Lucky Palate, Seattle

Maintaining a vegan diet is not without its challenges, but Lucky Palate strives to make meals easy. Chefs transform whole, mostly organic ingredients into satisfying entrees, sides, and desserts. They prepare meals to be as low-fat as possible, and on the occasions when they do use dairy or honey, staffers note it on the website, alongside detailed nutritional facts and a copy of each ingredient's star chart. The Lucky specialty, however, is keeping plates free of animal products, trans fats, and repetitiveness. That last one is handled by Lucky Palate's inventive menus, which rotate week-to-week and invite customers to pick their favorites. Depending on their selections, customers might dine on polenta with red and green chilies, smoked quinoa with savory greens, Korean barbecued seitan, or spinach pesto lasagna. Even the desserts are vegan, with organic flour, non-dairy chocolate, and Turbinado sugar coalescing into toothsome dishes like lavender shortbread and mango pudding. Many customers opt for delivery, but those visiting the kitchen on a Monday can nab last week's meals for just a dollar.