It was beautiful mid-July Saturday as my wife & I were making our weekly rounds for groceries & other essentials, preparing for the up-coming work week, when I was pleasantly surprised to find a completely vegetarian restaurant. Although the Chicago-land suburbs are full of $1M+ homes, gourmet groceries & eateries, it is also known to be an absolute food desert for vegans such as myself. Located in Arlington Heights, IL, Chowpatti Vegetarian Restaurant was a welcomed oasis while navigating this suburban vegan-food desert (vfd).
Located in a strip-mall setting, the curb appeal of this restaurant seemed relatively generic, but not in a negative manner. As we walked through the doors, I was immediately impressed with the clean & inviting feel of the place. The seating arrangements reminded me of a cleaner, and more upscale White Castle restaurant, without the unmistakably obnoxious aroma of reconstituted (formerly dehydrated) onions. After being seated, our server promptly arrived with menus and some quick facts about the restaurant. She stated that everything on the menu was vegetarian, but could be made vegan by request. With that arrow of knowledge in my quiver, a began to peruse the menu ferociously, seeking the most delicious-sounding, yet economical lunch item.
Food
In terms of the actual cuisine, I was pleasantly surprised at the extensive variety across the menu. Check it out:
http://www.tpsiclients.com/chowpatti/takeoutmenu.pdf
Since we were just stopping in to grab a quick lunch, we decided to sample from the appetizer offerings. I ordered the Special Sev Batata Puri (Loaded Vegan Indian Wheat Nachos), which was a truly delightful culinary experience, albeit I was deeply disappointed by the portion size. I somehow kept thinking that the server had mistakenly brought me a 'kid's meal' serving, but after I'd confirmed with her several times, I reluctantly began to devour my order. Fortunately, every bite was packed with a load of fresh deliciousness. The 6 crispy wheat chips were topped with potato, onion, cilantro and three special chutneys (sauces). And I still regret the velocity of which I ate that meal; it was over way too fast. ;)
Price
The Chowpatti Vegetarian restaurant, is a tasty place to visit & try out some 'outside the box' vegan cuisine, but I must warn readers that I consider this establishment more on the pricey side. I believe that their pricing-strategy has a lot to do with their location & the amount of business they see in a given week. My opinion on the pricing strategy of such niche restaurants, is that they have to run a 'happy-medium' between aggressively pricing to cover costs, yet still be attractive enough to draw repeat business. An appetizer-lunch for two, with drinks, cost me nearly $30...I don't know about your budgetary constraints, but this was definitely not in my food budget for the week. ;(
Rating
Happy Vegan Living!!!
