There may not be a restaurant in Santa Barbara loved by both locals and tourists alike as much as Brophy Brothers. With views of the harbor and mountains, it is a great spot to grab a drink and some seafood. There was a group of 5 of us and it was a beautiful day, so we knew there would be a little bit of a wait. We were told 35 minutes, but it ended up being a little over an hour. When we were finally seated and I had a chance to check out the menu, I noticed they had gluten-free buns. After talking to our waitress about cross contamination with the bun, I ordered the tuna melt. It had a heaping amount of tuna with melted, gooey cheese. It typically comes with fries, but they are made in a contaminated fryer. I turned down salad as a side since I figured the tuna melt would be plenty of food, which it was.
Caruso’s
5 May
Last week, I joined friends that are like family at Caruso’s. This was my first time dining at the Miramar Hotel’s signature restaurant, but not my first time at the resort. My previous experiences at the The Manor Bar and the Miramar Beach Bar were disappointing due to dismal service. However, the newest hotel in the area is beautiful and worth checking out for the views alone. Caruso’s is situated right on the water. Even if it is chilly, I’d recommend sitting on the outside patio. They have ample heaters and it seems silly to be so close to the ocean yet choose to dine inside. While speaking with our waiter about my dietary needs and asking for recommendations, he wasn’t entirely helpful. He proclaimed that this was the best restaurant in Santa Barbara but it was tough to get guidance from him. I asked if they had gluten-free bread and was told that they did have some that would be safe for me. When it arrived, I had to ask for my own oil though as they hadn’t anticipated that I would need a separate one. When they served an amuse-bouche, the server wasn’t sure if it was gluten-free and had to double check (it was). I started with the Little Gem Caesar without the croutons.
I really liked the salad. It sort of reminded me of the now defunct Arlington Tavern’s caesar salad. For my main course, I had the Pan Roasted Channel Island Halibut.
I thought this was okay. It didn’t have much flavor. Overall, the setting of the restaurant was unbelievably beautiful. However, I felt that the food and service were not on par with Bella Vista at the Four Seasons. I had to ask for water five times which may sound silly, but for the “best restaurant in Santa Barbara”, it was a bit annoying.
Kanaloa Seafood
19 Feb
Every time that I drive by Kanaloa Seafood Market on Chapala, I always think that that their patio looks so appealing. That, mixed with the fact that it is always busy when I drive by, finally convinced me to try it out. One of the things that makes Kanaloa stand out is that they promote and support environmentally responsible, scientifically sustainable fisheries.
From their website, “Kanaloa is the only International Organization of Standardization-certified seafood company in North America, earning our ISO 14001 certification through regular third party audits of our environmental management practices, and our continuous effort to reduce the size of the environmental footprint of our entire business, including our eco-packaging and shipping methods.”
I ordered two of the Pacific Tacos. I’m glad that I didn’t get three since they were huge. The tacos were served on corn tortillas and had sautéed swordfish with poblano peppers, onions, cabbage, pico de gallo and their house salsa. I am a huge fan of fish tacos, so I assumed that I would enjoy these. Not only were these good, they were tremendously good. The poblano peppers and onions mixed with the swordfish were such a good combination that I will be thinking of these for days to come.
Lure Fish House
15 Jan
Last Sunday, my grandma, daughter and I went for an early dinner at Lure Fish House. This restaurant just opened at the La Cumbre Shopping Center in place of Ruth’s Chris Steak House. It was busy even though we got there at 5pm, most likely due to a combination of the happy hour specials along with the energetic atmosphere. The music was loud to the point that it hurt my ears, which made me feel as old as my 95-year old dining companion. Other than the headaches that ensued, our meal was pretty good. The first thing I noticed was that the menu had all of the gluten-free items marked. I kept my order pretty safe as it was my first time dining there. They had items like the chips and guac marked GF, but I didn’t inquire whether the chips were fried in non-contaminated oil. I started with the Organic Tuscan Kale Salad. I got the small size, which upon receiving, made me wonder how huge the large size is. The salad consisted of organic Tuscan kale, julienned red bell peppers, julienned carrots, quinoa and wild rice, halved red grapes, shaved parmesan cheese, and sunflower seeds. Even though it was quite sizable, I managed to finish. For my main dish, I had the Grilled Salmon with sides of Brussels Sprouts and Green Beans.
The salmon was cooked really well and I loved the sides as they both had a plethora of garlic cooked in. Going in only knowing that this restaurant was part of a chain, I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with the food. I will be interested to find out about the more “dangerous” items marked GF, and whether they are properly marked or not.
As a reminder, this Sunday, Gluten-Free Santa Barbara will be holding their first meet-up of 2016. Come stop by Lilac Patisserie at 11am to have some yummy food. I will be giving out free tickets to the 2016 Gluten-Free and Allergen Friendly Expo, which is being held next month in San Diego!
Miso Hungry
6 Nov
One 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.
These 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!
Blue Ridge Grill
17 Apr
One of the dinners we had in Atlanta was at Blue Ridge Grill. I was pleasantly surprised to receive a gluten-free menu upon sitting down. I started with their Escarole Salad. This had spiced walnuts, local apple and a poppy seed vinaigrette. The salad was very unique, yet tasty. For my main dish, I had the Dayboat Sea Scallops with red peas and rice and a mustard vinaigrette.
The scallops were very hearty paired with the peas and rice. In addition to our main courses, my Celiac brother and I split the brussel sprouts with pancetta and the sauteed spinach. We both really enjoyed the sides as they were flavorful and fresh.
Arch Rock Fish Happy Hour
26 Jul
Last night, I met up with a friend at Arch Rock Fish‘s Happy Hour. I started with some grilled corn, which I knew that I would love. Then I had the East Coast Lobster Tail.
This was served with some drawn butter and tasted very fresh. The last thing I ordered was the Spicy Tuna and Salmon Roll.
This was good, but I didn’t find it spicy at all. I made sure that they omitted the wasabi that would typically be placed on the plate. When you go here, they will give you a whole booklet that shows the allergy information for every item on the menu. Just keep in mind that it does not factor in cross contamination so stay away from anything fried!
Varka
21 Jun
On our last night in New Jersey, we ate at Varka a wonderful Mediterranean restaurant located in the town of Ramsey. Our table shared a Greek Tomato Salad which had tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, onions, olives and feta. We also split the Green Salad. For my main dish, I had the Dover Sole.
This was incredibly fresh and tasted great. I made sure that they did not dust the fish with flour, which they didn’t. The fish was served with the vegetables of the day which on this day were green beans, tomatoes and onions.
We also ordered the Gigantes to share. They had a nice flavor to them and were finished quite quickly.
gluten-free in sb 