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San Francisco, Oakland In Three Weeks

eleep

By eleep
in Traveling with Celiac Disease

Recommended Posts

eleep Enthusiast
eleep
Posted

I'm going on vacation to see a friend who lives in Oakland and works in Berkeley -- it will be my first gluten-free trip and also my first trip to San Francisco -- where do I absolutely need to go to eat (if there is any place)? OR -- where would I be safe eating even if it's not that great.

Any links, lists, etc... would be appreciated!

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Guest BERNESES
Guest BERNESES
Posted

Oh to be gluten-free in SF! I lived out there for three years before gluten-free, but when I went back last spring gluten-free, I was amazed at how many people were familiar with it.

If you are staying in Berkeley/Oakland, I don't know what would be good for fast food, lunches. But there is an amazing supermarket called Andronico's which carries a lot of healthy/gluten-free stuff. Also, there is a Wild Oats. For dinner, North Berkeley has this area called the "gourmet ghetto". I forget the name of the street but there are some incredible restaurants on it. Chez Panisse, which is world-renowned, is amazing. VERY expensive, but totally worth the splurge!!! Just call ahead a) because you need reservations and B) to explain the gluten-free needs. There's also several Thai restaurants on that street that are all good. Indian food- which is MOSTLY gluten free except for the naan- is very abundant in that area as well.

In the city, if you like seafood, try the Pacific Cafe on Geary out near Ocean Beach. So fresh! SF also has a HUGE Whole Foods. Many people know what you're talking about when you mention gluten (as opposed to where I live where people think Celiac's is a problem with celery :P ).

Also Stanford has a gluten free support group, I think it's called Bay Area gluten free or celiac support group and if you google it, they have restaurant reviews. In my opinion, San Francisco has some of the best restaurants I've EVER eaten it. I'm jealous!!!!

flagbabyds Collaborator
flagbabyds
Posted

This is from a celaic mom who lives in berkely.

First off .....I have found my new gluten-free/DF haven. It is called 'Socca Oven',

off of University in Berkeley - 1511 Shattuck Ave

Open Original Shared Link.

It is a take out place that serves gluten-free-DF chick-pea pizzas that are cooked in

a wood oven. Oh my GOD ...what heaven.

My friend (who's son is gluten-free) told me about this restaurant that she had read

about on Thurs last week

Open Original Shared Link

type=travelbayarea.

On Sat, I saw her and she had tried it and raved about it! By Sat night we

packed up the kids and went. We ordered 3 socca's - One pork with mushroom

and truffle oil, one zuccini/tomatoe, and one chicken & veggies. They say on

their menu that all the socca's are Gluten,Dairy, Wheat, yeast and sugar

free. I did not ask about corn but you could call 510-548-6001. Then after

ordering the Socca's I turned around and walked 6 steps to the Ciao Bella

counter and ordered 2 pints of DF Sorbeto -chocolate (it's heaven!, better

than real ice cream) and Blackberry Cabernet. Then I went to Kiralla, the

sushi place, and ordered a California roll.

We went home, I ate like a PIG, finished feeling satisfied!, and best part

was no digestive repercussions! I LOVE IT!

Anfronicos isn't the best, I would go with whole foods, much better. They have a really good one in SF, giant! Not sure the address, but you could look it up.

Have Fun, it shouldn't be that hard.

The staford support group is Bay area celiacs, you could look at the Yahoo group. The other bay area on e is bay area celiac ROCK.

The Bay area celiac website is Open Original Shared Link

Have fun!

Rachel--24 Collaborator
Rachel--24
Posted
Many people know what you're talking about when you mention gluten (as opposed to where I live where people think Celiac's is a problem with celery :P ).

:lol::lol: Berneses,

I dunno cuz I live here in the Bay Area and people look at me all crazy when I mention gluten. Well some people DO know what it is...but the majority dont know what the heck I'm talking about. Maybe it will be different when I start venturing out to the restaraunts....hopefully THEY will be more aware. Anyways, I cant wait to start eating out again and to be able to go to some of the restaraunts in the city...I miss that. :(

  • 3 years later...
elakeepitup Newbie
elakeepitup
Posted

Just found a new restaurant today that was super nice. Their lunch menu has no flour in the sauces. The hamburgers can be ordered without buns. I think there are two items else that I couldn't get.

We got ceviche, and two of the salads, and some beef skewers. The sauces were so good. It's been a while since I haven't felt embarassed while eating out, but the waiters asked the chefs for every item I was thinking about, and later said that I could order pretty much anything.

(As for the dessert menu, the flan, mousse, and one other thing were allowed.)

The place is on Hayes and Gough ( I don't know the exact address). The portions were good and not expensive either.

The place is called ESSENTIA, and they are Peruvian. And now, I love them. :)

Definitely worth a trip. Their starches are potatoes and corn, for the most part. Some quinoa. (They are near City Hall and the Asian Art Museum.) If you want to go for dinner, I recommend calling first. I think the allowable part of the dinner menu may be smaller. I don't know how long they've been there.

As you can tell, I'm still stunned that I found this place. Yay!

I'm going on vacation to see a friend who lives in Oakland and works in Berkeley -- it will be my first gluten-free trip and also my first trip to San Francisco -- where do I absolutely need to go to eat (if there is any place)? OR -- where would I be safe eating even if it's not that great.

Any links, lists, etc... would be appreciated!

elakeepitup Newbie
elakeepitup
Posted
Just found a new restaurant today that was super nice. Their lunch menu has no flour in the sauces. The hamburgers can be ordered without buns. I think there are two items else that I couldn't get.

We got ceviche, and two of the salads, and some beef skewers. The sauces were so good. It's been a while since I haven't felt embarassed while eating out, but the waiters asked the chefs for every item I was thinking about, and later said that I could order pretty much anything.

(As for the dessert menu, the flan, mousse, and one other thing were allowed.)

The place is on Hayes and Gough ( I don't know the exact address). The portions were good and not expensive either.

The place is called ESSENCIA, and they are Peruvian. And now, I love them. :)

Definitely worth a trip. Their starches are potatoes and corn, for the most part. Some quinoa. (They are near City Hall and the Asian Art Museum.) If you want to go for dinner, I recommend calling first. I think the allowable part of the dinner menu may be smaller. I don't know how long they've been there.

As you can tell, I'm still stunned that I found this place. Yay!

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