Max's Deli

I just read the only other review. My husband loves Max’s. I used to go there with him and just order a fruit cup. But this time, with the assurance of our server that the cottage cheese was gluten-free, I ordered a scoop of cottage cheese with my fruit. Big mistake! I later learned that the brand of cottage cheese they use has a wheat starch additive. The server couldn’t look at the container? I haven’t been back since. It is absolutely not safe for people with Celiac. it’s a shame, the owners are lovely people, they just don’t get it. There’s another deli down the street on Waukegan Road, Max and Benny’s. The owners’ two daughters were both recently diagnosed with Celiac , and they’ve opened a new dedicated gluten-free kitchen alongside the main kitchen. I haven’t been there, I don’t know first-hand, but if I “need” deli, that’s where I would try.

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— No gluten-free information on the menu

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Poor

I would first like to say that I’ve been here at least 100 times with my family. We are regulars at this restaurant and have been since I was little (I’m 17 now), but the last experience I had made me not want to go back. I ordered what I always order (a cheese omelette and a gf bagel) and stressed that I have a gluten allergy and that it’s not just a dietary preference. I had eaten about half of the bagel and tasted poppy seeds. Gf bagels don’t have poppy seeds. This meant one of two things happened. 1) the gf bagels were stored with bagels with gluten or 2) my bagel was toasted on the same toaster as bagels with gluten even though they had told me they have a dedicated gf toaster. When we brought this to the attention of the waiter, he was very dismissive so we decided to go to the restaurant’s owner. He said that yes, someone had made a mistake. However, instead of apologizing, he said he was “sending positive thoughts my way to make sure I would be fine later”. As I write this review, I am sick. I’m never going back.

Celiac friendly?

No