Cafe Flora's Tasty Menu Celebrates Vegetarianism

----------------------------------------------------------------- Restaurant review

XX 1/2 Cafe Flora, 2901 E. Madison St. Vegetarian. ($$) Lunch ($6 to $12) 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Dinner ($7 to $14) 5 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Weekend brunch ($5 to $9) 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Sunday. Closed Monday. Beer, wine. Major credit cards. No smoking. Reservations (for eight or more): 325-9100. -----------------------------------------------------------------

Tofu and all the trimmings?

May sound silly to you, and hardly what Miles Standish wanted Squanto to bring to the first Thanksgiving dinner, but for increasing numbers of health-conscious Americans, it is an impending reality. At Cafe Flora, the vegetarian holiday menu has already been printed.

The task for modern vegetarianism has never been one of achieving decent standards of nutrition; that's always been relatively easy - and usually pretty cheap. Brown rice, beans, raw carrots and green leafy vegetables will keep almost anyone alive, and indeed, thriving.

The task was - and is - to bring passion, artistry, variety and celebration not only to daily meals but especially to the occasional feast.

That is what, with increasing skill and assurance, partners Pat Close and David Foecke at Cafe Flora have accomplished. And, yes, they will have tofu - and a lot more - for Thanksgiving.

At a recent lunch, I found every knotty pine table filled by 11:45

a.m.

"Always this crowded?" I asked the host.

"Crowded?" he replied. "This is almost mellow."

New chef combines old, new

Part of the attraction could be the arrival of a new head chef, Seattleite Mary Clarke, who returned from San Francisco to take over the culinary reins this summer.

Her menu combines several previous favorites like Polenta ($4.25 or $7.25, depending on portion) with newcomers like Oaxaca Tacos ($11.50), roasted flutes of corn tortillas filled with spiced mashed potatoes, aged cheddar, mozzarella and garnished with creme fraiche and crumbled feta.

Give strong consideration to starting with a cup of the daily soups (usually about $4.50), like a silky and enticing cauliflower with cheddar and wild rice or a sumptuous Asian Mushroom, dark and heady with straw and button mushrooms, slices of baby corn and sections of roasted red pepper.

The Quesadilla plate ($7.95) is almost too substantial to be considered an appetizer. I augmented it one evening with a side order of black beans and rice ($2.50) and called it quits halfway through.

The quesadilla is a folded flour tortilla, filled with Monterey Jack cheese, smoky and hot chipotle peppers, green chilies (rather bland) and grilled onions. It comes with a lively salsa fresca (pico de gallo, redolent with chopped garlic and cilantro) and a competent

guacamole.

Salads artfully made

Salads are especially attractive, and almost painstakingly assembled. The Soba Salad ($8.25), for example, centers a swirl of buckwheat noodles tossed with a spicy peanut sauce and pistachios, sided with sauteed red cabbage, broccoli and sea vegetable. It's garnished with spikes of enoki mushrooms and a faux rose blossom made from artfully arranged "leaves" of pink pickled ginger. It could have been thrown together in 30 seconds; instead it took four minutes.

I particularly like the place on weekend mornings. Crowds seem a little more subdued and you can usually find a spot at the counter.

A complimentary shot glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice starts you off. I relished the Artichoke Eggs Benedict ($8.50), admittedly not terribly vegetarian. The eggs were perfectly poached, nested on a bed of braised artichoke hearts in a tart vinaigrette on whole protein bread, and set off by a mound of dill-accented roasted red potatoes, which could have been more evenly cooked.

The Southwest Breakfast (also $8.50) would have been at home in Santa Fe: rice with diced green chilies, wonderful black beans, grilled squash and scrambled tofu topped with a pleasant but unremarkable mole sauce.

Scrambled tofu. I know it's good for you. But for me, it's one of those vegetarian standards that just doesn't cut it.

Bean curd is a flavor sponge. It's gorgeous with braised, crumbled ground pork in the Chinese classic Ma Po Tofu. But tossed plain in a pan with red onion, it is simply a reminder of what it is not. By the way, you can substitute scrambled eggs on request. I would.

Desserts are quite good. Rosemary lemonade goes well with almost anything on the menu. And Cafe Flora now serves wine.

Good place. Even for reluctant carnivores. But slightly pricey.

(Copyright, 1994, John Hinterberger. All rights reserved.) John Hinterberger, who writes the weekly restaurant review in Tempo and a Sunday food column in Pacific, visits restaurants anonymously and unannounced. He pays in full for all food, wines and services. Interviews of the restaurants' management and staff are done only after meals and services have been appraised. He does not accept invitations to evaluate restaurants.