River Gods
Restaurant, Bar
vegan-friendly
$$ - average
Eclectic (Varied)
$$ - average
Eclectic (Varied)
Funky Cambridge bar/restaurant with separate veg/vegan menu
River Gods is a bar first, but also passes for a vegan-friendly restaurant. There are only a few small tables, though, so there can be a wait. At least tables are reserved for diners at dinner time. They have a separate vegetarian/vegan menu, and spell out what you need to do to make a veg option vegan.
Directions:
@ Pleasant St.
River St. is one way going NE. Nearest T stop is Central Square, about 5-6 blocks NE of River Gods on Mass. Ave.
Added by ananimalfriendlylife.com on Oct 7 07 (updated Oct 7 07)
There were a surprising number of vegan options on the separate vegetarian/vegan menu, though not all the veganized vegetarian options were as tasty as the vegetarian options. Take the non-vegan garlic aioli that comes with the fries, for example. We accepted the alternate of peanut chili dressing for our fries, but ended up just using ketchup. Still, the fries, ranked best in Boston in 2006, do deserve distinction. Big and crispy, it was all we could do to stop eating them when we were full, though it would have been nice if they came out as an appetizer, as requested. Instead our dinner was served and we had to remind the server that we ordered fries.
I ordered a vegan pizzeta with the pesto base, with garlic, mushrooms and spinach. It was very dry, and part of that was the total lack of pesto. The spinach could have used some oil, too. I also wasn't keen on the full cloves of garlic, instead of having it chopped and sprinkled around. The crust was so-so, though not bad. TJ Scallywaggle's crust is far better. I had a pesto vegetables skewer, too, and though it was good, I couldn't taste any pesto flavor at all. That said, it had a nice grilled flavor.
My wife had the God Salad, which she liked quite a bit, so points to her for being healthier and getting an entree she really liked.
We went with a couple of friends, one of whom tried the pizza and had the same basic opinion. But the other friend liked his vegan burger, so I tried a piece of the patty, which I liked quite a bit. It's encrusted with herbs, which give the whole thing a breaded, crispy texture that's a nice change of pace, and perfect for eating with beer. It was served with a sad piece of lettuce, though, a slice of tomato and that was it. I think it would be terrific with some spicy brown mustard, but they don't have that, so I'm not sure I would ever order the burger myself. It does come with fries, though...
Anyway, overall, it was slightly better than average, a bit of a positive surprise to find a decent bar make a meaningful attempt to provide creative and filling vegan fare. While it falls a bit short of excellence (I probably won't go too far out of my way to return), it's solid enough to meet your needs if you live in the area or happen to be near there and want to go out for a good drink and some awesome fries.