For UNA students wanting to follow a vegetarian diet, the options on campus and in Florence can be limited. Since a vegetarian diet is often uncommon in this area, the people choosing to be vegetarian must be resourceful. However, a new restaurant opening in the GUC later this fall will have some new options.

Mein Bowl is a Chinese restaurant taking over the location of Rice Box in the GUC dining area this fall. It will most likely operate similarly to Rice Box in that patrons will choose noodles or rice and then their meat. While the menu is still in process, some items such as the California Veggie Delight will be vegetarian friendly, though a strictly vegetarian option on the menu is not currently expected, said Alan Kinkead, general manager of Sodexo Dining Services.

For UNA graduate student Bradley Sides, vegetarianism was the right choice. “I’m okay with vegetarianism being unpopular,” said Sides. “It’s a personal choice that I made for myself, after much research and introspection. Jonathan Safran Foer’s ‘Eating Animals’ sparked my curiosity into a vegetarian diet, and I’ve been hooked ever since.”

For people like Sides, choosing to be vegetarian comes with the next challenge of where to buy groceries or dine out. For UNA alum Karisa Austin, living in Florence made it a bit more challenging. “It was kind of hard, but not that bad,” she said. “However, I didn’t feel like I had a lot of variety in what I ate. Bigger cities are a lot more accommodating to a vegetarian diet.”

While many vegetarians can find produce in Wal-Mart, the Shoals area does offer several farmers markets-it just takes a little leg work to find them. Jack-O-Lantern farms in Muscle Shoals is a hydroponic farm which sells their produce on location. They even have seasonal items such as pumpkins for Halloween and watermelons in the summertime.

Delicious and easy vegetarian recipes are often only a click away since many blogs, online magazines or forums offer up free recipes every day. To keep boredom at bay, “No one wants to eat a salad every single day,” said Austin.

Dining out can be a little more limiting than preparing your vegetarian meals since you have limited control over how your food is prepared and with what ingredients. It is important to read the menu closely since many foods are often prepared with meat or stock and may mislead you.

“Most restaurants, whether fast food or dine-in, have non-meat options,” said Sides. “And if they don’t, it’s always OK to ask for the meat to be left off. UNA has several places nearby, such as Valley Health Foods, McGraw’s and Rosie’s, that offer vegetarian-friendly meals and food products.”