Personal Stories

Can dairy-free and pizza get along?

by on June 28th, 2011

[The first part of the following blog entry was submitted by South Austin Mom and is published on her blog]

Homeslice Dairy-Free Pizza

(by South Austin Mom, whose son is allergic to dairy and nuts)

I finally mustered up the courage to have the kids try take-out pizza a couple of weeks ago. Talk about anxiety! Certain places we just don’t take our son into (ice cream parlors and pizzerias chief among them). I called Homeslice Pizza, my favorite neighborhood pizza joint, and informed them of my son’s food allergies and asked if they could make a pizza that was safe for him and they said yes! I quizzed them about cross-contamination and they assured me that they would flag the order with a food allergy alert and definitely use a clean pizza cutter. I even arrived early to pick up the pizza so that I could have another opportunity to remind them to take great care not to cross contaminate. Everyone at Homeslice was very friendly and the cashier even gave me a hi-five to celebrate my children’s first pizza.

When I arrived home, the kids were so excited to peer in the box and admire their sausage, mushroom and black olive pizza pie. The verdict? We all loved it! In fact, for those of us who can and love to eat cheese, we preferred this dairy-free pizza. The spices and flavors of all of the ingredients were amazing. Most importantly my son did not have an allergic reaction. Hooray for Homeslice Pizza!

Thank you, South Austin Mom, for sharing that.  I too have found that my family can enjoy its pizza cravings without treating our dairy-allergic son any differently.

When my wife first suggested that we order a cheeseless pizza from our favorite take-out pizza place (Cosmos Caffe in Scituate, MA for a nice plug), I almost gasped!  Cheeseless pizza?  Hey, I’m a purist.  I practically grew up on pizza (it shows).  A cheeseless pizza just isn’t right.  However… as always… my wife won the argument.

And how thrilled I am that she did!  Not only does my dairy-allergic son love cheeseless, hamburger pizza, but my oldest son actually prefers this over “regular” pizza as well!  Now, every time we order pizza, one is always a large cheeseless… and no one feels like they’re being treated differently.

Pizza has been a weekly ritual in our house for years and we’ve never had an allergic incident.

Kudos to Homslice Pizza in South Austin, TX and Cosmos Caffe in Scituate, MA!

So how about you?  If you have a dairy allergy, have you tried cheeseless pizza?  Would you consider it?  Have you ever had a bad experience?  Which other pizzerias deserve kudos for treating you right?  Please share your thoughts with us by clicking Comments or Reply below.

And while you’re thinking of restaurants, please take a moment to share any recent restaurant experiences you’ve had at the core AllergyEats site (www.allergyeats.com).  Rating a restaurant on AllergyEats only requires answering 3 questions and can take less than a minute.  Yet each new rating continues to increase the value of AllergyEats for our whole food allergy and intolerance community.

Comments

    Author:
    Kim Molloy
    Written:


    Romeo’s Pizzeria in Hazlet, NJ has been making a safe, cheeseless pizza for my dairy, egg, peanut and shellfish allergic son for years!

    Author:
    Heather
    Written:


    We were lucky enough to find a chain pizza restaurant that really worked with our allergies and produced a delicious cheeseless pizza – Cici’s Pizza!

    We had tried a number of cheeseless pizzas at the regular pizza joints around here (all chains) – Papa John’s, Dominoes, Pizza Hut, etc. – and while they all agree to make a cheeseless pizza and all promised to watch out for cross-contamination (which we appreciated), the end product was akin to burned cardboard. It was too crisp to eat and the sauce had been charred – not an enjoyable eating experience.

    So, one day we ended up at another chain – Cici’s Pizza – for an end-of-season sports party for my daughter. We were really hesitant to take our dairy-allergic son to a pizza buffet restaurant, but we called ahead and spoke to the manager, and he eased our concerns and promised to do everything he could for us. So we arrived at the restaurant, hopeful, but not really all that optimistic. And it was one of the best dining experiences we’ve ever had! The manager hand-delivered our pizza to our table – turns out he had made it himself, and he told us exactly what he had done, how he had avoided cross-contamination, etc. We were impressed, and even more so once we had a bite of the pizza! It was SO good – the dough was light and fluffy and the sauce fresh and not burned into the pizza. I’m guessing they cook their pizzas a different way than the other chains, because this was a world apart from every other cheeseless pizza we had ever had. We had certainly not expected this from an inexpensive pizza chain restaurant.

