What Publications are Saying About the Let’s Eat Out! Series

“Even if you don’t have a food allergy, food sensitivity, or celiac disease, you may see a patient or client who does. With conditions such as celiac disease, for example, many practitioners are seeing more new cases… For those of us who counsel individuals of this nature infrequently, Let’s Eat Out! is a useful guide to help teach folks to dine out safely while maintaining dietary compliance. Built on a framework of empowerment, Let’s Eat Out! dedicates itself to the world’s most cherished cuisines while managing 10 food bugaboos... Let’s Eat Out! is a thorough reference assistant to employ at home and when traveling…Packaged into a superbly professional, high-quality text, Let’s Eat Out! is useful for both patients and practitioners.”
—D. Milton Stokes, MPH, RD. Today’s Dietitian Magazine
For complete review, download PDF

“Let’s Eat Out! …is a visa of sorts, giving diners with allergies access to a full range of information about major restaurant cuisines, ingredients and preparations. Building their book around the 10 most common food allergies, authors Kim Koeller and Robert La France instruct and anticipate, arming diners with a checklist of menu considerations…Thorough and comprehensive, the book might do well in the hands of operators as well. It gives an important overview of the seriousness of allergies–and how common allergens are in many foods, even those that don’t immediately seem suspect.”
—Jamie Popp, Restaurants & Institutions Magazine, US

“A New Book with Some Insights & Ideas of Interest to Food Services Directors …

Let’s Eat Out! is a wonderful resource for both consumers and food service operators who are concerned about food allergens. The book is well-organized, easy to read, and contains extensive information… first book I have seen that extensively addresses food allergies within the context of education, food preparation, and dining out. Popular cuisine styles … are each given an individual chapter, wherein food preparations specific to each cuisine are explained, potential sources of allergens are highlighted, and menu suggestions are given…

Individuals and restaurant professionals alike will find the detailed ingredient lists and preparation technique guidelines extremely helpful. Restaurant perspectives for handling special dietary requests are discussed. Most importantly, alternatives are suggested whenever possible so that customers and creative chefs do not feel limited in food choices.

I believe that food service owners, operators, chefs, and staff will find Koeller & La France’s book extremely helpful.  It is a tremendous resource for those who want to have allergy-free options in their dining centers and open up food possibilities for those with food sensitivities.”
—Katherine Ingerson RD, LD, NACAS and College Services Magazine 2007
For complete review, download PDF

“Author Kim Koeller was determined not to give up her world travels despites multiple food allergies and celiac disease. With restaurant industry veteran Robert La France, she creates a comprehensive guide for eating out whether at home (Canada or the US) or abroad. The pair focus primarily on avoiding gluten and wheat when ordering from menus, but other allergens are also addressed. The book itemizes dishes from seven cuisines… noting common allergens likely to be present. With food charts, global allergy websites, sources and translation for allergy-related phrases, Let's Eat Out! is an invaluable resource.”
—Dory Cerny, Allergic Living Magazine, Canada

“Allergy sufferers who are serious about eating out should probably invest in this series of books by coeliac allergy sufferer, Kim Koeller and her partner Robert La France. The idea of the book is to prepare prospective diners-out for everything that is likely to come their way. The main book, Let’s Eat Out!, looks at common ingredients and preparation techniques, and then at nine eating options – seven ethnic Thai, Mexican, Italian, etc plus breakfast and snack meals – and what risks these pose to the allergy sufferer. It provides prodigious quantities of information, dozens of easy reference tables, guidelines and contact details for traveling on any airline world-wide and essential phrases in the main European languages. Smaller ‘passports’ also provide a pocket size version for just one or two cuisines Chinese, Indian, and Thai for example – and a really useful multi- lingual French, German, Italian, and Spanish allergy phrase book.”
—Michelle Berriedale-Johnson, Foods Matter Newsletter, United Kingdom

“Do you suffer from food allergies? Do you travel often? Do you regularly eat fast food or in restaurants? Do you speak English? Then these books published in the United States may be helpful to you. They detail the traps found in cuisines from different countries and give hints as to which plates may contain the most common allergens… For identifying potentially hazardous dishes, the information is very complete for those affected by wheat allergies and Celiac disease…The main book being rather heavy, the authors developed small dedicated guides for different cuisines and translations in Spanish, Italian, German and French.”
—Nadia Steenbeek, ASBL Prévention Allergies, Belgium
(Translated from French)

“Koeller and La France must have the minds of engineers the way this book is laid out. With the feel of a school textbook complete with detailed charts and bullet points, they equip even the most unaware eater to the hazards and possibilities of dining out. It's no surprise that this book was a Benjamin Franklin Award finalist for Best Health Book and Best First Book Non-Fiction.

This book is especially good for those who are afraid or overwhelmed with the challenge of eating out on the gluten-free diet and even more daunting, with mutiple food allergies… "Knowledge is power" is the saying that comes to mind while perusing the pages of this guide. And that's exactly what the authors wanted to do; empower people with special diets to successfully navigate eating out anywhere.

… The extra passport I'll be packing with me on my next international adventure will be the Multi-Lingual Phrase Passport, which has 1,200 phrases in four languages for any food situation you may need to communicate. Let's Eat Out! really lives up to its name by teaching you to communicate your needs and showing you what foods are traditionally safe. With a passport like this, the travel bug is sure to bite you soon!”
—Kelly, Celiac Chicks Web Log