Gluten Freebird

Friday night was the perfect night for a baseball game - my first trip to Nationals’ stadium. It was a long night: a 14-inning game against the Rangers that ended with a rare win by the Nats.

I had stuffed my purse with trail mix, bars and snacks to get me through, but happily I needed none of it. The Gluteneer pointed out a booze stand where I could get my beer-free fill and I didn’t even need that.

The stadium features lots of local merchants (Ben’s Chili Bowl, Boardwalk Fries, Gifford’s Ice Cream, and Red, Hot & Blue) as well as some terribly named generic spots. (Who would possibly want a Senators Sausage in this post-Larry Craig world? And there’s something sketchy about Pentagon Pizza. Does it come with 5 sides?)

The highlight, by far, was Noah’s Pretzels. It’s the best gluten-free stadium dining in the country. No more having to dust crumbs off a limp hot dog or suffer through stale nachos.

The pretzel company, which promotes autism awareness, sells gluten-free pretzels. They’re served in a sealed, tamper-proof bag to keep them away from contaminants. The pretzels wouldn’t otherwise change my life, but at a baseball game? Mine was delicious with a hearty dose of mustard. Also, they’re shaped in a big Nats W.

Sadly, they don’t have gluten-free pretzel dogs, but they serve Hebrew Nationals that aren’t already wrapped in buns (like at every other hot dog stand), so you can buy a pretzel and a wiener and get creative.

I would say that it doesn’t get any better, but it does. The best part of all? They serve Redbridge gluten-free beer. BEER I CAN DRINK AT A BALLPARK. Beer (several of them) and a view.

Take me out indeed.