Veg Out
Published in Widowism by chefswidowAt one point in my life I was a vegetarian. Hard to believe now but I was. My parent’s were into healthy food as I was growing up and I just migrated towards vegetarianism. Obviously I am no longer a vegetarian. I still do not eat a lot of red meat however I do eat meat. And I love it.
As restaurant owners the Chef & I come in contact with many vegans and vegetarians. Two of my closets friends are vegan and the Chef has absolutely no problem in getting them fed in our restaurant. We regularly have customers who are interested in our veg options and I am proud that we offer quite a few. Last night I came home to 6 different emails regarding a Facebook Group of Vegans & Vegetarians talking shit about our restaurant. After I saw it we started to get countless emails regarding our ‘lack of options for vegetarians & vegans.” We also got a few mean emails accusing us of putting ‘fish’ in our vegetarian entree. We OBVIOUSLY do not do that. If we did it would not be vegetarian. Duh.
I am pretty sure we are the only (non vegetarian themed) restaurant in Cleveland that has a constant vegetarian entree on our menu. It changes based on seasonality and it has always been fucking delicious. Today it is a Parisian Gnocchi Ratatouille. We also offer a vegan entree which is the Grilled Romain Puttanesca. We have countless other options that again change based on seasonality. As most of you know the Chef is really into the freshest, most local food he can find. Our servers are well versed in the options. All one has to do is ask. The Chef is brilliant (if I might say so myself) at cooking vegetables and he is quite happy to do so. At this point in time we have 11 different courses that can be vegetarian. Eleven. Most restaurants have two.
Since I started writing this, I have gotten three more emails regarding this subject. I encourage these people to actually come to The Greenhouse Tavern and decide for themselves instead of letting a Facebook group tell them what we are all about.
If you have eaten at our restaurant (talking to you Dana) I gladly invite you to discuss your vegetarian or vegan experience on their group page. They asked. We shall tell.
Clap
I just joined the group and posted. We went last Thursday for the first time and loved it! We will definitely be going back. I’m a vegetarian and had one of the best meals I’ve had in a long time. There were SO many vegetarian options. Can’t wait to go back!
Yay Mina Thank you so much! The Chef tries really hard to make sure everyone can eat (and eat well) at our restaurant!
Hey Amelia, we know some vegetarians also and I’ve even done it myself from time to time. But sorry, unless someone is dairy intolerant I really don’t have any time for vegans. I suggest that they go to a third world country and try to be vegan when the people are just trying to survive. Our dairy animals on organic farms actually have it better than many people in these third world countries. Just my two cents worth.
People like that give the rest of us a bad name.
I live too far away to have ever visited your restaurant, but I did check out your menu once when you linked it and I thought it looked diverse. We totally would enjoy a meal there.
Some people want things their way or the highway. Let ‘em take the highway.
Wow! It’s incredible what a couple uninformed people can do using social media, isn’t it. I hope you’re able to set them straight.
At one time I was also a vegetarian too but gave it up because eating too much fruit and fiber is not great for my personal ecto system. I thought your repsonse to this was appropriate and effective. Their argument seems to be that meat is not as environmentally correct as vegatables. If you carry their logic further, a green restaurant still has more of a carbon footprint than no restaurant so no restaurant would be the best environmental choice. You have made a good effort to accomodate personal preferences, but you can never be all things to all people. Stick to your vision. If you were not a success, you would not be a target either.
I have a dear and very picky veg friend from Calgary visiting later this summer and in anticipation we started asking around for great places to take a veggie. GHT was one of the most often mentioned by our local veggie friends. Everyone said that 1) the exisiting menu is very veggie-friendly and 2) that the staff is super-helpful in modifying and suggesting dishes to veggies.
And honeslty, to judge a place without visiting it is just a total douchebag move.
Eff them; two friends of mine who are vegetarians and I went to the tavern for the first time two weeks ago. We all shared several dishes that were fantastic. I could eat that bread and butter all night…
I agree with everyone who commented. People who complain just to hear their own voices are annoying. Maybe eating some meat will make them less bitchy!
I am a vegetarian and have been to GHT once. I had the grilled romaine lettuce that had olives, tomatoes, and other things that I cannot remember. A salad was also modified for my husband and I to share. Our server was very friendly and willing to help in any way. We cannot wait to go back! Keep it up Sawyers!
I am a super picky eater and don’t eat much meat — I loooved (and devoured) everything I had last week at the GHT
Can’t wait to come back!
xo*
It’s great to see so many commenters who know first hand how wonderful the place is. Maybe some of them will post comments and reviews locally and on Facebook so that the negatives are balanced. I wish I lived closer; GreenHouse Tavern sounds awesome!
I am not a vegetarian. After an oyster app I ordered a delicious fettucini with morels, ramps, spinach and fiddleheads. It was an absolutely delicious pasta dish! I believe it was the vegetarian daily special. Loved it!
great post, though greenhouse is good, owner bias is tough to debate. one cant cater to all appetities, thats like demanding veal parm at an indian restaurant. do what you do and be happy. one cant make everyone happy!