    We have heard from other families with food allergies that this specific restaurant is willing to work with any allergy, even allowing some families to bring in their own dough for the restaurant to make into a pizza so that their child can have the real “going out for pizza” experience. I’m not sure if this is just our local franchise, or whether this is a company policy – but someone who goes to that extra effort to allow dairy-allergic children (and their families) to have a “normal” restaurant experience really gets an A+ in my book!

    Author:
    Cayti Burch
    Written:


    After I was diagnosed with the dairy allergy, there were three things I HAD to find a good sub for – pizza, ice cream and ranch dressing. Those were the things I just could not quit cold turkey after 33 years! Luckily, Hideaway Pizza here in Oklahoma makes great pizza, has dairy free crust, and doesn’t look at people funny when you order it without cheese! They also came out with gluten free pizza this summer and after talking with the manager, I’m planning a date with my Celuac niece.

    Author:
    KD
    Written:


    Tofurkey brand frozen dairy-free pizza (we found it at Whole Foods) is pretty good. The cheese one gets good reviews from my kids. They also like “pepperoni” flavor, but not the sausage/veggie one. Great thing to stock in the freezer for a quick snack… We also make pizzas at home (crusts from our local kosher bakery) and with Daiya cheese shreds (also at Whole Foods). These are a big hit.

    Author:
    Heather
    Written:


    Hooray for places like Homeslice Pizza! These are the restaurants other restaurants should look to if they wish to become food allergy friendly. Flexibility and commitment.

    Author:
    Amber
    Written:


    We have a pizza joint that makes us a safe cheeseless pepperoni pizza and it has been life-altering.

    One day I decided to start making phone calls to local joints to ask questions. It took a few calls before finding Campion’s in South Windsor, CT. The lady I spoke to couldn’t have been more helpful. Knew exactly what was in the crust and sauce, told me without prompting to not assume the marinara sauce was safe because it had pine nuts, told me that they could use clean pans, paddles, etc… if necessary, and that they had another customer who came in for a cheeseless pepperoni and bacon pizza for their little boy who had a severe dairy allergy.

    We LOVE it and often just get a large cheeseless pepperoni because we all like it so well. We also sometimes eat in the restaurant and we all get individual pizzas. When we have company and need an easy dinner to feed a crowd we just order a few pizzas, one being cheeseless. Never enjoyed that kind of convenience before discovering them.

    My DS has never really cared for the vegan cheeses and just prefers his pizza without cheese. It’s actually better that way because we are able to get it more places without him feeling shorted. Papa John’s is another place I’ve done it, but we don’t have one local to us.

    Author:
    Kerri
    Written:


    Dominos Pizza has bent over backwards for our son, who has anaphylaxis to milk, eggs, and shellfish. Their thin and crispy crust is dairy free, and has no eggs in it, as does their sauce, pepperoni, and mushrooms! You NEED to specify THIN AND CRISPY to them. We’ve never tried the sausage, so I cannot speak for the sausage! But we order a large thin and crispy pizza with extra mushrooms, and pepperoni, so many times ( at least once a week! ) that they automatically know the order when they hear my husband’s voice! We spoke directly to the manager of our local Dominos, who told us to call him directly, each time we ordered a pizza, and he would make sure that all ingredients came directly out of the bags in the refrigerator, rather than out of the bins that the pizza makers use – and use parchment under the crust – and a fresh pizza cutter and pan – all to avoid cross contamination. The very first time we talked on the phone, he told us that the first pizza would be free, so he could be part of the celebration of my son’s first pizza, and it was a hit! So, I recommend working with Dominos Pizza, as they’ve been wonderful to our family for two years now! Now, most of the people who work in that particular Dominos know the routine. We just need to be sure to talk with someone who can assure us that it will be followed, in case there are new employees that might not know us yet.

    Author:
    Tom Golota
    Written:


    We once tried this at a local pizza place and my daughter had a reaction. Not sure if it was psychosomatic or actual reaction. Now we just buy fresh pizza dough at our local grocer and make our own with pizza sauce in a jar, hamburg, garlic (she loves roasted garlic). Yes, it takes longer but she hasn’t had a reaction to it yet and loves it!

    Author:
    Marina
    Written:


    I always liked cheeseless pizza but did occasionally have soy-cheese so didn’t miss real pizza. I started this way for my own digestive difficulties only later to have dairy and soy allergic kids. Took me a while to enjoy only-ever-and-always cheeseless pizza, at first I told myself, think of it as a foccacia with toppings. Now there is a soy-free dairy-free cheese, but we are pretty happy with our “regular”.

