The Resy Guide to D.C.’s Most Memorable Vegetarian Dishes

The Dish: Catalonian Leeks

With its bespoke furniture, elegant ambiance and killer playlist, it’s no wonder River Club is one of the most popular places to dine in the District at the moment. The menu is as attractive as the venue, with a strong lineup of veggie hits like pan con tomate, BBQ’d carrots, and charred badger flame beets. However, one vegetable dish stands out above all others: the Catalonian leeks.

It may be hard to imagine something like the humble leek being the star of a dish, but the preparation of these leeks makes this dish incredibly memorable. Charred on the grill before being steamed, the leeks are served on a bed of nutty Romanesco sauce, adorned with crumbles of tangy feta cheese, and dotted with bits of briny dehydrated kalamata olives. It’s a silky, garlicky, fruity ride for your palate, with a double whammy of smokiness from the leeks’ char and the smoked hazelnuts in the Romanesco sauce.

The Dish: Hongos con Shishito

This mushroom dish showcases the best of Mexican flavors. A blend of oyster, king oyster, and beech mushrooms are seared until chewy and tender, tossed with smoky grilled shishito peppers, and then served cascading into a pool of earthy, slightly spicy poblano crema. It’s a heavy hitter in terms of flavor, texture, and heartiness — and pairs perfectly with an order of their homemade blue corn masa tortillas. Pro tip: No meal at Amparo Fondita is complete without one of their Espolon tequila margaritas.

The Dish: Cauliflower Pakora

Look no further than the cauliflower pakora at Bindaas for a finger-licking, crunchy, deep-fried vegetable-focused dish. Small cauliflower florets are battered and fried and offered with a bowl of creamy pink pickled onion chutney for dipping. These little nuggets are perfect as a happy hour snack or appetizer but be warned: you may not be able to stop yourself from ordering more!

The Dish: Kotlet-e-Kadoo

Everything on the menu at this Iranian and Mediterranean hotspot is a must-try, but this is especially true of the kotlet-e-kadoo. The dish features three pan-fried zucchini patties, topped with dollops of Greek yogurt and sprinkled with sweet pomegranate and dill sprigs. Irresistibly crunchy on the outside yet soft and airy on the inside, they’re worth seeking out on their own, much less for the energy and playfulness on the rest of the menu at Namak.

The Dish: Squash Bhartha

“Bhartha” means mashed in Hindi, and the dish is typically made with eggplant in its place of origin, India. At Daru, where the culinary team is known for their innovative comfort food, they serve a squash bhartha that’s unmissable. Two types of squash — butternut and kabocha — are roasted, mashed and seasoned with nutmeg, mustard oil, and fennel seed, and then infused with smoke through a traditional Indian cooking technique known as dhungar, where ghee is poured over hot-burning coal to create smoke which is seeped into the squash at the end, which imparts the squash with a smokiness that it’s famed for.

The Dish: Maitake Masala

This standout dish at St. James, known for its superlative Caribbean fare, highlights the rich, umami-packed flavor of maitake mushrooms by roasting them and then smothering them in a warm coconut sauce that is packed with the flavors of cinnamon, coriander, cumin, and cloves. A sweet and nutty coconut and raisin-flecked cauliflower couscous served on the side provides an excellent foil to the flavors of the mushrooms and coconut sauce.

The Dish: Eggplant Parm ‘Jersey-Style’

The distinction between Italian Parm and New Jersey style parm is that in a New Jersey version, the eggplant is roasted instead of breaded and fried. The result? The layers of eggplant are super soft and serve as a perfect sponge for the garlicky tomato sauce and layers of melted mozzarella cheese. It is a lush, rich dish, but thanks to the lack of the deep-fried breading, it’s also surprisingly light.

The Dish: Crudités

The white miso and soy dip that comes with the dish alone would lift this crudité above its peers, which are normally flanked by a ranch or blue cheese dressing. At this Adams Morgan institution, the dip is somewhere between a whipped roasted garlic butter and a smoky aioli, but as good as it is, the real stars are the vegetables. Carrots, radishes, lettuces, and herbs are all tiny baby versions, and they look, smell, and taste like they were still in the soil earlier in the day.

