The Plant cafe on Steiner - talking with the manager

[Guest guest]

My CS wife and I have eaten some excellent GF dishes at the Plant Cafe on Steiner several times without a problem. BUT, she recently was hit with herpetiformis dermatitis a short time after the last time we ate there. We can't be sure that she was gluttened at the Plant, but she is completely GF at home and we had not eaten at other restaurants in the mean time.I called the restaurant to inquire about their cooking and cross-contamination issues. I talked with Lucy, the General Manager at the Steiner branch, who was very helpful, concerned, and straightforward. She said several important things, particularly for severely CS people such as my wife:The small kitchen at the Steiner restaurant makes it difficult, particularly at busy times, to be absolutely

sure that there is no cross-contamination.If someone comes in who is severely CS, they probably should not eat there.If someone does want to eat there, they need to tell the staff that they are very CS or very gluten intolerant, so that the staff can tell the people in the kitchen to be absolutely.sure that there is no cross-contamination of wheat/rye/oats/barley into any of the GF dishes being ordered.The owners are planning a revised menu, and she would pass on my suggestion that the warning be added to the menu that severely gluten-adverse people probably should not eat there or, at a minimum, to ask the staff to advise the kitchen to be extra careful.I appreciate Lucy's forthrightness. I also learned from Kelsey, a hostess at the Embarcadero branch, that she and some of the chefs and waitstaff at both branches were gluten-intolerant. One other problem: The last time we ate at

the Plant Cafe on Steiner wheat-free cookies were adjacent to wheat cookies in the same glass case.Conclusion: Very good food, but I would be hesitant to go there if you have severe CS. HogleFreelance academic librarianInstructor, online researchEmail: jjhogle@...Web: www.blueroom.comReality ain't what you think it isArt Graphics & Photographs[http://www.blueroom.com/realityaint.htm]From: Luther <l@...> < >Cc: Mariska <m@...>Sent: Thursday, July 16, 2009 9:19:26 AMSubject: [ ] The Plant cafe in SF

Someone just gave me a copy of the menu for The Plant Cafe Organic. Its on Pier 3, which is just north of the Ferry Building on Embarcadero. The menu marks which items are gluten-free -- basically, all the salads and two entrees (quinoa bowl and green curry).

They are a bit on the pricey side for take-out lunch downtown but not too bad ($8-10) and they are open from 7:30am-10pm (i didn't see any GF breakfast options other than smoothies and juices, unless they happen to have any GF pastries). www.theplantcafe. com, 415-984-0437