It appears that USC is trying to better accommodate its gluten-free students (yay!) Here is an email that I recently received from the Registered Dietitian from USC Hospitality regarding gluten free dining options:
"Just wanted to give you an exciting update regarding gluten free
foods in residential dining. We are now stocking Udi’s brand bread,
bagels, buns, muffins and cookies! They taste the best out of any other
brands we tried. Parkside restaurant will be THE place to go on the
USC campus if you must avoid gluten. Our new
station will have cold foods like a deli station and salads, in addition
to a hot entrée everyday. There will also be smoothies, jello, and
muffins & desserts such cookies. The muffins and desserts can be
found on the far side of the station where we used to hold the regular
desserts (yes, we cleaned and sanitized this case). As soon as our new
pizza oven dedicated to the GF pizza is delivered next week, we will
also have a different pizza of the day, and not just cheese pizza
anymore. This will be Udi’s brand crust as well. Finally, we have the
GF oatmeal packets, a cold cereal, and dedicated waffle iron for GF
waffle mix in this station as well. We hope to have the waffle iron up
and running ASAP. We will have the
same few employees who will always work this station. This way, they
can work closely with me in understanding what it means to live without gluten."
This is great news for those with meal plans; however, for those of us grad students or commuters, there is still more work to be done. There are really no other options, other than a couple of items at "Seeds." Seeds carries Glutino crackers, wafers and pretzels, but with a hefty price tag. I am wary of the pre-packaged salads and fruit because I have no way of knowing what their kitchen/prep practices are. Until then, I will be bringing my lunch :/
