Friday night, Alex took me to a vegan restaurant I had read about before, but had never visited: Soul Vegetarian on Georgia Ave in DC (not far from Howard University). With 17 locations around the world (including Israel, Ghana, St. Croix, and England), Soul Vegetarian is the largest vegetarian restaurant chain in the world and is based on the diet of the African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem.

The menu offers a variety of meat-substitute dishes, vegetables, soy shakes, and desserts. I had the steak and cheese (wheat protein with sauteed peppers, onions, and soy cheese on a pita), sides of collard greens and broccoli with a peanut butter soy shake. The peanut butter shake may have been a mistake, but the sandwich and sides made up for it. I was totally filled, which is kind of a shame because I would have liked to try one of their desserts. Alex is a big fan of their macaroni and cheese and their gyro, which comes complete with vegan tzatziki sauce.

Other locations in the United States include Cleveland Heights, Chicago, and Atlanta.