I was one of the first to break the news of Panago's gluten free pizza crust. What's the significance about that? Up until then, there has been no widely available pizza deliver company that has a gluten free crust. All the others like Pizzeria Prego are small businesses that are great to visit for a treat, or delivery if you live in the neighborhood. Don't get me wrong, Pizzeria Prego has an awesome pizza, just not as convenient for families like ours that don't live near 111st and the Whitemud in Edmonton. I also know Boston Pizza has a gluten free crust, and although they do delivery, Boston Pizza is made for dine-in.
So now with Panago having a gluten free crust, ordering gluten free pizza now becomes convenient! Why so? Well they have a central call centre for delivery, or you can order online. You can also order pick, and only wait 15 minutes for your pizza.
Panago has a wide selection of specialty pizza's available, all great, and most gluten free. If you build your own pizza they also have a lot of gluten free toppings like their pepperoni and BBQ sauce that I wrote about in my previous post. Also convenient, the call centre has a list of the gluten free toppings.
So how is their pizza crust? Its really good! It is a thin crust with a good crunch to it. Panago's gluten free crust is also square so you can't get it confused with their standard crust. I ordered it pickup so I can go into the location and check things out. I asked to look at the packaging, and they have each pizza crust individually wrapped to avoid the chances cross contamination. That was really great to see. However, and quite understandably, they still put a sticker on the box that says may contain traces of gluten. I believe they have to do that because they are not in a strictly gluten free kitchen. So I know this scared most people away, but business have to have disclaimers like that. Amanda is not phased by those disclaimers and knows to just ask questions about preparation and ingredients before she continues.
Click here to learn more about Panago's gluten free pizza!
Gluten Free Edmonton - A Celiac guide and resource for gluten free information in Edmonton, Alberta
So now with Panago having a gluten free crust, ordering gluten free pizza now becomes convenient! Why so? Well they have a central call centre for delivery, or you can order online. You can also order pick, and only wait 15 minutes for your pizza.
Panago has a wide selection of specialty pizza's available, all great, and most gluten free. If you build your own pizza they also have a lot of gluten free toppings like their pepperoni and BBQ sauce that I wrote about in my previous post. Also convenient, the call centre has a list of the gluten free toppings.
So how is their pizza crust? Its really good! It is a thin crust with a good crunch to it. Panago's gluten free crust is also square so you can't get it confused with their standard crust. I ordered it pickup so I can go into the location and check things out. I asked to look at the packaging, and they have each pizza crust individually wrapped to avoid the chances cross contamination. That was really great to see. However, and quite understandably, they still put a sticker on the box that says may contain traces of gluten. I believe they have to do that because they are not in a strictly gluten free kitchen. So I know this scared most people away, but business have to have disclaimers like that. Amanda is not phased by those disclaimers and knows to just ask questions about preparation and ingredients before she continues.
Click here to learn more about Panago's gluten free pizza!
So do they prepare it in a separate room, to keep from being cross-contaminated with the flour floating around? Do they use separate sauce and toppings to prevent cc that way? Do they change their gloves and aprons when they make these "gluten-free" pizzas? Or are they just for people who are eating gluten free as part of the latest fad? Details, please!
ReplyDeleteI think its just for people who are eating gluten free as part of the latest fad. When you order online it tells you not to get it if you have celiac disease.
ReplyDeletePLEEEEASE learn to use apostrophes. You do NOT use an apostrophe for plurals!!
ReplyDeleteI ate Panago pizza last night and ordered the gluten free Philly Cheese Steak. I am a celiac and definitely reacted to it. I usually get a bit sick if I eat Boston Pizza, but this was a full on gluten attack. I thought I would give it a try since it seemed like such a treat, however, I would definitely follow their warnings and if you are celiac or sensitive I would not eat there. Hopefully in the future they will change their process's so us Celiac's can eat there without getting sick.
ReplyDeleteI have eaten Panago pizza a few times now (6 or 7) and the last couple of times I've definitely had a reaction. The first few times it was SO GOOD, and I was completely reaction free but maybe they've become less careful about preparation as the pizza gets more popular. It's a real gamble for me to eat it now, and I'm probably going to try switching over to Pizza 73 or Dominoes now that they both have GF crust. It's a shame that it was a really missed treat and was such a great option at first but now has become a scare for me.
