Memorable Meals: Portobello Vegan Trattoria

There aren't many vegan restaurants in Portland that are worthy of celebrations, and due to that fact we have eaten at Portobello Vegan Trattoria numerous times. However this time was different, we were celebrating a wedding!

After the short and sweet morning ceremony, we enjoyed a 4-course tasting menu that had us thinking vegan makes for a great wedding menu. Who can resist beautifully cooked and arranged vegetables? The tasting menu portions were perfect and the flavors were absolutely terrific. Honestly, it had us looking at Portobello in a new light and we look forward to our next visit - who's birthday's next?

The stuffed figs appetizers were amazing.

Starters of Beet and Asparagus Salad & Squash and Carrot Soup.

The pasta and grain course was particularly good and was difficult to decide which dish to have. The Tomato Gnocchi, Artichoke Risotto, Mushroom Cavatelli, or Roast Corn Ravioli? They were all delicious.

We wiped our main course plates clean. Trumpet Mushrooms and Pesto & a Portobello Steak.

The dessert course included many of Portobello's vegan ice creams, including in root beer float form, but we stuck to more adult desserts with the best Strawberry Basil "ice cream" we've ever had, a Berry Tart and a Peach Panna Cotta. All three desserts were terrific.

We don't think it simply was because we were celebrating such a joyous occasion that Portobello, a restaurant we've eaten at many times, was so delicious this time; but it was by far the most memorable meal we've had there so far.Cheers!

Feeling Grateful

The end of 2012 and the first half of 2013 were really difficult months for us. It almost seems as if our year and summer didn't kick start until July. But after weeks of spending time with family and friends and settling into new schedules, we're really looking forward to the future and hoping to enjoy our summer to the fullest. Needless to say, we're feeling really grateful at the moment. Hope everyone else is having a good summer and looking forward to the rest of the year.

Ushering in Spring

A few photos I quickly snapped of things happening in my yard. Springtime means rebirth and there is a serious explosion of life going on right now, almost too quickly and we are scrambling to keep it contained and groomed for easy outdoor living later this year. I just love how colorful these photos came out.

As mentioned in a previous post, we've got some big plans for the backyard this year, which includes moving a massive pile of forget-me-nots that grew from one single plant I dug up with a plastic spoon from a friends' yard years ago. If you follow us on Instagram, we've been documenting our horror to discover how quickly these pretty little plants have overtaken parts of the yard. As one of our friends said, "there's a reason why they call them forget-me-nots, there's no way to ignore them!"

Creating Positivity Within the Bounds of Reality

The last couple of days has seen us deep in the thick of the winter blues. That's really nothing new around these parts. The Pacific Northwest can be pretty miserable this time of year - wet, dark and cold. So, it really shouldn't be something new to us, but for some reason it has grabbed hold of us this year like a damp gray blanket. Maybe it's just post-holiday blahs, because this last holiday was so great we're feeling the valley after the peak of much loved time together with friends and family. January is a month of renewal and rejuvenation, a time we like to take a fresh look at things and maybe that's what causing us some sadness this year. Some of you may already know how much we weren't looking forward to this time of year from this blog post here and here. We're trying to be patient with ourselves and reflect on the future and what we want to accomplish, but finding the motivation has been a bit of a struggle.

Every year we decide on a word to "live by" in the coming year, but it seems that the last few years the same idea or "word" has been very similar and maybe we're tired of focusing on self-improvement. But here we are again at the beginning of the year and thinking of that word we want to live by. For Mike this year's word is "Elevate",  and lately he struggles with taking the necessary daily steps to do just that - elevate himself, his mind, spirit, emotions, health and accomplishments. Maybe he should stick to nachos or something less thought provoking. As for myself, I really struggled with my "word" this year, but settled on "Gratefulness". Not that I'm not grateful for my life, but find myself comparing and feeling envious of others more than I really should. "Comparison is the thief of joy" which is probably why I always thought facebook was a place for "suffering" a place to be envious of those on vacation or their accomplishments, so I absolved myself not to join, but after fighting and finally setting up my own facebook page, I was pleasantly surprised at how much I rallied around my friends and was nothing but full of joy for their accomplishments.

