Healthy Eating

By LHK

June 5, 2006 11:45 AM | Link to this

I deal with this a lot, as a vegetarian whose husband isn’t vegetarian, whose family isn’t vegetarian, whose friends aren’t vegetarian… you get the idea. At the places my husband and I enjoy going, I have no problem finding vegetarian options. We love Thai food, Indian food, and Middle Eastern food, and I’ve always got plenty of choices at restaurants that serve those types of food. Italian and Mexican usually have some good options as well, though many Mexican restaurants do use meat-based products in their beans and rice.

It’s usually at the chain restaurants that line such places as North Point Parkway and Barrett Parkway that I find my choices very, very limited. Sometimes the “vegetarian” options on the menu aren’t vegetarian at all: a lot of veggie burgers are cooked on the grill with the meat, and Denny’s Boca Burger is apparently cooked in beef broth and animal fat. Fries are also suspect in terms of where they’re cooked. At Bahama Breeze, the vegetable sandwich features asparagus that’s been marinated in chicken stock. I don’t choose to go to restaurants like that on my own, but sometimes things happen (business travel, a friend’s birthday dinner) where I end up at a chain restaurant, and I appreciate it when I’ve got a choice other than a side salad. I like it when the server and cook are sympathetic to vegetarians and will make substitutions (i.e. a chicken salad without the chicken). I’ll leave a very generous tip in a case like that. I think it’s Applebees where most of their food comes already frozen and so substitutions aren’t allowed.

At many places, it pays to call ahead and tell the manager about your dietary needs. At a nicer restaurant, they will often whip up something specifically for you. It’s only at Applebees / TGI Friday’s-type places that it’s difficult to get anything that’s not on the menu.

One welcome exception to this is Sweet Tomatoes, a fantastic salad buffet restaurant. My husband and I go there often, and for $15 we can both get stuffed with salad, soup, pizza, and dessert. They’re very good about labeling which of their buffet options are vegetarian, too.

By Beezie

June 5, 2006 02:45 PM | Link to this

Yup, I’m pretty darn tired of bean burgers. Portobello “burgers” are frighteningly slimy.

Most restaurants (this would include most chains) treat veg dishes as inferior to the meat dishes and take no time to consider what would appeal to vegetarians and carnivores alike. Some DO know that non-meat ingredients have wonderful flavors waiting to be brought out, and I like that kind of place!

So things are getting better, partly because more people are inclined veg these days for health reasons, and partly because of the influence and availability of global flavors, cooking styles, and ingredients.

Hey, it’s so much better to be a vegetarian here than when I was a kid in the Midwest so it’s all good!