Because the Culinary Coast is awash with renowned restaurants, it’s easy to overindulge at the beach. Stepping on the scale can be sobering after a weekend of excess. But you don’t need to bust a diet to enjoy delicious food. Several coastal eateries serve food that’s both tasty and healthy.
1. Nectar Café & Juice Bar
On Nectar’s beverage menu, the juices come before the cocktails, and the Morning After (lemon, ginger, apple, spinach, kale and pineapple) might be just what the doctor ordered for Sunday breakfast. This downtown Lewes restaurant offers plenty of options for those who aren’t counting calories, namely a grilled cheese with havarti, gouda and cheddar. But if you’re being “good,” go for the very good Vedge, a sandwich packed with zucchini, squash, mushrooms and spinach. You can also sub turkey bacon for applewood-smoked bacon, and grab a side of kale chips.
2. Fork + Flask at Nage
Coastal vegans and vegetarians have long known that this Rehoboth restaurant is friendly to most diets. (Meatless Mondays have been a staple since 2009.) This year, the chefs created a separate menu detailing options so diners interested in alternatives don’t need to sift through the regular menu. You might find grilled tempeh (a soy product) over potato gnocchi with broccoli raab, beech mushrooms and a red wine gastrique. Fork + Flask has also incorporated a series of vegan brunch events onto its calendar; the next one is Oct. 7.
RELATED: Fork + Flask Retains Nage’s Playful Creativity (Review)
3. Green Man Juice Bar & Bistro
One of the first local restaurants to cater to vegans, vegetarians and those following a gluten-free diet, Green Man even has a healthy kids’ menu featuring grilled cheese on wheat berry bread.
4. Juicebox
Here you won’t lack for vegan and gluten-free options and, of course, juices. There are locations in Ocean View, downtown Rehoboth Beach and Bayside in Selbyville. Tell the carnivores in your party that there are also selections with butter and bacon.
5. grandpa(MAC)
Brothers Hari and Orion Cameron own two pasta-centric locations (on Baltimore Avenue and on Route 1). The quick-casual concept proves that you don’t need to sacrifice quality if you want tasty food on the fly. Try the VegRehoboth panini, made with a vegan chicken substitute, tomato sauce, a vegan mozzarella substitute and arugula. There is also a vegan “mac-and-un-cheese” that uses cheese substitutes. The vegan Caesar salad is a dairy- and anchovy-free twist on the traditional—I couldn’t tell the difference—while the “Nutty Fireman” is a vegan walnut-based chili. Many of the sauces on the conventional side contain no gluten or animal products.
RELATED: Chef Hari Cameron Uses His Noodle
6. Good Earth Market
Located just outside of Bethany Beach in Clarksville, Good Earth is an organic farm, market and restaurant all rolled into one. (There is also a retail location in Rehoboth.) Well-known chef Nino Mancari incorporates seasonal ingredients into the menu. Try the Good Earth Veggie Powerhouse sandwich, or the avocado toast with pickled shallots, Maldon salt and extra virgin olive oil. Then load up on produce—and a few of Good Earth’s celebrated soups—to eat at home.
