Nice restaurant with good vegetarian (options), Beverly Hills-ish

[mdpilam]

I have a good friend who's coming to visit for a night, and we're going to go out for dinner. I'm picking her up from an event in Beverly Hills (so something around there to the westside is cool). She is a vegetarian, so it must have good vegetarian options (if not fully). Price isn't too much of a concern, but I'm not really looking for a "high class" formal place.

Thanks for the help

[meatlessinla]

Grace on Beverly (more West Hollywood than Beverly Hills) has a few vegetarian entrees, sides, appetizers and salads. The heirloom tomato and tempeh napolean is a hearty $27 veggie dish.

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Grace Restaurant
7360 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036

[nick_r]

Hearty indeed... it's been 13 years since I've eaten meat, but by my recollection that dish has to be at least as filling as a porterhouse steak.

I do prefer the tempeh dish at Chaya Venice, though.

[meatlessinla]

I'll have to try the tempeh at Chaya Venice. I imagine it's less than $27.

[JBC]

I believe the Tempeh is $14.00 at Chaya Venice.

[bite bite]

If you would be willing to jag a bit East into West Hollywood you'll hit Grace (3760 Beverly Blvd) which has excellent vegitarian choices (and great carnivorous options too).

[nick_r]

For me, Grace's reputation as a great choice for vegetarians was slightly overhyped -- which is not to say that I couldn't find anything to eat (on the contrary, I left as stuffed as I've ever been in a long time), but there still was only one vegetarian entree available. (Granted, it WAS an interesting tempeh dish, which is well beyond the scope of most chefs these days; however, it would have been nice to have other choices as well.) Not that many of the salads are vegetarian either (though of course you can just have them leave off the bacon or shrimp or whatever).

What Grace DOES have is a very impressive variety of food from the land and sea, and since that includes at least some vegetarian food I think it makes for a great compromise restaurant.

[Bria Silbert]

I would recommend La Cachette on Little Santa Monica Blvd. just west of Century City - they have a upscale vegetarian menu choice. I believe Joe's in Venice also has a vegetarian optional menu.

[Emme]

La Cachette is certainly lovely, but also certainly a "high class formal" type of place.

[Emme]

il pastaio is great, i agree.

newsroom cafe on robertson has great veggie options and is more casual.

the Ivy for a great grilled veggie salad... albeit pricey.

i also really like oliver in BH.

[mdpilam]

Bonus points if there's a good place nearby to get drinks afterwards too.

[nick_r]

There's this...

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Nic's Restaurant & Martini
453 North Canon Dr., Beverly Hills, CA 90210

[nick_r]

There are two very good Italian places in BH that both have ample vegetarian options (as most Italian places do)... il Pastaio and Piccolo Paradiso. I enjoyed both of them but I think I'd give the edge to the latter.

Spago has veg options too (though limited, and mostly in the salads/appetizers) but I love Wolfgang's giant cheese ravioli with brown butter and hazelnuts so much that I never mind ordering it yet again.

On the whole, aside from the steakhouses, most places in BH are pretty friendly to vegetarians.

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Il Pastaio Restaurant
400 N Canon Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Piccolo Paradiso
150 South Beverly Dr., Beverly Hills, CA 90212