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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to not know this about gluten free

56 replies

guiltynetter · 31/12/2017 17:06

Was in a cafe in a museum today and went to help myself to a slice of chocolate loaf cake. there was only one pair of tongs (they were on the next plate of cakes) so i used them to put it on my plate.

As i went towards the till a guy who worked there said ‘excuse me, did you just use those tongs to get your cake?’ i said ‘yes...’ and he said ‘sorry you’re not to do that, those tongs are for the gluten free only cake, i’ll have to wash them now’ and whisked them away to the sink in a bit of a huff.

i did point out there were no other tongs available so he produced several pairs from under the counter.

aibu to not know you needed to use different utensils for different cakes? surely that’s a bit bonkers? (i didn’t know the cake next to it was gluten free btw, there were no signs)

rude man 😡

OP posts:

CuriousaboutSamphire · 31/12/2017 17:36

Now DSis is coeliac I am more aware. I would probably contact the owner, with the emphasis on their staff not having put out enough tongs for their cakes... with the 'telling off' as a secondary tale.

That staff member needs a sharp reminder of who is legally responsible for any such incidents.

As for bonkers, it depends how you interpret OPs post... separate tongs not bonkers; not providing them and moaning at a customer, definitely bonkers!

ladystarkers · 31/12/2017 17:38

Cross contamination. But wtf was he telling you off, idiot. Should have more tongs and gf marked.

Mummyoflittledragon · 31/12/2017 17:38

Coeliac disease varies in intensity. Some people will get relatively minor if unpleasant symptoms from this level of cross contamination such as a rash, stomach ache or d&v. Other people will be seriously ill, need hospitalisation and vomit violently for several days. The latter wouldn’t eat the uncovered cakes. The longer a person does not eat gluten the stronger the reaction. Some people die. It can be very serious.

Original poster

guiltynetter · 31/12/2017 17:44

i definitely have been put in my place, i didn’t realise you needed separate utensils for different cakes, i suppose i thought that because the cakes were quite ‘dry’ ?! then no cross contamination could occur, i didn’t realise one tiny crumb could cause serious illness. thank you for the information.

i did mean bonkers as in the guy telling me off even though there were no signs, and no other tongs available. :)

OP posts:

Original poster

guiltynetter · 31/12/2017 17:45

i did feel a bit like a child when he told me off

OP posts:

extinctspecies · 31/12/2017 17:46

DS is coeliac, and as many others have pointed out on the thread it's due to the risk of cross-contamination.

Great that the cafe had a GF cake and a tongs policy, but they weren't enforcing it very effectively. Definitely not your fault.

But I don't think Mummyoflittledragon is correct- coeliac disease does not cause the same type of reaction, as, say, a nut allergy (it's an autoimmune disorder, not an allergy), and I've never heard of anyone dying from being glutened, although the symptoms can be very severe and unpleasant.

Oldraver · 31/12/2017 18:00

He shouldn't be telling you off, you weren't to know

Areyouready · 31/12/2017 18:01

One of my dc works in the cafe of a large department store. They loathe being put on ‘ tong watch’ because it is so boring, but the job involves making sure no cross contamination takes place in the self serve cake section, mainly for nuts but I guess gluten too. Until I heard about this role, I wasn’t aware either.
Although it begs the question why the store doesn’t have labelled tongs to ‘ explain the rules’ to customers too.

BrutusMcDogface · 31/12/2017 18:03

You can die from repeated exposure to gluten over time, but also as far as I know you can't be killed by a single exposure....?!

This reminds me of the poster who was so severely glutened that she had to get industrial cleaners in to scrub the vomit off the walls. Does anyone know who I mean and how she is?

BrutusMcDogface · 31/12/2017 18:05

As I understand it, you'd die of starvation/malnutrition as your gut would be so damaged you wouldn't be able to absorb any nutrients.

coeliac disease is serious.

Ohyesiam · 31/12/2017 18:08

He should get his signage and tongs sorted. Maybe he just likes telling people off.

