Tag Archives: montecito

Pane e Vino

27 Feb

It was a chilly day here in Santa Barbara so some warm Italian food sounded perfect. We decided to go to Pane e Vino in the Upper Village of Montecito. I started with the soup they had for the day, a hearty vegetable soup. It had lots of chunks of potatoes which made it quite filling. Then I had the Insalata Mista.

This consisted of baby lettuce, tomatoes and leeks with a vinaigrette dressing. It was nice and light. Then, after asking our waiter about gluten-free pasta, and being told they had penne and spaghetti, I ordered the Fusilli con Melanzane e Scamorza with the GF penne.

This pasta had smoked mozzarella, eggplant and a tomato sauce. You could really taste the smokiness in the dish which I liked. I just keep getting excited about all of the options we have here in the Santa Barbara area. This is another great one to add to the list of GF friendly places. I will note that I did have to request the pasta to be made in a fresh pot of water. It sounded like without asking, they make it in a “contaminated” pot so just be sure to make it clear if you are intolerant and not just eating GF by choice!

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Truffles at Tre Lune

16 Feb

Pasta with black truffles and white truffle oil? Yes please. Tonight we went to Tre Lune and I saw that dish on the specials menu. Was it as good as it sounded? It was pretty fantastic. It wasn’t an overpowering truffle taste, yet it had just enough bite to it.

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Tydes at the Coral Casino Beach and Cabana Club

9 Feb

Here’s the catch…. in order to eat at Tydes, you must either be a member of the Coral Casino Beach and Cabana Club OR you need to be a registered guest at the Four Seasons Biltmore. So what are you waiting for?! Go get a room for the night! Reason #1 you should book a room: You get gluten-free bread when those that eat gluten get their bread. My warm bread was served with a fantastic olive oil. Reason #2: The Butternut Squash Soup.

This was unbelievably tasty. One of the many perks of having GF bread is that you can soak up every last drop of this amazing soup. Reason #3: The Caesar Salad.

I got this without the croutons and without the anchovies on top. Do you see how much grated cheese is on top?! This is the caesar salad I dream about….It had a slightly garlicky dressing that was great with all of that cheese. Reasons #4: The incredibly fresh Branzino. For my main dish, I had the Branzino which was served with chickpeas, capers and olives.

This piece of fish was prepared perfectly and went really well with the saltiness of the capers and olives. We decided to get a couple of sides with our main dishes…which brings me to Reason #5: HERB FRIES WITH PARMESAN AND TRUFFLE OIL.

Imagine my excitement when I found out that these are made in a dedicated fryer. To be honest, it is worth staying a night at the Four Seasons just to have these fries. They were beyond wonderful. As for our other side dish? Reason #6: Broccolini with parmesan. These didn’t photograph as well because it was dark, so you will just have to take my word for it when I say that they were cooked just right. Overall our meal here was perfect. In addition to all of the dishes, our server was warm and attentive. And now comes the hint dropping for my husband… doesn’t a night at the Four Seasons sound great?

 

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Trattoria Mollie

4 Dec

Tonight we decided to get dinner and then put up our Chrismukkah decorations. We went to Trattoria Mollie’s so that we would have plenty of energy to put together our fake tree that has made it through two cross country moves. I had a salad with a lemon dressing and shaved parmigiano. It was nice and light. I then had the Medaglioni di Melanzane alla Piastra con Speck al Profumo di Pesto.

This consisted of  grilled eggplant with mozzarella, smoked ham and pesto sauce. I then had gluten-free pasta. You heard right…. ANOTHER restaurant that offers GF pasta! Are we lucky or what?

I had the Spaghetti con Pancetta e Ricotta salata. It was GF spaghetti, smoked Italian bacon and ricotta cheese in a light tomato sauce. It was quite yummy. They use the Trader Joe’s brand rice flour pasta. To finish off the meal, they made me a small portion of their Panna Cotta.

This naturally GF dessert had a wonderful chocolate drizzle and was surrounded by a strawberry sauce. I don’t know how we got anything done after eating the amount that we did. However, after rummaging through our moving boxes, we were able to locate our tree and box of ornaments. The stockings are still MIA, but who needs stockings when you have a festivities bush like ours?

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Los Arroyos

2 Dec

We had to meet with someone on Coast Village Road today, so we went to Los Arroyos afterwards for lunch. I had the Rajas con Queso. It includes two corn tortillas with grilled pasilla chiles and onions with monterey jack and queso fresco cheese melted on top. You then have the option of a side of caesar salad or rice and beans. I topped mine with the chipotle salsa they have which is quite good. I would just be very careful describing what you can and can’t have to your waiter. Our particular waitress didn’t seem as on top of things as I would want her to be. However, I have had the dish before so I knew what I could and couldn’t have.

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Plow and Angel

2 Nov

This evening, we went to Plow and Angel at the San Ysidro Ranch. Plow and Angel is the more casual dining option at San Ysidro Ranch. They also have Stonehouse which is more upscale. Both eateries have outdoor patios that are the most romantic, magical setting you can ever imagine. Seriously. If you have a special occasion that is worth celebrating, sit outside and just be in awe.

On to the food…. the first thing you will notice on the Plow and Angel menu is that it says on the bottom, “We are happy to accommodate all dietary needs such as vegetarian and gluten free diets.” It is true. They are very knowledgeable about the GF diet and even have gluten-free pasta available to substitute in on any dish with pasta. Another thing worth mentioning? If you dine at Plow and Angel, you can also order any dish from the Stonehouse menu. I started with “SYR’s Famous Tortilla Soup”. It includes avocado, grilled chicken, cheddar cheese, and corn tortilla crisps. This soup was SO good. I already am thinking about going back just to get this soup again. Then, for my main, I got the Maine Lobster Bolognese with GF penne all Chitarra, tomatoes and basil.

Now this dish comes at a price ($69.00), but it was delicious. There was plenty of lobster meat and the bolognese style sauce complimented the dish perfectly. If you are on a budget, just ordering the soup and a salad would be satisfying and enjoyable as the setting outside is just that special.

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Steak Night

27 Oct

I wasn’t lying when I said that Lucky’s Onion Rings made with rice flour are unbelievable. That picture doesn’t even do them justice.

Last night, we had dinner in Lucky’s bar area. I started with their special soup which had white beans, tomatoes and fennel. Then we got to the good stuff. I had the petite filet cooked medium rare. My husband and I also shared the skinny onion rings and the hashed brown potatoes with gruyére cheese.

Make sure that you request the onion rings to be prepared with rice flour as they are typically prepared with a “normal” flour. This was such a good, filling meal. As always, there was some good people watching in the bar are while we were dining.

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Dinner in Montecito

22 Oct

Tonight we went to dinner with my parents who were in town for two days. We went to the family favorite, Tre Lune. I started with my go-to Insalata di Fagioli pictured above. It was great, as always with the perfect balance of white beans, cucumber, tomatoes, onions and parmesan. I had really worked up an appetite all day while at work so I decided to order three courses. The next thing I had was the Carpaccio con Rughetta.

Sliced incredibly thin, this went into my belly very quicky. The mustard dressing in the middle was nice and light and complimented the beef tenderloin really well. The main course I ordered was the special pasta which had prawns and a tomato sauce. I had the choice of penne or fusilli. The picture below was of my dad’s pasta. He had the same dish with the regular spaghetti.

The only thing I didn’t like about this was that I prefer not to remove the heads. We requested them to be removed but the restaurant was too busy to accommodate us. Therefore, my dad had the task of removing both of our prawns’ heads. Yuck. I topped mine with the hot oil that they serve with their pizzas. It gave it the perfect about of heat. This meal paired with a wine from Puglia, Italy was extremely satisfying after a long and busy day at work.

 

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Future Restaurant Posts

23 Sep

Even though I have only been back for a week, I am amazed at how far Santa Barbara has come. For those of you that are just visiting the area and would like more options for your stay here, below are restaurants that I know to be GF friendly but that I have not posted anything about yet. Many of them I have been to and have experienced no problems. Others are on my list of places to try. As always, know that you are eating at your own risk and speak with the staff to avoid any cross contamination issues.

Olio e limone (pasta) – I have had many fantastic meals here prior to them offering GF pasta. This is a great place to go for a special meal. Posted!

Ca Dario (pasta) – The last time I lived in Santa Barbara, I know they would cook your GF pasta if you brought it, but word is that they have their own stock now. Posted!

Pascucci (pasta) – This is a good option to go to if you are shopping downtown. Posted!

Bucatini (pasta) – I only had one meal here a very long time ago and didn’t love my experience, but they are owned by the same guy as Tre Lune and Luckys. I will definitely be giving it another chance now that they are carrying GF pasta.

Aldo’s (pasta) – This place seems to cater to more of the tourists, but they need to eat GF too! I ate here once many years ago and it was kind of mediocre, but I will try it again to taste some GF pasta.

Pastavino (pasta) – I just saw online that this place offers GF pasta. They are owned by the same people as Holdren’s.

Palazzio (pasta) – This is the place to go if you are hungry as their portions are HUGE. I haven’t tried this GF pasta yet, but I used to get salmon here and it was nicely prepared. Posted!

Adama – This is an entirely vegan restaurant that has GF items clearly marked on the menu online. Posted!

Le Crepe Shoppe – I read that they offer crepes that are made entirely of buckwheat flour. I haven’t been yet though to check out any cross contamination concerns. Posted! 

Taffy’s Pizza (pizza) – Saw that they have GF pizza. Plan to go there soon!

Pizza Mizza (pizza) – Never been, but will definitely be visiting since they have GF pizza! Posted! 

Pizza Guru (pizza) – Posted!

Woodstocks Pizza (pizza) – It would have been nice to have a GF pizza option in Isla Vista while I was still at UCSB! Posted!

Spiritland Bistro – We have been here a few times. It is fantastic for people that eat GF, vegetarian, or just want a tasty meal.

Simply Pies – I am not a huge pastry/dessert kind of girl, but this just sounds too good to pass up. Can’t wait to try a GF pie! Posted! 
Honey B. Bakeshop (entirely GF bakery) – I am not a sweets girl, but look at the pictures on this website. This place might change me.

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Jeannine’s

23 Sep

Today, we went to Jeannine’s in Montecito for lunch. I had one of those great unexpected GF moments while we were there. While putting in our order, I noticed a whole basket of individually wrapped gluten-free goodies! The banana bread looked too good to pass up, so I got that to snack on until the orders came to the table. I was so happy that I did. It was fantastic. My normal (i.e. non-GF) husband agreed that it had a great consistency and that he would definitely order it without being on the GF diet. The banana bread along with a special vegetable curry dish was the perfect lunch order.

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