Many years ago my father visited Japan and the only thing he could eat was potatoes. Even the rice often had fish in it or touching it — and he was a strict Jain, so if meat touched something, he wouldn’t eat it. In France, my parents also had a very tough time eating since, again, even things like salad would have tiny shrimps in it. In Holland, though, when I was there, I had an easy time finding vegetarian food and vegan options.

Living in Austin, I’ve found many places which are either vegan or have vegan options that are tasty. People here are more conscious of such things. There are several vegetarian restaurants where most of the food is actually vegan, for example. There are a couple of raw food vegan places.

Often the ethnic options are amazing. There’s a food truck I love that serves Indonesian fusion. While it has meat on the menu, there are always at least a few vegan options, and they are amazing with some truly inspired bursts of flavor. They use a vegan fish sauce that is to die for. There are also vegan taco trucks, a small hole in the wall with vegan Brazilian food which is so flavorful, etc.

If you ever travel this way, you will find that there are many options!