked me to post a link to their web-site on my web-site. I try
to accommodate
everyone (of course, I checked their web-site out first) but Manna from Anna went a step further and
offered to send me a few samples for our support group. How could I say not to such a generous heart,
even though I truly believed this would be no different than the thousand of other breads or bread
mixes I have tried and then had to throw away or make them into bread crumbs. So, even after a very
long and tiring week of work, I got up early today, this Saturday morning, to make two loafs of Manna
from Anna's
breads. I even screwed up the timing since I was supposed to put tinfoil on them after 15 minutes and
continue the timing. The buzzer went but I got lost in time talking to a newly diagnosed celiac,
Harriet. After I got off the phone I had to periodically stick tooth picks in the bread to assess when
they were done. Well, at Carrabba's the restaurant manager was so wonderful and was fine with us
having our Manna from Anna bread. My expectations were very low. The waiter sliced it in back and
brought them out in baskets, just like pre-celiac days. Yet, who in their wildest imagination would
dream this bread would taste even half way decent let alone just like the bread I remember. It was a
time warp! We were even
able to dip it in olive oil and fresh herbs. The bread was still warm since I wrapped them in tinfoil!
You're a GENIUS Manna from Anna!
I don't quite understand why Manna from Anna is changing their name (to Breads from Anna) but I
think some better names would be: "Bread is not Dead" or how about "Bread from the Head" or "Be the
Bread" - bottom line, if you have not tried it, then go online and place your order today! To give you an
idea of how good it was, everyone could not wait to take an extra slice home, everyone is placing an
order, and several people said it was even better than the meal! You do not have to toast this!!!
Now onto the meeting,I thought it was going to be a flop because previous plans to go to the water
park fell through. However, we had a great mix of people at this month's event! We had two very
supportive non-celiac husbands come (thank you David and Ben). Jeff came too with his 3-year-old cliac
daughter, Angela. A father's love runs deep! We had several new members show up (Nancy, Sharon and
Jan) so there was an added surge of energy and new information! Chandra Ann has been out of town but
is now
back in Charlotte, no place like home. (Chandra, you and I will get caught up next month!). Pat, our
dietitian, is always interesting and has thought provoking facts to share. We talked about everything
under the sun (including living under the Tuscan Sun), such as: mineral testing/levels, symptoms,
strange or unique celiac symptoms, celiac denial, celiac testing, genetics, genetic testing, scientific
inroads, pizza tips, shopping, small towns, big towns, great doctors, bad doctors, even menopause (not
celiac related but some us wondered), psychological aspects, dining, social situations, pain, etc. etc.
This was another luncheon of too much information and no stenographer to get it all down!
Another highlight was when Ashley, our group psychologist (since she's working on her phD in health
psychology) offered an observation so we took a poll. So, our survey says "ALL CELIACS ARE TYPE-A
PERSONALITIES!" If you want to have your say in our poll, write me with your self-analysis and I'll
tally and send a post back out. Do you think you are Type-A or not? If you are Type-A, then why?
What are your strong Type-A behaviors?
I think everyone left feeling they were amongst friends and people who cared and understood. Support
in the true meaning of the word! Well, I'm sorry for running on and on but this was one of the best
meetings in our 5-month history. I share this so that those who don't know how to get the support they
need, just take the first step and post a note here. It can just be a meeting of two but it will be a
moment you will not forget, I promise you! Alright, no more wine for me...:>)
Warm Regards, Janet
Hi Everyone!
Well, there are no words to describe what I would call a luncheon event that was an absolute
SUCCESS! Carrabba's was incredible, the service, the food, the atmosphere - it was as they say in
Italian - amore! The conversation and fellowship was, as always, perfect! The surprise of the day was
the bread. Manna from Anna is truly bread from heaven!
I met with Dan, the manager of Carrabba's just before everyone arrived. I gave Dan my restaurant
folder, which contains a thank you letter, important celiac information and eating out challenges. Dan
was
wonderful and listened intently. Of course, Carrabba's is an Italian restaurant so I had to share the
fact that celiac is very prevalent in Italy and every child gets tested before the age of 8. I explained
our challenges and fears of eating out. Dan understood and he and his staff went above and beyond the
call of duty! I ordered the "Pollo Rosa Maria" and I have to say, I think this was the best meal I have
had out in over two years. Thank you Carrabba's!!!!