I have also struggled with the direction of this blog the last couple of years and have been overwhelmed by the thoughtful and incredible pleasure I receive from maintaining this little blog of ours. For those of you who visit I truly am grateful! Even if it's just my Dad. Thanks BA, I honestly love how much you comment and enjoy being a part of our lives. I can't thank you enough. So in the coming months I hope to find my stride here, it's changed so much from the original intention, but this blog has provided me with an incredible outlet and a place to dump my way too many photos ;). 

I'm also thinking maybe we've got it so good right now in our lives that we're not sure what to do with ourselves. For the first time ever we're not so concerned with what's next, what's on the horizon, plotting and scheming to prepare ourselves. And in a strange way that has left us a bit aimless and unsure of what we should be doing next. I know we should be grateful for this time, but it's been hard to think of it in positive terms. We've always been the type of people who want to grow and move forward in life. At this point we are trying to create positivity within the bounds of our reality, which isn't bad by any means, just what it is. 

With all that said, I can't be more grateful for my life, family, friends and in particular for Mike. He truly is what I'm most grateful for right now.

*The picture is a Polaroid of us we have on our fridge the night of our going away party before our 4-month adventure to Asia back in 2008.  

Settling into the Fall Season

After a glorious summer the rain came back with a vengeance.  When it did finally clear up enough for us to go for a walk, the crisp air did us a world of good, everything seem to pop with color. After a grumpy start to the season I'm glad to be getting into the swing of the season, especially since day light savings came and we actually welcomed it this year.

Vaux Swifts

On what turned out to be one of the last warm beautiful summer nights of the year, we packed a picnic and biked down after work to Chapman Elementary School to catch the Vaux's Swift nightly routine before roosting in the school's chimney. Even though we went well before the sunset show started there were a ton of people so we decided to take a seat on the other side in front of the school verses by the soccer field directly in front of the chimney.

When we first arrived, not a single bird was in sight. As the sun sets, the pinkish-purple sky becomes dotted with tiny little black birds. Then a few more and a few more and then a few hundred more and before you know it the sky is a funnel cyclone of thousands of tiny black birds that whirl around the chimney, above the crowd, way up high into the sky and then back down in the trees. It's strangely quiet and very Alfred Hitchcock like. The whole experience is truly amazing. We watched in awe for almost an hour and gasped in unison as a hawk would swoop in and take out one of the tiny Swifts. As summer winds down, watching the Swifts at sunset is just another way to hang onto summer even if it's just for one more late night picnic.

Father's Day Celebration

It seems that every celebration focusing on BA comes with heavy requests for sushi. With BA's recent dental work, sushi was the only meal he wanted. There are a few sushi restaurants still on our list of must-try and Yama Sushi and Sake Bar was agreed on, due to its proximity to shoe shops and a really good excuse to go for a bike ride. Located in the Pearl District of Portland, with its mix of industrial buildings, new shiny glass towers and good shopping we made a day of it and couldn't think of a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon, let alone Father's Day with our BA.

We never get tired of this view.

The mix of new and old.

Bring on the Food Porn. Sorry no pictures of the sushi. What images we did manage to capture were blurry due to the fury that were our hands when our sushi order arrived. But we can say it was delicious with lots of interesting rolls and fresh ingredients. Japanese food is easily one of our favorite types of food, due to the variety and the deliciousness, such as this terrific squid salad.

One of the best beef yakisoba noodles we have ever had, the beef was tender and flavored perfectly. This was a standout dish of the day.

The bento box was delicious as well, who can resist chicken karaage and grilled salmon served in a cute sectioned out box?

Springtime Garden Party

A month ago our gardener-extraordinaire friends threw a garden party to showcase their efforts over the years, celebrate the springtime, and we even got to take home some potted herbs for our garden. Their home is also like a museum with lots of interesting artwork and Tim's own collection of masks he has been making. It was a nice afternoon with yummy snacks and cocktails in the garden.