Review of naBrasa Brazilian Steakhouse

Oh NaBrasa, I had such high hopes. This is very much the short version of what happened, there’s no way I can give the full story justice.

I have celiac disease, so I often call before going to a restaurant to be sure I can eat there. So I called, asked if there was anything gluten free on the menu, and was told that most of the meats are gluten free, and there is plenty of other food that is, too. Great!

Hubby and I finally went, and I was sure to tell our server first thing and ask what I can and can’t eat. He said that most meats were gf and that he would bring a listing of what I couldn’t eat. I asked about the buffet (apps/sides) and he assured me that there was no ‘hidden’ wheat - obviously the pasta and croutons are a no, but everything else is fine.

Got some food from the buffet. Our server was taking quite some time to bring the list, and the first foods came around. So, I asked the person carrying the meat (it was pork) if it was gluten free. He said yes. Great! Took a bite, tasted great! Server brought over the listing. Guess what was on it? You guessed it - the pork. I literally dropped my fork.

Shortly after, the manager, I’ll call him J, came over and said ‘I understand you have questions about food allergies?’ I’m thinking - no…the server took care of that, but I said yes, and explained. He showed me a different list. Different list. And yes, it was different. Example: the bacon wrapped chicken was not on the first list (meaning it’s gf) but was on his list as NOT gluten free. I had already eaten a portion of the bacon wrapped chicken. Upon further asking, the bacon wrapped chicken is supposedly gluten free. And this wasn’t the only thing (there was a discrepancy with the salmon and others). NONE of the sides were listed on the first sheet, they were listed on the second. I completely lost faith in NaBrasa’s ability to tell me what is and isn’t gluten free.

J was amazing. And very understanding. I do appreciate his help and knowledge.

We almost left. But I was on a rare date night with my hubby, and J offered to have the chef from their partner restaurant next store make me something. I took him up on the offer.

Moral of the story is, I did get sick.

And NaBrasa is not doing their patrons any favors with their misleading listings. It’s really not that hard to list what is or isn’t safe. But to say something is safe when it isn’t is inexcusable. I simply can not go back to this restaurant.

On the flip side, my husband said the food was quite good, and from what I tasted, I liked it too.

**I must note that I see that their website states something that is different even from what is listed at the restaurant, and from what J had. Bad bad bad NaBrasa..very misleading.

Celiac friendly?

No