Gluten Free Portland

Your go-to resource for all things gluten-free PDX.

Restaurant Review: Deschutes Brewery

We got an email from one of our readers on Saturday about the Deschutes Brewery and some gluten-free options they have there. We had already heard that they have gluten-free beer, but there was some new interesting information:

Hey, we went to Deschutes Brewery today and found that not only do they have a fantastic gluten-free beer on tap all the time, and it’s not always the same, but they have gluten-free items marked on their menu, and the head chef even hired a baker to make gluten-free buns for their burgers! They have dedicated fryers, and the bartender even knew to tell us that even if we are ordering something that would normally be gluten-free, to let them know we needed it to be gluten-free and they prepare it in a safe area. these folks really seem to know what they’re doing. I haven’t had the burger + gluten-free bun yet, (was full when I went in today!) but we’re going back soon to try it. Just thought you might want to know and put it on your list!

This looked to us like something that called for immediate attention on our part, so we sprang into action. I can’t tell you the last time I had a burger at a restaurant. I’ve been to the Deschutes Brewery before. It’s a nice place in the Pearl, a block away from Powell’s Books. The atmosphere is relaxed. Like many other Portland brew pubs, people take their kids to eat. It’s amazingly clean, and has a Northwest brew pub kind of menu. It’s the kind of place that’s almost always 98% full, so the place is hopping but there’s still somewhere to sit.

The menu has helpful markings for vegetarian options and gluten-free items. The gluten-free goods are not on the menus that can be found on their website unfortunately. Hopefully they fix that soon. What I remember is:

  • Appetizers: Chicken Wings and Oysters
  • Salads: One or two
  • Burgers: Most of them
  • Pizzas: Nope, sorry.
  • Brewery Specialties: One or two items
  • Sandwiches: A couple, including the Chicken BLT
  • Desserts: Some kind of chocolate pudding with cookies?

Gluten Free Beer - Hefeweizen
The beer they had available was the Gluten-Free Krystal Weiss. Here is their description:

100% Gluten-Free Ale! This beer is made with Sorghum and brown rice syrup for a smooth gluten-free experience. We used German noble hops, Perle for bittering and Spalter and Hersbruckens hops for aroma. IBU’s: 63 Alcohol by Vol. 4.8%

Our waitress described it as a “Hefeweizen, but filtered.” I’m used to drinking this kind of beer with a generous slice of lemon. Mmmmm. It was good, and it passed the Sienna taste test as well.

Gluten-free Burger with Sesame Bun

There was no question that I had to sample the burger and it was awesome! Our waitress told us that they had been working hard on the gluten-free bun. She said this was the fourth variety they’ve come up with. It wasn’t exactly like a regular hamburger bun, but it was the closest thing to a real hamburger bun that I’ve had yet. They’ve even got New Cascadia Traditional Bakery beat (sorry guys). One really nice thing was that it wasn’t too thick. It was literally like having a normal burger. Woo Hoo!

Sienna had the Falafel Salad, which we were told could be made to be gluten-free by omitting the flat bread. The salad was good, and the falafel were very flavorful and not greasy.

We questioned the waitress a bit about cross contamination and how they prepare food. She said that although most of their dishes are prepared in the same area as the gluten-free ones, they were careful to not get wheat or gluten into the gluten-free items. She also said that they keep the gluten-free brewing area extremely clean to make sure there’s no chance of cross-contamination. That was very reassuring.

This is a later note. We have eaten here a number of times now and with one exception were very happy with the quality of the bun. They now have their gluten-free items on a separate menu and the food is good.

The food came out hot in a reasonable amount of time and our waitress was very helpful and seemed hip to the gluten-free thing. It was very cool and we were very happy. Thanks to Gaile (and all the other helpful folks who send us tips too) for the head’s up!

We want to know: Have you had the gluten-free beer at Deschutes Brewery? Have you had something other than the Krystal Weiss? What did you think? Have you had a perfect gluten-free hamburger bun? Let us know in the comments!

Times we have visited: 5+ (So we feel pretty good about our scores.)
Overall rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Gluten-free Bun Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Price compared to “regular”: Same

Deschutes Brewery
210 NW 11th Ave., Portland, OR 97209 / 503.296.4906
www.deschutesbrewery.com

Gluten-Free Travel: Two Gluten-Free Restaurants on the Road

It’s been quite a while since our trip to Los Angeles, but we still have some information that we haven’t posted. To tell the truth I don’t think I posted anything yet because we didn’t exactly gather enough information to be able to put together a full review. So today I decided to just put up what we had in a quick post.

Gluten-Free Travel Item 1: Cafe Yumm in Springfield, Oregon

Although we’re both Yumm Sauce fans, we were underwhelmed with Cafe Yumm. For those of you outside of Oregon, Yumm Sauce is a yellow curry sauce which is kind of garlicky and tastes good on just about anything. For a while Trader Joe’s was carrying it. It also happens to be gluten-free and vegan.

Gluten Free Lunch at Cafe Yum

A stop in their Springfield, Oregon branch made us feel like we were in a fast food franchise like Chipotle (evil) or Noodles & Company (maybe not so evil but still a fast food chain). That and the lackluster fare left us flat. Sorry Cafe Yumm, we used to like you better.

