Food for All, Good for All

 A Manifesto in Three Parts         
                                                                                                        Part Three


Three reasons why restaurants should think about stepping up their game 

By including more imaginative and delicious vegetable-based dishes on menus, Austin restaurants can attract and keep a variety of diners.

                                                                 Potential loss of current customers

Previously, I mentioned that vegetarians make up a rather small percentage of Americans so seems our preferences are less important. I can understand that from a business perspective; corralling the whole herd is more profitable than chasing a maverick. However, consider that most folks dine out in groups and if there is one vegetarian they are likely to sway the vote toward a place that has something intriguing for them to eat as the carnivores can find something satisfying nearly anywhere. Thereby, the kitchen that disregards us loses all four diners. The chefs that extend their creativity to veg-positive dishes feeds them all.

                    Potential Increase in customer base, from far and near

Portland and Seattle rate in the top five of the Most Veg-Friendly Cities in North America and a lot of those folks migrate or travel to Austin with expense accounts, hungry and accustomed to finer fare than a limp pile of spring mix.

Vegetarians can be mouthy. We Yelp!. We Post and Share and Like! We unite, network and belong to Meetup groups and Societies and radical activist organizations -all about what we eat! It very well may be worth restaurants making some effort to feed us so we can blog and brag about them. 

                                           
                                                   Being a progressive force for good

Meanwhile, all kinds of people are making effort to eat less meat, to make healthier choices on occasion or everyday. Last year, Austin ranked #11 in the 30 Fittest Cities in America, according to The Daily Beast, and all those triathletes and Pilates junkies prefer leaner meals to help prolong the life of their lycra.

I am here to help restaurants to entice us and bring our omnivorous friends along; to help them create delicious meat-free dishes by rethinking ingredients they already have and adding a few new staples.

Meanwhile stay tuned for the sparkly spots that do conjure up veggie wizardry and please, hit me up with your faves too.

                                          
.