Review of Bridgewater Bistro

I have eaten here in the past whenever in Astoria & felt comfortable having dinner here during this trip.

Although much of their menu is noted as gluten free, clearly that does not mean that precautions are taken to prevent cross contamination.

As is my routine anywhere, I stated that I was celiac. That to prevent cross contamination I'd like the kitchen to be extra cautious, please use clean gloves, clean utensils & prep my meal on a clean surface.

I ordered their app gf Mac n cheese and a burger with a gf bun, no fries. There were no assurances that their fryer was a dedicated fryer. Our server made no real acknowledgement of my requests and I had to ask if she heard me. She really kind of blew me off and I had to repeat myself & emphasize how important this was.

The Mac n cheese is made to order, I found out later. As they have regular pasta also, there is no assurances that the gf pasta is cooked in separate water.

Upon my burger being served, I again inquired if it had been prepared as requested due to me being celiac. The totally uninterested server rolled her eyes and said "yes, it's a gf bun".

Within 25 minutes I was suffering from dreaded glutening symptoms. Hey. I get it. They want to offer gf menu items. But why bother if they aren't going to take it seriously? Clean pasta water, clean gloves, a few seconds of bothering to pass this along to the kitchen. It would've saved me this excruciating experience and kept them a customer. Sorry they couldn't be bothered. Whether this was a failure on the servers part or the kitchen, doesn't matter. It was a fail.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Not at all

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Most/All

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

— Average