May 12-18, 2005

food

offthemenu

by Juliet Fletcher

Isn't it easy being green? In a couple of decades, vegetarianism and its more strict cousin, veganism, have shifted from being a couple of marginal food philosophies to increasingly familiar concepts. Even the backlash has started: In February, Lindsay Allen, professor of international nutrition at the University of California, Davis, criticized veganism as an "unethical" way of feeding children — an assessment which caused outcry from veggie and vegan interest groups. That reaction confirmed that even families have changed their eating habits to exclude meat and dairy.

So it's slightly surprising to talk to Heather Gorn, one of the researchers of the Vegetarian Journal's Guide to Natural Foods Restaurants in the U.S. and Canada. I asked her what challenges vegetarians face when they eat out: "You mean apart from finding food?" she replies — half-joking, but only half.

If vegetarianism is now mainstream, will there come a time when it's treated as normal, rather than a minority concept needing a specialized guide? "I hope so, but we're not there yet," Gorn says. She believes that while public recognition of these diets is high, on the ground, not much has changed for the better. "It's still possible there's broth in everything," she says, "so I definitely prefer to eat at places that are specifically veggie." Progress might have been made, she says — "People are becoming even more aware of these hidden ingredients" — but in her experience that hasn't created enough pressure for restaurants to stop using them.

Gorn, just finishing her freshman year at Penn, was raised a vegetarian, and says she made the choice to go vegan at 13. "I've been a reader of Vegetarian Journal for a really long time," she adds. As one of the Philadelphia contacts for the guide, she spent months updating the list of local places which, according to the introduction, "go out of their way for vegetarians." Philadelphia, like many cities, she says, serves veggie customers better than rural towns. "Different ethnic foods are particularly good — Chinese, Indian," she says. Browsing the book, it's clear the printed guide can't keep up with all of Philly's changing ethnic restaurants, but additions or updates can be made through the Web site of Vegetarian Resource Group, its publishing company. The guide, says Gorn, is most useful for vacation, when traveling outside your comfort zone. And until more restaurants, from the mid-Atlantic to Midwest, learn to offer veggie options, Gorn reckons that a handbook is a good stopgap measure: "I'd feel perfectly comfortable going anywhere with it. I can choose where I take my business."

Vegetarian Journal's Guide to Natural Foods Restaurants in the U.S. and Canada, $18, available from Vegetarian Resource Group, 410-366-VEGE, www.vrg.org.