Eating at a southern-style restaurant like O’Charley’s might be frustrating since it’s very difficult to find vegan entrees. However, if you have been dealing with this frustration for quite a long time, you already know the trick to make yourself a vegan plate at any restaurant— customize the ingredients they have.
And for those who are new to this kind of situation, don’t worry because we will discuss how you can fill your plate with pure vegan meals at O’Charley’s. As I’ve mentioned earlier, O’Charley’s does not offer vegan main courses. However, we can find ourselves in some of their side dishes and salad menus.
O’Charley’s offers sides, farm salads, salad dressings and add-ons, brunch sides, and kid sides that are vegan. Read on to learn more about how you can order them as 100% vegan-friendly dishes.
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What Does O’Charley’s Offer?
Before transitioning to veganism, you might have been a fan of southern-style dishes. O’Charley’s provides customers with meals that are prepared the southern way, from golden brown strips of chicken tenders to butchered, savory grilled steaks and salmon. But hey, we all know that these are all off-limits to your vegan diet, so we have to be a little creative now.
Despite the fact that the restaurant is known for savory meat dishes, there are still vegan options that you can find at O’Charley’s. Just a reminder that the restaurant is not made for vegans and you have to ask for assistance with the removal of some of their ingredients, like meat and cheeses. You can check their website’s menu section for the full list of the dishes they serve.
Now, let’s talk more about the vegan meals that you can order at O’Charley’s and how to specifically order them.
Vegan Side Dishes at O’Charley’s
Let’s start off with some vegan side dishes that you can order at O’Charley’s. Just an important reminder that their french fries are not vegan, so let’s cross it out on our list. But don’t worry because you can still enjoy their baked potato, broccoli without butter, and grilled asparagus without butter.
Allergen Contents of Side Dishes
Because of their butter contents, the broccoli and grilled asparagus side dishes contain milk. Aside from this, baked potato contains soybean oil. The broccoli side contains milk, soy, and soybean oil. Finally, the grilled asparagus contains milk, soy, and soybean oil as well. You should ask for the removal of butter to avoid consuming milk. If you have an allergic reaction to soy and soybean oil, you should also avoid ordering the following side dishes.
Nutritional Content
We made you a chart of each meal’s nutritional and calorie contents to better guide you in choosing your orders. Just a reminder that preparations may vary from store to store, so it’s still best to ask for the staff’s assistance.
| Side Dishes | Calories | Calories from fat | Total fats | Saturated Fats | Trans fatty acid | Cholesterol | Sodium | Total Carbohydrates | Dietary Fibers | Sugars | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baked Potato | 200 | 10 | 1 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 730 mg | 50 g | 6 g | 6 g | 8 g |
| Broccoli | 110 | 70 | 8 g | 2.5 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 450 mg | 6 g | 3 g | 0 g | 3 g |
| Grilled asparagus | 60 | 45 | 5 g | 2 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 290 mg | 3 g | 2 g | 1 g | 2 g |
Farm Fresh Salads
Well, for their salads, all of them include some meat, cheese, and eggs. What you can do is to order them without these ingredients and you can already have your vegan salad. Just a reminder to always double-check the ingredients served to you and ask clearly that you wanted a vegan salad to achieve better service.
If you want to know the allergen contents of their farm-fresh salads, you can check their Allergen Information Sheet. Moreover, you can also check their Nutrition Information Sheet to check their calorie and nutritional contents.
Salad Dressings and Add Ons
Sadly, there is only one vegan salad dressing option that you can try at O’Charley’s— the balsamic vinaigrette. You can either choose between their 2 oz or 3 oz servings. Aside from this, you can also opt to choose avocado as an add ons to your salad.
Allergen Contents of Dressings and Add Ons
Their avocado add-ons do not include any allergen content. Moreover, if you have any allergic reaction to soybean oil, you should avoid its balsamic vinaigrette as it includes some. (Tragic, I know.)
