I have already blogged about Fiddle Cakes and the awesome treats I had there on my first visit, but I went back and tried more of their cupcakes and wow!  The chocolate with peppermint “buttercream” frosting and toasted coconut cupcakes were awesome.  So tasty and beautiful.  I also had a lovely vegan soup and sandwich there.  The vegans from Born Empty and I were happy with everything we had.

The Wild Cow had their Grand Opening party last Saturday and I left with Vegan Spicy Chocolate Cake, Vegan Ginger Macadamia Coconut Carrot Cake (say that three times fast),  Vegan Oatmeal Cherry Cookie and a Vegan Zucchini Chocolate Muffin.  Yummy!  All desserts at The Wild Cow are outsourced and everything I tried was very good.

I have complained in the past about Whole Foods’ lack of vegan cupcakes, but to their credit, they now have a Vegan Chocolate Coffee cake that is amazing, they had Vegan Apple and Cherry pies for Thanksgiving (I had the cherry and it was great!) and their baker has just informed me that soon they will have Vegan Whole-Grain Pastries.  Yes!

Go, Nashville!  It’s always a good time to be a vegan, but things just keep getting better and better for us.  For those of you afraid to go vegan because you think you’ll be missing out, try some of these awesome cholesterol-free-but-full-of-great-flavor desserts!  And if you’re jonesin’ for some ice cream to go with your cake, stop by Whole Foods or Turnip Truck and buy some Purely Decadent with Coconut Milk or Luna & Larry’s Coconut Bliss.  I swear, it’s better than dairy ice cream!

Enter Fiddle Cakes on 8th Ave South.  I called the other day to find out about their vegan offerings, then realizing they would be closing in just a bit, I hopped in the car and drove straight there.   I walked up to the counter and asked for one of everything that was vegan.  I purchashed an almond shortbread cookie, a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie and a banana split cupcake.  Turns out the woman who helped me is also vegan so I gave her my card and we chatted a bit.

I brought my tasty treats home and it was all I could do to wait to take photos before I dove in.  The almond shortbread cookie tasted just like what you’d expect.  It was crispy and had a nice almondy, buttery flavor.  (People often ask me how it’s possible for shortbread to be vegan, but did you know that Lorna Doone shortbread cookies are vegan?  Not healthy by any means, but still vegan.)

Next, I tried the pumpkin chocolate chip cookie.  It was pretty good, but a little salty and I would have liked a little more pumpkin spice flavor.  The banana split cupcake didn’t have the best consistency compared to some of the vegan cupcakes I’ve had, but the flavors were great.  The cake tasted like real banana and had little chunks of pineapple and chocolate chips and it had walnuts and a maraschino cherry on top.  The icing was very sugary, but was also quite fresh and yummy.  Way better than the stuff you’d get on most bakery cupcakes.

Even with my little criticisms, I enjoyed everything and ate all three items in one sitting, ended up with a ridiculous sugar high, then crashed hard.  I don’t recommend trying that.  I know better, but it was so hard to resist!

Fiddle Cakes also serves lunch (soups, salads and sandwiches) and they can make their vegetarian menu items vegan.  Their sandwich bread is vegan and comes from a bakery in Clarksville and they have Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet cheese.  All their recipes are their own and they use sweeteners like organic evaporated cane juice, molasses and agave nectar, plus they have gluten-free items as well.  They also do catering and special orders.  Yay!

Nashvillians, let’s support Fiddle Cakes and show this city and its restaurants, bakeries, etc. that we can keep vegan-friendly businesses alive and thriving.

We actually have three vegetarian restaurants, with more on the way.  The Wild Cow just opened and not only is the food great, the owners are awesome as well.  I absolutely love The Wild Cow!   Grins (“Pronounced like the color, spelled like the smile”) is on the Vanderbilt campus.  It is kosher and all vegetarian and is only open when school is in, which is kind of a bummer, but I’m still glad they exist.  They have some pretty good stuff, including fabulous vegan cookies!  Woodlands on West End is a vegetarian Indian food restaurant that is quite good.  They can tell you which of their entrees are dairy-free too, which is always helpful.

Those are the only true vegetarian places we have here, but there are some other restaurants around town with decent veggie selections:

Jamaicaway
Fiddle Cakes
PM
Sam & Zoe’s
Frothy Monkey
Baja Burrito
Blue Coast Burrito
Calypso Cafe
Tin Angel
Whole Foods
Cafe Coco
Provence (cheese-heavy soups and sandwiches, so be careful if you’re vegan)
Fido (their veggie sausage isn’t vegan, but at least they have a tofu scramble.  Let them know they should carry Soysage!  It’s locally made and vegan.)
Cha Chah

Ok, I know veggie burgers can get really boring, but some good ones can be found around town.  Not all are vegan, so be sure to ask!

J.Alexander‘s
Bricktop’s
Blackstone (they also have a bean and rice plate)
Boscos

Zola‘s menu says that they can alter many of their dishes for vegans and vegetarians.  I went recently and was given basically a medley of their vegetable side-dishes, which was really disappointing.  They are always voted one of the best restaurants in town and I have been told several times that they are very vegan-friendly.  I was so bummed that they didn’t at least include some kind of grain or legume!  Vegetables are great and all, but for $17.50, I expected something a lot more creative.  If I wanted a salad, I would have ordered one.  To their credit though, I wrote to the chef about my experience and she was horrified.  I look forward to giving them another chance.

ETA:  I did give Zola another chance.  Last time I was there they had a separate vegetarian menu with six items, three of which wcould be made vegan.  Yay!  I wasn’t overwhelmed with my selection, but maybe some of the other stuff on the menu is better and more flavorful.  If you have something great there that’s vegan, please let me know.

