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Posted by pchippy on 2008-09-19 16:53:03 +0000

Grasshopper. (Southeast Asian) Buddha's Delight. (Chinese) (mrs. chippy disliked it last time we went...) Also, if you can afford it, the vegetarian tasting menu at Oleana is probably the best meal I've ever had. In my life. When the two of us both ordered it, the waiter went and arranged for my 5 vegetarian courses to be different from mrs. chippy's 5 vegetarian courses, so we could taste each other's dishes and thus experience ten different vegetarian courses at one meal. Only a bite or two of each, of course, but we didn't even make it through the first eight. The waiter unilaterally decided that he should wrap up our last two to take home with us. (No, NOT because they had other people waiting for our table!) He was right.

Posted by dyedon8 on 2008-09-19 17:35:59 +0000

Nice to see the Gecko on the board! Gargoyles consistently has a good-to-great veg plate. I'm biased, granted, but it was always tasty. Buddha's Delight's food all kinda tastes the same, but i think it tastes good once every six months or so. Not a restaurant at all, but I made seitan last weekend and it came out way better than I expected.

Posted by tgl on 2008-09-19 19:01:16 +0000

I bet Harvest has a good veg-menu, or Henrietta's Table? http://www.harvestcambridge.com/dinner Hmm, one entree. Basically, anyplace charging more than $25 for an entree... it'll be good. You just don't get a choice.

Posted by ConorClockwise on 2008-09-19 19:08:14 +0000

Vee Vee on Center Street in JP. One of the top 5 meals I've had this calender year, and about half the menu is veg. There's always a seafood option and sometimes a chicken dish, but the emphasis seemed to be veg. Decent wine list. Do you do Mexican? Oleana is the tits.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2008-09-19 19:35:47 +0000

Sadly we don't live in New York - I've had excellent vegetarian/vegan meals there. But! I've found that all Asian restaurants (Indian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai, etc) have a good selection of vegetarian choices. I'd recommend Pho Pasteur (Allston Village) or Le's (Harvard Square) for Vietnamese or Brown Sugar Cafe (1000-block of Comm Ave) for Thai. Also, given a few days' notice, may I boldly suggest Chez Pamsterdam? :o) Edited to add: I just Googled 'vegan' and 'Cambridge' on a hunch, and found Asmara near Central Square, which does Eritrean (similar to Ethiopian) food, including veggie/vegan options. I had Ethiopian food a few weeks ago in the 'dam, and it was just phenomenal. It involves eating with your hands, though, and somehow I can't really picture MC going for that... :o)

Posted by TheFullCleveland on 2008-09-19 20:00:03 +0000

Asmara is f*cking excellent. Eating with bread and your hands is the best. And they have honey wine, which totally rules.

Posted by pamsterdam on 2008-09-19 23:48:58 +0000

And that bread (injera) is soooo amazing - I reckoned I could probably make the phenomenal lentil dish (misir wat) at home after eating it at the Ethiopian restaurant in the 'dam, but I looked up the bread recipe and - no joke - it takes days to prepare. Yow.

Posted by bob loblaw on 2008-09-20 15:58:06 +0000

The greater boston buddhist cultural center on Mass Ave between Central & Harvard has a good set lunch menu, for around $6. The River Gods, near Central Sq has a good Veggie section on the menu. Veggie Planet in Harvard Sq is somewhat average but reliable.

Posted by Miriam on 2008-09-22 14:54:35 +0000

Chez Henri does it well.

Posted by Miriam on 2008-09-22 19:15:26 +0000

So crazy, but I was planning on making some yesterday and ran out of time. Totally scares me to make it myself, but I'm spending a small forture on fake steak by Morningstar Farms and could really use the extra dough (pun intended).

Posted by Miriam on 2008-09-22 19:16:53 +0000

Watch out for Thai or Vietnamese if you're not into fish. Fish sauce is prevelant in both cuisines...and they can't/don't always substitute with soy sauce.

Posted by dyedon8 on 2008-09-22 20:16:42 +0000

It literally took all of an hour. So easy.

Posted by G lib on 2008-09-22 22:31:39 +0000

Oleana IS the tits. Best meal I've had in years-- the vegetarian tasting menu blew my mind.

Posted by G lib on 2008-09-22 22:32:20 +0000

Henrietta's Table also rules. Seconded!

Posted by G lib on 2008-09-22 22:34:23 +0000

I've heard STAY AWAY! from the Vegan place in the north end. It was trying to be Cafe Gratitude, in SF, but failed miserably (according to my friend that has been to both.

Posted by G lib on 2008-09-22 22:37:07 +0000

The place across from the BAC is pretty awesome, too, Addis Red Sea. May I also recommend a weekly dinner group that meets on Wednesdays?

Posted by G lib on 2008-09-22 22:38:32 +0000

TOTALLY disagree about Veggie Planet. Go for the vegan peanut curry or the 'ceasar' salad, and you will be wowed. Tofu croutons! What more do you want?

Posted by TheFullCleveland on 2008-09-23 12:45:46 +0000

The Other Side Cafe, on the less-traveled side of Newbury Street, has good veggie food (good music too - where else can you hear Boris?).

Posted by pamsterdam on 2008-09-23 12:47:32 +0000

Good point. Proceed with caution.

Posted by mahatma chani on 2008-09-23 13:03:39 +0000

Agreed, but man, the service completely sucks there.

Posted by virtue on 2008-09-23 13:35:03 +0000

I agree with G lib. I'm also very fond of the blonde on blonde.

Posted by Miriam on 2008-09-23 16:03:49 +0000

It's all about atmosphere...and a place to muse on the Fluevog's you just bought down the street.

Posted by G lib on 2008-09-23 19:12:26 +0000

A useful piece of info I found on another messageboard I frequent, please ignore if you are upset by me reposting other messageboard's text: I started to send out a bunch of pm's, but decided a thread would be easier and inform more people who i don't know. Every other month, Veggie Planet hosts a special four course vegan feast. As the new head chef, my first dinner will be October 6th. The menu for the evening is: Fennel tarte tatin Watercress salad with tart apple dressing and candied pumpkin seeds Seitan carbonnade Plum cobbler with ginger sorbet Served with Pear and star anise soda If you are interested in coming, it runs a little steep at $25. You can reserve seats by emailing adam [at] veggieplanet.net. Please mention in your reservations if you have any dietary needs/allergies/intolerances such has nut allergies or no gluten and special dishes can be prepared. The dinners usually fill up a week in advance.

Posted by Miriam on 2008-09-23 20:51:46 +0000

That sounds MUCH better than what I remember them having. I always found their tofu croutons WAY too salty. And kind of gross.

Posted by ConorClockwise on 2008-09-23 20:56:00 +0000

Really? I've heard it's amazing, but perhaps relies too much on nut creams. It's been getting good press locally and from NYC. It's raw food, so it will upset your stomach if you're not used to it.

Posted by Miriam on 2008-09-24 14:36:39 +0000

Some lactose intolerant friends who recently moved to Boston really enjoyed it during Restaurant Week.