That is remarkable. But what makes this truly extraordinary is that all the meals are vegan.

"A vegan is someone who lives trying to use no animals products," said Barman, who teaches a vegan cooking class at the ArtsCenter. "Vegans don't eat fish, meat, chicken, eggs, honey, dairy and don't use leather, wool, or silk. But in this day and age you can't possibly be 100 percent vegan."

It is impossible because there are animal products in things one wouldn't even suspect, like roads and tires, he said.

Barman writes about his meals on his blog, dilipdinner.blogspot.com. A perusal sets the mouth to watering - spicy seitan strips with pine nuts, asparagus and Madagascar pink rice was a meal last week. Another was faro pasta with vegan apple-sage sausage.

Barman is the president of the Triangle Vegetarian Society ( www.trianglevegsociety.org), which holds two events a month and puts on the nationally known vegan Thanksgiving dinner. The society has about 275 members.

"Based on my best guess, I would say 15 to 20 percent are vegans," Barman said.

Despite popping up more in the media - Martha Stewart devoted a show to veganism, and The Animal Planet runs "Sweet Avenger," about a vegan baker who saves animals - veganism remains mysterious or even eccentric to many.

Stephanie Hodges is the head of Triangle Vegetarian & Vegan Meetup, which offers everything from camping to activism events.

"It gives you a place where you feel like a normal person," said Hodges, a critical care nurse who has researched the benefits of a diet that excludes animal products.

"But I went vegan truly for animals reasons," she said. "I wanted to reduce suffering and feel comfortable about what I eat. Ninety-eight percent of the animals in this country are factory-farm raised, which can include intensive confinement, tail docking, and debeaking."

Hodges was excited to learn that Duke and UNC chose "Eating Animals," by Jonathan Safran Foer for their 2011 Summer Reading Program. Foer's book explores where the food we eat comes from.

"I think no matter how you are going to eat, you need to be educated," Hodges said.

Karin Yates became a vegetarian at age 10 in 1980, but it was not until she learned about the cruel life that cows and chickens can lead that she considered giving up dairy products and eggs.

"I was already animal aware, but it was easy not to think about it with cheese," she said. "It isn't a piece of dead flesh."

Yates was planning a trip to Belize recently and was filling out a sheet the resort had sent requesting dietary preferences.

"I wrote that I was a vegan and this woman wrote back and threw a fit telling me she couldn't accommodate me, that all vegans do is read labels and make people feel uncomfortable," Yates said.

She said she doesn't proselytize.

"I just lead by example," she said. "My car kind of gets the message across."

It's covered in bumper stickers with messages like "Vegans Taste Better," and "How Can you be pro-life if you eat dead animals?

Leyla Cruz said going vegan is not as hard as people might think, with many replacements for traditional foods.

"Two of my favorite dishes I bake are traditionally a meat lover's dream, Mock Meatloaf and Shepherd's Pie," she said. "I can still bake cakes with an egg replacement such as Ener-G or grab one banana, which equals one egg. I make an awesome tuna salad with of course, no tuna. I bake, buy and eat responsibly."

Veg-Curious? We live in a phenomenal area in many ways. Not only are there many vegan activities here, there are restaurants offering vegan dishes alongside their meaty ones, and there are mainstream stores stocked with vegan options galore.

"I want people to know vegans are happy and normal," Hodges said. "We are lawyers, nurses, and musicians. We are people who love food. We love to eat. It is not a lifestyle of deprivation."