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WASHINGTON - According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, American University has been voted the nation's most vegetarian-friendly university.

PETA sponsored the contest on its website, tallying thousands of votes. Georgetown and the University of Maryland also competed along with 30 other schools, but American took top prize with its spicy Korean barbecue tofu and other organic offerings.

Everything's made from scratch right out of the box. We don't do anything pre-made. It's great, said Mary Soto, American University executive chef. When you think of cafeteria food, you probably don't think hormone-free tofu or gluten-free mac-n-cheese.

"And we always have our fresh salsa, a humus and a bean or legume salad," said Soto. The chefs at American University have been re-thinking cafeteria food with help from student feedback. "They don't like it, they tell us and we try to fix it. Sometimes we bomb and sometimes we don't but I think we do a really good job with it," said Soto.

Chef Soto remembers what vegetarian meant when she was in school. "We had one line, one tray and that was it. That's what you got," said Soto.

But now, students like sophomore Dominique Kleeman are not only vegetarian, they're also vegan. "I like to eat organic. I don't like to eat a lot of chemicals and pesticides," said Kleeman.

Kleeman says attending AU actually helped her change her diet. "I found myself not eating as much meat, so I made the conscious decision to stop," said Kleeman.

Now with organic options at her fingertips, she'll never go back. "Sometimes they'll have lentils or mushroom soup and I'm a soup girl and there's always humus everyday and I love humus," said Kleeman.

Of course, it's not just vegans and vegetarians who enjoy American's cafeteria cuisine. Carnivores and students with a variety of diets like having a variety of options. "Oh we can't keep up sometimes on the line," said Soto.

Vegetarians say they don't mind sharing with their carnivore counterparts. "No, there's enough to go around," said Kleeman.

With the most vegetarian friendly college title, the university cooks say they take pride in their work. "I mean, it means the world to the entire staff," said Soto.

One spoon full and one empty tray at a time. "You know they're our customers. They're our guests and you want to please them. You gotta remember you can't please all of them, but that's what we strive for," said Soto.

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