Porta Via

I’ve had lunch in Porta Via for nearly two years. I was a great fan of it for a long time. The sandwiches are full of flavour however a bit expensive and the salad sometimes is not fresh, which is a disappointment after paying $ 11. There’s a place on Matheson, «discovered» last week by a colleague which serve similar sandwiches, salad of your choice $ 3 cheaper. Sorry Porta Via I don’t mind paying $ 11 as far as my salad is fresh!

Another place like sprouts. Which makes you feel that you are eating health by providing smaller portions and charges you high for that.
So if you want sense of healthy eatery, this is the place. Their menu is huge and contain many types of sandwiches, soups and salads with healthy ingredients.
I tried their «Portobello & Brie» Gourmet Grilled Panini which include lime avocado spread, roasted portobellos, grilled zucchini and peppers with brie cheese and on the side I got their vegan based signature soup «vegan roasted tomato & sweet potato purée». The food was very good but was priced a bit high compared to the value out of the food.
All in all is a great choice to have a meal and feel happy that you are not bloated and full.

Lunch spots are common near the Mississauga Corporate area but great lunch spots are hard to find. It’s the combination of great taste, affordable, quick, and abundance of choice that makes a place stand out. Add healthy alternatives and you have my perfect place. Via Porta’s lunches hit all those points and it happens to be also cheaper than the competing Sprouts! Winner!
Porta Via is hidden in plain site (since it’s tucked away in a commercial building and a good 25M away from the street) and kitty corner to where the Starbucks is sitting. The bright orange and lime green awning is the only indicator of something unusual is inside. Once you walk in, you have a great modern clean environment. Just off to your right, you’ll see a vast big display of fresh vegetables, proteins, and sauces for freshly made and ‘chosen by you’ salads. Also, there’s several hot piping panini presses ready for your sandwich. Service is friendly, well informed, and quick! My order of meal sized salad only cost me $ 7.50 and included any 5 vegetable toppings. if I wanted a protein on top of it, it’s only a $ 1 more… this definitely beats out the pricing at Sprouts which starts at $ 10 normally. I would say the salad size is the same between the two stores. My friend ordered a freshly grilled piccante chicken panini with a side salad. I think the side salad rivals the MEAL salad sizes from Tim Hortons and McDonalds. I took a picture of his meal since it looked that good.
As for the taste, it did not disappoint. My 5 ingredients included grilled red peppers, tumeric sweet onions (SO TASTY), grilled portabellos, edamame, and grilled zucchini. I topped it off with their paprika dressing. It was plentiful, healthy, and very tasty. My friend’s sandwich was supposed to be spicy but it was pretty mild. He did feel that the whole taste was very good and definitely willing to head back. Also, they offered a sampling of their in house made soups… and wow, talk about a flavour punch. Fantastic. If it was winter or fall chilly weather, you’ll find me here hovering over a bowl. The sweet potato soup had the right balance of sweet and savoury to make it memorable and the thick texture lets you know that real vegetables are in there … not just water and a bouillon.
For all those in favour of a great lunch spot, head to Porta Via. You won’t be disappointed with the selection or flavours!