Longhorn Steakhouse Vs Texas Roadhouse: Which Has Better Gluten-Free Offerings?

When you have a gluten allergy or sensitivity, dining out can be a difficult feat. Although some restaurants have made strides in clearly showcasing a plethora of gluten-free options, others require research ahead of time before eating there. That research can be painstaking, so we've compiled a list of gluten-free offerings at both Longhorn Steakhouse and Texas Roadhouse.

Steakhouses may seem like a place where someone with celiac disease can eat relatively carefree, but these establishments actually have a number of foods that you may think are gluten-free but aren't. If the steakhouse serves pre-packaged or processed meat, they may not flag that these ingredients aren't celiac-safe. Common ingredients used to season meat, like whiskey, miso, or bouillon, contain gluten. Even if the restaurant serves fresh meat seasoned with salt and pepper, gluten can still sneak onto your plate in the form of breading, flour, or sauce.

Unless a gluten-free variety is used, any topping for steak that includes soy sauce isn't gluten-free. Meat sauces that are particularly creamy may also contain gluten, since flour is a common thickening agent. Before ordering a dish, check with the waiter to ensure that the ingredients in it can be eaten by those with celiac disease.

Like many restaurants, many of LongHorn Steakhouse's gluten-free choices are salads and sides. It does have good options in those categories, such as the LongHorn caesar salad, which comes with chicken, shrimp, or sirloin, or the grilled chicken and strawberry salad with vinaigrette. Of course, you'll have to ask that the salads are made without croutons. The restaurant also recommends that gluten-free diners request for the dish to be tossed in a different mixing bowl to prevent cross-contamination.

LongHorn has several sides, ranging from simpler options, like a sweet potato or grilled mushrooms, to more flavorful options, like its shrimp and lobster chowder or southwest chicken tortilla soup — sans the tortillas. As for the meatier picks, there are a number of gluten-free steak dinners on the restaurant's menu. There are some rib and seafood options, too, though items like the LongHorn salmon must be ordered without the marinade.

There are even fewer picks for other proteins though. When it comes to burgers and sandwiches, only the LongHorn burger is available as a gluten-free option. It has to be ordered without a bun, and there are no gluten-free replacements, so it's hardly an option. The restaurant's parmesan crusted chicken is the popular chicken dish you can order gluten-free at LongHorn Steakhouse — simply ask that it's made without breadcrumbs. Though there are several items for those with celiac disease, the chain doesn't have a gluten-free kitchen, so there's always a risk of contamination.

Unlike LongHorn Steakhouse, Texas Roadhouse's gluten-free salads are slim pickings. The chain has a grilled chicken salad, grilled salmon salad, or steakhouse filet salad with oil and vinegar as the only dressing choices in comparison to the several dressing options that LongHorn has. Its sides are pretty dismal, too; there's not much besides basic picks like green beans, sweet potato, or applesauce.

However, the restaurant does have a decent number of entrees for people with a gluten allergy to pick from. With the exception of its prime rib, all of Texas Roadhouse's hand-cut steaks are celiac-safe. It also has options such as steak kabobs, grilled BBQ chicken, a pulled pork dinner, and grilled salmon or shrimp, though you'll have to order them without the rice, bread, or fries that some of them are served with. Options like pork chops also come with sauce that's not suitable for gluten allergies, but Texas Roadhouse's sauteed mushroom and jack cheese smother toppings make a good alternative.

Compared to LongHorn Steakhouse, its burger and sandwich options are more varied. The restaurant has two types of cheeseburgers for gluten-free diners as well as a BBQ chicken sandwich and mushroom-jack chicken sandwich. However, there are no gluten-free bun alternatives. Like LongHorn, Texas Roadhouse doesn't have a gluten-free kitchen, so be mindful that cross-contamination is a possibility.