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| - I tried this restaurant a couple of weeks ago with two friends. When we made reservations, we were asked if there were any dietary considerations and we replied that one of us was a vegetarian. "No problem" we were told and the dietary concern was brought up by staff when we arrived, so they clearly had documented it.
Now for the pros:
it is a lovely, warm space and the service was wonderful. At the risk of sounding like an old fart (I'm in my 40s), some well known restaurants in the area hire very young staff and do not train them in service. Any one can take an order and carry dishes to the table. Not everyone understands that this isn't where good service ends. Our waiter was amiable, available and clearly knew the menu well.
The food was ambitious but approachable. The portions are small, but ya know what? Most US restaurants serve way too much food. The smaller portions make it easier to try several things and not leave feeling like the proverbial stuffed turkey.
The cons: pretty much the choices for vegetarians. I have eaten with this vegetarian friend at many many local restaurants. A good chef will be creative and that doesn't mean serving you a pasta primavera or risotto. They will create something. My friend prefers to eat lighter on the carbs and is honestly happy with a selection of side dishes. You won't believe what she was served as her entree: a VERY small plate of kale and brocolli. That's it. When the check arrived, she was billed $6 which is the price for the side dishes. Did anyone possibly think that even a small woman might not find that a saucer sized plate enough to eat for dinner? We actually went to Taco Bell on the way home (a running joke amongst us, despite being foodies, we appreciate the lure of late night Taco Bell). Frankly I was aghast and seriously thought something else would be coming out. I suspect that either the Chef was not in attendance and the decision about what to serve her was left to the line cooks, or the Chef simply cannot think outside of the box or pigeonholes all vegetarians into the "stir fried carrots/brocolli/zucc" or pasta primavera category. Really, there are more creative options out there.
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