Wellesley College

Issues of mislabeling of allergens is a chronic problem, as well as cross contact due to buffet style. There are dedicated GF mini fridges in some of the dining halls, and a 'gluten sensitive' room that is only accessible if you are on a list.

There is reliably one allergen free option made at a dedicated allergen free station, so that tends to be a safe option. Other than that, it is very risky due to high prevalence of cross-contact and mislabeling. There is definitely a lot of self-advocacy required to be able to eat safely and even then glutening is still possible.

If you talk with managers and upper level food service management, they do want to help but they will not say that anything is "gluten free" due to a risk of cross-contact and to prevent liability to the college.

Best bet is to stick with the prepackaged GF products (which include bagels, brownies, cookies, etc.) and to use the dedicated GF toaster, the cream cheese and butter that is in the GF fridge, and try to minimize what you take from the buffet.

Also, a note: non-GF students do sometimes use these areas (even though they are not supposed to) so if you are concerned, ask a food service staff member and they will do their best to assist you.

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

— Not very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

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

— Average