Lunada Mexican Grill and Cantina

Lunada is a Mexican restaurant tucked into a Hilliard shopping plaza. The menu is standard-issue Americanized takes on Mexican cuisine.

The restaurant is large and brightly lit. The decor does not immediately scream Mexican. It feels more like a corporate mega-chain eatery than an authentic South of the Border spot. 

There is a list of eight vegetarian entrees on the menu along with quesadillas, fajitas and the usual guacamole and queso appetizers. Service was slow and a little uneven. They capably handled questions about ingredients.

The guacamole was citrusy and displayed clean cilantro throughout. It was much better than the pico de gallo, which lacked white onions and chopped hot peppers to make its flavor and texture different from the standard chip-dip tomato salsa that is served free with chips.

The chile relleno had a crunchy breading that kept the molten cheese interior contained. The bean burrito and cheese enchilada were topped with queso asadero and a smoky pepper sauce. 

Margaritas were tasty and reasonably priced. The bar had a reasonable selection of Ohio beers, including one or more from Columbus Brewing Company and Thirsty Dog, in addition to the normal Mexican beer classics.

Joey Chang's

Joey Chang's is a Chinese/Thai restaurant in Hilliard. It shares ownership with Chi Thai, an upscale fusion bistro on the Northeast side, and Joey Chang's prepares many of the same dishes as its sibling in smaller portions with a somewhat less formal atmosphere.

The menu at Joey Chang's offers five vegetarian appetizers and nearly 10 vegetarian entrees. Veggie appetizers include tofu vegetable soup, hot sesame noodles, veggie spring rolls and vegetable dumplings.

The sesame noodles are warm pasta drowned in hot peanut sauce with thinly sliced cucumber. The appetizer is big enough to serve two but delicious enough to keep all to yourself.

The veggie dumplings are stuffed with spinach and served with a soy ginger sauce. They are a boiled dumpling, and offer a wide range of pleasant flavors and textures.

My favorite dish at Chi Thai is the spicy pot of gold, and it remains strong at Joey Chang's. The presentation in Hilliard is a little more restrained, but the concept is the same. Unbreaded fried tofu triangles are combined with scallions and other greens, floating in a classic spicy Szechuan black bean sauce. It is sweet, smoky and spicy.

Other vegetarian entrees include spicy eggplant, ma la string beans, and Thai curries with tofu. Thai dishes can be prepared without fish sauce upon request.

The interior at Joey Chang's is a combination of kitschy Asian decor contrasted by modern flair. There is a full bar with beer, wine and cocktails. Happy hour during the week runs from 4-7. Prices for food and drinks are reasonably inexpensive. Service is brisk, and Joey Chang's also does a decent take-out business.

Joey Chang's

Venky's Spice House

Venky's Spice House is an Indian restaurant tucked in a drug store strip mall in Hilliard. Interestingly, the restaurant has a large Mediterranean market next door, making it a one-plaza stop for shoppers looking to buy pakoras and hummus.

The Spice House has tons of options for vegetarians. Some fare can be prepared vegan upon request.

There is a Southern Indian influence at Venky's Spice House. The cuisine is representative of the city of Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh. The area traces its roots to Persia, which is the root of its Islamic heritage. It also explains the Middle Eastern market/Indian restaurant juxtaposition in this plaza.

The lunch deal is exceptional. For $5.99 (or $6.99 if you order the top-shelf options), diners get a main course, a rice dish, an appetizer, a daal, a side curry dish, a dessert and a basket of naan.

The paneer tikka masala was prepared with a slow rolling heat that subsided slowly. Despite its nomenclature issues (tikka means chicken, but the dish is poultry-free) the entree is delicious. The strips of pepper and zucchini in the dish add layers of flavor to the dish. The soft cubes of paneer cheese soak up every bit of flavor from the sauce.

The curried cabbage was a delicious side. Tiny peppers made the dish slightly spicy, but ultimately, the dish was successful because it provided great textural and flavor contrast.

The green lentils (dal or daal translates as lentil dish) were also great. The side was earthy with subtle citrus notes. It was a fantastic dip along with leftover masala gravy for the naan.

The dish was also served with a saffron rice, vegetable pakoras and a mango yogurt pudding. It is served on a modernized thali that had partitions rather than separate bowls.

While the cuisine at Venky's is rooted in Southern Indian traditions, many of the choices on the menu are also somewhat Northern Indian in their origins. This probably is related to the city that inspires the food being slightly south of the middle of the country. It also makes the restaurant a winner for fans of varied Indian cuisines. Although the place doesn't have classic Southern offerings like dosas, the Persian cuisine influences and the thali serving dish firmly place Venky's Spice House in the Southern Indian tradition.

