It's one thing to go vegan as an eater; but a restaurant taking on the most challenging of culinary “v” words isn't just a bold statement, it's a showcase of prowess. Meritage (500 S. 20th Street) is crossing the animal-free threshold with a dedicated vegan tasting menu every Tuesday throughout the Summer.

“I decided to make the tasting menu vegan for the challenge of it, and we've had a lot of fun,” says Anne Coll, Executive Chef at Meritage. Coll is a veteran of Philly's culinary scene with 6 years at Susanna Foo's, along with time at Le Bec-Fin and Savona. She has been critically acclaimed for her blending of French and Asian cuisines, but the new tasting menu is her most ambitious endeavor.

“We get a number of vegetarian and vegan diners in the restaurant and from what I've learned about various tasting menus, the veg options seemed lacking.” She continues, “And it isn't just for vegetarians, it's a great chance for omnivores to explore a more eco-friendly way of eating.”

Meritage is a quaint wine bar and eatery on a peaceful stretch of 20th street lined by trees wrapped with white christmas lights; romantic is an understatement. The scene could be classified as new-business-casual: young professionals in Polos and boat shoes or bohemian-chic dresses, the occasional tattoo but nothing imposing, thumbs glued to cell phones, complaints about office life, and a heavy dose of the word “like.” As it doesn't come across as a hotspot for crunchy eco-crusaders, Coll's animal-free aspirations all the more admirable.

The perils of meat are far from a secret. In 2006, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization went so far as calling the meat industry "one of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global." A change in diet is often overlooked in curbing global warming, but having one-meatless-day-a-week is now a full fledged environmental movement. Meritage is climbing on board with its tasting menu.

“Producing beef and chicken takes an enormous amounts of energy, and the biggest thing I want people to know is the impact their eating can have on their carbon footprint.” The menu doesn't rely on any palate trickery, as Coll explains, “We aren't using fake proteins – no seitan, tempeh, etc – in an effort to cut out all the processing. The menu focuses on fresh, whole foods and seasonal vegetables for nutritional balance.”

Coll is also limiting the menu's footprint by sourcing locally with an estimated 75% of the produce (and some of the meats used in the full menu) coming from Lancaster Country-based Green Meadow Farm. But it isn't just inspired by trend, as the Media, PA-native explains, “I grew up in the area and when I was younger I spent a lot of time going fruit and vegetable picking with my family at some of the local farms.”

The $35 four-course tasting menu began with an Amuse-Bouche not much larger than a quarter. The tiny tartlet was meant to excite the taste buds, but that had been taken care of by the neighboring aromas of deep-fried goodness wafting across the street from Pub & Kitchen. I nibbled it into two bites. The tartlet's shell was more brittle than crisp, and the tomato chutney garnish overpowered the finely diced assortment of early summer vegetables.

The first course was a salad of Green Meadow Farm heirloom tomatoes (open pollinated, non-hybrids),  were arranged on a scale from bright yellow to deep red, firm to tender, tart to sweet. An icy spoonful of cucumber granita and a pool of Thai basil emulsion at each end of the rectangular dish gave it an odd sense of symmetry. A slurp of the cool, crisp granita was an ideal way to reel in the palate after each burst of heirloom flavor.

From the start, I had worries of leaving hungry. But the second course all but demolished such concerns with massive wedges of salt-baked potatoes and a generous amount of sliced eggplant. The eggplant was on a bed of Indonesian kaffir lime curry, giving a tangy Pacific-Rim twist to a staple flavoring of the Near East. The salt-baked potatoes were laboriously dry when chewed alone, but the accompanying gingered carrot puree was an unofficial “to hell with ketchup.”

The third course, still relying on starch, was a sticky rice that did its best (and succeeded) to mimic a creamy risotto. A quarter of the plate was covered with a lemongrass espuma that tingled in the nostrils and had a literal eye popping effect upon eating. Asparagus and royal trumpet mushrooms round out the dish for a balanced close to the savory leg of the menu.

The dessert of coconut panna cotta almost requires a leap of faith for vegans to accept this animal-free take on a dish that translates to “cooked cream.” Assuming Chef Coll isn't pulling some cruel trick on the city's ethical eaters (does anyone check that sort of thing?), then the panna cotta is bliss in the world of non-dairy. The round custard came topped with a strawberry salad and a disk of chocolate sesame tuile, served in a shallow bowl of rhubarb soup for a tart finish.

If you've ever wanted to be absurdly full from a vegan meal, Meritage's Tuesday vegan tasting menu is your chance. It's deceptively vegan at times and good enough to propel even the lightest of eaters forward through all four courses. The menu is slated for slight changes every two weeks, but Coll is considering adding something new each week, instead. Their full menu features dishes like Brined and Roasted Giannone Chicken and a Grilled Berkshire Pork Chop, so vegans can feel good about bringing along meat eating friends. But at $35 for the vegan tasting menu, even the most carnivorous of diners might want to forgo the usual for a unique experience in eco-eating.

Trevor Dye is a freelance journalist covering all things thrifty, diy, green, and vegetarian. He resides in West Philly and moonlights as a yoga teacher. His work has appeared on Brokelyn.com.

Article photograph taken by author, "Veg' Head" photograph from dustinj, via Flickr (Creative Commons), "Philly" photograph from camardella, via Flickr (Creative Commons).