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House of Spirits

Faux Flesh: The veggie chicken is one of many meatless "meat" dishes served at the Vegetarian House.

The Vegetarian House nourishes the soul and body

By Judi Blackwell

Like any other red-blooded vegetarian would be, I was thrilled to hear--from at least a dozen readers--of an all-vegetarian restaurant in downtown San Jose, minutes away from the Metro office. I grabbed a buddy and headed over for what turned out to be, to say the least, an entertaining experience.

The Vegetarian House's creative and extensive menu offers an array of vegetarian dishes from around the world: Malaysian curry chow mein, veggie lasagne, au lac soup, spaghetti jambalaya, Indian dharma, and meatless "meat" dishes (yes, faux versions of the flesh that one becomes a vegetarian to avoid), plus a gourmet pizza menu.

However, in an attempt to imitate meat, many of the dishes include gluten; although it resembles meat in appearance and texture (my lunch date was amused at my squeamishness when I bit into his faux chicken), I found it spongy and flavor-resistant. The restaurant's best offerings come from the pizza menu and dishes that are free of that tenacious and elastic gluten.

In addition to serving a plethora of exotic vegetarian delights and faux flesh, this restaurant-cum-temple is also intent on feeding the soul, providing a slew of spiritual books and paraphernalia along with a monster-sized TV that plays videos of Supreme Master Ching Hai lecturing on the "key to enlightenment." Why the religious sermons? The Vegetarian House is dedicated to propagating the word of the Supreme Master, a Himalayan spiritual teacher and humanitarian whose image adorns the walls and ancillary merchandising.

The Vegetarian House is located at 520 E. Santa Clara St., San Jose, 408/292-3798. Hours are Mon.-Fri., 11am-2pm and 5-9:30pm; and Sat.-Sun., 11am-10pm.

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Send tips to Vegging Out at 550 S. First St., San Jose, 95113.


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