Loadedllama · 31/12/2017 18:10

It’s the cafes job to prevent cross-contamination not the customers. Unless the tongs were labelled GF products only and it was very clear which both the products and the tongs were, then unless you are psychic how were you to know. If there’s one pair of tongs only then your only other choice was to delve into the cake pile with your hand which would have probably sparked a mega ticking off.

Glumglowworm · 31/12/2017 18:11

Not bonkers to need different utensils but very much bonkers to then only provide one set of tongs

Im not coeliac but if I was I’m not sure how much I’d trust that self served cake could be entirely free from contamination even if there were signs and separate utensils. Because too many people don’t think it matters.

humansnowman · 31/12/2017 18:11

Flour/baked products are one of the worst offenders for x-contamination. Flour because it's dusty and gets everywhere and baked goods like bread and cakes because they crumb easily.

Ds is an undiagnosed coeliac (long story). Gluten him and he won't die from the reaction but ye gods do I want to throttle him. He starts with acting like he has been fed a whole box of blue Smarties, then moves onto an almighty tantrum that can and has lasted for hours and finishes off with puking/diahorrhea that makes the exorcist look tame by comparison.

He has his own toaster, oven tray, kitchen utensils.....

Personally we don't feed him 'unwrapped' gluten free food unless we have seen a full ingredients list/crossed grain/can be sure it is contamination free e.t.c

PurpleDaisies · 31/12/2017 18:14

I totally agree with this.

halcyondays · 31/12/2017 18:16

They would be better off keeping the gluten free cake behind the counter.

humansnowman · 31/12/2017 18:16

Brutus

My son's school had to get their classroom carpet professionally cleaned after ds spewed all over it. He was given ketchup for lunch by someone who knew Sir Snowman was gf but didn't know who Sir Snowman was.

Suffice to say heads rolled that day.

BlackBetha · 31/12/2017 18:17

Cross-contamination is absolutely real, but you weren't to know if there were no labels and only one set of tongs.

Really if they are serious about avoiding cross-contamination they should not be leaving customers to self-serve, as it only takes one person to accidentally put the tongs back in the wrong place, or use them for the wrong cake etc.

wrenika · 31/12/2017 18:19

It's not bonkers and I'm actually really glad to hear that someone working in catering is as vigilant. It's not an allergen, but cross contamination is a serious risk and it's the reason I don't eat out. A few crumbs may seem like nothing, but I'm telling you, that's a whole world of hurt to someone with coeliac disease.

JaneEyre70 · 31/12/2017 18:25

My granddaughter has got coeliac disease, and has been so so ill from a tiny bit of contamination. She can vomit like something from a horror film. It makes me so cross that she often gets this from eating out due to lack of care and she sobs her heart out as she hates being sick . My DD and I often have cross words as I wouldn't ever let her eat out personally but DD feels she has to live a normal life.

multivac · 31/12/2017 18:28

This reminds me of the poster who was so severely glutened that she had to get industrial cleaners in to scrub the vomit off the walls. Does anyone know who I mean and how she is

I remember that thread. There was something other than coeliac disease going on there for sure; it wasn't terribly helpful in terms of raising realistic awareness. I agree with pps that our coeliac son wouldn't eat from that cafe - how many people might have used those tongs without being noticed? Crumb avoidance is a way of life for us now - we have separate toasters at home, separate butter, and 'squeezy' jam/Marmite/honey are worth the extra markup for sure! In the early days of diagnosis I could get through about five knives making toast for one gf boy and his non-coeliac brother...

HashiAsLarry · 31/12/2017 18:31

Why would you know this? Unless you yourself or someone you're close to suffers then its not knowledge you would intrinsically have. I didn't have a clue until I needed to know.

The fault was theirs.

MollyHuaCha · 31/12/2017 18:38

Gluten free cake should be individually wrapped and/or kept in a separate container.

e1y1 · 31/12/2017 18:45

If the cafe were that hot on with cross contamination, they’d have the GF stuff on a separate counter, let alone separate tongs.

StillWorkingOnACleverNN · 31/12/2017 18:49

There should have been a very clear sign. That said, my friend who has celiac would never eat at a cafe and brings her own food everywhere. She'd rather not have to but it's not worth the risk.

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