by Jeanne Yacoubou, MS

After selecting “Nutrition & Allergens” from the Browse Other Topics list which appears after clicking on “Guest Support” in the upper right corner of Red Robin’s homepage http://www.redrobin.com, readers find this Q&A:

Q: Do you currently have vegan and/or vegetarian offerings on your menu?

A: Absolutely. At most Red Robin restaurants, our vegan and vegetarian guests can savor a BOCA® Original vegan burger (excluding our Canada locations) or a Gardenburger® patty at no additional cost. We’re also salad-lovers, which means you’ll likely find our mix of salads and other entrées quite gratifying. Got something specific in mind? Just tell one of our team members, and we’ll gladly handcraft something to meet your dietary needs.

The VRG asked Nicole Jones, Quality & Nutrition Manager at Red Robin Gourmet Burgers and Brews, about their vegan menu items. Following is our Q&A with Nicole.

Q: Could you send us a list of the ingredients for the BOCA® and Gardenburger®? [VRG Note: VRG bolded non-vegan or possibly non-vegan ingredients. Contact Red Robin for more information.]

A: Garden Burger: Cooked brown rice (brown rice, water), vegetables (mushrooms, onions), water, rolled oats, mozzarella cheese (pasteurized part-skim milk, cultures, salt, annatto for color, enzymes), bulgur wheat with water for hydration, cheddar cheese (pasteurized milk, salt, enzymes, cultures, annatto for color), soy protein concentrate. Contains 2% or less of: parsley, yeast extract, salt, modified vegetable gum, wheat gluten, garlic powder, autolyzed yeast extract, spices, citric acid, malted barley flour, natural butter flavor, annatto for color, whey, guar gum, natural smoke flavor, turmeric for color, soy lecithin.

BOCA: Water, Soy Protein Concentrate, Wheat Gluten, Contains Less Than 2% of Methylcellulose, Salt, Caramel Color Dried Onions, Yeast Extract, Sesame Oil, Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein, Natural and Artificial Flavor (Non-Meat), Disodium Guanylate, Disodium Inosinate.

Q: Are the BOCA and Gardenburger prepared away from all meat products?

A: The BOCA is cooked separately but the Garden Patty can be finished on our flattop grill (which may cook other proteins depending on the restaurant or in a frying pan – the guest can always ask to have it cooked in a clean frying pan at time of order if there are concerns).

Q: Could you send a list of ingredients for the bun(s) that you consider to be all-vegetable and which are served with the Boca and Gardenburger?

A: Our buns do meet the vegetarian criteria but most do not for vegan other than the ciabatta bun or lettuce wrap. [VRG Note: VRG bolded non-vegan or possibly non-vegan ingredients. Contact Red Robin for more information.]

Bun, Ciabatta: Bleached enriched flour (wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folate), water, wheat gluten, high fructose corn syrup, yeast, fully refined soybean oil, salt, calcium propionate (to retard spoilage),dough improver: (malted wheat flour, enzymes, contains 2% or less of ascorbic acid), calcium sulfate, enzymes.

Bun, Corn Jalapeno: UNBLEACHED ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, MALTED BARLEY FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), WATER, DEGERMINATED YELLOW CORNMEAL, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID, YEAST, WHEAT GLUTEN, HONEY, GRANULATED SUGAR, FULLY REFINED SOYBEAN OIL, JALAPENO FLAKES, SALT, CALCIUM PROPIONATE (TO RETAIN FRESHNESS), DOUGH IMPROVER (MALTED WHEAT FLOUR, ENZYMES AND 2% OR LESS OF ASCORBIC ACID), CALCIUM SULFATE, ENZYMES

Bun, Gluten Free: WATER, GLUTEN-FREE BLEND (CORN STARCH, POTATO STARCH, MODIFIED TAPIOCA STARCH, CORN FLOUR, TAPIOCA STARCH, GARBANZO BEAN FLOUR, MILLET FLOUR, SORGHUM FLOUR, AMARANTH FLOUR, BROWN RICE FLOUR, WHITE RICE FLOUR), CELLULOSE POWDER, SUGAR, DRIED EGG WHITE, PSYLLIUM, SALT, MODIFIED CELLULOSE GUM, CELLULOSE GUM, CALCIUM PROPIONATE, SODIUM PROPRIONATE, NIACIN (VITAMIN B3), REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE, MONONITRATE (VITAMIN B1), RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2), FOLIC ACID, YEAST, CANOLA OIL, TAPIOCA FLOUR, RICE FLOUR, EGG WHITE SOLIDS, XANTHAN GUM, SODIUM ALGINATE, GUAR GUM, TAPIOCA STARCH.

