Treylor Park - Savannah, GA

Do you know that feeling of let down when you keep hearing about an awesome new place, that everybody LOVES and raves about the food but you check out their online menu and can't imagine that there is anyway that a person with Celiacs could eat there?

That was me with Treylor Park. Over and over again I saw accolades on facebook and it kept popping up in list of "must try" places in Savannah. One recent evening my husband and I decided we were going to hop on our bikes and eat dinner downtown (if you have never ridden bikes through downtown Savannah, you should. It is the best way to see the city and you do not have to worry about parking.). We weren't real sure where we wanted to end up and it was still early, so I suggested that we go to Treylot Park to have a drink while we decided where to eat.

Treylor Park is located on Bay Street between Drayton and Abercorn. I can't really say much about the interior, it looked inviting but we breezed right back to their Beer Garden too fast for me to take in any real detail. Now, the Beer Garden is cute. It is a little bricked in stucco courtyard that opens up to the alley vi a beautifully detailed gate. Truthfully, next time we go we will probably just come up the alley and straight to the Beer Garden. It has a bar running down one side and a smattering of tall bistro tables on the other. There is a small canopy and fans to combat the summer heat and lights strung from end to end. Sitting at the bar and looking up through the lights to the tall historic brick buildings surrounding it is nostalgic. Also, cute but no kitschy, is the model Airstream trailer parked next to some ivy on the back side of the bar. So far, so good.

My husband ordered a bourbon on the rocks, while I perused the drink selections. The Tire Swing is what I settled on, a muddle of cucumber and berries mixed with lemon juice, vodka, Pimm's cup and a little bit of simple syrup. It was light, refreshing and not overly sweet. A nicely crafted cocktail. We were enjoying our drinks and surroundings so much and my husband was drooling over the gluten bomb of a menu. We are talking tacos made out of pancakes,  cheddar and apple pie sandwiches, fried Bologna sandwiches. All kind of homey classics, with promising hints of elevation. I decided to test the waters and see if there was any possible way they could accommodate my dietary needs.

This is how I started out with the bar tender "Okay, I am going to ask you a question and it is alright to tell me 'no', to be honest with me". He looked rightfully scared. I went on " I have celiacs disease and have to eat gluten free. Is there anything on the menu I can eat? That would not likely be cross contaminated"? He looked immediately relieved but then made that screwed up face that universally means "not so much". But then he spoke  "My boyfriend has celiacs, so I get it. I know how hard it can be". Phew. while it sucks to have this condition and I would not wish it on anyone, it is so nice to deal with someone who understands. Sparing the tedium of the rest of our conversation, the one thing he assured me they could do GF with out cross contamination were their PB&J wings. I was optimistically skeptical, they just didn't sound like a combo that should work. But, oh did they! Six huge sloppy peanut-buttery glazed wings of glory, nested on a wooden tray with a mason jar dunking pool of peach and cinnamon jelly sauce. They were so good. My husband said "if every restaurant did just one gluten free option as well as this, like really really well, I think most people who have to eat gluten free would be okay with that". He is right. I wouldn't complain. Since I was content (and greedily did not want him to eat the rest of the wings), I encouraged him to order something else. He ordered the fried Bologna sandwich. Needless to say, he was also very happy.

Bottom line: this was a surprisingly wonderful experience. I will definitely be stopping in again, at the very least for a drink and some PB&J wings!

To visit their website: Treylor Park