short notice request - best veggies?

Looking for a place tonight that does veggies really well. Know that Club Grotto used to get the shout out for taking the time to treat veggies as more than just stuff to put on the plate. Where can I find good veggies in town? Not looking to spend a lot of money - say in the Baxter Station price range or less. And yes, they do great veggies. Just looking for other options.

Danke.

I just saw this

vegan tea dinner tonight @ 7
30.00 a person
hillbillytea.com

It depends on what kind of food you're looking for.

I knew about it a while ago, but I only recently tried the Tofu Scramble at North End Cafe. It's really really good and I wish I'd tried it long ago. It was a plethora of veggies stir fried with really good tofu (and I'm not normally a big tofu fan).

I like the vegetarian plate at Havana Rumba. You can get skewered veggies with sides or the veggie plate. The second comes with veggie empanadas, rice, beans, and I usually get sweet potato fries with it. (I can't remember the 4th thing, b/c I alway sub it out.)

Is that the kind of info you're looking for?

[Robin Garr]

L&N Wine Bar generally has at least one meatless entree that's far more than just an afterthought. When I was there in January, it was gnocchi with mushrooms and butternut squash. Let's just say that I'm an omnivore, but it looked so good on the menu that I got it in preference to a meat dish, and I wasn't sorry.

I recall Jack Fry's usually doing right by vegetarians in at least one creative and interesting entree, but better check ... sadly, I haven't been there for dinner for a while.

Third Avenue Cafe in Old Louisville has a lot of veggie options...and the atmosphere is kind of fun.
http://www.thirdavecafe.com/DinnerMenu.aspx

North End is also a good choice for vegetarians.

You may also want to check out Ramsi's menu.
http://www.ramsiscafe.com/index.php?opt ... &Itemid=57

Thanks for the suggestions.

Ended up at North End. Had the Steak Salad. Wasn't so much looking for a vegetarian meal as I was in the mood for some well-cooked vegetables. Wasn't what I ended up getting, but the salad was good enough.

Will probably head to Basa soon. Think they might have some offerings that will make me happy.

Have to note that while I'm happy to see more and more independents opening shop, I can't help but feel that many of these are duplicating a similar offering. I'd call it the "upscale" comfort food movement. Had that experience at Hammerhead's recently. Good food, but heavy on the carbs and not very healthy.

Ah, gotcha. You're definitely right. Vegetables tend to be an overlooked component, IMO. Or maybe not overlooked, but not given the same consideration as the meat portion.

I recall Jack Fry's usually doing right by vegetarians in at least one creative and interesting entree, but better check ... sadly, I haven't been there for dinner for a while.

That entree you're thinking of must be the potato gratin. It is divine - here's what it's made up of:

Layers of potatoes, wild mushrooms & thyme
topped with Capriole Farm goat cheese.
Accompanied by grilled vegetables
with mixed wild greens in a nutty
vinaigrette & a pepper currant relish.

Every part of the plate works together so well. Sooo not an afterthought.

Definitely try Basa - their eggplant dish is one of my favorite vegetable dishes in town.

Okay, I do have one question since we're on the topic of vegetables. Why is it that restaurants think that vegetarians only eat eggplant and mushrooms?

It's a fairly common complaint among the non-meat-eating community. There's a whole world of vegetables out there, guys. Variety is good. Seriously.

I remember reading a complaint on the board once about people only ordering the vegetarian entree once in a blue moon. The thing that popped into my head was, "Gee. I wonder if it was a portobello mushroom sandwich?"

I'm not being snarky either. I just honestly don't think restaurant owners realize that vegetarians aren't jumping up and down to eat mushrooms and eggplant. (And I happen to like mushrooms. I even have some growing on my counter.)

I'm late to the game on this one- but the Veggie Chimichanga at Seviche is wonderful. If you are worried about fat and ask nicely they will bake it for you. Delicious!

Mayan Cafe and Havana Rumba have good veggie dinners too.

Okay, I do have one question since we're on the topic of vegetables. Why is it that restaurants think that vegetarians only eat eggplant and mushrooms?