Bun, Onion Chive, Kaiser: UNBLEACHED ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, MALTED BARLEY FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), WATER, ONION, FULLY REFINED SOYBEAN OIL, POTATO FLOUR, YEAST, WHEAT GLUTEN, GRANULATED SUGAR, SALT, DRIED CHIVES, CALCIUM PROPIONATE (TO RETAIN FRESHNESS), DOUGH IMPROVER (MALTED WHEAT FLOUR, ENZYMES AND 2% OR LESS OF ASCORBIC ACID), ONION POWDER, CALCIUM SULFATE, ENZYMES

Bun, Telera: Unbleached Flour (Wheat, Malted Barley), Water, Durum Flour, Sugar, Palm Oil, Wheat Gluten, Salt, Contains less than 2% of each of the following: Yeast, Soybean Oil, Dextrose, Corn Starch, Monoglycerides, Enzymes, Enriched with (Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid) and Calcium Propionate (preservative).

Bun, Whole Grain, 4.5 Inch: ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, MALTED BARLEY FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), WATER, SUGAR, WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR, YEAST, WHEAT GLUTEN, SOYBEAN OIL, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF SALT, EMUSIFIER (MONOGLYCERIDE WITH ANTIOXIDANTS), SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, CARAMEL COLOR, CALCIUM PROPIONATE (PRESERVATIVE). MAY CONTAIN THE FOLLOWING DOUGH CONDITIONERS: MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE, SALT, CORN STARCH, AMMONIUM SULFATE, ASCORBIC ACID, CALCIUM SULFATE, CALCIUM PEROXIDE, ENZYMES. TOPPING: CRACKED WHEAT.

Bun, Yellow Seeded: ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, MALTED BARLEY FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), WATER, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, YEAST, SOYBEAN OIL, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF SALT, WHEAT GLUTEN, CALCIUM PROPIONATE (PRESERVATIVE), EMUSIFIER (MONOGLYCERIDE WITH ANTIOXIDANTS), NATURAL COLOR (YELLOW CORN FLOUR, SOYBEAN OIL, TURMERIC AND PAPRIKA OLEORESINS, MONO/DIGLYCERIDES, NATURAL FLAVOR), SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE. DOUGH CONDITIONER MAY CONTAIN: MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE, SODIUM CHLORIDE, CORN STARCH, AMMONIUM SULFATE, ASCORBIC ACID, CALCIUM SULFATE, CALCIUM PEROXIDE, ENZYMES. TOPPING: WATER, SESAME SEEDS.

Q: Are your Mushroom and Zucchini Jump Starters free of all animal ingredients including eggs and dairy?

A:[They] are fried in our common fryers so there is potential of cross contact of animal proteins.

Q: Is the broccoli side dish free of all animal ingredients including eggs and dairy?

A: Yes

Q: Hummus Plate: May guests order this item without croutons? Is it served with pita bread or something similar? If so, is the bread product all-vegetable?

A: [Hummus] is no longer a menu offering. [VRG Note: As of December 2016, hummus (“Heck-Yeah Hummus Plate”) was listed on Red Robin’s website as an appetizer when using the Nutrition Customizer tool.]

Q: Is the Creamy Artichoke & Spinach Dip free of all animal ingredients including eggs and dairy?

A: No, the dip contains cheese.

Q: Are the Guacamole and Salsa with Chips made without any animal ingredients such as gelatin?

A: No, they are not made with gelatin or animal byproducts.

Q: Are the Southwest Black Beans prepared with animal broths or fats? Do they contain animal-based natural flavors?

