Farmicia

[Elizabeth Clauser]

I'm making an unexpected trip to Philadelphia this weekend and will be going out to dinner with the in-laws. They are vegetarian, while we are not. We've been to White Dog with them, but would like to try somewhere different. I was looking at Farmicia - anyone have any opinions on this or suggestions for other restaurants? While I love the BYOB concept and would not rule it out, it isn't my preference for this outing. Thanks in advance for any help!

[philadining]

This is actually something I run into with some regularity, dining-out with vegetarian friends, but not wanting to stick to purely vegetarian spots all the time. The White Dog is always the place to start, but even when it's good, one wants some variety in life...

While I've heard mixed reviews of the veggie fare at Farmicia, there is a nice variety on both sides of the divide, not just one or two obligatory vegetarian offerings.

A vegetarian friend really liked Azure at 931 N 2nd, just a few doors up from Standard Tap in Northern Liberties. We omnivores thought it was pretty nice too, with a good selection for all of us, a decent beer and wine list, nice vibe. The food wasn't mind-blowing, but it was enjoyable, and offered several interesting vegetarian dinners, not just just a sullen pasta or two. I'd go back. Northern Liberties might be a little scruffy for the folks, but the restaurant itself is pretty nice, casual but not dumpy.

Of course, here in Philly, Italian is the easy default, there's almost always plenty of good vegetarian offerings at any Italian place.

They're probably tired of Indian, but it's not always common to find stylish places, so Cafe Spice or Karma could be a change of pace.

Than on the other side of things, the full-on veggie places in Chinatown: Harmony, Cherry Street, or Kingdom of Vegetarians, have decent food, it's not too hard to find something good without meat. I steer clear of the meat-simulations, the vegetarians like them and keep insisting that it's "just like the real thing" but that's only because they haven't had the real thing in a long time.... but there's nothing wrong with sharing a few good vegetable dishes at one of those places.

They're a little on the funky side, but the West Philly Ethiopian places have a good selection of vegetarian food, along with meat-based dishes. You might need to make sure they serve the two types separate, not running into each other on one big piece of injera. That tends to keep both parties happy, if eating spicy food with your hands is cool with the folks. I like Dahlak at 4708 Baltimore Ave. Not the swankiest neighborhood in town, but it's not too rough.

There's also a Crepe place at 6th and Bainbridge called Beau Monde, that's got an elegant feel. You can choose your own fillings, and they have good salads, and a nice selection of wine and ciders. That South Street area is a bit nuts on a weekend, but it's worth a shot earlier in the day.

Hope that gets you started, hopefully some others here have some more ideas...

[Buckethead]

I agree with philadining on the Azure recommendation. If you go, get the seitan tips. Their beer list is good, too.

Farmicia is OK, but nothing spectacular. I've been there twice and I didn't have anything on either visit that was worth going back for. Also, their wine pours are ridiculously small. If you were at the White Dog in the past few years (excepting the last few months), you were there during the tenure of Michael O'Halloran, who now runs Bistro 7, which is a block or two north of Farmicia on the same street, and is a better restaurant. I was at the White Dog after he left and it wasn't nearly as good as it had been on my previous visit. I don't think he makes any special effort to serve vegetarian stuff, though.

If you're in the south street area, there's a little middle eastern place called Alyan's, it's on 4th street across from Jim's steaks. They have great falafel there, as well as other middle eastern meat-free goodies. It's BYO, too, and cheap.

[Andrew Fenton]

Than on the other side of things, the full-on veggie places in Chinatown: Harmony, Cherry Street, or Kingdom of Vegetarians, have decent food, it's not too hard to find something good without meat. I steer clear of the meat-simulations, the vegetarians like them and keep insisting that it's "just like the real thing" but that's only because they haven't had the real thing in a long time.... but there's nothing wrong with sharing a few good vegetable dishes at one of those places.

I'd actually recommend steering away from the vegetarian Chinese places, which in my experience run the from "disappointing" to "sucky", and instead recommend Charles Plaza. It's not the greatest Chinese in the city by a long shot, but it's respectable, and a place where the vegetarian and the omnivore, like the farmer and the cowman, can be friends. Lots of meat-free options, as well as good seafood (I like the steamed fish) and poultry. They can also easily handle a big group, if that's an issue.

Rangoon is really good too, and some of their best dishes (tofu triangles, 1000 layer bread) are meat-free. But make sure your friends ask before ordering: some of the tofu dishes, for example, also contan meaty goodness.

