While my mouth literally waters at BBQ restaurants, I can find vegetarian alternatives that come close to satisfying my omnivorous stomach. Enters in Candle Cafe’s BBQ Tempeh and Sweet Potato Sandwich! To die for, all the while knowing that nothing had to die for you to consume it!

The menu and staff are attentive to food allergies and preferences, which is a plus in the often mysterious restaurant industry. Candle Cafe is the more casual version of Candle 79, but both offer a decent dining room and stellar service.

Despite the brightly overdone signage, Organic Grill is a comfortable, unpretentious, and healthy vegetarian restaurant that feels as if it should be in a small town. Can something in New York actually be called “quaint?” If so, Organic Grill fits the bill! The menu is predictable, as far as veggie cuisine goes, but sometimes all I want is an entree and appetizer I can count on, without any “innovative” surprises.

It was bound to happen in this American land of liberty and consumer culture: vegan fast food. Foodswings is aptly located in irony-central, Williamsburg, and comes equipped with the lackadaisical, sometimes-rude service known far too well in the neighborhood. But come on, can you imagine wolfing down your Vegan heart attack and cheese fries beside a non-hipster constituency? I didn’t think so!

Not all vegetarians consume raw broccoli and slices of wheat toast everyday, meaning that even if meat is not involved, junk food is a sporadic must. Red Bamboo claims to be health-conscious, but last time I checked, French Fries and faux chicken, even in its fauxness, isn’t exactly combating the obesity epidemic.

The menu is a mix of soul food, Creole dishes, Asian staples, and a hearty dose of traditional entrees, including the Philly Cheese Steak, Fish and Chips, and even Spaghetti and Meatballs. Portions are ample (read: gluttonous) and most of my meat-eater friends were convinced the fake meats were the real deal. Note: it’s really amusing to watch macho guys kick back with some Soy Buffalo Wings.

Recently beating out a few contenders in this guide for Time Out’s “Best Vegetarian Restaurant”, Blossom dishes out organic vegan fare in a warm setting (literally! There’s a fireplace!). The neighborhood of Chelsea has previously been unfriendly to veg-heads with few offerings besides bagels and rice bowls, and thus, Blossom is a very welcomed addition.

Choose from a plethora of hearty entrees like Dancing Curry and Savory Seitan & Herb Potatoes, which are sure to knock your socks off on account of flavor alone. Perhaps predictably, your beverage of choice will probably come from the list of organic wines and beers.

Vegetarian food may call to mind images of recyclable containers of cold tofu and brussel sprouts, but Pure Food and Wine will pleasantly surprised you with fancy, sophisticated food in a complementing ambiance. Try the Chile Lime Tortilla Wraps with Avocado, Pico de Gallo, and Cashew Sour Cream, but don’t be alarmed if you feel hungry a few hours later, short a few Jacksons.

There are two dining areas: a semi-outdoors, but covered, dining room with hanging lights, and the swankier, warm indoor room with warm wood walls. Both are impressive with fire-engine red upholstery and elegant serving ware, not to mention the waiter and bartender eye candy.

Manhattan has seen a recent influx of the dreaded “chain” store, but few can complain about the grocery conglomerate, Whole Foods. Okay, it is not vegetarian, but the salad bar, pizza station, Indian food bar, Pommes Frites bar, and much more, make vegetarian eating with friends simple. Never did a buffet look and taste so good!

Of course, if you’re not in the mood to dine in, the vegetarian grocery selection is equally impressive. I have never seen so many kinds of tofu and tempeh, and the produce assortment is always bright and cheery, if not a bit pricey.

If you have set foot in any of Manhattan’s Whole Foods, you already know that they are perpetually crowded. Try getting a seat at lunch time. Forget it! But, even when the lines look long, the Whole Foods folks have the next-in-line process down to a science.

Angelica Kitchen is one of those rare East Village stalwarts that survives rent hikes and retains its loyal customer base. This may be surprising, considering that the food is vegan, organic, and lacks preservatives, refined sugars, and all dairy products. Such a particular menu must be solidly strong, and that is why Angelica Kitchen succeeds.

Points to Angelica Kitchen for also doing the “green thing” way before it became trendy. Sustainable agriculture and fresh (within 48 hours of harvesting) produce have always been important to the restaurant’s philosophy. The atmosphere is romantic and friendly, but not to worry, it isn’t overly saturated with hand-holding couples if you’re going stag. I have witnessed a few solo diners cozying up to their book, a sight ubiquitous in New York, and a reassuring one at that.

I almost played hooky from a day at my museum job just so that I could spend the day munching on junky vegetarian food at Kate’s Joint and soaking up the sights of Avenue B, of which there are many! Kate’s is no-frills and reminds me of the free-standing Pizza Huts of my childhood: simple red and black vinyl chairs, debris-covered floor, tall frosted glasses, and an overall design concept that haphazardly comes together. But, it’s all about the food at Kate’s!

The menu is a mile long, with sandwiches, pizzas, pastas, finger foods, salads, hot dogs, and their particularly spot-on veggie burgers. I have had few dissatisfying dishes here, but in a greasy spoon like Kate’s, the yumminess is proportional to the, well, unhealthiness, so, enter with the expectations you have at any traditional diner and you shall exit fulfilled.

Be sure to check out the graffiti-covered bathroom for pure entertainment and reading material!

I am a sucker for open kitchens, which is to say, I love smelling cloves of garlic hit a well-oiled pan or hearing the sizzling of sauteing vegetables. Gobo aims to affect all fives senses with sensuous smells, minimalist decor, the pleasant sounds of cooking, and of course, its Asian-inflected vegetarian cuisine.

My one complaint about Gobo is that the setting is too intimate. There is nice “intimate,” in regards to sharing close quarters with your dining partner, and then there is uncomfortable “intimate,” which borders on rubbing elbows all night with your dining neighbors. Maybe that is merely the claustrophobic in all of us New Yorkers!

Counter has got that too-cool-for-school futuristic look, but the menu and general philosophy turn out to be humbling and feel-good. Although the roof-top garden is closed to patrons, many of the vegetables, herbs, and martini accoutrements hail from up there. In addition to bistro fare and fun drinks, Counter even throws the occasional benefit dinner for my favorite vegan farm in western New York, Farm Sanctuary.