Healthy, Locally Sourced Dishes: Vegetarian Meals in the D

By: Amber Ogden | January 8, 2016
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Perhaps you’re starting the New Year off on a lighter note, ignoring your sugar cravings and replacing cookies with carrot sticks. On the other hand, you may be a vegetarian. Either way, now is the time of year when people seek out healthy dishes, and the ones below are both vegetarian and from eateries that use ingredients grown or produced in southeast Michigan.

While the following eateries are not solely vegetarian restaurants, they serve up some killer veggie-centric dishes.

The Root Restaurant & Bar

When you think “local food,” this White Lake restaurant is one of the first to come to mind. Del Bene Produce of Detroit and Northville’s Guernsey Dairy are just a few of the local suppliers. For tasty, meat-free dishes, try the Baked Michigan Brie (an appetizer with puff pastry and Michigan maple), Michigan Beet Salad or Vegan Roasted Butternut Squash Soup (made with Spicer’s Apple Cider and Michigan maple syrup).

Russell Street Deli

Located in Eastern Market, this deli offers nearly a dozen different vegetarian sandwich options, many of which are topped with locally grown tomato and Michigan Panda tofu. Order the TLT (a vegetarian version of a BLT with tofu and homemade vegan mayo), Avocado Melt (with provolone, tomato, red onion and garlic mayo) or Meatless Reuben.

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The Clean Plate

If you’re familiar with Royal Oak’s Cacao Tree Café, you’ll enjoy this Macomb Township eatery from the same owners. Locally made ingredients include Avalon bread, McClure’s pickles, locally blended teas and locally sourced coffees. Everything on the menu is vegetarian, from the Farm Hand Salad to the Grecian Wrap to the Thai Pasta Salad. Don’t forget a Traverse City Cherry Festival herbal tea, served hot or iced.

Mudgie’s

Another great sandwich shop in Detroit, this one is found in Corktown. Mudgie’s makes its sandwiches on bread baked fresh daily, with simple ingredients free of preservatives. Sink your teeth into a vegan or vegetarian sandwich, like the Veggie (which includes Havarti cheese, coleslaw, spinach spread, cucumbers, local Brownwood Farm’s Kream Mustard and more) or Hippie Dippie Sh*t Man (a selection of veggies, sprouts and nuts rolled up in whole wheat flatbread).

The only thing better than being healthy is enjoying a dish packed with Michigan ingredients. These vegetarian dishes will allow you to accomplish both!

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