We only had time for a quick dinner tonight, so we ran over to La Super Rica. Lucky for us, the Chilaquiles were on the specials menu for the day. This is one of my three favorite things there, including #6 and #13. Yum.
Archive | March, 2012
Opal
25 Mar
We went to Opal last night with some friends. I started with the special soup which was a Creamed Potato and Spinach Soup. Luckily for me, there was no flour in it. I then ordered the Salmon Filet with a Thai Curry Sauce. Usually, they drizzle a hoisin sauce on top but since that has soy sauce, they omitted it.
This was incredibly delicious. I loved the julienned vegetables that were served with it. Although our waitress wasn’t entirely sure as to what was GF or not, she was in close contact with the kitchen and they were incredibly knowledgeable.
Silvergreen’s GF Menu
21 Mar
Silvergreens just made it a whole lot easier to order if you have to eat on a gluten-free diet. When we went tonight, I was pleasantly surprised to receive the menu above. I ended up getting a half sandwich with a cup of soup. The Tillamook Grilled Chicken sandwich was wrapped in lettuce and included grilled chicken, Tillamook cheddar, tomatoes, red onions and mayo. I chose the potato cheddar for my soup. Potatoes and cheese are always a fantastic combination. It is just so nice to be able to go to a restaurant that has been proactive in accommodating the gluten-free diet!
Seal Sanctuary and Brunch
21 Mar
I didn’t have to work today and it is so beautiful out so we decided to go for a walk to the Seal Sanctuary with our pup. Once we got there, we took turns looking at the seals since dogs aren’t allowed within sight of the sanctuary. This is one of those special spots in the Santa Barbara area.
This time of year, it is a protected birthing habitat for the seals. We could see the young seals playing around with the older seals. If you time it right and come in January and February, you might get to see them being born! After we finished our walk, we had worked up an appetite. On the way home, we stopped at the Summerland Beach Cafe since they had a huge sign saying that they were dog friendly. When we sat down, our dog was given a water bowl and a dog biscuit. I ordered the Rigoberto’s Rancheros with my eggs over easy.
The potatoes were made with onions which I always like. My only thought was that the cheese could have been a bit more melted but overall, it was a very satisfying dish.
Downey’s
20 Mar
Tonight we went to Downey’s, which is consistently rated one of the best restaurants in Santa Barbara. I was interested to see how gluten-free friendly they were. Our waiter was really good, running down the menu and letting me know what was safe and what to avoid. I started with the mussels. They were prepared with a bit of curry and served on lentils. Then I had the steak prepared with grilled asparagus and pureed potatoes.
This was very good. After this course they brought out a cheese platter that we could choose from. I asked if we could have a plate made without the stilton since blue cheeses typically start their mold from bread. When they served the cheese though, it was on a plate with bread and crackers. I thought that they would have remembered that I could not have bread and crackers near my food. I ended up just eating the ends of the cheeses that were furthest from the gluten. Overall the two dishes I had were wonderful, but I was disappointed that at that stage of the meal, there was such a careless mistake.
Breakfast at Four Seasons Westlake Village
17 Mar
Growing up, one of my favorite things to eat for breakfast was bagels with lox. So when I saw that there was a smoked salmon platter on the breakfast menu at Four Seasons Westlake Village, I got excited. I asked if they had gluten-free bread, and since it was a Four Seasons, of course the answer was, “yes”.
Room Service
17 Mar
Do you know what is fun about staying at the Four Seasons Westlake Village? You can call down to room service and have them bring you up some GF cookies and ice cream. These cookies reminded me of the WOW cookies I had recently. They were soft and chewy. The ice cream with the fresh berries was really good too.
Onyx
16 Mar
Get ready to hear about how great Onyx is for us gluten-free eaters. We were lucky enough to stay at the Four Seasons in Westlake Village for a night this week. For dinner, we went to the hotel’s Onyx Restaurant. I started with a sake sampler which was interesting in a good way. When I started asking our waitress questions, she amazingly informed me that they could make tempura dishes GF by using potato starch and that they could prepare the fried rice with GF soy sauce! She then brought out a bottle of soy sauce for me to use for the meal.
On her recommendation, I ordered the Red Dragon roll which had spicy tuna and (gluten-free!) shrimp tempura.
I really enjoyed this roll. Prior to being diagnosed, I used to LOVE shrimp tempura, so it was incredibly exciting to have it again! The other roll I got was called the Hawaiian Volcano. It had spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, spicy aioli and pickled red ginger. Even though it had similar ingredients, it had a totally different taste.
I enjoyed it, but I liked the Red Dragon roll better. We also shared a side of the vegetable fried rice because how often can I order fried rice at a restaurant?!
Overall, we had a fantastic time at Onyx. It was so nice to have so many options at a Japanese restaurant. The music, which was surprising (80s rock and pop), somehow enhanced the whole experience.
Recipes Bakery
11 Mar
Yesterday, I met up with a friend to explore the wonderful Saturday Farmer’s Market in Santa Barbara (where I got the most amazing cranberry and walnut goat cheese). As we were getting ready to leave, we saw the cutesy Recipes Bakery building across the street and decided to go in to see what they were all about. As we were both excitedly noticing the “GF” label on the menu, one of the staff members mentioned that they can make all of the items shown above gluten-free except for the banana bread. Even the pancakes? Yes indeed. So I ordered the GF pancakes and my friend ordered the egg scramble with a GF muffin substituted for the toast. Here comes the weird part. As we were waiting for our food we scouted the area to find where we would be eating our breakfast. It turns out they aren’t really set up as a restaurant. Therefore, there really isn’t a seating area set up. This is also why were served our dishes in to-go containers. We both felt this was odd since they had breakfast menu items on the menu, and not just baked goods. We got over that pretty quick once we started eating.
These had lots of chunks of fresh pineapple dispersed within the pancakes. I found them to be really flavorful. The vanilla infused cream complimented them perfectly.
I had a bite of my friend’s GF muffin and it was good, but I was still happy with my choice of the pancakes. If you are looking for breakfast to go, this is your spot!
Talking up an Appetite
8 Mar
First off, thank you to those of you who made it out to the Whole Food talk tonight. It was so nice to meet some of you in person!
Since we were really hungry, we headed over to Fresco as soon as it was over. Their pasta special for the night was a fusilli pomodoro. It included roasted garlic, diced tomato, and basil sauteed in extra virgin olive oil. I love that they have gluten-free pasta available. While we were paying, the cashier was pointing out some GF desserts to me. One in particular, a flourless chocolate cake, looked really tasty but after last night’s excess, I thought it was better to hold off for the night.
gluten-free in sb 
