Portobello Shutters; New Vegan Eatery on the Way

On Saturday, beloved Portland, OR Italian restaurant Portobello Vegan Trattoria will be serving its final meal. Eight years ago, chef and owner Dinae Horne founded the restaurant—popular for its vegan versions of Italian classics such as ravioli, lasagne, spaghetti and “beetballs,” and seitan-topped pizza. Horne spoke to local media outlet Portland Monthly about her plans for the future. “It may change quite a bit before execution,” Horne said, “but basically I want to have a kitchen for low-income folks to make food with a chef on duty.” She explained that vegan fine dining is now more popular than ever and desires to make plant-based options more affordable through a forthcoming venture called Stone Soup. New vegan eatery Heart Bar—serving burgers, small plates, and a full bar menu— will occupy the space left behind by Portobello in February, while owner and local restaurant Sanjay Chandrasekaran plans to change little about the space. A multi-course dinner—with dishes such as a charcuterie plate, seared potato gnocchi, and a lemon cream and strawberry tart—prepared for writers and columnists at Portobello in 2012 remains one of VegNews’ publisher Colleen Holland’s top 12 most memorable vegan meals.