Restaurants- Boulder

Eating out in Boulder and vicinity is extremely easy and can accomodate ANY tastes.

Boulder itself only has one major vegetarian specific restaurant, but just about every other place in town is veggie friendly. There are several organic restaurants. Most major Chinese places have a good array of tofu and other proteins for vegetarians. All (virtually) Thai restaurants will substitute tofu for any meat and leave out fish sauce. Brew pubs (with an incredible variety of microbrewed beer) have 4-5 options for vegetarians and, at the very least, a veggie burger along with the buffalo burgers and other carnivorous options. We have MANY Indian, Nepalese, and Tibetan restaurants and just about ALL of them have very high quality vegetarian options; most know exactly what you mean when you ask for it 'vegan'. Italian flavor is greatly represented for vegetarians in several spots. If you are into sushi (which I am not...) there are many great places that have quite a selection of veggie options. There are tons of juice places; most of which have some kind of sandwich.

Leaf Vegetarian Restaurant is located at 2010 16th St in Boulder. It is just north of the intersection of Pearl and 16th, next to Ahi (a good Happy Hour place). It has become better over the years, with new changes to the menu and seemingly better ingredients. We highly recommend the Vegan Happy Hour from 3-6 every day. They have good drink specials then and have ALL vegan appetizers; try the Seitan Skewers and the Mediterranean Plate. As for entrees, the best one is Jamaican Jerk Tempeh; but the BBQ Seitan is good also. Good pastas abound here as well; if you eat cheese, they have cheese too, but ask for anything vegan and they'll make it for you. http://www.leafvegetarianrestaurant.com/

Tsing Tao is possibly the best Chinese food in America (if not, it is a close runner up to Ming Dynasty in Charlottesville, Virginia). It is located at 607A South Broadway, at the intersection of Table Mesa and Broadway; near the King Sooper's. It is not fully vegetarian, but has a seperate vegetarian menu with tons of mock meat choices. Their lunch specials are very affordable and come with a Vegan Egg Roll (I know, it sounds like a contradiction in terms, but they assure me that the wrap has NO egg). We highly recommend the Veggie Beef; Mongolian Beef, Beef with Onion and Green Pepper. Also good is the Sesame or Sweet and Sour Veggie Chicken. We tend to get the same thing each time (the Veggie Beef, either with Onions and Peppers or with Broccoli). Fantastic Vegan options here!!! http://www.tsingtaorestaurant.com/

Casa Alvarez has two locations in Boulder County; one at 3161 Walnut St in Boulder, the other is 502 S. Public Rd in Lafayette. We feel the Lafayette one has better food; same menu, but for some reason the Lafayette cooks get it right more often. It is a traditional Mexican place with most of the usual Mexican food, however, they made a point to include vegetarians. Not only are their beans and rice vegan, they use TOFU for their tacos/fajitas/chimichangas/burritos/enchiladas. Their Green Chili is vegan too, so you can get their Tofu Fajita Burrito smothered in Veggie Chili. It's classic! Also good is the Taco Combo plate; two tofu tacos, beans, and rice for about 7 bucks. We highly recommend Casa to anyone looking to have authentic Mexican fare.

Mountain Sun Pub and Brewery is another favorite. It is located at 1535 Pearl St, just east of the walking mall. They brew their own beer (many selections) and cater to the Boulder crowd with good food. Once again, not a vegetarian restaurant, but has 6-7 options for us. Best of all, they will add tempeh to anything. They have two veggie burgers, a veggie burrito, veggie chili, an avocado sandwich, a hummus and veggie sandwich, and many salads. Their French Fries are quite possibly the best fries ever; fresh, homemade, and fried in their OWN oil, so no cross contamination. We recommend the Hummus and Veggie Sandwich with tempeh added and fries on the side. The Black Bean Burger is also good (not 100% vegan), the Burrito is huge, but very tasty; and they know what it means if you ask for it Vegan. Try the Annapurna Amber beer, the Ruckus Wheat beer, or the Colorado Kind Ale. They have another location called the Southern Sun at 627 S. Broadway with the same beer and menu. They also have new pub called the Vine Street Pub in Denver at 1700 Vine St in Denver. http://www.mountainsunpub.com/

As for Thai, you really cannot go wrong in Boulder with Thai food. All will substitue tofu, but a few are a little fresher and tastier. Siamese Plate at 1575 Folsom St is a good choice. Buddha Cafe at 2719 Iris Ave is a very veggie friendly place (28th and Iris). Chy Thai is a new place right off of 28th and Canyon, 2720 Canyon Blvd. Khow Thai is another choice, 1600 Broadway; across from Wild Oats (oops, now its all Whole Foods). Moongate Asian Bistro on Pearl Street is good too, located at 1628 Pearl St. There are several other choices; again, Thai food is always good food in Boulder for vegetarians.

Indian Food is very good and fresh here too. There is Himilaya's Restaurant at 2010 14th st; next to the Boulder Theater, just off Pearl. The Taj is decent, even though one time we went there we got chicken in one of our dishes; 2630 Baseline Rd. The Royal Peacock is very fresh food; 5290 Arapahoe Ave. Tandoori Grill is very popular and veggie-friendly; 619 S Broadway. There are some others as well.

Nepalese and Tibetan food is also plentiful, and better than its Indian counterparts. Firstly, the Tibet's Restaurant and Bar in Louisville is the best; 321 McCaslin Blvd, Louisville. The cook used to cook for the Dalai Lama and the food is unbelievably fresh and good. You can request ANYTHING be vegan and MOST of the menu is vegetarian already. Tibet Kitchen at 2359 Arapahoe Ave (corner of Arapahoe and Folsom) offers really fast, yet healthy food. Sherpa's Adventurer's Restaurant and Bar is another good choice for fresh, veggie friendly Tibetan cuisine; 825 Walnut. The best Nepalese restaurant in the area closed its door, but re-opened as two separate places. It used to be called Narayan's Nepalese, but the managers left and started Nepal Cuisine at 4720 Table Mesa Dr (in the old Rudi's location).

I cannot mention eating in Boulder without mentioning Mustard's Last Stand. Located at 1719 Broadway, it is within walking distance of most of Downtown. It is a typical Hot Dog Stand little restaurant (Chicago-Style); but they have veggie dogs and veggie burgers. They can make a Veggie Chili Dog; their fries are veggie too.

Other Boulder places for good food are Turley's (a locally owned Applebee's style restaurant with several veggie options), The Med ( a great Mediterranian place with awesome Happy Hour drinks and Tapas), The Rio Grande Cafe (good mexican, great margaritas), Foolish Craig's (Pearl Street place with crepes and other veggie items), The Dushanbe Teahouse (great place to go have breakfast and teas), The Walnut Cafe (and Southside Walnut Cafe) (which is a great breakfast/brunch place with tofu scrambles and vegan sausage, etc..), and Dot's Diner (a staple of Boulder; great breakfast and very vegan friendly).

Other notable Chinese places would be Golden Lotus (has mock meat options, plus tons of veggies and tofu), Colorado Wok (in Lafayette; tons of tofu dishes), May Wah (again, tons of tofu dishes), Asian Garden Grill (in Lafayette; will sub tofu for anything, Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese), Lee Yuan (good inexpensive lunch specials; I like the Sesame Tofu), and Pei Wei Asian Diner.

We also have the privilege of having a Fast Food Veggie restaurant called VG Burgers. Located at 3267 28th ST, it is fully veggie and mostly vegan; burgers, falafel, soy ice cream.