10 restaurants to take your vegetarian friends

Your non-meat-eating pals deserve to fill up on more than sides and salads

Juliannacrepes Magnum
Photo credit: Dustin Chambers/CL file

You’ve taken your vegetarian friend out to eat, and they swear they’ll find something on the menu no matter where you go: fries, a side salad, the dreaded veggie plate. Meanwhile, you’re ready to go in on your steak, chicken, burger, or other carnivorous entrée. You’re a good friend, so you feel bad. No one deserves to forge a meal from a small selection of meat-free sides. We feel your pain. But we feel your friend’s pain more. So here are 10 places to take the non-meat eaters in your life for a real meal — no salad required.

Chai Pani is an expansion from Asheville and features traditional Indian street food with produce bought from local vendors. Go during lunch or dinner... | more...

All the food here is beautifully presented. Desta, which means “happiness” in Amharic, serves modern Ethiopian cuisine in a cozy atmosphere. Try the signature tibs (meat sautéed in spiced olive oil with onions, tomatoes, and peppers) with authentic injera, or go early for an intercontinental breakfa... | more...

The launch of Gu’s Dumplings brings an abbreviated, dumpling-and-street-food-centric version of the former Buford Highway Sichuan restaurant to Inman Park. In addition to the Bistro’s signature pork dumplings, Gu’s Dumplings will have chicken- and vegetable-filled varieties, too. There will be other... | more...

Sweet and savory crepes, filled with Georgia-grown ingredients, served in a vintage setting in Inman Park. | more...

Acclaimed Charleston, S.C., chef Sean Brock chose Atlanta for the second location of his taco joint. Named for the Spanish word for “miner,” Minero highlights traditional Mexican flavors with chilaquiles, various street food-style tacos, and more. | more...

Black-owned Business
One of the restaurants owned by the Kingdom Enterprises, a business run by African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem. Offers both vegetable-laden salads as well as plenty of faux meat dishes such as tofu-based barbecue and the specialty roasted gluten loaf called the Kalebone. | more...

Sufi’s menu has let the world of Persian flavors take a step toward the mainstream in Atlanta. Flanked by the dining room’s deep red brocade walls and paintings of whirling dervishes, and seated under a ceiling of white fabric, you might encounter some form of culinary enlightenment. The menu has a ... | more...

East Atlanta staple for local and up-and-coming rock bands, as well as nationally established indie acts, and grub for the hipster-PBR set. | more...

Healthy – but tasty – cuisine in the heart of Buckhead at Lenox Square Mall. True Food offers a variety of vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free options while remaining diverse in their menu and experimental with their food and cocktails. | more...