VegiTerranean (Akron restaurant)

I'm not a vegetarian, nor am I a vegan, but I do try to make and eat healthy dishes, including my fair share of veggie and soy-based burgers. So when I read about Chrissie Hynde's new restaurant, VegiTerranean, I wanted to go. And I knew my mom, who just lost more than 60 pounds on Weight Watchers, would be the perfect accomplice.

For those who don't know, Chrissie Hynde was the lead singer of The Pretenders, but before she hit it big, she was living in Akron, Ohio (where I grew up). And from what I read, she decided to open VegiTerranean so she'd have a place to eat back home that would support her lifestyle. (An animal rights activist, she once was arrested for protesting a department store's use of leather.)

So along came the idea for VegiTerranean, which caters to vegetarians and vegans by not serving any meat, eggs or dairy products. It opened last fall in the bottom floor of a brand-new condo complex across the street from one of Akron's most beloved Italian restaurants. Competing with a hometown favorite (VegiTerranean's slogal is, "Vegetarian Fare.....Italian Flare") takes guts, especially when your menu is peppered by foreign words like Rawmesan and Gardein Steak. To be honest, I'd say Chrissie Hynde's fame is part of what fueled the restaurant's popularity among both veggie- and meat-eaters.

Though I was already clued into the restaurant's success from local reviews, the point was hammered home when my mom and I got to the restaurant. It was a quarter till 5, we were one of a handful of people in the restaurant, and yet we were told, apologetically, that they were completely booked for the night. Luckily, we were invited to eat at the bar.

And eat we did. We started with an appetizer of whole grilled artichokes and shaved Rawmesan served with a lemon herb dipping sauce and roasted red pepper sauce. The next course? One of the daily specials, all of which featured arugula (a peppery salad green). The one we ordered was a warm mushroom salad atop a bed of arugula and toasted pistachios. Our waitress also brought us still-warm, homemade bread served with a bean-and-tomato spread spiced just right. For the main course, my mom ordered fresh linguine with a portabella and wild mushroom ragu. I ordered another of the specials, a hollowed eggplant stuffed with quinoa, corn and Rawmesean, with sun-dried tomatoes.

In short...this meal was so good that my mom said she might've gone over her Points limit - and added that she didn't care.