Business Insider/Mary Hanbury
I was diagnosed with a gluten intolerance six years ago and have been gluten-free ever since.
In that time, it has become easier and easier to find gluten-free foods, especially in New York City where I live.
That is, unless we’re talking about fast food.
Even though an estimated 2.7 million Americans follow a gluten-free diet, fast-food restaurants in the US haven’t done much to appeal to this growing population of people who avoid foods like bread and pasta made with wheat.
In an effort to survey the gluten-free landscape, I set out on a mission to see if I could survive only on fast-food for five days. My most important rule was to only eat at fast-food chains and consume at least three meals a day.
Here’s how I did it:
First, I mapped out exactly what I could eat.
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I kicked off day one with breakfast at McDonald’s.
Business Insider/Mary Hanbury
This was my first time eating breakfast at McDonald’s so it was a momentous moment. My first hurdle was finding something filling that I could actually eat.
What I ate: Yogurt Parfait (without granola) and two bags of apple slices.
Verdict: The yogurt was extremely sweet. I gave up halfway through and decided to move on to the apple slices, assuming that these would be a safe bet. I was wrong. The apples were peeled and had lost all their crunch. Overall, not a good start to the day.
By lunch I was starving, so I headed to Shake Shack for a burger.
Business Insider/Mary Hanbury
Shack Shack is one of two fast-food chains that offers a gluten-free bun and prides itself on serving 100 percent Angus beef meat, free of hormones and antibiotics.
What I ate: Shake Shack’s gluten-free bun with a burger patty.
The verdict: I was so insistent that my meal be gluten-free that I confused the server when ordering. I ended up with a very bland sandwich that didn’t contain Shake Shack’s typical burger toppings, like tomato and lettuce. While the bread was tasty, it felt dry, and the limp meat inside was a bit disappointing. But at least I was full.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
See Also:
- I tried classic breakfast sandwiches from McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s — here’s how they stack up
- We ranked everything on McDonald’s All Day Breakfast menu from worst to best — here’s the final verdict
- We tried fried-fish sandwiches from every major fast-food chain — and the winner is clear
