Vegiterranean

Vegiterranean

When Chrissie Hynde opened her vegan restaurant in downtown Akron, she did it for one main reason: to save animals. With a strong passion for animal protection, and a great executive chef named J. Scot Jones, Vegiterranean has taken the meat out of Italian cuisine without sacrificing taste.

The service is also top-notch, with quick and friendly servers who seem to really enjoy what they do.

“The crew is fabulous,” says manager Kim Blouir, who has worked at the restaurant since it opened three years ago. “Nobody really works for anyone, we kind of all work together.” She also says people often stop by to see Hynde, but she’s only there on certain occasions.

“We don’t see her a lot. She’s not on-hand much here, she’s here more to save animals. That’s why she opened the restaurant. We’re the ones here doing the day-to-day, running the restaurant. But her thing is to save animals and that’s what her passion is,” Blouir says.

The menu is all entirely vegan, with cheeses made from tapioca and meat from garden grown protein. The cheeses are bought from a local distributor called Daiya and the “meats,” are all from Gardein. The restaurant also serves as coffee house, bakery and bar, with a long list of wines, domestics and imports, as well as beer from local brewers Great Lakes Brewing in Cleveland and Hoppin’ Frog out of Akron. There are also mojitos, martinis, teas and sodas to quench your thirst.

Their food is mostly based around Italian cuisine; such as soup, salads, flat breads, pizzas, pastas and Italian entrees. Gluten-free meals are also available upon request.

The appetizers are somewhat pricey but are worth it. One of the favorites is the hot Italian banana peppers, filled with herb risotto, and vegan mozzarella with fresh basil and lime sauce. It packs a zesty, tangy, spiciness; the perfect way to kick off a good meal.

The Tuscan Gnocchi is among the most requested meals, and for good reasons. It’s tender, chewy, filling pasta mixed with oven-roasted tomatoes, fire-grilled red peppers, artichokes and wild mushrooms, carefully sprinkled with roasted garlic and smothered in a thick and creamy tomato vodka sauce that has the perfect consistency. The red peppers give a kick to the subtle yet succulent sauce, and the garlic is the perfect touch. Even though it fills you up, you won’t want the meal to end.

Unless, of course, there’s room for dessert. There are some very interesting vegan choices, such as mocha tort, rasberry cakes, tiramisu and chocolate tofu mousse balls. But no matter what you choose, you can leave Vegiterranean feeling full, nourished, happy and guilt-free.

“We have all kinds of people that come in. We have meat eaters, non-meat eaters, people who don’t understand it, including my father, but now he loves it,” says Blouir.  “It’s very comfortable.”

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