Tag Archives: california

La Super Rica Taqueria

28 Jan

If you live in Santa Barbara, chances are you know of and have been to La Super Rica before. Is it really as good as people say? I think so. Above is the #6, one of the tastiest things you will ever eat. It consists of sauteed strips of chile pasilla with onions, melted cheese and herbs on two corn tortillas that are about three seconds old. It is one of my go-to dishes there. The other is #13,  which is possibly even better than #6.

It might look ordinary, but this is no ordinary dish. The menu says it is melted cheese with homemade tomato sauce and 3 corn tortillas. I like to think of it more as a party in my mouth. This is one of my favorite things to eat in the world. The other dish I like to get here is the Chilaquiles which is not on their regular menu. I know they have it on the specials’ menu every Tuesday though. As a tip, they are cash only and you can expect to wait during normal dining times.

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Renaud’s Patisserie and Bistro

24 Jan

This morning, we decided to try Renaud’s Patisserie and Bistro in the Arlington Plaza. I ordered the omelette with peppers, spinach and gruyere cheese and made with egg whites. For my side, I chose the potatoes. I really loved this meal. The omelette was the perfect size and had the perfect amount of fillings. The potatoes were incredibly good as well. The outdoor seating of this bistro is really appealing as it is in a quieter shopping center that has many cute stores. I definitely want to return to try some of their macarons!

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The Let’s Get The Toxins Out of Us Meal

20 Jan

After our highly caloric meal at In-N-Out, added to the fact that we have both been feeling  run down, we decided to eat somewhere healthy for dinner. At Alchemy Cafe, they have  “elementals, infusions, elixirs, extracts and potions” all with different purposes. I started with the Samurai Kombucha which tasted a bit funny to me, but I guess my body will thank me in the long run. We shared the Cabbage Wraps to start, which I had the last time I was here. I then ordered the Mung Bean Glass Noodles. I requested that they be extra spicy which was a good decision. This will be a great option for the next time I am looking for a healthier meal!

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In-N-Out

20 Jan

Sometimes you just want to eat a burger and fries. When that craving hits (like it did today), we run to In-N-Out where I can get my burger protein style, and my husband can have the grilled cheese. The fact that they make their fries in a dedicated fryer just makes it that much better.

On another topic, a couple of nights ago we went to Pizza Guru. You may recall that last time we were there, the person that helped us told us that we could have the bread sticks made GF. Well, the people we spoke to this time around said that is not true. Has anyone ever been able to order the bread sticks there?

Also, I called C’est Cheese which is a wonderful local cheese shop in downtown Santa Barbara. They have some very appealing sounding sandwiches on their menu so I figured I would ask if they have GF bread. WELL… the lady I spoke with on the phone had just started to look into providing GF bread! It will be a while until they actually have it, but I just think that is so exciting!

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Arigato’s Edamame

14 Jan

If you have to eat gluten-free like myself, you have to avoid ordering anything at a sushi restaurant that has the word soy in it… right? Wrong. Go to Arigato and order the wokked edamame with garlic soy flavor and request it to be prepared with the GF soy sauce that they have. The result is a tasty appetizer that has a good heat to it and has that soy sauce flavor that we so often have to avoid.

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Arch Rock Fish

14 Jan

We worked up quite an appetite looking at overpriced real estate in Santa Barbara. It was time for a break so we went to Arch Rock Fish for a late lunch. I started with the grilled artichoke which was very good. The other people at the table had ordered guacamole and chips as a starter but I didn’t share since the chips were fried in contaminated oil. I then had the grilled fish tacos (I know my orders are starting to get a bit predictable).

These were served with corn tortillas and a nice side of pico. The guacamole and cilantro on top made me very happy. I really liked the feel of the restaurant. The only thing I might change is the napkins. After our meal, we all had tons of lint leftover on our pants.

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Lunch in Ojai

13 Jan

I had a whole day with nothing planned which felt phenomenal. I thought it was the perfect opportunity to do some exploring in Ojai. I took the CA-150 Route since I previously had only gone via CA-33. It was to my surprise and delight that I found views like the picture above. The road takes you right along Lake Casitas which is just beautiful with the mountains set around it. Once it Ojai, my mom and I did some exploring. There are a bunch of shops which were fun to look in. When it was time to eat, we ended up going to a natural food store that had a cafe called Rainbow Bridge. When I asked if they had gluten-free bread available for their sandwiches, the lady behind the counter told me that they had Udi’s! Woohoo!

I got a veggie sandwich that had avocado, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, carrots and sprouts. It was the perfect veggie sandwich. I definitely want to return to Ojai to try some of the restaurants in the area that I have read about.

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Petros

11 Jan

Tonight we tried Petros, the new restaurant on State Street across from the Arlington Theater. I started with the Petros Horiatiki Salad which had vine-ripe tomatoes, cucumber, feta, olives, avocado, onions, capers, olive oil and oregano. We then shared the Dip Combo which comes with portions of Kafteri, Melitanosalata, Tzatiki, Fava and Taramosalata. Since the Taramosalata has bread crumbs in it, they put it on the side for me. They also brought out sliced cucumber (at a charge) since I couldn’t eat the pita.

I really enjoyed two of them (the bottom two in the picture). The white one was the Tzatiki which had a good bite to it due to garlic. The one of the bottom was the Kafteri which consists of four special Greek cheeses blended with a cocktail of hot peppers. Then it was time for the main dish. I tried to order their signature dish which was feta crusted rack of lamb but there were bread crumbs involved so instead I went with the fish tacos which are served on corn tortillas.

These were pretty good. The feta on top was a nice touch. I struggled to finish all three though since it was a generous portion. During our meal, we had a waitress in training. I will say that I was glad that the seasoned waitress was with her while we were ordering as she seemed very knowledgeable about which dishes were GF or not.

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Zaytoon

9 Jan

We were both pretty hungry before the sun had gone down, so we decided to take advantage of the weather and eat on Zaytoon’s wonderful patio. We started with some hummus. As my husband ate it with some warm pita, I ate it with some cucumber slices that the waitress brought out for me. We then shared the Egyptian foul mudammas.

I love this dish. It consists of fava beans cooked in garlic and topped off with olive oil, lemon juice, tomatoes, onions and parsley. It is very hearty for an appetizer. For my main dish, I ordered the Chicken Shawarma. Normally, this dish comes with rice pilaf and fattoush salad. However, their rice has orzo in it. Our waitress gave me more fattoush salad (without pita chips) to make up for the rice.

This was quite alright with me since I absolutely love their fattoush salad. Do you see that white glob in the bottom right of the picture? That is called heaven. It is some mixture of garlic, olive oil and some secret ingredients… all of which our waitress assured me were gluten-free.

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Arnoldi’s Cafe

6 Jan

Last night, we were both craving Italian food, so we decided to check out Arnoldi’s. I had called ahead to see if they had gluten-free pasta, and they confirmed that they do! I started with a Caesar Salad. Even after doing my whole GF speech, the salad arrived with croutons. Not the best start, but the waiter was quick to have them make me a fresh one. It was a solid Caesar Salad. I then had the GF pasta with the Arrabiata sauce.

This was as straightforward as you could get but the sauce was really good. We sat outside along the Bocce Ball courts. This seems like the perfect place for a first date or a double date. We didn’t try our luck with the Bocce Ball this time, but we definitely want to return!

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