I can have a flower, just not flour.

Whats one of my favorite cuisines? Chinese. The language barrier at some of my old favorite Chinese spots has caused a problem with trying to explain my dietary needs. It can be a very frustrating thing. I actually asked a one restaurant, "do you use flour in this dish?" thinking that the word flour would translate better than wheat, barley, rye, gluten blah blah. Turns out, it was actually more confusing. First they though I wanted them to put a flower in my dish (I do only eat well presented food of course!). I explained a little bit more, the waitress took a trip back to speak with the chef, and came back excited to tell me "he said we can definitely put flour in your food if you want".  Luckily, I was in a good mood that day. I decided to resort to a tool that I had yet to experiment with. I have this app on my phone called "GF Card". It's supposed to explain your dietary needs in all different languages. I've been afraid to use it thinking that maybe a celiac-hate group created it and when translated the message really says "I love gluten. Fill my mouth with gluten." Turns out, it's legit. The waitress and her friend read it together and seemed to have a much better idea of what I was talking about. That being said, I'm still not sure that what I was served was gluten free. So I wouldn't give this restaurant my recommendation if your looking for gluten free. However, here are two places I've been more than happy with: Mandarin Gourmet- located downtown, can prepare you meal with gluten free soy sauce P.F. Changs- pretty good sized GF menu and they have gluten free soy sauce available That's all for now- I need to catch up and tell you about my gluten free adventures to Virginia Beach and Chicago! - Cheech