Both guidebooks and friends have warned me that there’s not much for vegetarians in Norway. The menus feature fish, fish, and more fish.
Looking on the bright side, at least I won’t be spending as much on food this trip (I’m envisioning cheese sandwiches from the bakery rather than a sit-down dinner). Usually I look forward to the eating part of a vacation more than anything, so planning this one has been a little strange.
I’ll let you know how I do.

I just feel like giving a shout out to Fodor’s guidebooks for finding me some excellent vegetarian eats recently. Especially in Rome! Reviews coming up soon.
Do you have a favorite guidebook for traveling while vegetarian?

I’d been wanting to try Blue Nile, an Ethiopian restaurant here in Munich, for a while now. This weekend I finally got a chance to go, and it was definitely worth the trip. I’ve been a fan of Ethiopian food for a while now, partially because there’s always some fabulous vegetarian items on the menu. Blue Nile was no exception, and our party of four happily ordered the sampler of vegetarian dishes.
All the food came served in one giant dish, as is typical at the Ethiopian restaurants I’ve been to. Instead of using utensils, diners tear off pieces of injera, …read more

I spent a lot of time in Italy drooling over gorgeous displays of fresh fruits and veggies at the many green markets we encountered. Even though I can find pretty good produce at home in Germany, it’s nothing compared to the sumptuous offerings at even the most modest of Italian farm stands. The tomatoes, artichokes, green peas, fresh garlic, delicate lettuces… yum!
It’s a real treat for me to get to prepare my own meals in Italy after a day of food shopping. When you start with such amazing, fresh, local ingredients, it takes very little effort to make an extraordinary …read more

I just got back from a week of eating my way through Italy. Details coming soon, including reviews of a couple new vegetarian restaurants I got to try. My mouth is watering just thinking about them.

Photo: Pici (thick Tuscan noodles) with mushrooms. So yummy.

Berlin is one of my favorite cities in the world, but food is not one of the city’s strong points (especially when you’re dining with non-vegetarians who want to sample the local delicacies). Still, every once in a while I manage to stumble across a blog-worthy meal there.
I had a great meal at Samadhi on my last trip to Berlin. This vegetarian restaurant specializing in Southeast Asian cuisines is very centrally located, not far from the Brandenburger Tor. The menu was extensive – so much so that I had trouble deciding given how many choices I had. I settled for …read more

Thanks to a recent comment from Nat, I was inspired to try out the vegan restaurant Saf im Zerwirk today. Saf is in the middle of downtown Munich, just steps away from the Hofbräuhaus.
I coaxed a new friend to go try Saf for lunch. The restaurant had a very clean, modern interior, and the waiters were friendly and helpful. The menu (which, by the way, is available in English) was rather short, but given that everything on it sounded delicious (and was vegan!), I didn’t mind that a bit. After much deliberation, I settled on the artichoke appetizer followed by …read more

Who knew Munich was such a vegetarian-friendly city? For Valentine’s Day (thus the rose petals on the table) my husband surprised me with reservations at Cafe Ignaz, a vegetarian restaurant we hadn’t tried yet.
The menu was extensive, with both vegetarian and vegan items well-represented. Specialties included pastas, pizzas, gratins, gnocchi, crepes, and stir-fry. I ordered a grünkern (green spelt) risotto with mushrooms and arugula, while my husband had spinach ravioli in cheese sauce. The food was about as I expected – basic, heavy, and satisfying. While I wouldn’t recommend Cafe Ignaz if you’re looking for a fancy fine-dining experience, it …read more

Even though food has pretty much completely disappeared from US domestic flights, there are still plenty of airline meals being served on long-haul flights around the world. Luckily, pretty much every airline will serve you a vegetarian meal these days, although the quality of these meals can vary greatly. Make sure you put in your request in time – most airlines require you to order a special meal at least 24 hours before your flight.
Last week I flew Air France from Boston to Munich, with a stopover in Charles de Gaul airport in Paris. I actually forgot to order my …read more

I admit it, I love Whole Foods. I so rarely get to visit one, though, since they haven’t yet started to colonize Germany (at least not to my knowledge). I had the chance to browse through a Whole Foods market in Boston last week, and loved every minute of it (grocery store tourism is fun!). I was especially impressed with the selection of vegan baked goods available at the bakery counter, but my favorite part of the store by far was the cheese department, where they had several delicious samples available. My friend and I did several laps of this …read more