Joe Davola's

Joe Davola's is a low-key Louisville deli located in the Germantown neighborhood. House-made ingredients star at the restaurant, which makes excellent accommodations for vegetarian and vegan diners.

The staff was friendly and helpful. Prices are inexpensive. The decor has subtle Seinfeld elements throughout, and the television shows Seinfeld episodes.

Sandwiches are prepared on wheatberry bread or in a spinach wrap. The thick slices of bread do a great job containing the violent veggie meatloaf, a vegan patty made with textured vegetable protein and sauteed veggies with a texture good enough to feel meat eaters into ordering it. The sandwich is topped with lettuce, tomato, onion, tomato sauce and horseradish mayo. It tastes like grandma's meatloaf if grandma was a granola-eating hippie from Berkeley.

Joe Davola's has a vegetarian soup daily. It was cream of cauliflower when I visited. The soup was a little too course, and it lacked a little seasoning. The house croutons add a nice crunch and flavor to the soup.

There are plenty of salads available in small and large sizes, and as part of a combo. One of the more clever names was I-Art-i-choke-ya, an artichoke salad with plenty of Greek accents.

The chocolate chip cookies were warm and chewy right out of the oven, and they became more crunchy as they cooled. I was a nice conclusion to the meal.