Gluten Free Portland

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Restaurant Review: Family Dining at Grandma Leeth’s

Welcome to another restaurant review here at Gluten Free Portland. We certainly took our time getting around to Grandma Leeth’s. For one thing, it’s kind of all the way across town from us. For the other, it’s very much a family restaurant. In that department, it’s like Old Wives Tales on steroids. They also try to cover a lot of ground. For example, they characterize their menu as “World Comfort Food.” They also have WiFi and several different flavors of childcare. For example, you can bring your 2 to 9 year old kids and have them eat in another room – with supervision by their childcare staff. They also (of course) have a kid’s menu.

The best way I could come up with to describe the atmosphere is sort of upscale Sesame Street. There is a main dining area which is separated from a large playroom by a red wall with variously shaped windows in it. In the back upstairs they have a smaller dining area which our waitress described as “a more formal dining area.” Generally, the place has a fun, energetic atmosphere and gives a person a nice feeling of being safe. (We arrived kind of early on a Saturday night so the restaurant was a little empty. It filled up later.)

Adult Seating at Grandma Leeth's

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Play Room at Grandma Leeth's

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The menu is a little confusing as far as the layout goes, but I can’t really tell you why. On the plus side, they mark everything for gluten free, spicy, and vegetarian so you can tell at a glance what is what. We got the Dravidian Dhal as an appetizer. I ordered the gluten-free Coconut Milk Curry and Sienna had the Quiche with Caesar Salad (which aren’t gluten-free.) Strangely, their child menu isn’t marked for gluten-free items—and really only appears to have one.

Here’s The Coconut Milk Curry.

Gluten Free Coconut Curry and Rice

Our server was friendly and awesome. She did a great job of talking to us about the gluten-free items and also had suggestions about favorites.

When it arrived, we both agreed that the Dhal was only OK. I think it needed some cardamom and salt. It also arrived luke-warm, which was disappointing. The Coconut Milk Curry was awesome and properly heated. Sienna was also very pleased with the quiche, but felt like the Caesar Salad needed some zing. The Dhal was much better the next day, so maybe they just need to let it stew longer.

They have one or two gluten free desserts. One is Sorbet (which is also vegan). The other on their menu is called Marronen and is described as “An Austrian-inspired blessing of chocolate + chestnuts covered in chocolate espresso whipped cream. Ice cream, or espresso shot?” We passed on the dessert because we had a prior plan to visit Pix Patisserie.

Some final things about Grandma Leeth’s:

  • When we arrive the place was freezing cold. When we complained, they adjusted the temperature immediately. That was really nice.
  • They have live jazz every Saturday. We visited on a Saturday and although we liked the band, we both thought the music was too loud. Maybe they feel like they have to compete with the kids?
  • Did I mention that they have wine and beer?

Overall, we felt like the experience was nice, and we can definitely see why people would enjoy bringing their kids to Grandma Leeth’s. The food was good too.

We want to know: Have you been to Grandma Leeth’s? Do you have any favorite items on their menu? Let us know in the comments!

Times we have visited: 1 (So your experience may vary.)
Overall rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Price compared to “regular”: Same

Grandma Leeth’s Restaurant
www.grandmaleeths.com
10122 SW Park Way, Portland, Oregon 97225 / 503.291.7800

Restaurant Review: Virgo and Pisces

We’ve been really excited over the past couple of months about how many places here in Portland Oregon now offer gluten-free pizza! It’s really amazing, and would appear to mostly be thanks to one company, Nugrain Foods. Virgo and Pisces is one of the few places that make their own gluten-free pizza crust. Unfortunately, that’s about all I can say about their pizza right now because I didn’t try it during our visit to Virgo and Pisces.

Virgo and Pisces is located on NW 21st Street at Glisan, so it’s located in quite a hot-spot. They’re just a half a block away from the New Cascadia Traditional Bakery and Trader Joe’s. We went there at 7:00 PM on a Friday night.

Virgo and Pisces Gluten Free Pizza Sign

Being in such at hot-spot at 7:00 PM on a Friday night, we were worried that we would have to wait before we could sit down. On the plus side, that was not the case. On the minus side, the place was practically empty, which I never take as a good omen.

Virgo and Pisces is a bar and restaurant. One room is the bar and the other the restaurant. On one end of the restaurant room there is a small area where bands play. It looks like they have live music there on a regular basis, and as we ate, a band was setting up. We left before they started up, though (not because we weren’t interested – we usually love live music. We had a prior commitment.)

The space is nice. Our waitress was extremely helpful and the food came out promptly. Our one big complaint with the atmosphere was the music. The music playing in the bar was different from the music in the restaurant. That wouldn’t normally be a problem except that the music in the bar was turned up a lot louder, so we were treated to both at the same time. I find listening to two different pieces of music simultaneously to be jarring and annoyingly distracting.

Sienna got a hamburger (which was not gluten-free) and I ordered the fish and chips. I’ve been on quite the fish and chips jag (what with our recent review of the Starfish Gluten Free Battered Cod, the gluten free fish and chips at Hugo’s Restaurant in Los Angeles, and the gluten free fish and chips at the Hawthorne Fish House, we’ve been looking really seriously at battered and breaded fish. So I figured it would be worth doing. (By the way, Gina over at Gluten Free Gourmand has an excellent review of the Starfish Battered Halibut and Haddock.) At one point we had the idea that Virgo and Pisces had gluten-free pasta, but that is not the case. Virgo and Pisces also has gluten free beer. We’ll have to go back for their pizza sometime too.

Gluten Free Fish and Chips at Virgo and Pisces

So how was the food? The food was good. It was pretty standard bar food kind of fare. If I had to come up with a word to describe the food it would be “functional.” The thing with bar food is very often you’re really there for something else, like some live music, or to knock back some drinks with your friends. Very often bar food is just background filler, even at bars that are known for their food. The food at Virgo and Pisces is like that. The fish was tilapia. I usually love tilapia, but in this case it was a little tasteless. The fries were a hair too mushy. The coleslaw didn’t turn me on, but I’m not really a coleslaw fan. Sienna’s burger was good.

And that, dear reader, is about all I have to say about this place. I am curious about their pizza, but considering the place was empty on a Friday night, I don’t have big dreams about it. Maybe the place fills up once the music starts?

We want to know: Have you had the pizza at Virgo and Pisces? Let us know in the comments!

Times we have visited: 1 (So your mileage may vary.)
Overall rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
Price compared to “regular”: Same

Virgo & Pisces
500 NW 21st Ave, Portland, Oregon 97209 / 503.517.8855
www.virgoandpisces.com