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Hi,

I just got back from a trip to San Francisco and Berkeley. I wanted to share
information about my experiences dining at restaurants. My son and I both
have celiac disease and are allergic to soy. My husband does not have celiac
disease. At each restaurant, I showed the server my dining card and asked
the server to show the dining card to the kitchen staff who prepared our
food.

We tried lots of restaurants and only had one bad experience. Here is a
summary:

Aqua. 252 California Street. (415) 956-9662. We had dinner. Fabulous food
and service. I had the salmon. My son had the striped bass. Both dishes were
wonderful. The best salmon I have ever tasted (salmon was served with morel
mushrooms and a delicious sauce). We shared the apricot and lavendar sorbet
for dessert which was also delicious. The restaurant was busy, but the
service was excellent. Lovely atmosphere.

Gardiniere. 300 Grove Street. (415) 861-5555. We had dinner. Very good food
and service. Live music (show tunes and jazz). Romantic atmosphere. I had
the halibut. My son had the sea bass. Both were very good. We had chocolate
ice cream and orange sorbet for dessert.

Hayes Street Grill. 320 Hayes Street. (415) 863-5545. We had lunch. Very
good food and service. Grill/bistro atmosphere. I had the swordfish with
herb shallot butter. My son had the skate with butter and capers. We shared
a side of sauted squash with peppers.

Hawthorne Lane. 22 Hawthorne Street. (415) 777-9779. We had dinner. Elegant
atmosphere and good service. My son and I shared a salad and a lamb entree.
Both were very good.

Le Petit Robert. 2300 Polk Street (415) 922-8100. We visited this restaurant
twice. Once at lunch and once at dinner. The food was terrific and the
prices were reasonable for San Francisco. Bistro atmosphere. The first time
we ate there, my son had a green salad with grilled chicken, grapes, etc. I
had the skate with vegetables and a delicious butter sauce and I also had
the soup of the day (a vegetable soup made with fresh squash). We had
strawberry sorbet for dessert. The second time we ate there, my son had the
skate and I had a lamb entree. We had panne cotta (a fruit and custard
dessert). Everything was excellent.

Chez Panisse Cafe. 1517 Shattuck Avenue in Berkeley (510) 548-5525. Service
was a bit rushed (the restaurant was trying to turn the tables because it
was quite crowded) but the food was prepared well and was quite good. We
shared a chicken entree and a pork shoulder entree. We had a delicious
hucklberry ice cream for dessert.

Boulevard. One Mission Street. (415) 543-6084. We had lunch. I do not
recommend this restaurant. For appetizers, we ordered one salad and the
calamari to share. The server promised that he would have the chef prepare
the calamari grilled, not breaded and friend. When the busboy delivered the
calamari and the salad, I noticed that some of the calamari had been breaded
and fried. We were not able to return the calamari because the busboy
disappeared as soon as he delivered it, and the server did not check back
with us until our entrees were deliver. My husband ate the calamari and my
son and I shared the salad (these were separate appetizers on separate
plates). When our entrees arrived, I tasted my salmon and thought it tasted
like soy sauce (the server had promised that the sauce contained no soy or
gluten). I told the server that the sauce tasted like soy and he insisted
that there was no soy and that the dish was gluten and soy free. He claimed
it was a wine reduction. I ate some of the salmon. My son had the duck which
we were told was soy and gluten free. My son and I both got sick. Intestinal
distress and rash--the reaction we get when we are exposed to gluten.
Perhaps if the restaurant had not been busy the kitchen staff and server
would have been more careful. Given the prices, I expected better. I will
never visit this restaurant again.

We visited two museums while we were in town.
The San Francisco Maritime Museum. This series of ships is especially fun to
visit if you have kids along.
The Asian Art Museum. A fabulous museum. We were very impressed with the
Geisha Beyond The Painted Smile exhibit and the rest of the collections. The
museum also has activities for kids (my son got to make a hat and there was
live music). You can easily spend several days touring the collections if
you enjoy Asian art.

The San Francisco Bay Area has many restaurant choices for people with
celiac disease. I look forward to my next trip.

Alicia
in Chicago

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