Berkeley has no shortage of vegetarian restaurants. You’ll have your choice of Thai, Indian, Chinese, Italian, and just about every other ethnic variety. It’s also lucky enough to have a good ol’ Southern restaurant squeezed into a shoebox of a space in Albany, near Marin and Solana avenues.
Jodie’s is soul food with the emphasis on soul. You’ll get fed with love and pride. The menu is filled with vegetarian options If you can’t choose, just ask for “nothing with something, minus the meat.”
The food at Jodies is quite unique. The owner is proud to tell you that there’s no other restaurant with the same dishes. These are all figments of their imagination.
The recipes are filled with flavor from slow cooking and real spices. Don’t even think of adding ketchup or syrup to your dishes until you’ve tasted them au naturel.
Jodie’s is not for everyone. It’s tiny, cramped, and bohemian. You will end up chatting with everyone that has found a space inside or at the sidewalk tables. This is not the place to enjoy a long breakfast with a book and solitude. This is where you go when you want something unique, flavorful, and enjoy the company of new friends.
Although Jodie’s is tiny and cramped, it is still somewhat accessible. A wheelchair could not get to the bathroom. However, there is outdoor seating and there is no step to enter the restaurant. There are no braille menus, but asking for advice is half the fun.
- Jodie’s Restaurant
-
- 902 Masonic Ave
- Berkeley, 94706
- (650) 364-2808
- Southern and Soul Food
- Overall: 5/5
- Value: 4/5
- Location: 3.5/5
- Taste: 4/5
- Vegetarian Options: 4/5
- Vegan Options: 4/5
- Meat-Eating Friend Friendly: 4/5
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It’s hard to live up to great expectations. That is a curse that Millennium has to deal with. They’ve become known as the “French Laundry” of veganism. While that is great for bringing the guests in, it’s also easy for them to leave disappointed. I was one of those customers on my first visit.
Dinner at the Millennium - Photo by Tomeppy - Creative Commons
Don’t get me wrong, Millennium has great food. Scratch that, they have excellent food. More surprisingly the food happens to be vegan and innovative. What more could I have expected? A religious experience?
I was given a gift certificate for Christmas last year and made a return trip. This time my expectations were not in the stratosphere and I truly enjoyed the meal.
Honest Vegan Food
We’ve all seen the vegetarian or vegan version of a meat dish. We can eat shitake burgers, tu-no casserole, mock duck curry, and the list goes on. Millennium is not trying to re-invent meat dishes with other proteins. Their dishes explore the vegan proteins to see what new dishes can be created.
For example, the basket of bread arrives with a spread that doesn’t try to be butter. It’s got a personality of its own. Keep this in mind when visiting the restaurant. Don’t try to compare it to meat restaurants, look at the dishes on their own merit.
Expectations
You can expect to pay $60-100 for dinner (2 people), not including wine. The dishes are seasonal so you may want to make that big visit in Spring or Summer to get the best produce. Although it would be a great place to have dinner after a long day of holiday shopping. Heck, you’ve already blown your budget at Macy’s why not go all the way?
- Millennium Restaurant
-
- 580 Geary St
- San Francisco, 94102
- (415) 345-3900
- Gourmet Vegan
- Overall: 4/5
- Value: 3/5
- Location: 5/5
- Taste: 5/5
- Vegetarian Options: 5/5
- Vegan Options: 5/5
- Meat-Eating Friend Friendly: 2/5
I remember the first time I saw Vicky’s. I was looking for some shop in San Jose and hadn’t eaten dinner. I was with my friend Brian and we were always ready to eat somewhere new. Vicky’s had a flashing sign that made it look like a used car lot, how could we pass up such an opportunity.
Vicky’s specializes in Salvadorian
cuisine and we ordered everything. I’ve been a loyal Vicky-ite since the first bite.
There are several must-try dishes at Vicky’s. They have a fruit salad drink, horchata insalada, which features finely minced apples, oranges and other fruits in a sweet water. You’ll drink it with a spoon to get all of the fruit.
They also specialize in pupusas, which are stuffed corn cakes. There are several vegetarian varieties, I like the bean and cheese, zucchini, and vegetarian pupusas. You’ll also want to try the fried plaintains with sour cream and beans.
Vicki’s now features a vegetarian plate. This includes a pupusa, corn tamale, and a rice/beans combination. Frankly, I’m not impressed with the tamale, so I would recommend ordering a la carte.
That’s Entertainment
While Vicky’s is a great restaurant any day of the week, you don’t want to miss karaoke night on Fridays. You’ll enjoy the crooning attempts by local friends and aspiring Julio Iglesias
crooners. The MC fills in the quiet moments and keeps the party going. I have not sung myself, but I do enjoy the show.
Vicky’s is located near the Falafel Drive-in. You may find it hard to pass this landmark but Vicky’s is worth driving a few extra blocks.
- Vicky’s Restaurant
- 1536 W. San Carlos St., San Jose CA 95126
- (408) 292-3238
- Salvadorian Restaurant
- Overall: 4.5/5
- Location: 3/5
- Taste: 4.5/5
- Service: 4/5
- Vegetarian Friendly: 4/5
- Vegan Friendly: 3/5
- M.E.F. Friendly: 5/5
The Vegetarian House is an organic, vegan restaurant in San Jose. I haven’t visited it yet, so I cannot give it a review. Their menu looks interesting: Vegetarian House menu.
- Vegetarian House
-
- 520 E. Santa Clara Street
- San Jose, 95112
- (map)
- (408) 292-3798
- Mexico City style restaurant
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