GOING PLACES : getting spoiled at vegan fine dining restaurant natural selection

last week we did something most vegans only dream of – going to a fine dining restaurant having a vegan 4 course meal, that’s actually on the menu. no calling beforehand to see if the restaurant caters to vegans, no un-inspired second rate veggie dishes, next to meat dishes overpowering your smell sense. all this thanks to vegetarian / vegan restaurant natural selection here in portland.

we had a lovely time, enjoying their food, drinks, and friendly and relaxed atmosphere. the dishes are centered around veggies, fruits and grains, with optional wine pairing (which i had). the venue is charmingly rustic, with an open kitchen, so we could see what the chefs were up to the whole night.

the service was great, with just the proper amount of time in-between courses. the food beautiful and interesting, with a few extra surprises along the way, making us feel proper spoiled.

this was my look for the day btw.

ok let me walk you through the menu. first up was this cutesy aperitif. i’m usually not a fan, but this had an almost christmasy taste which was lovely.

next up was a little surprise dish – an absolutely gorgeous arancini (fried rice ball) with curry sauce. it was exactly as good as it looks.

the first course was probably my favourite – roasted matsutake mushrooms with black lentils, beets, and stewed greens. you know i’m a sucker for mushrooms, and the lentils were cooked perfectly. 

another surprise dish – can’t remember exactly, but i believe it was japanese pear, with radishes and some sort of roots.

second course was this gorgeous salad, with radishes, endives, dates, pear, grapefruit and shiso. 

next up – this delicious dish with a base of potatoes i believe, crispy fried polenta and an absolutely delicious harissa cream.

palate cleanser. totally yummy.

me and david shared two different desserts – both of them gorgeous. this first one was probably my favourite though, a pumpkin tapioca parfait, with berries and topped with an orange sorbet. very sweet yet fresh.

this second dessert was david’s favourite – a persimmon and apricot cake with banana mousse, blood oranges and almonds. how pretty is this !?

and that was it. we went home totally happy and relaxed. it was truly a food experience i’m happy to have had.
a big thank you to natural selection for taking such good care of us. we will definitely be back next time we’re in portland !

we’ve been filming a lot at the restaurants we’ve been visiting here in portland, so stay tuned for some video of this gorgeous place too.

love // jenny

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other restaurant posts :
vegan bbq tempeh in portlandvegan café själa mat in stockholmhappy cow’s favourite stockholm restaurants