It's a fairly common complaint among the non-meat-eating community. There's a whole world of vegetables out there, guys. Variety is good. Seriously.

I remember reading a complaint on the board once about people only ordering the vegetarian entree once in a blue moon. The thing that popped into my head was, "Gee. I wonder if it was a portobello mushroom sandwich?"

I'm not being snarky either. I just honestly don't think restaurant owners realize that vegetarians aren't jumping up and down to eat mushrooms and eggplant. (And I happen to like mushrooms. I even have some growing on my counter.)

The only place I've ever worked where we sold vegetarian dishes with great consistency was City Cafe.
However, when I was writing menus at other restaurants, I would come up with what I thought were wonderful vegetarian dishes. Items like Roasted Root Vegetables with Barley Risotto, Grilled Ratatouille Strudel with Smoked Tomato Coulis, Cauliflower Custard with Sauteed Broccoli Rabe and Limas or even a vegan Calzone stuffed with roasted peppers, onions, tomatoes and tofu processed with herbs and garlic until it became a ricotta like consistency. No matter what it was, the sales of the items didn't ever justify wasting the effort or the product to keep them on the menu. To be fair, there were plenty of carnivore items that didn't always sell either.

If a random vegetarian wandered in, it was just easier to go asked them what they liked and make up something off the menu with the stuff we had around. Sometimes that might of included mushrooms or eggplant. But I always liked the challenge because 9 times out of 10 the random vegetarian would say something like "I don't want pasta, mushrooms,or eggplant."

I'm a full-fledged carnivore, so I'm not even seeking out vegetarian dishes. I just get frustrated when the "side orders" at a give place feature mostly or entirely fries and fried items. Due to recent medical events, I've become much more conscious of what I am eating and have figured out that a sandwich with a side of fries is not the most healthy thing in the world (and that's an understatement). But if I could get that sandwich with well-prepared broccoli or asparagus, that would be great.

I will give a shot-out to the Blind Pig. They are willing to substitute their basic salad for fries with any of their sandwiches. Nothing spectacular about the salad (and those fries are damn good), but it's a necessary choice for some people.

I'm sure the right place would fix me up some vegetables, just as they would do a "chef's whim" vegetarian dish.

The only place I've ever worked where we sold vegetarian dishes with great consistency was City Cafe.
However, when I was writing menus at other restaurants, I would come up with what I thought were wonderful vegetarian dishes. Items like Roasted Root Vegetables with Barley Risotto, Grilled Ratatouille Strudel with Smoked Tomato Coulis, Cauliflower Custard with Sauteed Broccoli Rabe and Limas or even a vegan Calzone stuffed with roasted peppers, onions, tomatoes and tofu processed with herbs and garlic until it became a ricotta like consistency. No matter what it was, the sales of the items didn't ever justify wasting the effort or the product to keep them on the menu. To be fair, there were plenty of carnivore items that didn't always sell either.

If a random vegetarian wandered in, it was just easier to go asked them what they liked and make up something off the menu with the stuff we had around. Sometimes that might of included mushrooms or eggplant. But I always liked the challenge because 9 times out of 10 the random vegetarian would say something like "I don't want pasta, mushrooms,or eggplant."

Huh. Thank you very much for taking me seriously. The dishes you describe sound so good I want you to come over and make them right this second.

I guess I'm just not the type to ask for what I consider "special favors" unless it's a restaurant that I know encourages that. I remember Park Place had some kind of "chef's whim" deal where the chef came out and asked both my husband and I what we liked and/or disliked. I got the veg version and he ordered the meat version. It was actually something listed on the menu rather than something we asked for specially. And in fact, I asked for no pasta, eggplant or mushrooms, lol.

And I kind of agree with the previous poster, too. I watched Hell's Kitchen a few times. (Yes, I know it's not representative of real life, but still.) They referred to the veg station as the "garnish station". That really let me into the mindset of some kitchens/chefs. If you think of the vegetables as nothing more than a garnish, then I can understand why they're often not given the kind of attention as the meat.

Anyway. It's an interesting conversation. Thanks again, Dan, for not getting offended.