Tag Archives: santa barbara

Alcazar

12 Nov

Pollo Con Crema Tacos

Last week, I wanted nothing less than to have to cook for dinner. So we ventured out to Alcazar located on the Mesa.We got there right when they opened, so we had our waitress’s undivided attention when explaining our family’s dietary needs. She knew her stuff, letting me know that the fryer was contaminated with gluten without me having to prompt her. I started with the Pollo con Crema Tacos. These were my favorite of all the things we ordered. Sadly for me, my daughter also loved the chicken so I didn’t end up having too much. We all shared an order of the Manchego y Guava Membrillo.

Manchego y Guava MembrilloI will enjoy eating Manchego cheese any day and in any form. The guava paste was firmer than I had anticipated. I could have done without it though and just eaten a hunk of the cheese. We also shared an order of the brussels sprouts.

Brussels SproutsAfter numerous attempts at cooking brussels sprouts perfectly, I still haven’t succeeded. So it was nice to enjoy them prepared by someone that knew what they were doing. The last thing I ordered was some spinach/bacon/mushroom/bean dish with a garlic butter sauce.

Spinach dish

The words bacon and garlic butter sauce were the reason I ordered the dish. I found it to be pretty bland though with the spinach in a strange not-quite-wilted form. Overall, I found the food okay. I would definitely try it again though since our waitress was so well-informed and there was a lot of variety on the menu.

As a reminder, Gluten-Free Santa Barbara will be meeting this Sunday at Lilac Patisserie at 11am. Come stop by and have some breakfast, lunch or cake! I will be giving out extra cases of gluten-free travel soy sauce packets left over from my trip to Japan!

Tags: , , , , ,

August Gluten-Free Santa Barbara Meet-up

13 Aug

It is that time again! Gluten-Free Santa Barbara’s August Meet-up will be this Sunday at Lilac Patisserie. After getting some feedback, we have moved the time to 11:00am. As of this past week, Lilac is now offering a breakfast menu until noon so come try out their new items! See you there!

Tags: , ,

Presto Pasta

22 Jul

Pasta Putanesca

Last week, we stopped by Presto Pasta after checking out ukuleles at Jenson Guitar and Music Co. The first thing I noticed at the counter was a big display saying that they had tons of GF choices. They use Mariella Gluten-Free Pasta, a corn pasta from Italy. Additionally, they have the GF sauces to choose from marked for ordering ease. After speaking with the employee about cross contamination, she got the manager who assured me that they would “nuke the pasta” so there would be no worries about a shared pot or colander. I suppose that is where they get the “presto” in Presto Pasta. I had the Pasta with Puttanesca sauce as I was told it was pretty spicy. I personally didn’t find it spicy or flavorful for that matter. However, they get points for providing an easy, safe and quick option for GF pasta.

As a reminder, this upcoming Sunday, the 26th, Gluten-Free Santa Barbara will be meeting at Lilac Patisserie for our monthly get together. Find all of the details here!

Tags: , , ,

PizzaRev

17 May

Margherita PizzaOn Friday we went to see Pitch Perfect 2 at Paseo Nuevo. Right next to the movie theater is the newly opened PizzaRev. I had read about this chain being good about limiting the chance of cross contamination so we decided to give it a try. As soon as I let the gentleman at the counter know that I had celiac, he went straight into a very well rehearsed routine. He changed his gloves and explained to me that he would be seeing my pizza through the entire process rather than passing it down the line like the other pizzas. As I remarked that it was very cool to see them take it seriously, his coworker chimed in to say that it was very important to limit chances of cross contamination. Yay PizzaRev! Rather than use the sauce that they use for the other pizzas, he used a squirt bottle and clean ladle. As he went down the line, I asked about the meats. They are all GF except for the meatballs. Since the GF pizza is put on a tray within the oven, he explained that they put oil on the bottom so it crisps up a bit.

We ordered the Margherita Pizza and the Taco Pizza without the chorizo. I preferred the Margherita which had tons of fresh garlic. The taco pizza was okay. We ordered it as is so that we could try it as it was intended. I think that next time I would add some jalapeño to it for a little punch.

