Starbird Chicken

Love this place! Long-time fan. Spontaneously pulled in when I saw it on El Camino, it was the second day it was open. Delicious, tender chicken that's great in all forms - tenders, sandwiches, toppers on salads, etc. Their breading is gluten-free so we can eat here with friends and families who need GF. Staff is always nice, service is quick.

Came here because they advertise gluten free fried chicken. I asked the staff about the menu as I noticed that their chicken wings aren't marked as gluten free nor are their churros, but their chicken nuggets, tenders and fries are marked as gluten free. I have Celiac and depend on accurate information to make safe choices when eating as I can consume NO gluten whatsoever. Not even a crumb. The staff completely struggled through answering if they used a shared fryer or not. The fries are cooked in a shared fryer with churros. Cooking fries in the same fryer with the oil that has been used to cook churros is like claiming that cooking pasta in water used to boil shellfish is safe for people with a shellfish allergy. The staff member said if he had Celiac he wouldn't risk it. This same staff member said that they use a shared fryer but the chefs do something to make it gluten free, which is simply not possible unless they're changing the oil and scrubbing down the fryer between orders, which isn't a thing. Another staff member chimed in saying that they use a shared fryer for the wings and the tenders, but that it's okay because they cook the wings in the morning first. What? Not only would that guarantee that the oil is contaminated, they're precooking wings? Either this restaurant is falsely advertising gluten free items (people who can't consume aren't "friendly" to gluten) putting people who need to eat gluten free for medical reasons at serious risk of injury, or this restaurant has completely failed in training their staff how to explain their product and their safety protocols to customers. Either way, 1 star. Visited: October 2023