Vegan Options at Chain Restaurants

A vegan can still dine out at chain restaurants- some of the time. According to Vegan Eating Out, here are the restaurants that have vegan options, and what they are. (I am not including the ones with the disclaimer "without cheese or chicken;" Chick-Fil-A has a plethora of vegan options if you order them without chicken, and where's the fun in that?)

Applebee's- salads with oil dressing

Atlanta Bread Company- Garden Vegetable Soup, Veggie Sandwich; vegan breads include French, Nine Grain, Pumpernickel, Rosemary Tomato Onion Focaccia, and Rye
Sourdough

Brixx- Pasta Pomodoro, Artichoke Pizza (with Soy Cheese), Margherita Pizza (with Soy Cheese), Pear & Gorgonzola Pizza (with Soy Cheese), Wild Mushroom Pizza (with Soy Cheese), Wood-Roasted Vegetable Pizza (with Soy Cheese)

California Pizza Kitchen- CPKid's Salad, Grilled Vegetable Salad, Steamed Vegetables, Tuscan Hummus with Neapolitan Crust, Wok-Stirred Mixed Vegetables, Dakota Smashed Pea & Barley Soup, Lettuce Wraps with Chinese Vegetables

Carabba's Italian Grill- Capelini, Cavatappi, Linguine, Penne, Rigatoni, Spaghetti, Pomodoro Sauce

Chick-Fil-A- Fruit Cup, Side Salad, Waffle Potato Fries, Hash Browns, Plain Bagel (kudos to Chick-Fil-A for not frying their fries in chicken grease, as KFC does.)

Chili's- Black Beans with Pico de Gallo, Broccoli (without Oil or Butter), Corn on the Cob (without Oil or Butter), Rice, Steamed Fresh Veggies (without Oil, Butter or Cheese)

Chipotle Mexican Grill- Chips & Guacamole, Chips & Salsa, Vegetarian Burrito (without Cheese or Sour Cream), Vegetarian Fajita Burrito (without Cheese or Sour Cream), Black Beans

Cracker Barrel- tossed salad, oatmeal, baked potatoes

IHOP- fresh fruit bowl, oatmeal

Johnny Rocket's- American fries, bananas, Streamliner Burger

Longhorn Steakhouse- mixed green salad with balsamic vinaigrette, Fresh Seasonal Vegetables, Fresh Steamed Asparagus (without Butter), Plain Baked Potato (without Butter or Sour Cream), Plain Sweet Potato (without Butter)

Manchu Wok- Mixed Vegetables

Moe's Southwest Grill- Chips, Personal Trainer

Olive Garden- Minestrone Soup, Capellini Pomodoro, Steamed Veggies

Outback Steakhouse- Classic Wedge Salad, Jacket Potato (without Butter), Steamed Green Beans (without Butter), Steamed Vegetables (without Butter), Sweet Potato (without Butter), Eggless Pasta

P.F. Chang's China Bistro- Garlic Snap Peas, Shanghai Cucumbers, Sichuan-style Asparagus, Spicy Green Beans, Spinach Stir-fried with Garlic, Vegetable Dumplings, Chang's Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps, Harvest Spring Rolls, Buddha's Feast, Coconut Curry Vegetables, Stir-fried Eggplant, Vegetable Chow Fun, Vegetarian Ma Po Tofu

Panera Bread- Low-Fat Vegetarian Black Bean Soup, Low-Fat Vegetarian Garden Vegetable Soup, Portobello & Mozzarella Sandwich (without Cheese); vegan breads include Ciabatta Bread, Country Bread, Focaccia Bread (Plain only), French Bread (Artisan only), Sesame, Semolina Bread, Sourdough Bread, Stone-Milled Rye Bread, Three Seed Bread

Qdoba- Tortilla Chips, Mango Salad, Vegetarian Taco Salad (without Sour Cream or Cheese), Tortilla Soup

Red Lobster- Garden Salad (without Cheese), Baked Potato (without Butter), Fresh Asparagus (without Butter), Fresh Broccoli (without Butter)

Ruby Tuesday- Fresh Garden Bar, Veggie Burger (without cheese)

The Cheesecake Factory- Guacamole, Tossed Green Salad, Vegetable Chopped Salad (without Pomegranate Vinaigrette), Asparagus, Edamame, Snow Peas & Vegetables, Spinach

The Melting Pot- California Salad with Raspberry Black Walnut Vinaigrette (without Cheese), House Salad with House Dressing (without Cheese or Egg Slices), Spinach Mushroom Salad with Warm Burgundy Shallot Dressing (without Bacon Pieces)

Zaxby's- Basket of Celery (without Ranch Sauce), Crinkle Fries, Pickle Spear, Tater Chips (without Ranch Sauce)

Pitiful, huh? I guess if you're vegan and are going to eat at chain restaurants, you'd better like salads and steamed vegetables. Even worse, here are the chain restaurants that have NO vegan options:

Black Angus Steakhouse
Buffalo Wild Wings
Denny's
Hooters
Logan's Roadhouse
O'Charley's
Red Robin
T.G.I. Fridays

And if you're lucky enough to live in a city that has one of these (I'm not), here are the 100% vegan chains:

Blossom
Candle 79
Food Swings
Herbivore
Horizons Philadelphia
Lov'n It Live
Loving Hut
Native Foods
Real Food Daily
Spiral Diner & Bakery
Vegan Village Internet Cafe

I'm not a big fan of chain restaurants, to tell the truth, but I am a little disappointed that the tofu burritos at Moe's are not vegan. That's life, huh?