Taco PizzaWe really enjoyed the crusts they used. Upon asking we learned they were from Venice Bakery. They do cook the pizzas in the same oven as the normal pizzas and they do use the same ingredients on the line (like Chipotle) except for the sauce. There is definitely still a risk of cross contamination. However, I felt much more confident eating here than I do at other pizza places in Santa Barbara. It was so refreshing to see staff that had been properly trained how to keep my food safe!

Tags: , , , , ,

Barbareño

15 Apr

California RollWe recently tried Barbareño in downtown Santa Barbara at the old D’Vine location. I was pretty excited since their focus is on locally sourced food which in my head translates as “We know all about the evils of gluten” for some reason. When I was ordering, I went through my usual spiel waiting for the waitress to cut in and say that I would be well taken care of. Instead, there seemed to be an attitude about modifying any of the dishes to be gluten-free. There were multiple instances where she said that the chef did’t intend for the dishes to be consumed in an altered state. As a celiac I have to modify dishes a lot. I would never judge a chef on a dish’s flavor profile if I had to alter it. That being said, I would always hope that any dietary needs could be accommodated to the best of their ability. I ended up getting the California Roll modified. It was really light and fresh. I then had their burger without the bread.

BurgerIt was a decent burger. They substituted some potatoes in for me which were particularly good. I really had my eye on the Santa Maria BBQ, but beer is used in the preparation of the dish. I liked the vibe of the restaurant. Their outdoor patio seemed like a great spot to have a drink once the days are longer and the weather is warmer.

Things have been quieter here since life has been pretty busy. Our daughter just got diagnosed with some food allergies, so as we venture into this new territory, we have been cutting back on dining out as much to be safe. That being said, I would love to connect with you GFSB people! Come to our next meet-up, this Sunday, the 19th, at Lilac Patisserie. We will be there at noon enjoying their awesome lunch menu. We will now be meeting monthly, the third Sunday of the month, so mark your calendars!

Tags: , , , , , ,

Lilac Pâtisserie

19 Jan

Cherry SconeHurrah! Lilac Pâtisserie is finally open! This entirely gluten-free bakery and café on State Street is a very welcome addition to Santa Barbara. I stopped in today to check out the space and pick up some goodies. For now, they are holding off on their breakfast and lunch menus so that they can make sure that they are done right. There were plenty of treats to choose from though to satisfy any appetite. I had a cherry scone that was incredible. I found myself having a hard time deciding between the banana nut muffin and apple crisp muffin, so I got both.

banana nut muffinApple Crisp MuffinI also couldn’t pass up the opportunity to have a toffee nut cookie which was very satisfying. Oh, did I mention I also got a brownie to go? They have two huge cases featuring their attractive and yummy cakes. I am already trying to decide which to get for our little one’s upcoming first birthday.

GF cakesThe only thing I could find wrong about Lilac was that it is going to challenge my lack of self-control. Stay tuned for Gluten-Free Santa Barbara’s next meet up at our new favorite eatery in town!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Patxi’s Pizza

23 Dec

Padron PeppersI just got home from having a memorable meal at new restaurant, Patxi’s Pizza. The only problem was, it was memorable for all the wrong reasons. I had seen ahead of time that they carried GF pizza crusts. I was optimistic that as a chain, they would understand how to take care of their many guests that have to eat gluten-free. Sadly, I was wrong. I asked our server if they place the GF pizza on a separate pan so that it wasn’t touching the same surface as the normal pizza. She said that they don’t but that they probably could. I then asked if they could use a different knife to cut the pizza, but she said that they couldn’t.