Nutritional Content
The chart below shows you the nutritional and calorie contents of the balsamic vinaigrette salad dressing and the avocado salad add-ons.
| Side Dishes | Calories | Calories from fat | Total fats | Saturated Fats | Trans fatty acid | Cholesterol | Sodium | Total Carbohydrates | Dietary Fibers | Sugars | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Balsamic Vinaigrette, 2 oz (Dressing) | 280 | 230 | 26 g | 4 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 90 mg | 12 g | 0 g | 12 g | 0 g |
| Balsamic Vinaigrette, 3 oz (Dressing) | 420 | 350 | 39 g | 6 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 135 mg | 18 g | 0 g | 18 g | 0 g |
| Avocado (Add ons) | 80 | 70 | 7 g | 1 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 0 mg | 4 g | 3 g | 0 g | 1 g |
Brunch Sides
If you’re a fan of toasts for brunch, you can at most order two vegan toast brunch side dishes at the restaurant. You may choose from O’Charley’s white toast or wheat toast.
For allergen contents, white toast contains soybean oil and soybean lecithin. Moreover, the wheat toast includes barley, oats, soy, soybean oil, and wheat. So, if you have any allergic reactions to the following allergens, you should avoid ordering the following brunch sides.
Nutritional Content
The chart below shows you the nutritional and calorie contents of the White Toast and Wheat Toast brunch sides.
| Side Dishes | Calories | Calories from fat | Total fats | Saturated Fats | Trans fatty acid | Cholesterol | Sodium | Total Carbohydrates | Dietary Fibers | Sugars | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wheat Toast | 220 | 180 | 9 g | 1.5 g | 1 g | 0 mg | 350 mg | 27 g | 2 g | 2 g | 5 g |
| White Toast | 220 | 180 | 9 g | 1.5 g | 1.5 g | 0 mg | 390 mg | 29 g | 1 g | 4 g | 2 g |
Kids Sides
O’Charley’s has on their menu a kids’ section wherein most of the dishes are still non-vegan. If you and your kids are into veganism, there are still some side dishes that you can order for them. You may order their applesauce, broccoli without butter, and mandarin orange slices. These might not satisfy your kids’ tummies, but it’s still good that they have some options for them.
For their allergen contents, the applesauce has no allergen contents. The broccoli, because of the butter, contains some milk. It also contains soy and soybean oil. The mandarin orange slices also have no allergen content.
Nutritional Content
The chart below shows you the nutritional and calorie contents of the applesauce, broccoli, and mandarin orange slices.
| Kids Sides | Calories | Calories from fat | Total fats | Saturated Fats | Trans fatty acid | Cholesterol | Sodium | Total Carbohydrates | Dietary Fibers | Sugars | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applesauce | 50 | 0 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 0 mg | 13 g | 1 g | 11 g | 0 g |
| Broccoli | 110 | 70 | 8 g | 2.5 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 450 mg | 6 g | 3 g | 0 g | 3 g |
| Mandarin Orange Slices | 60 | 0 | 0 g | 0 g | 0 g | 0 mg | 10 mg | 15 g | 1 g | 14 g | 1 g |
What Are Vegan Restaurant Alternatives to O’Charley’s?
There is no need to miss southern food so much when you transition to being a vegan. A lot of vegan restaurants scattered all around the states are serving soul food nowadays. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, more commonly known as PETA, has given its Top 5 Best Vegan Restaurant that offers Southern-style food.
- Trio Plant-Based
First on our list is the Minneapolis Trio Plant-Based, which offers 100% plant-based meals for vegan folks. Its bestsellers include its famous For Your Soul Bowl and its vegan burger called Mac Attack.
- Souley Vegan
Like the Trio Plant-Based, Souley Vegan in Oakland, California, also offers signature plant-based dishes. It is popularly known for its welcoming ambiance with a specialty of Louisiana-style southern food.
- Drop Squad Kitchen
A boutique-style 100% plant-based restaurant located in Delaware, which offers its customers a wide range of food options ranging from savory to sweet treats and smoothies.
- Oh Vegan Soul
What’s better about Oh Vegan Soul is that they use their platform to raise awareness about veganism not just with their savory vegan meals, but other vegan ideas such as vegan mayo, organic clothes, and a vegan ebook guide.
- Veltree
The green walls of Veltree in Charlotte, North Carolina will give you the ultimate vegan vibes. The restaurant allows you to customize your own vegan meal by providing you with a wide selection of plant-based ingredients.
O’Charley’s Is Not Ideal for Vegan Folks
Indeed, there are only a few vegan options that you can have at O’Charley’s. If you’re looking for a southern-style course that would typically fill up your stomach with huge proteins, the restaurant may not satisfy you that much. However, if you’re just for side dishes and some bowls of salad, the restaurant can be a good place to visit.
