After getting my hair done today in Ojai, I decided to get some lunch at Papa Lennon’s. They have gluten-free pizza available and even make their own crust. However, after asking some questions, I found that they use the same surface and utensils for the GF and regular crusts. They also have gluten-free pasta available. After confirming that the pasta would be cooked in a clean pot and with clean utensils, I ordered the Pasta Primavera. This had sauteed seasonal vegetables, freshly grated parmesan cheese and a pesto cream sauce. It was hearty and warm which was appreciated as it was quite overcast today.
Tag Archives: california
Papa Lennon’s
30 AprEl Encanto
30 Apr
Last night, we decided to try the much buzzed about El Encanto restaurant. We walked around the property a bit before eating, and found it to be quite beautiful. On a clear night, the views would be outstanding. Then we sat down for dinner. When I asked our waiter what my options were, he ran down a list of four menu items and then walked away not allowing for me to ask questions. This made me a bit nervous. When he finally came back, I narrowed it down to the two items he said I could have unaltered. They were the Pan Seared Swordfish and the Confit Jidori Chicken Breast. The chicken came with crispy chickpea fries which intrigued me, so I asked how they were prepared. It turns out that they are fried in contaminated oil so they were not GF. Additionally, about five minutes after ordering, an amuse bouche came out that was clearly not GF. The gentleman that brought it out apologized and said he would be back with something I could have but we never saw him again. Hmm. I started with the Spring Salad Edible Flowers without the croutons that usually come with it. I wasn’t a huge fan of the taste of this. My husband tried it and decided it tasted like Febreeze. For my main, I had the swordfish which was served with creamy Jerusalem artichokes, French black truffle, sweet garlic parsley custard and cabbage bacon emulsion.
I would love to say that this was great, but I found it a bit bland. The whole experience at the restaurant just felt very impersonal. As an Orient-Express property, I had high hopes that they would be well informed about allergies. But it was very apparent that there was a lack of awareness and communication going on. I think that in Santa Barbara, if you charge a certain amount of money, an expectation of reliable service come with it. I don’t think we would go back for food, but it does seem like it would be a nice spot for a drink in the summer.
Anchor Woodfire Kitchen and Bar
13 Mar
Last week we went with my parents to try Anchor Woodfire Kitchen down on lower State Street. The waitress we had was very helpful in letting me know what I could and could not have. We started with some cured meats and cheeses. Since they make all of their meats, she was able to confirm that there were no fillers in them. Typically this comes with bread, so she made sure to place that on a separate plate. For my appetizer, I had the local mussels.
These had chickpeas, nduja (which is a spicy, spreadable sausage) and a paprika broth. I found them quite tasty. I had wanted to order the special fish that evening for my main dish. However, they refused to remove the head and debone it for me, so I went with the smoked and braised short ribs.
These were served with parmesan polenta and a heavy dose of yummy mustard. Overall I enjoyed my meal here. I loved the playlist they had, and the space was really cool. There were a couple of things that happened during our meal that they will hopefully figure out. We were served all of our entrees while there were still appetizers being consumed. Additionally, we were served our check without being offered dessert or coffee. I have a feeling they were new restaurant kinks though, so I will be sure to try it again!
Sides Hardware and Shoes
8 Mar
Wednesday was one of those overcast days that almost beg you to have soup. Lucky for me, at Sides Hardware and Shoes, their special soup for the day was a fantastic carrot soup with ginger cream and chive oil. I started with a cup of it, instantly regretting that I didn’t just order a gallon of it as my order. For my main dish, I initially was going to order the shrimp tostada but they fry the corn tortilla in contaminated oil. Instead, I had their fish tacos.
These were served on fresh corn tortillas and had fresh albacore tuna, cabbage, guacamole, salsa and a chipotle aioli. There was a lot of fish with the tacos so I filled up pretty quickly. However that didn’t stop me from trying their gluten-free dessert, macaroon sandwiches.
These coconut macaroons were filled with dark chocolate and coconut swirl sorbet. I am not a huge coconut fan and I was pretty full at this point so I only had one. But for those coconut lovers, this would be a great dessert to share!
The Garden Market
2 Mar
Yesterday was an unbelievably beautiful day in Santa Barbara. To take advantage of the weather, I decided to try The Garden Market in Carpinteria as I had heard they had a really nice spot for al fresco dining. The Garden Market has gluten-free bread available for their sandwiches. They typically use a toaster that is contaminated to prepare the sandwiches but were happy to use the oven instead to warm the bread up. I had the Classic Avocado which had avocado, provolone, lettuce, tomato, sprouts, red onion and mayo. The sandwiches usually come with tortilla chips, but rather than take any risks, I asked to hold the chips and purchased some GF potato chips instead. I enjoyed my meal back in their sunny garden area which was a very peaceful spot to unwind, eat and make progress on my latest book.
Red Brick Pizza
15 Feb
Happy day after Valentine’s Day! Yesterday, we headed down to Ventura to look into buying a piano. After receiving some sticker shock, it was time to fill our bellies. After doing some research online, we decided to stop at Red Brick Pizza. At this restaurant, a portion of every gluten-free pizza sold supports scholarships for children on gluten-free diets, celiac disease research, support and awareness programs. How cool is that? I was also comforted by all of the Celiac Disease Foundation literature that was present. We ordered the Roasted Garlic Chicken Pizza but had it without chicken, bacon or mushrooms. I found the crust of this pizza really good. It was a thin crust but it had tons of flavor and held up to all of the ingredients. We also split a Vegetarian Fhazani Sandwich.
I loved this sandwich as it was fire-baked yet still safe for me to eat! It almost seemed as if the bread was the same as the pizza dough. It was the perfect consistency and tasted great!
Tre Lune has GF Pizza!
3 Jan
The whole family was in town for New Years to celebrate my brother’s birthday. One of the restaurants we visited was Tre Lune as it has always been a family favorite. As I was getting ready to order my usual order of GF pasta, the waiter let me know that they now serve a GF pizza! After asking all of the details (same oven, different surface, different utensils), we decided to get one for the table. I am so happy that we did. This is definitely my new favorite spot in town for GF pizza as the crust had a good consistency and the ingredients of the pizza were great too. For my main dish, I had the usual Spaghetti alle Lenticchie which had lentils, spinach and roasted tomatoes.
Suzanne’s Cuisine
7 Dec
This week, the husband and I escaped to Ojai for lunch. We decided to try Suzanne’s Cuisine as I had heard good things. I started with the Chicken Chili which was the special soup for the day. I then had the Southwest Salad of three rices.
This had wild, brown and jasmine rice, vegetables, smoked turkey, green chilies, corn and feta cheese. I could have just had the salad as it was very filling. I really loved the variety of rices along with the feta. Everything tasted very fresh. I found that our waitress was very informative on what was GF and not. They have a nice outdoor patio there as well which enhanced the meal!
The Blue Owl
16 Sep
After seeing their menu online that said “Gluten-Free Bread is Available on Request”, I decided to try The Blue Owl one day. They use Our Daily Bread’s gluten-free bread. I ordered the Turkey Thyme sandwich which had roasted turkey, thyme mayo and cheese. The result was really tasty. They warmed the sandwich in a toaster oven using foil to protect the surface of the bread. They then brought me a GF brownie which they don’t have regularly, but happened to have on this day.
The brownie was very rich and decadent. The woman I spoke with behind the counter didn’t seem entirely confident in being able to keep my sandwich GF so I might avoid this place if you have Celiac like myself. I didn’t feel ill afterwards, but it felt like I was living on the edge a bit when I placed my order.
gluten-free in sb 