At this point, I understand that a lot of restaurants offering “gluten-free” products do not care at all about those of us who have to eat gluten-free. Rather than take responsibility for serving a product that is truly gluten-free, they are jumping on the gluten-free bandwagon and trying to squeeze some extra dollars out of those who just prefer to eat GF. It is frustrating to the millions of us who have no choice as to what we can consume, but I understand that it is their prerogative. The part that I don’t understand is how as a restaurant, there is no training done to be aware of the ingredients in your product. Almost everyone that dines out has a preference or dietary need involving certain ingredients. Before opening, a restaurant’s management should make training a priority so that their customers are taken of. After all, they are in the service industry. After asking many questions about the ingredients in their salads (once it was clear I shouldn’t mess with their pizza), it was apparent that not only had our server not been trained to know what was safe or not for me to eat, there was no available manager to help her. The whole time we were there, there were ten workers (two of which looked like they were managers) just talking to each other in different huddles around the room. At no point did a manager look to help the server or check on our table. The fact that it took 40 minutes for my salad to get to the table made it even more aggravating that they were all just joking around with each other.

Greek SaladThe salad arrived with the dressing and cheese on the side even though that was not a request. It also came with tongs so that I could toss it myself which seemed very odd. I ordered the Padron Peppers as well which were actually pretty good. After our experience, we won’t be returning though. It would behoove the management to take the opportunity to train the staff and kitchen on the menu during quiet moments like today.

Now, I am even more excited for Pizzarev to open in Paseo Nuevo since it is clear that they care for their gluten-intolerant customers!

Tags: , , , ,

Miso Hungry

6 Nov

Blackened SalmonOne of the great things about the Axxess Card is that it gets you to try new restaurants out. Japanese cuisine is always scary to try as a Celiac due to the risk of cross contamination, but I was so pleasantly surprised with my experience at Miso Hungry. I spoke with the gentleman behind the counter and learned that of all of their sauces, only the Teriyaki, Ponzu and Japanese Curry are not gluten-free. They use gluten-free tamari for their salad dressings (just avoid the Ponzu dressing). He also was sure to put on new gloves to be safe. I got so excited that I decided to order two items. First, I had the blackened salmon salad. This was dressed with their orange vinaigrette. The guy helping me encouraged additional sauces on top so I gave him free reign as long as they were gluten-free. I also had their spicy tuna sushi wrap.

Spicy Tuna WrapThese are about the size of a burrito. You have the choice of having it wrapped in nori or rice paper. I loved this as their spicy aioli gave it a kick. When I was getting my water, I saw a great Iced Tea Bar around the corner. I will definitely take advantage of this the next time I go!

Iced Tea Bar

Tags: , , , , , , ,

Boochies

29 Aug

 

unnamed

On August 14, my husband and I celebrated our 4th wedding anniversary. For lunch we decided to get some food from Boochies and have a little picnic at the Sunken Gardens, the place where we got married. As stated on Boochies’ website, “Every ingredient is 100% organic and totally free of gluten, meat, dairy, soy, and GMO’s.” We started with the veggie pizza which had a cauliflower crust. I hadn’t tried a cauliflower crust before then because it seemed odd, but the taste of the crust was pretty good. Then we had a quinoa veggie burger.

unnamed-1The bun was also made of cauliflower. Since we grabbed this from a prepared case, it was cold. I think I would have enjoyed it more if it had been made to order and was still warm. For dessert, we split the Blueberry Creme Cupcakes.

unnamed-2These were pretty great. This is a good option for certified gluten-free food in downtown Santa Barbara. It would have been nice if it wasn’t just take away food and there were some seats available. At least there are endless beautiful spots in Santa Barbara to enjoy this healthy meal.

Tags: , , , , , ,

Benchmark Eatery

30 Jul

Portobello CarpaccioThis week, we decided to try out Benchmark Eatery. When we sat down and I informed the server of my dietary needs, she immediately went into a disclaimer about the kitchen not being gluten-free. She also mentioned that they typically do not allow for substitutions, but that she would check with the kitchen to see if they could accommodate me. We started with the Portobello Carpaccio which was naturally gluten-free. This had chopped egg, frisée and roasted pistachio. It wasn’t overwhelmingly flavorful, but we both enjoyed it nonetheless. For my main, I had the Kale Antipasto without the crispy potatoes.

Kale AntipastoI love anything with butter beans. I was still a bit hungry after finishing, but I am sure the potatoes would have made it a bit heartier.  As a note, the chickpeas they serve in place of bread are not gluten-free as they have been battered and fried. However, for those that are not gluten-free, they got rave reviews from my husband.

Tags: , , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →