Swad Vegetarian Indian Restaurant in Greenville, SC
July 3rd, 2010
Idli Sambhar Chutney (not my photo, and not from Swad but looks just like theirs)
I spent the afternoon in Greenville today, and as I always do before going to another city, I checked out in advance what my lunch options would be. Happy Cow pretty much had one restaurant choice for me, not including grocery store hot bars.
I like checking out all vegetarian restaurants anyway, and authentic Indian food can be hard to find, so we decided to give it a try.
First, let me get out of the way that the food was absolutely great. I ate a lot of Indian food in high school at homes of friends and I’ve been lamenting the fact that I never seem to get that same experience in restaurants. Particularly the fact that I can never find idli on the menu. Well, I found it today and it was just as I remember, along with sambar (like a soup) and cucumber chutney. I also ordered a vegan “tomato omelet” made with lentil flour. In all honesty, it was not much like an omelet at all, not even a vegan one, but it was incredibly tasty even so. It was a little thinner and crispier than you would expect from an omelet.
But more importantly, being in Swad was just a wonderful happy experience. It is clearly a family restaurant with the owner also being the chef, and his son being the waiter. When I asked what had no dairy in it, the chef personally came to my table, asked if I was vegan, and then told me everything on the menu that I could have, which was almost everything.
He seemed genuinely delighted to have me there, and made a point of mentioning that the entire restaurant is vegetarian and the cooking equipment never touches meat of any kind, or any eggs. The owner is a lifelong vegetarian.
I was so very full when I finished my meal. But when the owner so enthusiastically came back to my table to give me a free cup of lentil soup and rice to try, I had to say yes. And it was delicious. I wish I could remember what it was exactly.
The people there were so genuine. I really felt as though I was a guest in their home and they were serving me the best they had to offer. I absolutely will make this a regular stop any time I’m in Greenville.
Swad is located at 1421-A Laurens Rd. in Greenville, SC. Open Mon-Sat 11AM-9PM.
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July 5th, 2010 at 12:41 pm
Sounds wonderful. I love places like that. There used to be an Afghanistani restaurant across from where Anniki K. lives. It was small and peaceful and you were clearly their guest. I loved going there.
July 10th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
[...] vegangirl.com » Blog » Swad Vegetarian Indian Restaurant in … [...]
July 13th, 2010 at 1:51 pm
Hi! Did you find gluten free options at Swad? I love that restaurant, but haven’t been since discovering my food allergies.
July 13th, 2010 at 1:57 pm
Donna,
The “omelet” that I had there was made with lentil flour, but I didn’t ask if it was totally gluten-free since I can tolerate a little bit of gluten once in a while. I figured something that is mostly lentil flour was close enough for me.
But even if you are strict about gluten, there are tons of options. Just avoid the naan and probably the dosas and I would think you’d be fine. There are numerous rice and veggie dishes on the menu that don’t have a hint of gluten.
But the staff is so helpful that I’m sure if you asked them what you can eat they will figure it out for you. They would probably even make you something special if need be.
July 13th, 2010 at 2:32 pm
Great! Thanks for the quick response!
Love your blog!
March 29th, 2011 at 12:29 pm
Swad is great mostly ’cause the family is so nice. We (upstate vegetarians) just started a vegdiscount card in Greenville and they were the first to sign on.
There are quite a few other vegan friendly places but only on veg restaurant, Swad, in GVL.
Handi, Sweet Basil, Saffrons, Chikora Alley, Everything Organic, Lemongrass, Cantiflas etc.
August 28th, 2011 at 9:48 am
[...] vegetarian restaurant – never been but have heard many good reviews. Facebook Page Yelp Reviews Review from Vegan Girl Other vegan/vegetarian friendly options: Handi, Lemongrass, Sweet Basil, Everything Organic, [...]
November 24th, 2011 at 3:14 am
Swad Vegetarian Indian Restaurant providing many Indian tasty foods to serve for Greenville, SC citizens and they must taste dal bati the famous Swad Vegetarian Indian Restaurant recipe.