Why I'm giving up on eating GF pizza in places that are not dedicated GF

Gluten free pizza in Greek cafe midtown; the cafe was not dedicated gluten-free, but some of the items on menu, including one pizza, were listed as GF.

Pizza is quintessentially a New York food. You can't walk a couple blocks without encountering at least one pizza place. Casual places selling slices to eat on a go or in a park, upscale pizzerias serving gourmet pies made to order, vegan places remaking the familiar pies into not only meat-free, but also cheese-free ones, fusion cafes coming up with ethnic ingredients that somehow work great on pizza, hole-in-a-walls with cult following - the list can go on forever, but the gluten-free choices are rather limited. There are a few dedicated gluten-free pizzerias in Brooklyn and Manhattan, but they are obviously outnumbered. Before I got diagnosed, pizza was my favorite comfort food, and I missed it dearly for the longest time. I still do. Honestly, I don't know what I wouldn't do to just be able to just pick a slice - any slice - anytime I want without waiting, and planning, and making a dedicated trip, just like I used to.

Last few years I've been noticing a trend - regular pizza places are starting to offer one or two GF choices on their menus. At first I was wondering how is it even possible, what with cross-contamination and non-GF ingredients. However, it's so very hard to say no when you can eat something that you love so much, and you're told that it might be OK for you; I started taking my chances. A few poisonings later I figured out a few red flags that are non-negotiable for me. First thing that I check is their pizza oven. Many pizzerias have only one oven; usually an oven is turned on before the place opens and it stays hot, too hot to clean up the crumbs etc, until the closing time. Unless there is a dedicated shelf for gluten-free pies, a gluten free pizza will be placed next to the regular ones, getting contaminated while it's cooking. The only exception from this rule that I was able to find, unfortunately, is a small pie that can go in the oven on a piece of foil. It might be oblong-shaped,  like the one I took picture of in a random Greek place midtown, or a tiny round one; as long as the stuff is careful handling the gluten-free pie so it will not slide off the foil and touch the oven shelf, it should be safe to eat. 

Next factor to consider is ingredients. If they keep gluten-free pizza dough right next to the regular one, chances are they might mix them up every now and then; I always prefer to get a good look at mise en place and they way the ingredients are arranged. There are other things I'd like to know as well. Do they have a separate surface for making gluten-free pizza? What flour did they use to dust the surface before rolling out GF dough - dedicated GF or regular one? Did they wash their hands between regular pies and GF (or if they're wearing gloves, did they change them)? Did they use the same ingredients for the toppings? Most commercially available shredded cheeses and cold cuts are not gluten-free, and unless the management switched to GF options for the whole menu, there is still a chance I can get get poisoned. 

While there are some places that are dedicated to minimizing chances of cross-contamination, some are rather lax in enforcing it. I have to admit that with so many new and tasty frozen gluten free pizzas available I'm less willing to experiment when I'm eating out. Testing my slice for gluten is an option, but if it got contaminated in the oven, there is a chance that the small piece that goes inside the testing tube might miss the crumbs that got on my slice. Unless I am comfortable with safety precautions that I see, I think I am not going to risk ordering any gluten free pies or slices in pizzerias or cafes that are not dedicated gluten-free anymore.