A: No, they are black beans with seasoning and our salsa added…no animal fats or byproducts added.

Q: Which, if any, of your fries or rings are free of all animal ingredients including eggs and dairy? Are they prepared in oil used to cook dairy-containing menu items (such as cheese sticks), meat or seafood?

A: [T]hey are cooked in a designated fryer which only cooks our steak fries, Yukon Chips, sweet potato fries, potato hashbrowns, and the corn tortilla chips. However, on our allergen menu due to cross contact of allergens in the fryer area with splashback, vapors from one fryer to another we cannot guarantee no cross contact of allergens so we claim all ingredients cooked in any fryer as containing shellfish, fish, wheat, eggs, milk and soy.

Q: When we used the Allergen Customizer tool through your Interactive Allergen Menu page selecting eggs, milk, fish and shellfish, the only appetizer that appeared (as “suitable with modification”) was the Guacamole, Salsa and Chips plate: http://www.redrobin.com/allergen-customizer.html#sides “No white corn tortilla chips” appeared as the modification needed to make this appetizer acceptable to someone avoiding eggs, milk, fish and shellfish. Tortilla strips were identified as an “acceptable option.” A statement on that page read “corn tortilla chips are prepared in a dedicated fryer.” If so, why were white corn tortilla chips excluded as unacceptable?

A: See response above.

Red Robin also offers a Nutrition Customizer tool on its website so patrons may determine total calorie counts and other nutritional information about any menu item or group of menu selections.

Red Robin also offers a Nutrition Customizer tool on its website so patrons may determine total calorie counts and other nutritional information about any menu item or group of menu selections.

http://www.redrobin.com/nutrition-customizer.html#appetizers

Red Robin guests who would like to order a BOCA burger will find it listed as one of the Keep It Simple burgers found on the Gourmet Burgers page of the main menu: http://www.redrobin.com/menu/full-menu-rrgb-t4/gourmet-burgers/keep-it-simple.html

A mention of the vegan burger option also appears on the Garden Burger page of Red Robin’s website: http://www.redrobin.com/menu/full-menu-rrgb-t4/gourmet-burgers/garden-burger.html

The vegan BOCA appears as one type of Red’s Burgers on the Kid’s Menu: http://www.redrobin.com/menu/full-menu-rrgb-t4/kids-menu/kids-burger.html

Complete ingredient statements for menu items are not located on Red Robin’s website. Diners with questions should contact this restaurant chain or ask a manager for more information.

The contents of this posting, our website and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.

For information about other chains, see http://www.vrg.org/fastfoodinfo.php

For information on vegetarian and vegan restaurants, see http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group researcher, see https://www.givedirect.org/donate/?cid=1565

To join The Vegetarian Resource Group, go to http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

Surya Brasil now offers vegan tinted lip balm in 6 flavors: Blood Orange, Coconut Nectar, Pink Grapefruit, Pomegranate, Sugared Fig, and Vanilla Dragon Fruit. The lip balms are organic and cruelty-free.

To order the product online, visit:
http://www.suryabrasilproducts.com/collections/vegan-lip-balms

By Casey Brown, former VRG Intern

This Thanksgiving I had the opportunity to staff The Vegetarian Resource Group booth at the Life-Affirming Thanksgiving event in Bethesda, Maryland. This is an annual event that is sponsored by The Vegetarian Society of DC. Vegetarians and non-vegetarians come together to celebrate a compassionate and delicious vegan Thanksgiving meal. The meal consisted of soup, salad, appetizers, a main course, sides, and a dessert. Some of the options included curried pumpkin soup, sweet and sour meatballs, quinoa stuffed acorn squash, and mini pumpkin pies. The event also had multiple exhibitors, a silent auction, and guest speaker Neal Barnard from the PCRM.

At this event, we had the opportunity to interact with many different people! It was really exciting because so many of them were familiar with The VRG. Many people had copies of our Vegetarian Journal at home, however we were able to hand out many more! The VRG Journal includes many recipes, product and book reviews, health updates, and other information. Many people were also interested in our “My Vegan Plate” handouts, which provide information on how to make a balanced vegan meal. As usual, our coloring books were very popular among the kids who were especially excited to have a coloring book full of animals. Also, many people were interested in our “Veganism in a Nutshell” and “Vegetarianism in a Nutshell” brochures and handouts since they provide information on making the transition to these lifestyles and nutrition information about these diets.

