Greens Restaurant

The trend of using fresh, seasonal, local ingredients in creative dishes has quietly been on display at Greens for more than three decades. Greens opened in 1979 as arguably America’s first gourmet vegetarian restaurant and it’s still one of the best. Add an inspiring location on San Francisco Bay and it’s no wonder there is rarely an empty table.

Greens is unabashedly vegetarian, proudly offering cuisine that doesn’t pretend to be meat (no soy sausages or tempeh burgers here). Most of the ingredients are purchased at the city’s Farmers Markets, including the new Sunday Market that’s literally steps from the restaurant. Local, sustainable growers deliver almost everything else. And the greens are from the San Francisco Zen Center’s Green Gulch Farm; the Zen Center founded the restaurant.

The menus change daily; the only item that doesn’t is the Mesquite Grilled Brochettes. Even the Brochettes are slightly different each month, however, as vegetables come in and out of season. On one day in June, for example, they featured mushrooms, potatoes, peppers, fennel, yams, red onions and tofu, with chimichurri sauce, almond brown rice and cabbage slaw. It’s a satisfying meal. On any given day, you might also see intriguing menu items like Potato Leek Griddle Cakes, Mushroom Lasagne or Spinach and Chard Filo.

The wine list emphasizes boutique wineries that use sustainable practices. Oh, and you don’t have to be an ascetic to eat vegetarian, so try a dessert. These also change seasonally, but you can hope the Chocolate Hazelnut Tart with Gianduja Ice Cream or Pumpkin Mascarpone Cheesecake Tart is on the menu.

The ambience, once you get past the three-ton redwood sculpture in the small bar area, is as serenely gratifying as the cuisine. A few large nature paintings hang from the walls above wooden tables. Tall windows pour natural sunlight onto the long, tall dining areas, which look out on a small marina, the bay and the Golden Gate.

Greens is located in an old Army warehouse at Fort Mason Center, which now houses the offices of 50 nonprofits, the SFMOMA Artists Gallery and Museo ItaloAmericano—which can be visited before or after your meal.

If you like the idea of Greens’ vegetarian food, but want to save the greens in your wallet, order from Greens To Go, a café counter just inside the entrance. They serve packaged vegetarian sandwiches, rice bowls and salads (all under $9), plus baked goods and beverages. Load up for a picnic lunch on the Marina Green or on Fort Mason’s Great Meadow, which are both within a block.

HelloSanFrancisco tip: A three-course Prix Fixe dinner ($49) is served on Saturday nights.

- by Bob Cooper, San Francisco Reporter for HelloMetro  (Click to leave a message)