Safran Restaurant: Perfect

STORY BY SIMONE FROM GREATFUN4KIDS

When you're parents to a bunch of kids with no local grandparents to babysit, it's a rare treat to get a night out. Even more rare is a night out with other Friends who have kids. A whole bunch of you let out for the night, to eat and drink and talk uninterrupted. Bliss.
So a couple of weeks ago when a bunch of friends all met to go out for dinner, I probably wouldn't really have minded if we were meeting somewhere pretty average. The main thing was to be out, right?

We hitched a ride in our friends' car, boys in the front, girls in the back, giggling like teenagers off to a party and arrived in Newmarket with no idea what to expect from the restaurant. One of our freind's had picked it. None of us had been there except her. All we knew was the name and location: Safran, in Newmarket. Spanish and Mediterranean food.

First impressions: my kind of place.
Quirky, characterful, lots of candles and plenty of atmosphere.
The waiters all speak with intriguing accents and smile  a lot. Nothing is a problem.
There is plenty on the menu. Even for a gluten-free girl like me.
There were about 20 of us, all seated around a long banqueting table, having a great ole time. Safran is perfect for groups, but also can accommodate romantic twosomes with little nooks and crannies, all candlelit. It's the kind of place I would happily visit with my hubby. So much atmosphere, so relaxed. A place to enjoy yourself and feel comfortable.

I had left my camera behind so borrowed my mate's iPhone and annoyed everyone with my snapping of pics.
Totally loved the Sangria. Mmmm the dips were delish.
Nice big mains, I would have had the salmon (was served on something with wheat so no go for me) so i had the steak. Again: Delish.

Then it came to the dessert and I was scared. I rate a good restaurant by the quality and variety of their desserts, but would there be anything for me, Miss Gluten Free??
Oh happy day!! The pannacotta with star anise and apricot sauce. The waitress even knew which menu items were gluten free. Wow. And when my dessert came in all it's glory I was not disappointed. I did not feel deprived. It was delicious. And big. And oh so heavenly.

Oh Safran. Now that I have discovered thee will any other restaurant do? I will be back with bells on. And look, now I'm telling all my friends about you. Oh how I love Thee.

Safran Cafe Restaurant

71 Davis Crescent

Newmarket Auckland City

Ph 09-5205664

Website (with menus)

The Library Cafe: Everything Friendly

STORY BY SIMONE FROM GREATFUN4KIDS

My sister called last night and said, "Hey lets meet for lunch seeing as it's school holidays..."

I knew just where to take her...

The Library Cafe in Onehunga is not far from her work, and is ultra kid-friendly as well as having a great gluten-free selection.

My sis is gluten intolerant and I am recently gluten-free, so a cafe with GF options is high on our list.

How can I not rave about this gem of a cafe?

Firstly the architecture. An old library, turned into a stunning cafe in two parts.

There's the kid-free Reading Room, lined with books for a peaceful escape... (one day I will make it in there I swear)

And the Other Bit. The bit for those of us with noisy kids in tow. Which is equally gorgeous but equipped with an indoor play corner full of great toys...

...and opening onto a terrace complete with kiddy playstuff and a big slide. Bliss in summer, when they even have a bouncy castle. It's all fenced, lots of room to run. Brilliant.

We front up to the counter and peer into the cabinet in search of the famed gluten-free offerings.

Oh dear. Did I speak too soon? I can't see anything that is obviously gluten free!

I ask the girl behind the counter, where is the GF stuff??

She indicates the whole top shelf. And the second shelf. All labelled with different symbols. Dairy free. Wheat free. Gluten free. Diabetic friendly. Peanut free. I am in cafe heaven as I realise that the luscious looking caramel slice is within my dietary reach!!! Oh joy.

My sis orders drinks and the slice for us, I order chicken salads for us both and a couple of kids packs for my boys. They come with drink, snacks, fruit and a toasted sandwich. They even have a special delicious gluten free version (but my GF daughter is away today so standard ham and cheese toastie will do).

At first it's impossible to enjoy my surroundings, as my little guy is in one of those moods. It starts with him stealing my caramel slice (well, it is delicious, I really can't blame him) and ends with my attempting to wipe his snotty nose and him melting down in a puddle of screams. not like him at all. Boo!

A lovely motherly staff member comes up and asks if he's OK, suggests kindly that I take him outside to calm him down while she gets our table all sorted.

Eventually the screams turn to giggles and he runs off to chase his brother and play on the slide.

Back to the caramel slice. Mmmmmm, divine. Real chocolate on top. I would never have known it was GF.

Coffee = good. Salad = average. Overpriced and a bit overly-leafy. But still.

The joy of coming to a great kid friendly place where the kids can run around and you can choose allergy-friendly food?? Fabulous.

Next time I'll avoid the salad and stick to the caramel slice. Heaven in a Slice. Yay for the Library Cafe.

The Library Cafe Onehunga

55 Princes Street

Onehunga, Auckland

Ph 6367292

Website

Blissful Cosset

STORY BY MEG FROM GROWING KIWIS

The kindy guy and I had a wonderful morning tea today which almost had me crying. Didn't think a cafe would ever move me to tears! I went there with my Dad when he was in town lately and enjoyed a delicious coffee. It wasn't till later that I found out that it's a vegan cafe... that means DAIRY FREE!!!!! They do have milk and cream which they keep separately in case people want it, but none of the food will cause our sweet boy to have an anaphylactic reaction!