The Plight of the Vegetarian

There are many times when vegetarians get the short end of the stick. We're often forgotten at parties, difficult dates (oh the pressure on the boy to not disappoint!), party poopers on holidays (Tofurky Thanksgiving anyone?), and constant ingredient checkers of seemingly harmless soups and salads that have hidden meat-based ingredients.

One of my favorite "vegetarians get the shaft" stories dates back to high school when we were on a school trip to NYC. We were going to Medieval Times, a live show that features a barbaric menu and a jousting match. Part of the appeal is the dinner; there is no silverware. You drink your soup from the bowl. You pick up that turkey drumstick and bite right in. You grunt and wipe your greasy hands on the paper covered table.

Unless of course you are a vegetarian. Now, they can't just let you STARVE after you've paid a good $40 to be there. So, for my dinner, I received a giant plate of steamed broccoli with a plastic fork. Talk about a buzz kill.

Anyway, there was a point to this story, and it was to demonstrate the overwhelming assumption that it is acceptable to give a vegetarian a massive amount of any given steamed vegetable and assume it is an acceptable meal alternative.

Jump forward to 2009. The normally frugal Ms. Golightly decides to embrace the hype and participate in DC's Restaurant Week, agreeing to shell out the $35 plus drinks and tip for the experience of eating at one of Washington, DC's top restaurants. Sure, some restaurants were immediately ruled out. Vidalia, with its "Red Waddle Pork Jowl Rillette," "Calf's Liver," "Fried Hen Eggs," and "Smoked Pork Belly" was obviously out of the question. Many other restaurants followed suit.

However, one restaurant offered promise. Taberna del Alabardero is too-expensive to normally justify eating at, it has an upscale and swanky atmosphere, and... (drum roll please) it advertised having a vegetarian option on its Restaurant Week menu.

I'm sure you can't guess what that "option" turned out to be...

(To be continued, with an actual review of Taberna del Alabardero)