On a recent call to Flyte to make reservations, I was asked if anyone in my party was vegetarian or vegan, which I really appreciated.  Even though my dish was also just vegetables and no grains or legumes, it was at least beautiful and tasty.  All the veggies were seasonal and they were served with some lovely reductions.  I’d definitely go there again to see what the chef comes up with.

There are a lot of restaurants that have changing menus, which means sometimes they’ll have something veg-friendly, sometimes not.  Usually these types of restaurants are pretty flexible and will make something to order for you, but you might want to call first.  Germantown Cafe has a “green plate” and a pasta-of-the-day.  Check for ingredients. I have had mixed experiences with  City House in the past, but lately all my food there has been delicious and the chefs are creative and receptive.  Bound’ry continues to provide creative, delicious vegan fare.  I have been thrilled with my last few experiences there.  Don’t worry about what the menu says.  Call ahead and they’ll definitely take care of you.

Broadway Brewhouse and South Street have a few vegetarian menu items, especially for lacto-ovo vegetarians.  Mellow Mushroom is very lacto-ovo friendly and even though our locations don’t carry soy cheese, you can apparently bring it with you and they’ll make you a vegan pizza.  Of course you can always get a cheeseless pizza as well.  Yummy!  I haven’t had a cheeseless pizza at Da Vinci‘s, but they have a nice list of toppings and they do have soy cheese (although since it has casein in it, it’s not vegan).  The servers at Mafiaoza’s always think I’m nuts when I order cheeseless pizzas, but to their credit they always come loaded with veggies, which is more than I can say for their pizzas with cheese on them.  Oh, and a side note:  Mafiaoza’s hummus is NOT vegan.  Neither is the hummus at Cabana.  Why do they need to put dairy in their hummus?  You got me.  Let’s start asking!

Chain restaurants are pretty easy for lacto-ovo vegetarians (except O’Charley’s, which in my opinion has nothing worth eating as a veg), but a little more challenging for vegans.  Olive Garden is pretty easy and Ruby Tuesday is decent.  P.F. Chang’s has lots of vegetarian options.  Don’t even bother with Sambuca as they have pretty much nothing unless you’re there to drink only.  Chili’s has a few things and TGIFriday’s and Applebee’s have Gardenburgers (not the vegan ones, but it’s a start).  I wish CPK would add whole wheat pasta and soy cheese to their menu, but they have a few things we can eat.  Baja Fresh has burritos, salads and a bean and rice plate.

Side dishes can be a life saver, but be careful of rice cooked in chicken broth.  You can usually find a baked potato and order it plain with a side of salsa.  Very low-fat and filling.  Of course most restaurants will always have vegetable side dishes, but be careful about what they’re cooked in if you want to avoid hidden animal products.  I always ask for no butter and no cheese, but some of the Southern cooking places around here cook their veggies with chicken, pork, etc.

Be careful with Chinese food.  I have ordered tofu a few times only to find pieces of dead pig in it.  Ew!  If I wanted pork, wouldn’t I have ordered pork and not tofu?  Best to stay with steamed veggies and rice, or ask the chefs about their ingredients before ordering.

Thai food can be great for vegetarians.  Jasmine in Cool Springs is one of my favorite places.  Nice atmosphere and lots of veggie selections.

Japanese restaurants usually have a tofu dish or two and sometimes you can almost always find vegetarian sushi.  Mmmmm.

We lost my favorite Ethiopian place here in town, but I’ve been to Gojo and Abay, and both were quite good.  Lentils, cracked wheat, greens, injera, etc. should all be veggie friendly… And delicious!

Mexican places usually have a small lacto-ovo vegetarian section to their menu.  Some have vegetable burritos, which you can order without cheese.  You can always get beans and rice, but be careful as a lot of places use lard, chicken broth, etc.  Be sure to ask your server.  Rosepepper Cantina no longer uses chicken broth in their rice (yay!), and the black beans are vegan. They have a nice vegan burrito that has steamed veggies, avocado and black beans and they have a vegan tamale.

Other Indian places in Nashville that are good are Sitar, Cuisine of India and Shalimar.  Try the lunch buffets at Sitar and Cuisine of India.  Most dishes are vegetarian and really delicious and if you go for lunch you’ll save a ton of money and be able to try more things.

Mediterranean food can be very veggie-friendly.  Lentils and rice, hummus, falafel, etc. I haven’t been in years, but  Mediterranean Cuisine was a favorite of mine for lunch when I worked on Music Row.  Tabouli’s is ok too.

I hope this helps Nashvillians or those traveling through Music City.  I know there are probably several places I didn’t list, so feel free to let me know if I forgot your favorite spot.  There is one restaurant in particular that has an inventive, really great sounding vegetarian entree, but I can’t get around the fact that they also serve foie gras and frog legs.  It’s bad enough that I have to patronize places that serve meat at all, but I can only handle so much, you know?

I really wish restaurants in general would get more inventive!  I truly hope that restauranteurs in Nashville will start realizing that a lot of folks out there care about their health, the planet and the animals.  Nashville currently tops the list for heart UNhealthy cities for women!  Please give us something more than a veggie burger, a salad, a pasta dish or a portabella mushroom.  We want real food, and as you can see from the restaurants I feature in my show, there is SO MUCH out there.  Bring it to Nashville!  We can make a difference by requesting things that aren’t on the menu.  If enough people ask, the chefs will start adding things to regular rotation.

As Jason Sellers, chef at Laughing Seed in Asheville, NC says, “Plant-based food is necessary; vegan cuisine is sexy.”  Damn straight.

Special thanks to every restaurant that has a website with a current menu.  Mad props to the chefs who put some creativity into their vegan and vegetarian dishes.