GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A Grand Rapids restaurateur who offers gluten-free products expects the food industry to move toward more allergy-safe options.
Aaron Muller opens papa chops eatery 2 and a half years ago Along 28th Street near Brereton Road in grand rapids.he Opened a gluten-free restaurant After being diagnosed with celiac disease just before turning 40.
Celiac disease is a genetic autoimmune disease in which gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye, damages the small intestine. Celiac Disease Foundation.
According to the foundation, celiac disease affects one in 100 people worldwide. About half of people with celiac disease continue to have symptoms after switching to a gluten-free diet, and symptoms can vary.
Allergies are a growing food safety concern, according to a report. 2016 survey from Environmental Health Professionals Network. Researchers cited another study that said half of all fatal food reactions occur in restaurants and other eating establishments.
Researchers collected data from 278 restaurants and found that about 70% had plans to address food allergy concerns. Most managers and employees knew what food allergy symptoms to look out for and to call 911 if they had a bad reaction.
The majority of employees also told researchers that it was important for them to be knowledgeable about food allergies. However, one in 10 people thought it was safe for people with allergies to eat small amounts of the food they were allergic to.
For Muller, consuming even a small amount of gluten can make her feel sick for several days.
Muller thought transitioning to a gluten-free diet would be easy, but it turned out to be much more difficult, as gluten is found in everything from toothpaste to dog food. He was still constantly ill and depressed.
The father of four said he was worried his children would catch a genetic disease and going out to eat has become “nearly impossible”.
“I couldn’t go to a restaurant without a big song and dance. I have to talk to the kitchen manager and ask them to see if they can serve me properly.” He said. “It’s often very difficult to serve celiacs in the kitchen because the flour in the kitchen gets blown everywhere. It takes a tiny amount to make me sick.”
Eating out is supposed to be fun, but eating out with allergies can be a negative or even dangerous experience, he said.
“After going to a few restaurants and failing, it became very clear that unless someone did something, I was going to be doing this for the next 30 years,” he said. “Someone had to be me.”
Muller, who had no restaurant experience at the time, took classes at a culinary school in Grand Rapids before opening Papa Chops. He said it had been a “very difficult journey” to get to opening day, but he had found a customer base looking for gluten-free options.
Almost everything on the menu is made from scratch to ensure everything is celiac safe. Initially, they didn’t make burger patties from scratch, but they have recently added smash burgers to their menu of made-from-scratch items.
“Perfecting other items was very important for labor and everything else,” he explained. “So I had a regular burger patty. It was really, really unimpressive. I think it was probably my least favorite thing on the menu.”
Smashburger is the “ultimate version of a hamburger,” he said, with fresh meat pushed onto the grill and cooked to preserve its juices.
“This is the best version of a burger, which sounds very simple. But when everything is gluten-free, nothing is easy,” he said.
He said there are several benefits to a gluten-free kitchen, including complete control over the product and improved flavor because everything is made from scratch.
He said he was starting to see changes in the food industry and that not everyone who stopped by for a bite to eat was gluten-free.
“Now that we’re in our second year, I think we’re starting to see a change in people’s eating habits. The way they eat is changing,” he said. “People have higher standards. So most of my customers who come here will be gluten-free. But there are also a lot of customers who are not gluten-free and feel good after eating the food. …The premise of what I do is not just eat gluten-free foods that are acceptable, but delicious foods that happen to be gluten-free.”
This is a change that companies in other sectors are also seeing. Snackcraft, a subsidiary of Greece’s Unismac SA that specializes in gluten-free snacks, recently announced it will double its operations in Kentwood after a year and a half of rapid growth.
“American consumers want to buy healthier snacks,” said Brent Case, vice president of business attraction for The Right Place. He spoke to News 8 about the expansion.
The number of people who have to follow a gluten-free diet is also increasing. The Celiac Disease Foundation has found that the number of people with celiac disease has been increasing for decades.
a study The foundation says it has found that the incidence has increased by an average of 7.5% each year over the past few decades.
“In this comprehensive study of diagnosis rates across time and space, the signal that diagnoses are on the rise is clear. Today, more people than ever before are living with a diagnosis of celiac disease. ,” Benjamin Lebwohl, MD, MSc, said in the release. About studying from the basics.
The proportion of women and children is higher.
“One of the things I didn’t realize when I opened this is that there are so many children who are diagnosed with celiac disease or something similar. They are children as young as 18 months old. ,” Muller said. “On the walls of this restaurant are kids who have never eaten in a restaurant, kids who have never sat down and had a normal time, kids who have never sat down with friends and family and just had a meal. There are lots of coloring pages from us. You can eat without worrying about getting sick.”
These things are easy to take for granted, he said.
“Seeing the kids thrive, that’s really the most rewarding thing about this restaurant,” he said. “It’s about connecting with communities that are trying to adapt to an indifferent food industry.”
Muller believes it is “inevitable” that the food industry will start offering more gluten-free options. But he said it will be a challenge because it is non-negotiable.
“Food allergies are the future of the food industry,” he said. “My allergy is just one of many that I have experienced. … Once the food industry begins to embrace these allergies, which is inevitable, both economically and mechanically, It’s going to be a very difficult situation.”
He encouraged others with celiac disease and other food allergies not to get discouraged.
“Our current food system is not designed to deliver safely and we will encounter many challenges, but we must not give up,” he said. “You are your best advocate. Only you can help yourself. So I may be one of the first of my kind, but I won’t be the last.” Remember that there are people out there going through the exact same thing, and we can do it together.”