ReplyDeleteI would recommend to go in and order so you can always remind them to follow protocol. I have heard good things about Pizza 73, but not so good things about Dominoes Pizza so far.
ReplyDeleteToppings aside, it actually looks like the pizza at the catering bristol event we had last month. I wouldn't be surprised if it tasted just as good too.
ReplyDeleteThere are lots of pizza places out there that has gluten free stuff going on. johnny's ny pizza That also offers healthy meals.
ReplyDeleteI have been a celiac for about 7 years and after eating what i thought was the best pizza I've had in awhile, was actually to good to be true. This is my first real attack since i was diagnosed. I recommend NOT to eat their pizza. Sorry Panago!
ReplyDeleteCan't beat homemade pizza anyway, just takes a little time and effort and maybe a gluten free beer while you work. I usually use 1 cup brown rice flour, 1/2 cup tapioca, 1/2 potato starch for standard 2 cup flour/1 cup liquid pizza dough recipes (1 envelope of quick rise yeast, sugar, salt, 1 cup liquid either milk or water). Usually add a tablespoon each of basil, oregano, and a third herb/spice of your choice to jazz up the dough.
ReplyDeleteFor lazy days you can pick up Judy G's frozen pizza crusts at Sobey's for about $8 for 2. She is based out of Calgary. Her frozen pizza's are about $14 for one. I find the frozen doughs great though. They are fairly thin yet both crispy and soft once cooked.
The pretenders GF pizza's don't even compare.
They also served gluten free pizza during my sister’s birthday last month! It was my first time to taste a GF Pizza that time and after trying it I always choose GF pizzas. Well we still haven’t tried Panago’s Gluten Free Pizza, but we already made plans to check the place over the weekend!
ReplyDeleteSo this pizza in Calgary is gluten free? What health benefits does that give?
ReplyDeleteAll of you idiots who complain on this page about your reactions really get my goat. Aren't you people supposed to read labels? How about reading this whole blog? Guess not. Just have to get your trusty whistles out and spread your pandemonium. **** grabs whistle and blows it at you.
ReplyDeleteJust tried it. Ordered 2 "GLUTEN-SMART" in "The Fajita" and "Chicken Club", and this was ABSOLUTELY the most DISGUSTING pizza crust I've ever had. I've mostly eaten the toppings and thrown out most of the crust.
ReplyDeleteI am Blood Type O, and while I've never been tested for Celiac Disease, I DO get severe bloating, fatigue, brain fog, acne, and weight gain whenever I eat non-gluten-free flour/pasta products. I've mostly just been avoiding "white carbs, potatoes, & whole wheat". Sadly we decided to order Panago instead of getting groceries since it was too late (no 24 hour food stores where we live). BIG MISTAKE. UGH.
I came online to see what's actually in it because (in my opinion) simply put, it is SO gross. Like polenta or a package of some sort of Wasa bread smashed to oblivion and mixed with just enough water to form a cornmeal texture paste that hardens mimicking a "crust" when dried out/cooked.
I also noticed how much LESS of the TOPPINGS they give you on it. I ate about 6 pieces in total and only about 1/3 of the crust because I would rather throw it out than eat it. And I HATE wasting food unless it has actually "gone bad". The "crust" fortunately made its way through me VERY quickly for such a dense "bread type product".
If this is what Celiacs are faced with eating for "pizza" every day, my condolences you poor b*stards. Much respect to you and I hope more companies take CD seriously as a REAL allergy, like they SHOULD. I'd rather just not eat pizza at all if this were my only option, and instead put the same ingredients on a salad or lettuce wrap. YUCK. Neither of us would order again.
Also hate how they use Gluten-SMART instead of actually being really Gluten-FREE. Way to cover your asses Panago.
Holy freaking quotation marks Batman
ReplyDeleteDon't eat this pizza if you have Celiac Disease. It's stated on their website and on the phone service that there IS cross contamination.
ReplyDelete