Why doesn't anyone deliver good vegetarian food?

Friday night I was exhausted! It was such a long week and I was beat. I didn't feel like cooking. I didn't feel like going out. Delivery food is typically crap and I couldn't bring myself to ordering any of it! After wining and feeling sorry for myself for about 15 minutes, I decided that I needed to take drastic action...I headed for Harry's.

I'm so lucky that I live near Harry's Farmer's Market. This Marietta landmark is a wonderful grocery store/health food store/farmer's market. It used to be privately owned and sold out to Wholefoods not too long ago. They've kept much of the charm of the old Harry's, so it's not so bad.

Now, I don't generally recommend buffets and from time to time Harry's buffet is seriously lacking. However, it is generally pretty safe to say that you can get good vegetarian food from the buffet at Harry's. What? Your grocery store doesn't have a buffet with hot and cold bars, soup bar, and smoked and BBQ meats? Then you need a Harry's of your own! Grocery store buffets are a great place to find a variety of food, try new dishes and foods you might not ever try otherwise (like quinoa, rutabaga, or jicama). It's also cheaper than dining out...my dinner cost less than $10!

Since I was looking for yummy vegetarian food, I did the once around to determine what my options included. There was fresh spinach salad with Gorgonzola cheese, red onion, and walnuts, tabbouleh, black bean and quinoa salad, fruit salad, and cold pasta salad that you could top with your favorite toppings. On the hot bar I discovered sweet potato puree, collard greens, steamed green beans, squash casserole, and breaded tofu cutlets. The bad thing about making this trip...I was hungry when I started! (This is a good place to say that you should never go to the grocery store hungry. You should try to eat every 3-4 hours to keep yourself from getting too hungry and eating impulsively; which frequently leads to overeating.)

I loaded up my plate with some of my favorites and made sure to include plenty of colors...orange sweet potatoes, green collards and beans, and yellow squash casserole. I added one of my favorite drinks...ginger drink, but I still needed something...oh, entertainment! As I was checking out there was a collector's issue of Gourmet magazine that was all about Paris (on a budget even!); the perfect accompaniment to my yummy dinner.

I found a wonderful spot outside in the sunshine and enjoyed my yummy vegetarian dinner as I savoured the stories about Paris. I even found a couple of fabulous recipes that I can't wait to try.

When I finished dinner, I wanted one more thing...dessert! As I wandered back into the store, I discovered fresh coconut. A delicious treat that reminded me of street vendors in Venice; they sell fresh coconut off out of table-top fountains all over the city. Coconut is yummy, but should be eating in moderation, since it's high in saturated fat and calories -- just a few pieces was perfect!

I guess it's not so bad that no one delivers good vegetarian food; this meal couldn't have possibly been delivered. With my fresh coconut in hand, I wandered the store and picked up a few treats for future kitchen adventures and then called it a night; dreams of Paris all in my head!