Gluten Free Products Cheaper at Whole Foods

Last Natural Products Expo West, Glutino gave me a stack of coupons for free products.

I went to the closest supermarket which is Ralphs. Helluva expensive.

Then I went to other stores such as Vons, Hughes, and Gelson's.

Whole Foods was the cheapest and had the most products including breaded products that were in the freezer.

I could only go to one which was the West Hollywood one on Santa Monica though I did get a good selection when I was in the South Bay El Segundo one.

The Whole Foods in Sherman Oaks did not have the breaded products in the freezer.

Definitely buying stuff at Ralph's is a rip-off.

This contradicts a report, for Glutino at least, that Whole Foods is more expensive.

Motel 6 Disneyland

A few hours in, I've already decided on my ratings for their comment card.

The desk agent asked me to give them all 10s--this after making me wait 20 minutes at the desk.

Big fucking zero is what I say.

They suck.

Motel 6 sucks.

I don’t find it odd that I’ve received no phone call from the front desk if my room was okay, something that I saw a front desk person feverishly doing for other guests when I checked in.

And a spring is broken on the mattress so there’s a clanking every time you move. Yes, that’s what I want to hear when I’m trying to sleep.

 
(I noticed this is in the food porn and not the travel blog--ooops)

Natural Products Expo West: Gluten Free Not

I’m getting a little irritated over the contradictory labeling for Gluten-Free products. Or supposedly gluten-free products.

I previously wrote about one item having wheat fiber but still manages to call itself Gluten-Free. What even the hell is “wheat fiber”?

Here’s “wheat starch.” And look, it’s certified Gluten Free. I’m wondering what standards the Gluten-Free Certification Organization (GFCO) adheres to.

And here’s another shared equipment warning on the label.

In my opinion, having the word “wheat” on a label automatically makes it not Gluten-Free.

Natural Products Expo West: Cooking Out the Gluten Free

I was bemused and somewhat incensed that many companies exhibiting at the Natural Products Expo West proudly offered up their cooked items that were Gluten-Free. But if you looked closely at all the signs they had in their booth, you may have seen a sign that said that gluten-free items were also cooked in the same appliance that foods containing gluten were.

What the hell is the point of that? Hello. It’s no longer gluten-free if you don’t mix the products together. Nowadays, I won’t even consider a company unless they are solely gluten-free or they use a completely different facility for gluten-free products that they do with their other products. But that still doesn’t mean that their gluten-free products won’t be contaminated. Annie’s makes both gluten and gluten-free products. Are they delivered to the store in different trucks? Are they stored in the same warehouse?

And if you’ve been to the store when their stocking shelves, do you really think they’re careful about handling? I’ve seen palettes of gluten and non-gluten products stacked tougher.

Has anyone recently carried a bag of flour? Those puffs, drips, and drops aren’t harmless.

The FDA only controls what is packaged into your food. After the fact, you’re pretty much on your own.

Natural Products Expo West: Congrats to the Scammers

Well, congratulations to the scammers. They got into the Natural Products Expo West. I’ve seen them at the LA Auto Show—they seemed more concentrated on printing tons of documents out. Maybe copies of their will. 

Yes, these are the two advanced in age journalists, and I’ve never seen them write something down in a notebook, take a photo, or whip out a sound recorder. I have them talk about food, lord over the buffet tables, and stuff several sandwiches, soda cans, and packets of mustard and mayonnaise, and wet naps in their roll-away luggage.

They were successful bypassing what was supposed to be a more stringent vetting process for journalists. So there they were with their roll-aways on the exhibit floor, tugging then down the aisle.

Hooray for scammers.

Natural Products Expo West: In the House with House Foods

I did not know House Foods—the company that makes the packaged tofu that you all know and love—owns Curry House restaurants. House Foods America Corporation (HFAC) is a fully-owned subsidiary of the House Foods Corporation (HFC), one of Japan’s oldest and largest food manufacturers. Established in 1913 in Osaka, HFC is renowned for its curry brands as well as a line of spice products. The American branch has been in Los Angeles since 1981. Now with two manufacturing plants in Garden Grove, CA and Somerset, New Jersey, HFAC makes 350,000 pieces of tofu each day.

House Foods has a licensing partnership with Duraemon with the tyke appearing on the packages. They’re limited editions, so to speak, as House Foods does partner with a wide variety of movie and TV properties.

There was a free for all at the House Foods booth at the end of Natural Products Expo West. A woman in a motorized scooter pretty much parked there and loaded up her vehicle. Luckily I was able to get some Tofu Sausage which is so good. Zesty with a nice kick, it worked well with rice, between two slices of bread, or as a meat substitute in your favorite dishes.

I also picked up one of the products House Foods in focusing on, their Tofu Shirataki noodle, which is made from puréed tofu and a root of Konjac, a member of Asian yam family. Vegan, low in calories and carbs, their Shirataki noodles comes in Angel Hair, Spaghetti, and Fettuccine.

Now it is different to cook with than pasta. You do have to rinse the noodles thoroughly because there’s a pungent odor that does rinse off. For the Angel Hair, you’ll really need a strainer or colander with very small holes. Cooking with the noodles takes some practice, but if you know what you’re doing, you’ll have a great meal.

House Foods is a mainstay. Their line includes staples such as their Premium Tofu, Organic Tofu, and Tofu Steak. The majority of their products are gluten-free. My home would be a home without House Foods.