There are a number of non-traditional dishes at Venky's Spice House. Although there are pakoras and samosas, they also make dishes like the chili baby corn, stuffed breaded chili peppers and a roasted eggplant entree. When combined with Taj Palace, I am considering Hilliard Columbus' best Indian food suburban district now that Bayleaf has closed in the Polaris area.

Venky's Spice House

Louie's Grill

If Columbus-area foodies know one restaurant in Hilliard, that restaurant would be Starliner Diner. Some former employees of the celebrated Pan Latin eatery opened a new fusion spot (Louie's Grill) further down Cemetery Road that very well may have put another Hilliard eatery on the map.

The menu at Louie's Grill has a similar approach to the aforementioned Starliner Diner. There are American, Italian, Cuban and Mexican dishes on the menu. Although the menu has a few vegetarian items on it, Louie's is less vegetarian friendly than Starliner Diner.

Luckily enough, the vegetarian items on the menu are delicious. I absolutely adore plantains, and the fried plantains with a creamy red salsa dip were delightful. The soft, sweet fruit has its flavors augmented by the bright and mildly seasoned dip. The plantains are available both as an appetizer and a side dish.

The vegetable burrito contains a wider array of veggies than conventional burritos found at other establishments. The large flour tortilla is exploding with peppers, onions, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, corn and beans. It is topped with a traditional red sauce and cheese, and it is served with a side dish of black beans and rice. The fresh pico de gallo is fantastic, adding cilantro and spice to what is already a flavor explosion.

The atmosphere at Louie's is far more restrained and tasteful than the kitsch factory that is Starliner Diner. Service is prompt, attentive and friendly.

I didn't get a chance to try the margaritas, but I've heard that Louie's margaritas and mixed drinks are delicious. The bar also features draft and bottled beer as well as a limited selection of wine.

Although the menu contains less vegetarian options than Hilliard's original fusion restaurant, Louie's still offers quality vegetarian food for a reasonable price.

Louie's Grill

Taj Palace

Taj Palace is a delicious Indian restaurant hidden in the hinterlands between Hilliard and Upper Arlington. Like most Indian eateries, Taj Palace is heavy on vegetarian options, providing plenty of choices for those looking to reduce or avoid meat consumption without sacrificing flavor.

The menu features vegetarian starters like samosas, vegetable pakoras and vegetarian kebobs. There are also 18 vegetarian entrees on the menu as well as a few scattered biryani dishes and a vegetarian combo platter. There are also many bread choices.

The menu runs the gamut through North and South Indian cuisine. Also of note for vegetarians is Tuesday night's vegetarian buffet, featuring 25 different hippie-approved items for a grand total of $11.99.

A la carte diners start off with papadums and chutneys. The mint chutney is exceptionally flavorful, possessing a bright, clean finish that brings out the taste of the flatbread.

The chutney also pairs well with the samosas (but in reality, a better question would be what doesn't pair well with samosas?). The order of three samosas was very filling, and easily could be split between two people.

My entree was paneer kadai. Paneer, a mild, cubed Indian cheese, is prepared with curried tomatoes, green peppers and onions. The dish is mildly seasoned, and it provides a great introduction to paneer, a staple of the Indian vegetarian diet.

The breads were also great. The bread basket comes with naan, onion kulcha and aloo paratha, a potato- and pea-stuffed bread.

Prices at Taj Palace are slightly higher than average for an Indian restaurant. When the quality of the fare is considered, Taj Palace is very much worth the price of admission.

Taj Palace

Starliner Diner

Starliner Diner is an old standby in Hilliard, combining kitschy decor with carefully prepared Cuban, Italian and American dishes. Although not entirely vegetarian, the Diner features enough selections from their diverse menu to keep all shades of the vegetarian crowd satisfied.

The restaurant is many things to many people. They serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. They have Cuban, Mexican, Italian, Cajun and American food on the menu. The decor is a combination of 1950s paraphernalia, sci-fi space graphics and Cuban artifacts. The elements fuse nicely, giving the Starliner Diner an undeniable charm.

I started off with the Chiles Rellenos, which were two poblano peppers stuffed with cheese and cilantro in a smoked chile sauce. It was absolutely delicious, with the cheese and citrus notes of the filling tempering the rich smoke from the peppers and the sauce.

My main course was vegetable pizza bread sandwich, which was virtually a stir fried vegetable calzone that was folded rather than being completely sealed off. It was filled with broccoli, cauliflower, red onions, carrots and red peppers in soy sauce with a side of chips and finely chopped pico de gallo salsa. It was a massive sandwich, which also appeared on the menu in a different form as the cheeseless pizza. There were many other veggie dishes available on the menu.

The one caveat about Starliner is the prices. While to food is very good, it is definitely more expensive then your typical breakfast or lunch diner. My entree, appetizer and pop came to a total of $20 without tip. If you are expecting a little more out of your breakfast or lunch experience, though, it is definitely worth the price.

Check out the photographs below, and check out the Starliner.

Starliner Diner