A VegiTerranean Adventure

Jay R and I spend a lot of hours reading poems. To help make this tolerable, we have started visiting various local restaurants at lunchtime, calling it our Culinary Tour. Today we checked out Akron native Chrissie Hynde's new vegan hotspot, The VegiTerranean.

I really dig vegetarian restaurants, faves being Seva in Ann Arbor and The Chicago Diner. At first I was a bit puzzled by the fact that VegiTerranean has so much faux meat on the menu. But then again, this is Ohio, and non-veg folks may not think a meal is complete without "meat" of some sort. Now that I've tried it, I'm a believer. Protein is good, and doesn't begin and end with chickpeas, after all.

Here's the outside of the restaurant. There's a gorgeous view out the back, which I somehow failed to capture. We had kind of a hard time finding the door, but eventually we figured it out.


The interior is gorgeous--stark, stylish, and imaginative, not to mention spotless. The service was extremely efficient and everyone was friendly. We had a reservation, and the place was full by the time we left.

Here's the menu. You can read it on the website, too.

Sheets of chains hanging from the ceiling = always a good thing (at least for me). I resisted the urge to yank them down and wear them.

I ordered the Pissaladeria (a pizza with greens and artichokes, and their Gardein chicken, which really tastes like chicken, though more tender). It was delish, and so big that I had to take half home.

Jay had the "Back on the Chain Gang" sandwich pictured below. He likes those Italian sandwiches with meats and such. I will let him give his thoughts below, but overall I think the sandwich was a hit. I tried the sausage (surprisingly spicy!) and the fries (awesome). The bread looked very fresh.

No restaurant trip is complete without an assessment of the loo, of course. The bathroom at VegiTerranean is definitely what you'd expect. Tres chic, yet not over the top. I really like the vase pictured below, but was surprised that there wasn't some fancy heirloom soy soap to try, but that's okay.

I was 110% satisfied by my trip to VegiTerranean, and recommend it to anyone looking for a hip, delicious dining experience. I wouldn't take my kids here, because it doesn't seem like that kind of place, but there were several things that I think my adventurous two-year-old son would enjoy.

Jay Robinson's Corner

When I was waiting for my "Back on the Chain Gang" sandwich to arrive, I didn't quite know what to expect. I stared over my shoulder at the Y-Bridge, at the cars passing, and wondered: Would the sausage taste like lettuce? Would there even be a sausage on the sandwich, or was part of the VegiTerranean culinary experience supposed to be imaginary: "Here's your sandwich with sausage, sir. Wink. Wink." What arrived was delicious: Lots of peppers, caramelized onions, spinach, and the sausage itself was, as Mary said, quite spicy and sausage-like. The fries were done perfectly, too, with just the right amount of crispiness, and seasoned with rosemary. I would definitely go there again, and this time I won't have to worry about whether or not the meat's imaginary.

Next week we are going to The Office, and will give you another glimpse of our Akron Culinary Tour.