I am so grateful to have spent my Thanksgiving celebrating in such a positive atmosphere. I have never before spent Thanksgiving in a room full of so many other vegetarians and vegans, but it is definitely something I will always cherish and be thankful for. If you would like more information on this event or The Vegetarian Society of DC please visit http://www.vsdc.org/.

To volunteer at future VRG booths, contact Brigette at [email protected]

To support Vegetarian Resource Group outreach, donate at https://www.givedirect.org/donate/?cid=1565

Or join at http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

Here’s a list of some restaurants offering vegan meals New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day! Happy 2017 from The Vegetarian Resource Group.

Avant Garden, New York City, NY http://www.avantgardennyc.com/
Café Flora, Seattle, WA https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cafe-Flora/112894108732
Café Sunflower, Atlanta, GA http://www.cafesunflower.com/events/
Cleveland Vegan, Lakewood, OH http://clevelandvegan.com/
Fare Well, Washington, DC http://www.eatfarewell.com/
Hangawi, New York City, NY http://www.hangawirestaurant.com/Holiday%20Menu%202016.pdf
Harvest at the Bindery, Portland, OR http://harvestatthebindery.com/index.html
Ladybird, New York City, NY http://www.ladybirdny.com/holiday
Mother of Pearl, New York Ctiy, NY http://www.motherofpearlnyc.com/
Plant, Asheville, NC (dinner New Year’s Day) http://plantisfood.com/
Planta, Toronto, ON Canada http://www.plantatoronto.com/
Sprig & Vine, New Hope, PA http://www.sprigandvine.com/
Sanctuary Bistro, Berkeley, CA http://www.sanctuarybistro.com
Sticky Fingers, Washington, DC (New Year’s Day) http://www.stickyfingersbakery.com/
The Block off Biltmore, Asheville, NC http://theblockoffbiltmore.com/index.php/event/reggae-infinity-nye/
The Cheeze Factory Restaurant, Wisconsin Dells, WI (New Year’s Day) http://www.cheezefactoryrestaurant.com/
The Green Owl Café, Madison, WI http://www.greenowlcafe.com/events/
Urban Vegan Kitchen, New York City, NY http://www.urbanvegankitchen.com/
V Eats, Dallasl, TX http://www.v-eats.com/

According to the IRS, generally, a qualified charitable distribution is
an otherwise taxable distribution from an IRA (other than an ongoing SEP
or SIMPLE IRA) owned by an individual who is age 70½ or over that is
paid DIRECTLY from the IRA to a qualified charity. See Pub. 590-B,
Distributions from Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)) for
additional information or visit https://www.irs.gov/publications/p590b/index.html

Your qualified charitable distributions can satisfy all or part of the
amount of your required minimum distribution from your IRA. For example,
if your 2014 required minimum distribution was $10,000, and you made a
$5,000 qualified charitable distribution for 2014, you would have had to
withdraw another $5,000 to satisfy your 2014 required minimum distribution.

This is not personal tax advice, for which you should speak to your tax
and/or legal advisor.

Due to the generosity of an anonymous donor, The Vegetarian Resource Group each year will award $20,000 in college scholarship money to graduating U.S. high school students who have promoted veganism/vegetarianism in their schools and/or communities. Vegetarians do not eat meat, fish, or fowl. Vegans are vegetarians who do not use other animal products such as dairy or eggs.

One award of $10,000 and two awards of $5,000 will be given. Entries may only be sent by students graduating from high school in spring 2017. Deadline is February 20, 2017. We will accept applications postmarked on or before February 20, 2017. Early submission is encouraged.

Applicants will be judged on having shown compassion, courage, and a strong commitment to promoting a peaceful world through a vegan/vegetarian diet/lifestyle. Payment will be made to the student’s college (U.S. based only). Winners of the scholarships give permission to release their names to the media. Applications and essays become property of The Vegetarian Resource Group. We may ask finalists for more information. Scholarship winners are contacted by e-mail or telephone. Please look at your e-mail.

