Entering Maoz Vegetarian on M Street NW is like stepping inside a head of lettuce. Green abounds — on the walls, the ceiling, the tray mats, the windowpanes. It’s a fitting gesture to the fare. A Dutch chain with outlets in Europe and North America, Maoz specializes in vegetarian and vegan fast food. Its staple is falafel sandwiches in soft pita envelopes.
Quinn Wallis, 28, a former University of Maryland student, opened the District location in November 2009. He’d discovered Maoz while studying in Barcelona about six years ago.
“I am not a vegetarian, but I have the belief we can all do a little better by having a little less meat in our meals,” Wallis says.
Occupying a red-brick rowhouse, the dining room, with bench seating, is small but packed. At lunchtime on a recent Wednesday, the line of customers stretched to the door and stayed constant throughout the fairly steady service.
My usual vegetable intake consists of a patch of lettuce on a hamburger. I have long held doubts that I would ever enjoy a meatless meal. Although Maoz’s menu is fairly short, it presented no carnivore’s dilemma. My verdict: Pick anything. It’ll be good.
There are five main items on the menu: the falafel sandwich ($5.25), a salad box with falafel ($8.35), pita with salad ($4.95), egg and eggplant pita ($5.85) and a junior falafel sandwich (half a pita, $4.85). Customers get an option of white or whole-wheat pita. Eight side items include crunchy McCain-brand thick-cut, skin-on Belgian fries and tangy sweet potato fries, which you can also order as a combo. The most popular choice is Meal Deal 1 ($9.15), a falafel sandwich with eggplant and hummus, Belgian fries and a beverage.
The pristine salad bar showcased colors as vibrant as an artist’s primary palette: pickled eggplants a luscious pink, beets a lovely claret, verdant tabbouleh.
The sauces are made on-site, as are the falafel, which are gluten-free and fried in a vegetable-soy oil blend, and the lemonade and iced tea. (Try the apple-ginger-mint; $2.25.)
I was reluctant to order the vegan rice pudding (also house-made; $3.50) but was glad I did. Dusted with cinnamon, it tasted like chilled, creamy oatmeal.
Most striking to me was the heartiness of my meals there. Unlike a trip to other fast-food joints, a stop at Maoz can leave one satiated without grease in the plumbing or remorse for overindulging.
— Timothy R. Smith
Maoz Vegetarian 1817 M St. NW. 202-290-3117. www.maozusa.com. Hours: Mondays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
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