    We don’t have anyone with a strong dairy allergy so cross contamination hasn’t been a question, but there are places that put dairy and soy in the crust, so we’ve checked the ingredients. Mountain Mike’s and Amici’s have made traveling so much easier, we know we can stop over there.

    Author:
    -shelby
    Written:


    We have a chain in Colorado called Beau Jo’s that has a gluten-free crust and dairy free cheese on the menu. My son loves being able to eat his own pizza, and we’ve had great experiences at several of the locations when we’re traveling around the state. It’s very nice going into a restaurant where people “get it.”

    Author:
    Haley
    Written:


    Bazbeaux Pizza in Indianapolis offers vegan pizzas. My daughter, who has a severe allergy to all dairy products, is able to eat and enjoy pizza. And it is gourmet!

    Author:
    Sweetpea
    Written:


    Mississippi Restaurant and Pub in Portland, OR can make gluten-free, dairy-free, gluten free & vegan pizza. They make the dough from scratch. They also offer two vegan cheeses (I often prefer a cheeseless pizza). Call ahead for GF dough-they have to take it out of the freezer. 🙂

    Author:
    Mark
    Written:


    We make pizza at home as the allergies (gluten, casein, peanut, soy) are pretty extreme. The casein allergy is only to the casein in regular dairy, and not goat milk or any goat milk product. For a pizza crust we use millet flats from DeLand Bakery (DeLandBakery.com) goat milk mozzarella, and newmans own marinara. It is actually quite good.

    Author:
    Debbie Jacobs
    Written:


    Three cheers for BROADWAY PIZZA in Potomac, MD. Their crust and sauce is dairy-free. When we order–either take-out or eat-in– they write “clean cutter” “new gloves” on the ticket. We’ve been eating there once a week for years without a problem. (Our allergies: milk, nuts, peanuts, and others). Broadway Pizza also serves a gluten-free crust and they are very careful about cross-contamination.

    Author:
    michele
    Written:


    Having worked making pizza for many years, I know it is easy to make a pizza which is dairy free. The biggest concern is cross contamination. You have to ask where they roll out the dough, is the surface free of dairy products, utensils, rolling pin, paddle etc. My worst nightmare was traveling in PA., coming across an Italian restaurant and questioning them about their ability to make a pizza without cheese for my dairy allergic son. In questioning the procedure for making the pizza, I checked out the menu and discovered they made a peanut butter and jelly pizza. I immediately knew the ovens would be contaminated and there would be no way they could cook a pizza free of contamination from peanuts (which was my son’s worst allergy). We left the restaurant.
    Unless the pizza is made in its own pan I guarantee the ovens are contaminated. So please be sure to ask about the ovens. And as a side note, my son was able to tolerate dairy when it was cooked from the age of 3 so that made it easier to not worry so much about the dairy cross contamination. He did not eat dairy for many years after that but he was able to tolerate small quantities of exposure as he grew older.
    I am heartened to hear so many positive experiences across the country. Things are truly changing.

    Author:
    Melodie
    Written:


    We were so lucky to find MacKenzie River Pizza here in Missoula, MT. They make a delicious soy-cheese pizza. Both boys (allergic and non) love it, and so do I.

    And when we were in Portland, OR, we could get a delicious vegan pizza from both Hot Lips (ahh!! Hot Lips, how I miss you!) and Hammy’s, too. Tons of yummy veggies, no cheese. But now my son is more aware of what everyone else is eating, and seems to be happy to eat something that looks like what everyone else has.

    Author:
    Steve
    Written:


    Hey Guys….I am the father of a 9 year old son who suffers from 9 of the top 10 allergens. Add to this we own pizzerias….yes pizzerias. About a 1.5 years ago I brought home a pizza for me and my wife and daughter, but brought my son a salad. As I turned around he was opening the pizza box and I immediately stopped him. It was at this point he said with such cute eyes, “Daddy, I only want to smell it.” I knew this wasn’t fair to him and we set out to find a solution.

    6 months later we developed the ONLY allergen-free pizza in the United States. YES…we do have a secret cheese alternative and YES even my staff wants to eat this pizza. This is not a shameless plug since we are only in Pittsburgh, PA, and with a restaurant in Southern California (don’t ask).

    There ARE alternatives for people who want pizza….I do…and soon there will be others.

    Author:
    Kathy
    Written:


    I much prefer cheeseless pizzas. I’ve been eating them for years. I wish there were more cheeseless frozen pizzas available. Dominos thin crust is quite tasty.

    And for the pizza purists, the pizzas in Italy are generally cheese free.

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