Vegetarian Options at Federal

Prior to attending the Duke Sympony Concert (awesome), Google Earth Evangelist and I went to the Federal for dinner. She had never been before and I hadn't been in about a year. Glancing at the menu, one wouldn't necessarily think that it's the best place to go with a vegetarian, but it turned out to be a good choice. If you haven't been there before, and you're a non-smoker, I recommend that you make sure that you're seated in the back of the restaurant instead of the bar area.
We decided to split two servings in half so we could both try them. One was fried eggplant with potatoes, fennel and leeks. It was just amazing, because the eggplant was almost creamy inside. I would be excited to have a whole plate of this, if given the opportunity. The flavors and textures of all of the vegetables were just wonderful.

Our other entree was a grilled cheese sandwich with sharp cheddar, avocado, roasted tomatoes, cucumbers, red pepper mayo and mixed greens, on focaccia. I remember having a similar open-faced sandwich with shrimp before, but it must have been a special. This was very good, but it would have been impossible for it to top the eggplant.