FAQ
Below are the most commonly asked questions. If your question is not covered here, hit us up on the Support page.
There is no advertising on the app and all companies are listed for free, so a moderate subscription fee is necessary in order for the app to survive.
The app is free to download and once you create an account, you get a 7-day free trial where you will have complete access to the entire app. When the free trial ends, you can choose from three subscription levels: monthly ($5.99), semi-annual ($29.99), annual ($49.99).
No billing information is collected, so there's nothing to cancel if you choose not to subscribe.
I understand as much as anyone how expensive having celiac disease can be (doctors, lab work, food, etc.) and how an additional expense could be a burden. At the same time, I do not want anyone to be excluded from the app for financial reasons. If this is the case for you, please contact me and we'll try to work something out.
Fair question.
- Finding/vetting/adding new restaurants on a daily basis.
- Managing the current restaurants, making sure the app has the latest info.
- Keeping the beer locations updated on a regular basis.
- Paying staff, both full-time and part-time.
- Hosting and maintaining the app to keep it purring like a kitten.
- Improving the app with new features and functionality.
For those who know me, you know I am not about the "products" but about the "people" and that is the way I'll always keep it. I created this app FOR the GF community and my hope is it can be supported BY the GF community.
If you just use one of those awesome coupons per month in the Let's Order section, you'll cover your subscription fee right there.
There are currently over 4,300 restaurants on the app and more are being added every day as we continue to find 100% GF restaurants and personally vet restaurants that have been recommended by the celiac community. This will be an ongoing process as long as the app is in existence (aka forever.)
There are currently over 16,000 stores, restaurants and bars, covering the United States and Canada.
1) The GD app is much more than a restaurant directory. It has five main sections where you can located safe restaurants, order online (with coupons), ask questions on the forum, connect privately with others in the community, and find gluten-free beer.
2) All of the restaurants on the GD app are personally vetted by the Gluten Dude team. A restaurant won't go on the app until we hear back from the owner/manager. That is not the case on FMGF.
3) You will not find any fast-food chains on the GD app. There are way too many variables and the risks of cross-contamination are simply too high.
4) The GD app has no advertising. And remember, if an app is free, then YOU are the product.
For more info on this, click here.
I wanted to make this extremely clear on the app so there is absolutely no confusion. On the main restaurant listings screen, there are two places where the type of restaurant is specified: 1) Text that says Yes/No whether it's 100% GF and 2) a green GF or orange CC icon. The GF icon means it's 100% gluten-free and the CC icon means the possibility of cross-contamination (or celiac cautious...or charlie chaplin...or christmas cheer...I could go on all night).
On the restaurant detail screen, I have the same icon in white superimposed over the image up top.
And lastly...under each CC restaurant, I have a "Dude Vetting Note" which explains why I added this restaurant to the app.
And you can also search specifically for ONLY GF restaurants if you'd like.
Here are the steps taken to make sure the risk of CC is minimized for you.
- The restaurant needs to be either one that someone on my team has been to, or one that has been recommended from someone in the celiac community.
- If it's one that is recommended, we check out their website and also online reviews from a variety of sources.
- If they pass this step, we then contact the restaurant directly and ask a number of questions. If they don't respond (which is more common and frustrating than you might think), they are not added to the app.
- If they do respond and we get the sense that have a grasp on the seriousness of celiac disease and do as much as they can to keep us from getting sick, then I add them to the app.
- Under each restaurant that is not 100% GF, I add a "Dude Vetting Note" that explains why I added them to the app and any special precautions you should take.
As of right now: Australia, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, France, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.
And we'll be expanding as we discover more restaurants.
On the app, go to the main menu (top left of screen) and select 'Suggest a Restaurant'. Then just complete the form and the restaurant will be vetted asap.
On this website, you can suggest one HERE.
And thank you!
There's one of 3 possibilities.
1) We have not gotten to it yet. We vet a lot of restaurants and make our way thru the queue as quickly as possible.
2) The restaurant has not responded to our vetting questions. This happens a lot more than you think. We reach out twice.
3) They responded but did not give off the impression that they understood the precautions necessary.
Under each restaurant listing on the app, there is a link that says "Contact Gluten Dude about this restaurant". Just click that and fill out the short form.
