6th August was my husband's birthday and I booked for 4 of us to eat out in Leeds at Fazenda, a rodizio bar and grill featuring continuous tableside service of 15 different prime cuts of meat! Yikes! I did make sure they had a vegetarian option when booking. Upon arrival the meat eaters were given what looked like a beer mat with red (no thanks) and green (yes please) on either side. To begin with we went up to the salad bar which was amazing with its vast selection of delicacies. I could have made that my entire meal but did in fact enjoy a pumpkin risotto and also had a dessert included with my meal. Seeing the meat did not put me off as it all looked good quality. However, it did feel as if the waiters were surrounding me as they sliced their skewers of meat and I played a game of dodgeball with my plate and glass so that no juice nor fat dripped onto my food.
10th August was my birthday and a (meat eating) friend accompanied me to Roots and Fruits in The Grand Arcade in Leeds. This is a vegetarian and vegan cafe which has been open for the last 25 years and changed hands about 2 years ago. The decor is inviting with pictures by local artists adorning the walls and Kay, the owner, offered a friendly welcome. She was knowledgable about the food on offer and informed us that much of the produce is purchased locally at KIrkgate Market. We were there for lunch and whilst my friend chose a vegetable lasagne I went for a Carribean dish which included salad, hummus, coconut and jackfruit (new to me). We drank smoothies and tea and shared a slice of rich chocolate guiness cake. The restaurant is the only one in Leeds approved by the Vegetarian Society and has high ethical and sustainable credits with vegetarian, vegan and gluten free being catered for.
Later in the week my sister came to stay and off we went to The Veggie; an organic vegetarian cafe in Ilkley. I enjoyed a warm toasted pitta stuffed with cauliflower and chickpea fritters with salad, hummus and sweet chilli sauce. My sister had a sandwich of goats' cheese, red onion chutney and rocket in granary bread. We then finished with tea, coffee and a slice of coffee and walnut cake. This cafe also caters for vegetarian, vegan and gluten free diets.
All three places offered good vegetarian meals although if you don't like the look of meat I would not recommend Fazenda. However if, like me, you just don't like the taste, I would actually recommend it. There were 2 vegetarian choices, 2 vegan choices and 2 fish choices and, of course, that wonderful salad bar!
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