I had the pleasure of dining for lunch recently at Portabla after seeing a twitter post from Chef Jon Shea about a braised pork Panini.  I asked if they were able to make it gluten-free and once I received the “yes” over twitter, I was off to go enjoy what I knew would be a most excellent lunch!

I had eaten at Portabla several times before, but I had never had the pleasure of enjoying one of their gluten-free Panini sandwiches.  When I got to Portabla, I placed my order and Chef Jon Shea, as well as his staff,  were very conscientious to let me know that they had sanitized all the items used to prepare my lunch so there would be no cross contamination from other foods containing wheat and/or gluten.  I greatly appreciated this effort, as I have been to restaurants that serve gluten-free options and don’t take the steps to ensure there is no cross contamination in preparation of the food.

So I ordered the braised pork Panini of course and while I was waiting for my sandwich Chef Jon Shea also brought out a new dish I had never tried – Vegetarian Spaghetti (Zucchini with a tomato olive oil dressing).  The zucchini was sliced in pasta like strands with the tomato olive oil dressing and Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top finishing off the dish, which was tantalizing to my taste buds.  Now onto the braised pork sandwich!  The pork braised ever so gently, with the addition of onions, red bell peppers and spices,  it just melted in my mouth.  The gluten-free bread was light with poppy seeds that gave the sandwich a slightly nutty aroma.

As I have been chronicling in my blog the last few weeks, I’m moving over to more of a paleo diet in addition to my gluten-free lifestyle.  I still have a hard time with some vegetables depending on how they are prepared, as I didn’t grow up eating a lot of vegetables.  I would eat this vegetarian spaghetti every day.  Its goes to show you keeping it simple when preparing a dish and using clean ingredients can result in a delicious and healthy dish.

If you have the chance to stop in and eat at Portable, please do!  Portabla has specials that change weekly and if you have any food allergies, make sure to ask about the ingredients.  Portabla also will fix your order to go so check out the menu and give them a call!  Looking for a fun foodie event?  Portabla has an “Iron Chef” event that has gotten rave reviews –Check out this video (would be a great gift for the holidays, birthday or an anniversary).

Portabla Information:

Photo Credits:

Rachelle King (Food Shots)

Portabla Austin (Storefront)