If your in-laws aren't the type to get snippy about limited options, you'll find that most of the BYOBs will have one or two vegetarian dishes on the menu as well. Rx is pretty good in this regard, as I recall.

The veggie burgers at Monk's are awfully good. The usual caveats (hard to get a table, smoky) apply, though.

edit: Afghan is a good bet, either Ariana, Kabul or Sansom Kebab House.

Also, while the in-laws clearly won't be eating a roast pork sandwich, Tony Luke's has a vegetarian version (aged provolone, greens, maybe peppers) that's killer.

double edit: Y'all should totally go to Tria. Terrific wine and beer selection, great cheeses and a menu that's heavy on meat-free options. It's perfect for a light, moderately-upscale meal.

Edited June 1, 2005 by Andrew Fenton (log)

[KatieLoeb]

Some excellent recs thusfar. I'll toss in Dmitri's, even though it's BYO just because it's so darned good. I will inevitably order the hummus, the feta and olives, the beet salad and the sugar snap peas and be satisfied to sit there and scoop everything up with the delicious smoky grilled pita and not even have to order the grilled octopus, even though I usually do. The grapefruit salad is also quite good. There's plenty of good veggie choices there and the food is consistently consistent! Always good.

The Abbaye has a pretty good selection of vegetarian items on their menu too and has a great beer selection and some good wines by the glass.

How about Mama Palma's for pizza? There's more pizza topping combos than you could think up in a year, and many are vegeatarian. The apple-gorgonzola was a big hit last summer.

[philadining]

I'll agree that the Chinatown veggie places are not the apex of fine cuisine, but I've found some good stuff at most of them, the sucky dishes have tended to be the lame impersonations of lemon chicken, or whatever.

I didn't recommend the regular chinese places, reflecting a paranoia of some of my veggie friends about how truly meat-free your plate ends up by the time it moves through the kitchen.... Of course the same could be said of any kitchen. One friend tells a story about being in a South Philly Italian place, and explaining that he wanted his pasta with just sauce, no meat, because he was a vegetarian. He later discovered some meat in the sauce, and the waiter explained that there was just a little, you know, you had to have SOME, for flavor...

And I'm a huge fan of Rangoon, but we found it a bit of a challenge with strict vegetarians, there's a lot of sneaky shrimp powder in many of the dishes, even the ginger salad. There are some things, but be careful.... The same is true with Penang, there's shrimp paste in lots of veggie-looking offerings. It is of course possible to assemble a good meal at many of the places in chinatown, it just takes some caution, and faith.

Tria is an excellent idea.

The menu at Dmitri's is not too big to start, so there's not LOTS to choose from, but Katie's right, what they have is great. And as you eat your octopus, you'll find yourself not really caring if they're satisfied!

Mama Palma's has been a common stop lately with our veggie friends, it's not plain-old pizza, they have very interesting, high-quality toppings.

Alyan's is indeed a good place for falafel for them, kebabs for you, but it's pretty casual, not a place for a nice dinner with the folks. Tasty though....

And as Buckethead said, if you go to Azure, the Seitan Tips are usually the hit of the night. Who knew seitan had tips?

[David McDuff]

If the Chinatown area works for you then consider Vietnam, which is on 10th Street just below Vine. There are plenty of well-prepared options here for the omivores and vegetarians alike. The wine list offers nothing of interest but they do serve Vietnamese beer -- 33 Export -- which is perfect with the food.

[sockii]

Continuing on the Chinatown possibility, I have to say my friends and I give Vietnam Palace a bit of an edge over Vietnam. The sentiment is particularly strong from a friend of mine who is vegetarian and says she always finds the food at Vietnam too heavy and a little greasy, but loves Vietnam Palace.

[David McDuff]

Continuing on the Chinatown possibility, I have to say my friends and I give Vietnam Palace a bit of an edge over Vietnam. The sentiment is particularly strong from a friend of mine who is vegetarian and says she always finds the food at Vietnam too heavy and a little greasy, but loves Vietnam Palace.

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I guess I'll have to cross the street next time and do a little comparison eating.... Thanks.

[mrbigjas]

fwiw, i have always preferred vietnam palace to vietnam myself as well. good stuff.

[herbacidal]

I also have never been a fan of Vietnam. Nor of Vietnam Palace, although I did like it slightly better.

The fact that I go to Xe Lua as my default is about as loyal as I've ever been to a Vietnamese restaurant. Although with the new place on Route 38 now, I do that less.