Lilla
Vegan restaurant · Buckman
960 SE Madison St, Portland, OR 97214
Highlights
Vegan Italian delights: handmade pasta, pizza, & more.
Vegan Italian delights: handmade pasta, pizza, & more.
"Chef‑owner Pasquale Liotti, who grew up in Southern Italy and approaches pasta with an "almost scientific approach," points out Italians traditionally make fresh pasta with just water, flour, and salt. For vegan versions of classics he uses multiple strategies rather than a single substitute: psyllium husk to create the silky sauce for carbonara and chickpea flour to thicken batters for dishes like chicken Parmigiana." - Anastasia Sloan
"Pulling off vegan Italian food is exceptionally tricky; so many dishes lean on a snowy pile of cheese, a binding egg yolk, or luscious rendered pork fat. That’s what makes this tiny Italian restaurant on Southeast Madison so special — all of its pizzas, handmade pastas, meatballs, and risotto are animal product-free. Skip the pizzas in favor of the restaurant’s pastas, which range from rounded orecchiette cradling puddles of sun-dried tomato pesto to carbonara with smoky vegan bacon. For dessert, a mind-boggling panna cotta is the move." - Eater Staff
"He later went on to open Lilla, a pasta restaurant in Southeast Portland." - Brooke Jackson-Glidden
"Lilla, from The Sudra owner Sanjay Chandrasekran, is a vegan Italian wonderland, with creative riffs on all the dishes one expects from a classic red sauce joint. House vegan cheeses, made with sunflower seeds and soy, decorate plates like handmade pappardelle bolognese or chicken pesto pizza with cherry tomatoes. Dishes pair well with Italian wines by the glass or the expected cocktails, like an Aperol spritz or a Negroni." - Thom Hilton, Michelle DeVona
"Many of Portland’s pasta shops can whip up a vegan dish or two, but Lilla is the only one that’s entirely vegan with a number of gluten-free options, as well. At this cute cafe with tiled walls, butcher block tables, and bright blue eiffel chairs, start with small plates of potato croquettes with rosemary-garlic aioli, eggplant parmesan, and mushroom-topped polenta cakes. Large enough for sharing, entrees like handmade tagliolini with basil-hazelnut pesto and roasted squash risotto with pine nuts make Lilla a popular spot for vegan pasta and wine date nights. Although pasta is the restaurant’s specialty, it also serves margherita, pepperoni, and mushroom personal pizzas topped with sunflower mozzarella and almond parmesan." - Waz Wu