Times we have visited: 1 (So your experience may vary.)
Overall rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Price compared to “regular”: Same

Cafe Yumm
www.cafeyumm.com
Multiple Locations

Gluten-Free Travel Item 2: GreenGo’s in Redding, California

Editor’s Note – April 2011 – GreenGo’s in Redding has Closed. This (was) is a great option for anybody traveling between Portland and the Bay Area, because Redding is about halfway between the two. GreenGo’s “Natural & Organic Food to Go!” is something of a health food stop and also has gluten-free items. They have gluten-free bread for sandwiches, gluten-free pasta, and also vegan options. It’s kind of a friendly little place. We both had salads. All the ingredients were fresh and the food was delicious. There were a lot of people coming in and out while we were there, so it’s obviously popular with the locals. We’re definitely going to stop there again the next time we go through.

Times we have visited: 1 (So your experience may vary.)
Overall rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Price compared to “regular”: Same

GreenGo’s
Now Closed

Gluten-Free Cooking: Fried Chicken or Fish Recipe

One of our friends recently commented that we should start including more basic information that would be helpful for people who are just starting to learn how to get around the kitchen without gluten. In this article, I’ll talk about a simple substitution that we have found works wonderfully when you want to fry up some chicken or a piece of fish. I hope it isn’t confusing presenting two different dishes with instructions together. Really, making one is basically the same as the other. The only difference really is the marinades and cooking times.

Simple Gluten-Free Fried Chicken or Fish

Don’t miss the vegan alternative at the end. Good for two chicken breasts or two tilapia fillets. Feeds about four.

Breading for Either Fish or Chicken
3 Tbsp Garbanzo and Fava Bean Flour
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper (or to taste)
pinch salt

Chicken Marinade
1 Tbsp Dry Cooking Sherry or wine
1/2 tsp Canola Oil

Fish Marinade
1/2 tsp Canola Oil
Juice of 1/2 Lime or Lemon (save other half for squeezing over fish at table.)

Marinading is really key, so get the meat in the marinade first thing. If you’re making chicken, you’ll want to butterfly the breasts before marinating. While the meat marinates, mix up the breading and cut up some veggies. Pour the marinade over the meat in a container. Flip once or twice while marinating. Leave at least 15 minutes. A couple minutes before you’re ready to cook the meat, put a frying pan on the burner to pre-heat it. Cook on medium heat, or a little less if the chicken pieces are thick.

Once the pan is hot, add about a tablespoon of canola oil and let that heat up. Spread about half of your breading on a plate and dip the chicken or fish into it, coating evenly. Add more breading to the plate as needed to coat everything. Fry in the pan 3-5 minutes for the fish, or 5-9 minutes for the chicken. Flip the meat every two or three minutes during cooking.

Alternative #1: Cut fish or chicken into sandwich patty sized pieces (about 3-4 oz each.) Then bread, fry, and serve as a sandwich with your favorite gluten-free bread, a slice of tomato, a piece of lettuce, and plenty of mayonnaise. Yeah! There is nothing in the world like a fried fish sandwich.

Alternative #2: Make “tenders” by cutting the breasts or fish up into bite-sized pieces before breading them. To bread them, put the breading and the cut up chicken or fish into a lidded container, and shake well. Provide gluten-free dipping sauces at the table.

Vegan Alternative: Cut tofu into 3/8 inch slices. For added texture with tofu, you can freeze it overnight and put back in the fridge to thaw in the morning. Then wrap tofu in a towel and gently press to squeeze out moisture. Marinate at least 30 minutes in 3 Tbsp gluten-free soy sauce, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, and 2 cloves pressed garlic. Add 1/4 tsp ground ginger if desired. Then bread and fry. Serve with sauteed mushrooms!

Fried Tilapia

Gluten-Free Bread Recipe Review – Basic Millet Bread

Not too long ago I was on Amazon’s site and one of the reviewers there was saying that all the bread recipes from Bette Hagman’s book, The Gluten-Free Gourmet Bakes Bread were bad and tasted funny. We already reviewed a recipe from her book here , so we know THAT’S not true, but I figured that as we make more from the book we would share our experiences. Like we said before, there’s something in this book for everyone, especially if you are gluten intolerant or celiac.

So on to the bread. The original recipe for the bread I’m reviewing today has only millet flour, corn starch, and tapioca flour, which means it’s pretty low on the number of flours you need. (Apparently, though, when buying Millet flour you need to check to make sure it is not contaminated.) This is her “Basic Millet Bread” recipe on page 82. We also now have a millet bread recipe posted on Gluten Free Portland dot Org.

So as I said, on to the bread. This is another great recipe. It ended up being a lot like a whole-wheat sort of bread. We added some teff flour to this recipe. Basically we replaced half of the tapioca flour with teff flour. Sienna followed the directions from the book but made the following changes: She used an egg instead of egg replacer (because we didn’t have any.) She used canola oil instead of butter and, following the directions for this in the book, decreased the amount of water to offset the change. She didn’t add gelatin. She used vinegar instead of dough enhancer. She added two tablespoons each of pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds. Then she put it all in the bread maker (following the bread maker manufacturer’s instructions of course) and BAM!

basic-millet-bread-dscn2804

Sorry about the dark photos. I need to invest in some better lighting for our Gluten Free Recipe Laboratory.

basic-millet-bread-dscn2805

Sienna loves this bread! I like it too, but not as much, I’m afraid. It is fluffy and toasts up really well. Like the last one we reviewed, this is the kind of bread that is great for making sandwiches. It also toasts like a champ and tastes great with jam or with eggs and bacon.

Did I mention that we used a bread machine to make this bread?