Ann Arbor Restaurant Week and Gluten-Free Experiment

I went with my mom to Passport Restaurant and Lounge as part of Ann Arbor's Restaurant Week this past Friday.  Tons of restaurants were participating, so I narrowed down my choices and then let my mom pick.  Passport is what she settled on.

 My beautiful mom--best friend and dinner date ;)

I'd never been there before but their "Restaurant Week Menu" looked pretty good so I agreed to give it a try!  As the name of the restaurant suggests, the restaurant features fare from around the world--sushi, pasta bolognese, steak.  So it's a cute idea albeit a bit random.

My mom and I split the Thai spring rolls for our appetizer, my mom ordered a caesar salad for her first course, I ordered the "Asian minestrone" and for our main entrees my mom ordered a Ribeye and I ordered "Portobello Primavera"--veganized with pomodoro sauce instead of creamy parmesan.

Our order also came with a bottle of wine.  We opted for the Pinot Grigio.  Passport's "House Blend" was Little Penguin.

Neither dessert option was vegan so I ordered a custom vegan sorbet.  It was, by far, my favorite course.  It was served in a beautiful almond lace cookie bowl, which I did not eat because I was unsure as to whether it contained butter or not and I felt I had annoyed our waitress enough for the night with my vegan ingredient inquiries.

The food was okay but nothing great and I probably would not go back.  All that said, I ate waaaaayyyy too much, given the food's mediocracy, and felt not only uncomfortable afterwards but also a little self-loathing, which leads me to my second point: going gluten-free (at least partially).

Lately I've been experiencing some decreased energy and sluggishness.  I've been looking over my food consumption and any changes in my diet.  I've noticed two main things:  A lot more food (Passport Restaurant and Lounge really did a number on me) and a LOT more gluten.

I'm going to do a little experiment and, for one week, eliminate (or at least greatly) reduce my gluten intake...and stop indulging so much.  I think the way I feel right now, which is horrible, will be enough motivation for me to stick with this experiment for the week.

Stay tuned!  I will be posting my progress along the way!