MANNA FROM ANNA IS A GIFT FROM GOD!!! If you have not tried it, then what are you waiting
for??? Here's the web-site www.glutenevolution.com I'll tell you the story so you know I am not just
being dramatic but telling you, that someone has finally got it!!! As most of you regular maelstrom
readers know, I published my web-site a few weeks ago (www.charlotte-celiac-connection.org). Well, I
had quite a few companies who wrote and asked me to post a link to their web-site on my web-site. I try
to accommodate
everyone (of course, I checked their web-site out first) but Manna from Anna went a step further and
offered to send me a few samples for our support group. How could I say not to such a generous heart,
even though I truly believed this would be no different than the thousand of other breads or bread
mixes I have tried and then had to throw away or make them into bread crumbs. So, even after a very
long and tiring week of work, I got up early today, this Saturday morning, to make two loafs of Manna
from Anna's
breads. I even screwed up the timing since I was supposed to put tinfoil on them after 15 minutes and
continue the timing. The buzzer went but I got lost in time talking to a newly diagnosed celiac,
Harriet. After I got off the phone I had to periodically stick tooth picks in the bread to assess when
they were done. Well, at Carrabba's the restaurant manager was so wonderful and was fine with us
having our Manna from Anna bread. My expectations were very low. The waiter sliced it in back and
brought them out in baskets, just like pre-celiac days. Yet, who in their wildest imagination would
dream this bread would taste even half way decent let alone just like the bread I remember. It was a
time warp! We were even
able to dip it in olive oil and fresh herbs. The bread was still warm since I wrapped them in tinfoil!
You're a GENIUS Manna from Anna!
I don't quite understand why Manna from Anna is changing their name (to Breads from Anna) but I
think some better names would be: "Bread is not Dead" or how about "Bread from the Head" or "Be the
Bread" - bottom line, if you have not tried it, then go online and place your order today! To give you an
idea of how good it was, everyone could not wait to take an extra slice home, everyone is placing an
order, and several people said it was even better than the meal! You do not have to toast this!!!
Now onto the meeting,I thought it was going to be a flop because previous plans to go to the water
park fell through. However, we had a great mix of people at this month's event! We had two very
supportive non-celiac husbands come (thank you David and Ben). Jeff came too with his 3-year-old cliac
daughter, Angela. A father's love runs deep! We had several new members show up (Nancy, Sharon and
Jan) so there was an added surge of energy and new information! Chandra Ann has been out of town but
is now
back in Charlotte, no place like home. (Chandra, you and I will get caught up next month!). Pat, our
dietitian, is always interesting and has thought provoking facts to share. We talked about everything
under the sun (including living under the Tuscan Sun), such as: mineral testing/levels, symptoms,
strange or unique celiac symptoms, celiac denial, celiac testing, genetics, genetic testing, scientific
inroads, pizza tips, shopping, small towns, big towns, great doctors, bad doctors, even menopause (not
celiac related but some us wondered), psychological aspects, dining, social situations, pain, etc. etc.
This was another luncheon of too much information and no stenographer to get it all down!
Another highlight was when Ashley, our group psychologist (since she's working on her phD in health
psychology) offered an observation so we took a poll. So, our survey says "ALL CELIACS ARE TYPE-A
PERSONALITIES!" If you want to have your say in our poll, write me with your self-analysis and I'll
tally and send a post back out. Do you think you are Type-A or not? If you are Type-A, then why?
What are your strong Type-A behaviors?
I think everyone left feeling they were amongst friends and people who cared and understood. Support
in the true meaning of the word! Well, I'm sorry for running on and on but this was one of the best
meetings in our 5-month history. I share this so that those who don't know how to get the support they
need, just take the first step and post a note here. It can just be a meeting of two but it will be a
moment you will not forget, I promise you! Alright, no more wine for me...:>)
Warm Regards, Janet
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