For details on the contest, see: http://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

Over 4,700 salad bars have been donated so far.

For information on obtaining a salad bar for your local school, see:
http://www.saladbars2schools.org/

Are you looking for some new ideas for making hot beverages at home? Chef Nancy Berkoff offers many suggestions in her latest Vegan Cooking Tips column in Vegetarian Journal. She even introduces you to hot beverages with an international flavor including Korean, Japanese, and South African.

The complete article can be read here:
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2016issue4/2016_issue4_cooking_tips.php

To subscribe to Vegetarian Journal, visit:
http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

See: http://electrek.co/2016/12/14/tesla-vegan-interior-option-ultra-white-seats/

Please Show Your Support for all the Good Work The Vegetarian Resource Group Does Year-Round by Donating to VRG Today!

2016 has been a very productive year for The Vegetarian Resource Group. Your support is greatly appreciated! You can donate directly to VRG at www.vrg.org/donate

Here’s a sampling of some of our accomplishments and outreach:

-Nancy Berkoff’s Vegan in Volume published by VRG has been distributed to thousands of food service personnel
in different settings. This encourages chefs to serve more vegan food options in universities, hospitals, employee cafeterias, nursing homes, and other places. Nancy also developed vegan recipes for Our Daily Bread in Baltimore, which serves over 700 meals per day to homeless and low income individuals. About 10% requested veggie meals. VRG interns prepared and donated 9 foodservice size trays of vegan food using Nancy’s recipes.

-We continue to work with numerous High School and College interns in our Baltimore office including three future Registered Dietitians and a student visiting from Germany. VRG Nutrition Advisor Reed Mangels, PhD, RD, mentors those interns who are interested in pursuing a career in nutrition. VRG staff also works with students that are majoring in English, Journalism, Business, and other subjects. These students are the future of the vegan movement and we should all be excited about what they will bring to the cause once they graduate.

-The Vegetarian Resource Group assisted media (print, web, radio, tv, etc.) including Family Circle magazine for an article on children who decide to go veggie; NPR member station KUT in Austin, TX about the public’s increased interest in vegan diets and PBS 8 in Phoenix Arizona about vegan options for Thanksgiving; Consumer Report on Health about reducing meat for health benefits; Dr. Don Radio Show about veggie pregnancy and lactation; On the Menu, a radio podcast, on the topics of why people go veggie and VRG poll information; Grocerant magazine about what vegans would like to see in the prepared section of grocery stores; and Baltimore Business Journal about the history of The Vegetarian Resource Group.

-VRG has done numerous outreach booths including at the Annual Meeting of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in Boston, MA; GreenFest in Washington, DC; Natural Products Expo East in Baltimore, MD; Taking Action for Animals in VA; Charlottesville and Richmond, VA VegFests; Vegan SoulFest in Baltimore, MD; Albany VegFest in NY; NH Dietetic Meeting in Concord, NH; Veggie Pride Parade in NYC; New England VegFest in Worcester, MA; etc. VRG Nutrition Advisor Reed Mangels, PhD, RD, spoke at state dietetic meetings in NH, FL, and AZ and gave a webinar on ‘Vegetarian Diets for Older Adults’ for members of the Healthy Aging Dietetic Practice Group.

-The Vegetarian Resource Group provided vegan handouts free-of-charge for outreach in a wide variety of locations including a box of literature to be shared with a High School women’s basketball team in California; 500 Save our Water Brochures for tabling at an Earth Day event in Houston, TX; several hundred handouts to Animal Advocates of Western New York for a local Health Expo; a thousand brochures for leafletting in NYC; and hundreds of handouts for state dietetic meetings in NH, WA-OR, and NE.

Your support is greatly appreciated! You can donate directly to VRG at www.vrg.org/donate

You can also mail donations to The Vegetarian Resource Group, PO Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203 or call in your donation to (410) 366-8343 Monday through Friday 9am to 5pm EST.