The Dish: Hearts of Palm Arepa

Arepas are street snacks that are popular in Colombia, Venezuela, and Panama, and have become plenty popular here in D.C. Typical arepa fillings include beans, meat and cheese, or some combination of those ingredients. At the Royal, however, the creative chefs developed a hearts of palm arepa, which is ordered so often it has become a beloved menu staple. The dish features a golden griddled arepa stuffed with shredded carrots and cabbage, as well as orbs of hearts of palm, all of which are doused in a creamy, sweet and savory salsa rosada. The vegetables add a pleasurable crunch, with a whirlwind of flavors from the salsa and a generous sprinkling of cilantro.

The Dish: Lotus Stem Kofta

The stem of the lotus plant is a sweet, starchy vegetable that is eaten both cooked and raw in several Asian cuisines. At Tamashaa, D.C.’s newest gastropub, the kitchen mashes up lotus stem, potatoes, and cheese to make kofta. The vegetable-cheese mixture is formed into spheres that would fit in the palm of your hand, which are fried and served floating in a fragrant tomato sauce. Whether you are vegetarian or not, there isn’t anyone who wouldn’t love this dish.

The Dish: Enchiladas

At some Mexican restaurants, vegetarian diners get stuck with cheese enchiladas as the only vegetarian enchilada option. Republic Cantina’s veg option makes for a far more complex and flavorful enchilada, garnering loyal devotees from among herbivores and carnivores alike. Soft flour tortillas are stuffed with a hearty blend of squash, cremini mushrooms, chopped onions, and corn. They’re then placed in a small skillet, where they are drenched in a vibrant green chili sauce and smothered in grated cheddar cheese before they go under the broiler to be baked until the cheese is bubbling and the enchiladas are starting to brown and crisp up at the edges. A flawless dish.

The Dish: Seasonal Quiche

French cuisine is often equated with heavy sauce, cheese, and bread — vegetables, less so. But one French classic is among D.C.’s tastiest and most seasonal vegetable-forward dishes: Primrose’s seasonal quiche. Of course, the cream and cheese and flaky dough are present too, but featuring a blend of fresh vegetables, this quiche goes way beyond the typical quiche Lorraine. Grilled sweet onions, meaty local oyster mushrooms, shards of kale or spinach, and roasted tomatoes are held together in a smooth savory custard. The roasted vegetables add a sweet and smoky note that harmoniously balances out the richness of the dairy.

The Dish: Spicy Tuna Hand Roll

A sushi roll made entirely from plants? Here, watermelon is used instead of tuna, and the striking similarity to tuna is achieved by cooking watermelon in a bath with rice vinegar, then pressing the fruit down so that the texture becomes much denser and chewier. The other elements of the roll are hunks of creamy avocado and plenty of cool fresh coconut. Served with soy sauce, this roll is every bit as good as its fishy cousin.

The Dish: Kale Nachos

As the restaurant name implies, chef David Deshaies imagined a menu of innovative twists on classics when he developed the concept of Unconventional Diner. His kale nachos are a quintessential example of his unique approach. He takes fresh kale leaves, tosses them in a house-made spice blend, dehydrates them, and then serves them as nachos. They come with what looks like the usual accoutrements but are actually fresh jicama, cashew crema, and a bold salsa verde. It’s a fun dish with lots of surprises, but in the end, it’s comfortingly familiar.

The Dish: Charred Broccoli

What makes Sababa’s broccoli dish so delightful is its simplicity. The broccoli are grilled to a char, bringing out a deep smoky flavor and they’re served in a puddle of nutty, creamy, charred broccoli-infused tahini, and doused in a spicy chile-infused oil with a few shards of chile and garlic sprinkled on top. Pro tip: enjoy this dish and all the items at Sababa with several orders of their fluffy house-made pita bread.