FRIDAY FIVE
The Bay Area is a vegan’s paradise with a thriving all-veggie food scene, one that has shaped the culture of the region for decades. From being the site of the annual World Veg Festival, which takes place every October in Golden Gate Park, to being the home of Impossible Foods, the parent company of the Impossible Burger, the Bay Area embraces veganism as a built-in way of life.
Vegan food here can be so delicious that even the meat-loving among us can appreciate it—especially if it’s at one of the five establishments on this list.
1. Nourish Cafe
Located in the Inner Richmond, situated perfectly across the street from a Yoga Tree, this tranquil oasis is for anyone who appreciates fresh and healthy food. Nourish Cafe distances itself from being completely “vegan,” instead emphasizing that its food is “plant-based,” created with your health in mind — not just abstinence from animal products.
That means that meals usually include natural sweeteners, minimum oils and plant-based flours in their baked goods. Dishes vary from healthy grain bowls to smoothies to meat- and dairy-less comfort food, like a yam-and-cheese sandwich. There’s another location on Hyde Street in Nob Hill, but the Inner Richmond location is our favorite because it’s the original spot. Sarah Bacon and Brighton Miller opened the cafe in 2015.
189 6th Avenue (Inner Richmond) | www.nourishcafesf.com
2. Gracias Madre
When someone thinks about where to find delicious vegan food in San Francisco, this restaurant is almost always guaranteed to come first to mind. Gracias Madre, which essentially means “Thank you, Mother Earth,” is a iconic vegan establishment in the Mission that serves vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO, organic Mexican food.
Vegan Mexican might sound intolerable to meat eaters, but just don’t tell them—the food is so good, they’re not likely to notice that the meat and cheese are missing. The love child of the founders of Café Gratitude, Matthew and Terces Engelhart, the spot opened its doors in 2010. Despite the owners facing a former series of scandals, which closed all the Bay Area’s Café Gratitude locations by 2015, Gracias Madre has remained untouched by the controversy, which means that their irreplaceable enchilada made with cashew cheese lives on.
2211 Mission Street (Mission) | www.gracias-madre.com/
3. Millennium
Situated in Oakland’s Rockridge neighborhood, Millennium is an award-winning vegan establishment. In 2016, it received a 2016 Michelin Bib Gourmand and has been on countless lists as one of the top vegan restaurants in the world.
Since 1994, when Millennium first opened its doors in San Francisco (it moved to Rockridge in 2015 after being forced out of its former location in Lower Nob Hill), chef Eric Tucker has been serving innovative, fine-dining cuisine, such as miso-glazed Brussels sprouts and maple black-pepper glazed tempeh. This is a place nobody should pass on dessert, as Millennium knows how to satisfy a vegan’s sweet tooth.
5912 College Avenue (Rockridge, Oakland)| www.millenniumrestaurant.com
4. Souley Vegan
Fried okra, garlic fries, nachos, mac and “cheese,” mashed potatoes and gravy—yes, you can really have it all when you’re vegan thanks to this delicious and beloved vegan soul-food joint in Oakland. The rstaurant was founded as a passion project by owner Tamearra Dyson, whose story is inspiring and quite literally one that dreams are made of. “A single mother with zero savings—of course everyone said I was crazy,” she wrote on the website, recalling when she opened her store in July of 2009.
Souley Vegan has become a total success, making lists of the best Bay Area restaurants for over a decade now and garnering a cult following. Serving dishes ranging from okra gumbo over grits to beautifully battered kale, this is the best place at which to find yourself delicious vegan comfort food that’s infused with a lot of love and soul.
301 Broadway Street (Jack London Square, Oakland)| http://souleyvegan.com
5. Indochine
From kimchi rolls to mouth-watering curries, this spot in the Mission knows how to deliver on its promise to serve delicious traditional Asian dishes without meat. Indochine, from the owners of the once-beloved Vietnamese restaurant Sunflower, is relatively new to the vegan restaurant scene, having opened its doors on Valencia Street in 2014 with the intent “to create an animal- and earth-friendly diet for all,” according to its website. It’s a great option for those who love the meat alternative seitan, which is said to be top-notch here.
508 Valencia Street (Mission) | www.indochinevegan.com
