Dinner at Great Sage with Dr. Barnard

It’s not hard to convince me to have dinner at Great Sage in Clarksville, MD.  It’s one of the few restaurants in our area that’s completely vegan.  So instead of having (at most) one or two choices on the menu per a typical restaurant, I know that I can eat *everything* at Great Sage!  And, as a bonus, it’s all delicious and nutritious.  It’s definitely worth the hour-plus trek from northern Virginia, especially when there is a special menu or a notable speaker.  So I was quick to make a reservation when I discovered that the restaurant was offering a dinner with Dr. Neal Barnard on March 19.

The Featured Speaker – a Vegan Luminary

Dr. Neal Barnard casts a big shadow in the world of plant-based cuisine — although he is actually quite slender!  He’s a well-known advocate for a vegan diet, and he is the founder of both the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) and the Barnard Medical Center.   Dr. Barnard has led numerous research studies investigating the effects of diet on diabetes, body weight, and chronic pain, including a groundbreaking study of dietary interventions in type 2 diabetes, funded by the National Institutes of Health. He has written more than 70 scientific publications and 18 books.  It should come as no surprise that I would jump at the chance to meet him.

Decor and Menu at Great Sage

On the appointed evening, Great Sage provided a welcoming venue for the dinner with Dr. Barnard.  The decor was tasteful and elegant:  wooden tabletops with peach-colored cloth napkins and flickering LED candles; 3-blade wooden ceiling fans and simple overhead lighting; and warm, earth-tone walls with mirrors, carved-wood panels, and various depictions of trees.

Every day that Great Sage is open, it proves to eager diners that plant-based cuisine can be interesting and flavorful.  As indicated on the restaurant’s website, “Great Sage is anything but common — featuring a bold menu inspired by exotic flavors from around the world, using organic ingredients to nourish the body, and providing a warm, romantic atmosphere perfect for any occasion.  Great Sage seeks to provide the highest quality gourmet foods created from only plant-based sources.”

The prix fixe menu for the dinner with Dr. Barnard included four amazing courses:  1) a spiced red lentil and chickpea soup served with a petite salad composed of sliced oranges, parsley, shallots, Kalamata olives, and romaine chiffonade drizzled in vanilla balsamic vinaigrette; 2) roasted portabellas marinated in cumin-ginger turmeric sauce, sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds, served with lettuce cups and a mint-coconut yogurt aioli; 3) cilantro tofu ricotta, grilled artichokes, spicy tomato sauce, sauteed cremini mushrooms, onions & kale, served on top of bean & bulgur pilaf, topped with assorted bell peppers & onion gremolata; and 4) lemon custard in a hazelnut almond crust with fresh strawberry roses & mint leaves, topped with coconut-cinnamon clove whip.  Yum!

The Audience and Dr. Barnard’s Program

My husband and I counted about 60 guests at the sold-out event.  The audience was predominantly female, with a ratio of about 4 women to every man.  After the guests were seated at their tables, welcoming comments were provided by Scott Carberry, Great Sage’s General Manager.  He explained that it’s a natural fit for the restaurant to feature Dr. Barnard as a speaker, because “the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine informs what we do at Great Sage.”

Next on the agenda was service of the food, which was professionally accomplished by an efficient group of servers who were all clad in black.  As usual, my husband and I enjoyed everything we ate, although my personal favorite was the petite salad because of its particularly interesting blend of flavors.  I loved the combination of salty olives and sweet orange slices, and the vanilla balsamic vinaigrette was a perfect dressing.

During the second course, Dr. Barnard stood in the center of the restaurant and offered some comments.  He told us about his journey to veganism and recounted his cattle-ranching roots (similar to mine).  His father eventually went to medical school and became a diabetes doctor.  But he apparently did not talk to his patients much about what they ate (which was typically roast beef, baked potato, and corn), and they did not get better.

Dr. Barnard followed in his father’s footsteps, at least with regards to medical school.  He began to notice the connection between diet and diabetes — that is, with more vegetables in a patient’s diet, there was less risk of diabetes.  He eventually conducted an NIH-funded study, which compared results for two groups of patients with type 2 diabetes:  those on a conventional diet for diabetes, and those on a low-fat vegan diet.  The study was conducted as a randomized, controlled, 74-week clinical trial.  The conclusions were as follows:  “In individuals with type 2 diabetes participating in a research study, both a low-fat vegan diet and a diet based on 2003 ADA guidelines facilitated long-term weight reduction. In analyses controlling for medication changes, the vegan diet appeared to be more effective for control of glycemia and plasma lipid concentrations.”

As. Dr. Barnard’s career progressed, he learned more about the issues involved with meat consumption — including not only health but also ethics and the environment.  Through PCRM and the Barnard Medical Center, he works to change the way that doctors treat chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and cancer.   He advocates for putting prevention over pills and believes that doctors should empower their patients to take control of their own health. And he promotes alternatives to the use of animals in medical education and research, instead recommending more effective scientific methods.

Dr. Barnard also writes books, and those of us who attended the dinner at Great Sage had the chance to buy signed copies.  I bought two books, including Power Foods for the Brain and his most recently-published work:  Dr. Neal Barnard’s Cookbook for Reversing Diabetes.

The evening with Dr. Barnard ended with a spirited Q&A session.  In answer to my question about what is needed to help more people convert to a vegan diet, Dr. Barnard replied, “Make noise. Tell people about your own experience with a vegan diet.  Spread the word about restaurants or recipes you like.”  Dr. Barnard, consider it done!