10th Anniversary Dinner

The wife wants to take her best friend and her husband out for a 10th Anniversary dinner this weekend. He is a vegan and she is a vegetarian. We are omnivores. They used to enjoy Trio for these special occasions and lately they like to suggest Indian Garden as an option. They are really special people and we would like to do something special for them but we are stumped. I was hoping someone would have a great idea. BTW this is for a dinner tommorow night so certain places might be booked already. Thanks in advance.

Have you considered Spring?

Spring
2039 W North Ave
Chicago, IL
773-395-7100

Or Green Zebra, since it has an emphasis on vegetarian stuff (but isn't strictly so).

Too bad you're a bit late for the
"Meal According to Jains"
http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=14264
Though, the show/podcast may
possibly have info about relevant
local restaurants of the style. (?)

I have had luck with vegetarians at May Street Market - they have a wider vegetarian selection than most places. Not sure about vegan.

FYI, I was calling around for reservations for four earlier this week. Green Zebra was booked except for the 5:00 pm and 9:30 pm slots. May Street was able to squeeze us in at 6:30 pm when I asked nicely - but we had to cancel that reservation yesterday.

IMO, Indian Garden has very good food, but the service can be horrible. Sometimes laughably bad (waving my hands around trying to get the waiters attention when the room is 3/4 empty, 30-45 minute waits for food, etc). India House on Grand also has good Indian food, and its a much nicer place for a meal (decor, service, etc) although I find it a little overpriced.

Mike G wrote:Or Green Zebra, since it has an emphasis on vegetarian stuff (but isn't strictly so).

Uh...yeah...that's what I meant.

Green Zebra
1460 W Chicago Ave
Chicago, IL
312-243-7100

Love Spring and Green Zebra, ill have to call. Thanks

I may be mistaken, but I thought that Tru had some vegetarian options.

Many chefs enjoy the challenge of preparing a vegan meal if they know about it in advance. Make a few calls to some of your favorite places and see which ones respond with enthusiasm. I know that Topolobampo falls into this camp.

As far as the LTH GNR's go, Lao Sze Chuan immediately comes to mind as being vegan friendly including the lauded Ma Po Tofu.

This might be a surprising suggestion, but Cyrano's on Wells. They have a number of veg options & the chef there is very accommodating if you give him a heads up - I have a friends who have gluten/flour or veg issues & they have been able to offer great menus for all.

Also, I second the rec to stay away from Indian Garden not just because of the service but the food can be very hit or miss, you are much better off at India House on Grand where I have had consistently excellent meals & service.

Lastly, 437 Rush has a great selection of veg/vegan pasta dishes & salads.

You know, since they used to enjoy Trio for special occasions, I would suggest going somewhere similarly creative and upscale. mark notes that many chefs enjoy the "challenge" of dietary constraints, and the fact is, most restaurants are accustomed to the more common ones (and vegetarian/vegan are fairly common). I bet they would be pretty amazed at what a place like Avenues or Everest could pull off to make vegetarians happy. Alinea, too, except it might echo their prior experiences at Trio, if it was in the Achatz era there.

Green Zebra is certainly a good suggestion too, since that's basically what they're serving all the time. And if they've never been there, they should really go. But don't rule out those other top places, too.

We picked Aruns. i have always wanted to try but have been hesitant do to the abundance of good inexspensive thai options in our fair city.

BTW I was able to get a 7:30 Reservation at Green Zebra Too. If anyone wants it PM me here and I will call and put it in your name if they'll let me.

Thanks for all the good advice