Last weekend John and I went on a gluten free double date. It was up to me (as it normally is) to seek out a safe and delicious restaurant for us to eat at. Zadin had been recommended to me by a few different people as a great celiac friendly place to go..they weren’t wrong, the food was delicious!
Bo Luc Lac – Shaken Beef
Fantastic Pho Bo Saté
Zadin is a Vietnamese restaurant in the Castro area of the city. It was Friday night so we booked ahead. Restaurants in this city really seem to fill up at weekends and this place is no different. When we arrived we were taken to one of only two free tables.
The menu here has clearly marked gluten free options. Four of the six appetisers and all of the noodle soups are gluten free and there is a ‘gluten free version available’ on four of the eight main dishes.
I went for the Pho Bo Saté and was very happy with my choice. It was huge and it was extremely delicious! This mildly spicy soup filled with beef, rice noodles was infused with coconut milk, sate sauce and chili oil. It had amazing flavour and there was so much of it that I found it difficult to finish. John went for the Bo Luc Lac which is Filet mignon cubes, wok-seared medium rare with red onions, scallions, and garlic, served on a bed of spring mix and topped with yam fries. He asked for the gluten free version so that I could taste it and when we asked our server what changes made it gluten free he said that it would be made without soy sauce. The beef in this dish was so tender and flavoursome, probably some of the best beef I’ve ever tasted….Mmmm!
The staff at Zadin on the most part appear to understand what it means for something to be gluten free, suitable for celiacs and free of cross contamination, etc. One server went to ask the chef when I asked her a question about things being prepared separately but our next server was able to answer all of my questions with confidence. He assured me that gluten free dishes were cooked in a separate pan, with different utensils and away from glutenous products. They seemed to know what they were doing and the results were delicious! I will certainly be returning for another bowl of Pho!
UPDATE: I am now a frequent customer at Zadin. I’m a huge fan. 🙂
