I’ve been a vegetarian for seven years, and my absolute favorite questions/statements are, “Why? I’m sorry,” followed by, “Do you just eat lettuce every day? That must suck.” Precious, I know.
Most vegetarians have no problem chowing down on salads, sides or whatever other magical meat-free dishes happen to show up at any given restaurant. But you’d be surprised by the amount of vegetarian-friendly options offered at seemingly carnivore-driven eateries. Here are some of the best.
Red PrimeSteak
Steak is, of course, the name of the game here, but Red Prime also has a killer vegetarian repertoire. There’s the RP’s Tomatoes appetizer featuring a balsamic redux and basil-infused EVOO drizzled over fresh mozzarella, fried green and hot house tomatoes. Plus you have meal-worthy sides like green chile mac, slivered asparagus and bacon-sherry Brussels sprouts (hold the bacon). But the main event is the drool-inducing black bean chile relleno — a grilled chile stuffed with quinoa and black beans and served with sautéed wild mushrooms, sundried tomato cream and black bean salsa. Red Prime is a go-to special occasion restaurant solely because of this dish.
Iron Star Urban Barbeque
The worst part of being a vegetarian is that not getting your fill of barbeque sauce. And who doesn’t freaking love barbeque sauce? So bow down to Iron Star for offering veggie options that aren’t all fried or made from corn (on that note, you could easily eat a pound of their cornbread dipped in barbeque sauce). With their veggie plate, you get a house salad and that insane cornbread plus a choice of three sides. You should probably go for the fancy mac and cheese, Dutch oven sweet potatoes and seared green beans. But they also have stuff like braised collard greens, southwest slaw and whole fried okra if that floats your boat.
Flint
Flint has a crazy-awesome Instagram game, which is how I came to find out that they offer a brand new vegetarian special nearly every damn day for both lunch and dinner. Here’s a sampling for you: brie and mango quesadillas, vegetarian mac and cheese with roasted summer vegetables, creamy green bean casserole, grilled cauliflower steak with red quinoa pilaf. Plus they have salads and an amazing butternut squash bisque on the menu all the time, so those are great options too.
The Garage / S&B’s Burger Joint
A lot of people have no clue that local burger joints The Garage and S&B’s offer veggie burgers, and not charred-to-a-crisp, mystery ingredient monstrosities. Nope, these babies are moist, full of flavor and flawlessly paired with practically any topping. At The Garage, go for the spicy sriracha bleu burger (sriracha aioli, grilled onions, jalapeños and bleu cheese crumbles). Things get crazy at S&Bs; they offer sliders, which means you can get two or three burger varieties and satisfy every flavor craving possible. Some tried-and-true favorites are the Smokin’ Okie (grilled jalapeños, smoked gouda, mayo and barbeque sauce), the Fire (roasted green chiles, sharp cheddar, fried onions and chipotle ranch) and the Chili-Lime (chili paste, cheddar crisp, avocado cream and cilantro lime coleslaw). Sense a theme? Yeah. The spicier, the better.
Republic Gastropub
Republic’s menu is the kind that makes most vegetarians cringe: Every salad has meat, and there’s only one truly green side option. But what the restaurant lacks in variety it makes up for in two creative entrée choices. The chickpea burger topped with cucumber raita (like a yogurt sauce), field greens and tomato (sub tomato for sriracha and avocado) is tasty and filling and will satisfy your hankering for junk food. But then there’s the black bean tostada stack, a dish I’ve only had once but remains one of my all-time favorites. Less tostada-ish and more taco-ish, this order will bring you a plate of three corn tortillas stacked with black bean puree, mixed greens, roasted red peppers, cilantro crema, avocado and queso fresco. Hot damn is this thing delicious — so delicious I fully removed myself from the conversation I was having with my friends to readily down these finger-lickin’ tacos.
