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Many fine dining restaurants have begun offering vegan and vegetarian offerings on their menus, even if their focus is meat or seafood, as of late. In 2013, Chef Grant Achatz of NEXT in Chicago surprised many of its ticketholders when he produced a 4-start vegan-only menu. And now with Beyoncé citing a plant-based diet is responsible for her improved skin and weight loss, it seems more restaurants than ever are highlighting their vegan offerings.
Freds at Barneys just launched a sunset menu at its Beverly Hills and Chicago restaurants that offers guests crudités with a trio of raw vegan cashew dips. Dip flavors include hummus style, sundried tomato basil and castelvetrano olive. It also offers a vegan pizza made with a whole-wheat crust and vegan cheese.
Chef Takashi Yagihashi recently added a new vegan ramen dish to his menu at Slurping Turtle in Chicago ~ Shoyu Tofu Mushroom Ramen with rice noodles, vegetable broth, soft tofu, Japanese mushroom medley, asparagus, eggplant, kabocha squash, edamame and chili oil.
Also in Chicago, at Peruvian hotspot Tanta, Chef Jesus Delgado offers many vegan-optional dishes, including the Quinoa Solterito ~ a quinoa salad with lima bean hummus, beets, tomatoes and goat cheese.
Denver’s The Corner Office Restaurant and Martini Bar serves up a vegan pho made of rice noodles, miso broth, mushrooms and jalapeno while Departure in Portland steps up the salad bar with its carrot and avocado salad which comes with pickled cucumber and sourdough croutons.
Vegan fine dining restaurants themselves aren't new. Blossom in New York City celebrates 10 years in operation this year as a vegan fine dining restaurant and more than a few friends I’ve taken there have remarked at how impressed they were considering they weren’t at all keen on going to a vegan-only restaurant initially. Chef Tal Ronnen opened Crossroads Kitchen in Los Angeles in 2013 and has a wide range of meals, including a twist on comforting classics. Ronnen has legions of fans including Oprah Winfrey (he created her 21-day vegan cleanse), Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi (he catered their wedding). Nonetheless, it’s the restaurant’s vegan food and atmosphere that continues to draw diners.
The Departure Carrot & Avocado Salad is available at Departure in Portland. (Photo courtesy of Drew... [+]
"I think chefs and restauranteurs are realizing that there is a big market they are missing out with if they don't offer plant-based options and I also think that the more creative ones are just beginning to realize the enormous culinary potential in plants," says Marla Rose, content creator of VeganStreet.com.
"Just look at the cauliflower, boring ol' cauliflower for an example of this," she explains. "Today, people are roasting it, grilling it whole, turning it into Buffalo-style wings, pureeing into something really silky. There is no sacrifice here. The days of a boring salad as the only option are over for those who want to stay competitive and respected as chefs. Fine chefs are beginning to leave behind their more conservative training and learning all kinds of textures and flavors they never realized before are available with plant foods. It's an exciting time."
In the past, if you were vegan or dining with a vegan, you had to let the chef know in advance so the team could prepare. These days, as Rose notes, more restaurants are starting to realize the importance of this market and chefs are proactively taking the opportunity to create main dishes where vegetables take the spotlight. While I’m not entirely sure what Beyoncé is doing with her diet, the fact that she’s extolling the virtues of plant-based meals will certainly continue to fuel the general public’s interest in vegan dishes, too.
