Seasoning Alley: What’s Vegetarian Editorial Review

Seasoning Alley is a Mediterranean grill on Honolulu Avenue in Montrose, and meat headlines the menu. Vegetarians still eat well here if they build a meal from the falafel, the mezze, and the veggie kabob. Chicken kabob costs $20.95, beef shish kabob costs $22.95, and chicken shawarma costs $18.95, so you will share the room with plenty of grilled meat. The meatless section is smaller, and it feeds you well.

Start with the falafel plate. For $17.95 you get five crispy falafel made from seasoned chickpeas and herbs, served with hummus, salad, tahini sauce, pickled turnips, and warm pita. The falafel wrap costs $13.95, and single falafel cost $1.50 each. The veggie kabob also costs $17.95. The kitchen threads tomatoes, mushrooms, and zucchini on a skewer and fire-grills them, then plates the skewer with rice, hummus, salad, garlic sauce, and pita. Both plates come with hummus and pita, so you don’t need to add much. Seasoning Alley labels the veggie kabob vegan on its menu, and that’s the only dietary label anywhere on the Montrose menu, which is why this profile sits in the vegetarian-friendly tier and not the tier for restaurants that mark their menus.

The mezze section does the most work for a meat-free table. Hummus starts at $5.95, and mutabbal (roasted eggplant blended with tahini and garlic) starts at $6.95 and comes with three warm pita. Tabbouleh starts at $5.95 and mixes parsley, tomato, cilantro, mint, green onion, and wheat. Dolma costs $1.25 each, hand-rolled grape leaves stuffed with seasoned rice and vegetables. Tzatziki also appears on the list, and vegans should pass on the yogurt dip. Order three dips and a few dolma next to a falafel plate and you have a spread that never touches the rotisserie.

Salads fill in the rest. The Greek salad costs $11.95 with feta and Kalamata olives, and the monthly arugula salad costs $12.99 with Parmesan, walnuts, and cranberries. The garden salad costs $8.95. Baklava and carrot cake cost $4.50 each. Vegans should skip the tiramisu.

Plan for a shared kitchen. Seasoning Alley cooks rotisserie chicken, shawarma, and skewered meats, and the restaurant doesn’t publish anything about a separate fryer or grill for the falafel and veggie kabob. If cross-contact matters to you, call before you order. Ask about the garlic sauce and any dressing too, because you can’t assume a dish is vegan unless the menu says so.

Montrose is one of three Seasoning Alley locations. The others sit in Monrovia and Hollywood, and the website dates the brand to 2014. The Montrose kitchen opens daily from 10am to 9pm. You can order online for pickup or delivery, and you can place group orders or buy family packages when you feed a crowd. Yelp holds more than 930 reviews for this location, and recent reviewers praise the friendly staff and the fresh food.

Seasoning Alley won’t pull a vegetarian across town, and a dedicated vegetarian restaurant will serve you better. Choose Seasoning Alley when your group wants kabobs and you want falafel, hummus, and a plate of dips, because everyone at the table leaves full and nobody argues about the order.