The guidebook, which sells for $12.95, is part of a "VegOut" series published by Gibbs Smith of Layton. The company started with a Southern California guide in 2003 and followed up with guides for New York City, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Seattle/Portland. Authors are recruited from the specific region for each book, said publicist Laura Ayrey. Mather seemed a good fit. She's a former staffer of Vegetarian Times and now freelances for Gaiam, a company that makes natural living products like yoga, Pilates and Tai Chi DVDs and yoga mats.

Curiously, for all Mather's praise of Utah's vegetarian offerings, the book gives Colorado nearly twice the space. Only 37 Salt Lake City/Park City restaurants are listed, compared with about 100 for Denver/Boulder. When asked, Mather said it was because Denver has a bigger population than Salt Lake City and said that future editions may add more Salt Lake eateries.

Besides strictly vegetarian restaurants, the book also includes restaurants that offer a significant amount of meatless or vegan options.

"If we only listed vegetarian restaurants, the book would have been about 10 pages," said Mather. "I did a lot of Googling. I checked Citysearch, Salt Lake Magazine and newspaper ratings, because I wanted to get the restaurants that were really good. And I included Granato's, because even though they have a small menu, they had the store with so many different kinds of pastas and olive oils."

She also sought out ethnic restaurants known for vegetarian cuisine, such as Bombay House and Bangkok Thai. "American vegetarian cuisine is often just meat substitutes, like Gardenburgers or tofu hot dogs or fake bacon," she said. "But with cultures such as the southern part of India, they have a different approach to vegetables and how to serve them. Their cuisine has been around for thousands of years, and their recipes are handed down as a heritage."

One of the few chains included in the book is the Boulder-based Noodles & Company, "because of the sheer amount of vegetarian items — more than 70 percent, and they will accommodate a number of food issues."

One of the most unusual local eateries listed is One World Cafe, 41 S. 300 East, which makes up its menu daily based on what's fresh and in season, and lets customers pay what they think the meal is worth or what they can afford. Instead of getting a bill, customers drop their money in a large wooden box, where owner Denise Cerreta has taped a sign with her goal to serve all organic food, to eliminate world hunger and wasted food, to feed all members of the community, and to trust people to be honest. If people can't pay for their meal, they can work for it. Some of the food is organically grown in a donated garden plot.