Los Angeles has long been the capital of plant-based dining, but the scene looks very different from a few years ago. Several of the city’s vegan pioneers have closed their doors, and in their place a new generation of chefs has taken plant-based cooking firmly into fine-dining territory. Today you can book a candlelit vegan dinner on Melrose, a waterfront sushi feast in Marina del Rey or a plant-based Korean tasting menu in the Arts District.
These are the vegan and plant-based restaurants in Los Angeles worth booking right now.
1. Crossroads Kitchen
Neighbourhood: Melrose / Beverly Grove | Price: $$$ | Best for: A special-occasion dinner
Chef Tal Ronnen opened Crossroads in 2013, and more than a decade on it remains the benchmark for vegan fine dining in Los Angeles. Expect a moody, low-lit dining room, a serious cocktail list and a Mediterranean-leaning menu that rarely reminds you it is entirely plant-based. It is the restaurant to bring a sceptical omnivore. A second outpost in Calabasas serves the Westside and the Valley.
What to order: Artichoke “oysters”, the carbonara, and the truffle tasting menu if you are celebrating.
Address: 8284 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles
2. Gracias Madre
Neighbourhood: West Hollywood | Price: $$ | Best for: Patio cocktails and a long lunch
Fully plant-based and organic, Gracias Madre has been one of West Hollywood’s most coveted tables for years, and its shaded, bougainvillea-framed patio is still one of the prettiest places to eat in the city. The Mexican menu is generous and full of flavour, and the agave-focused cocktail list is reason enough to visit.
What to order: Potato pimiento flautas, guacamole, enchiladas verdes and a margarita. Happy hour is excellent value.
Address: 8905 Melrose Ave, West Hollywood
3. Planta Cocina
Neighbourhood: Marina del Rey | Price: $$$ | Best for: A sunset dinner by the water
Set right on the marina with a sleek lounge and waterfront patio, Planta is the most glamorous vegan room on the Westside. The menu leans Japanese and Latin, with sushi, robata skewers and rice dishes that are as polished on the plate as they are on the tongue.
What to order: Truffle kamameshi, pressed watermelon nigiri and the unagi eggplant nigiri.
Address: 4625 Admiralty Way, Suite 104, Marina del Rey
4. Pura Vita
Neighbourhood: West Hollywood | Price: $$ | Best for: An Italian date night
Chef Tara Punzone’s 100% plant-based Italian restaurant and wine bar is small, warm and always full. The pastas are made with real care, the Neapolitan pizzas come out of a wood-fired oven, and the wine list is designed to match.
What to order: Black magic lasagna, the carbonara, a wood-fired pizza and the Nutella pizza to finish.
Address: 8274 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood
5. Baroo
Neighbourhood: Arts District | Price: $$$$ | Best for: A tasting-menu experience
Baroo is not a vegan restaurant, but it serves one of the most memorable plant-based meals in the city. Chef Kwang Uh and Mina Park’s modern Korean restaurant, named the Los Angeles Times’ Restaurant of the Year in 2024, offers a plant-based version of its tasting menu inspired by Buddhist temple cooking. Request it at least 24 hours ahead when you book.
What to order: The plant-based tasting menu, which changes with the seasons.
Address: 905 E 2nd St #109, Los Angeles
6. Shojin
Neighbourhood: Culver City | Price: $$ | Best for: Inventive vegan sushi
Shojin serves organic vegan Japanese food in an upscale-casual setting, and its sushi is some of the most creative in Los Angeles. The rolls are playful, colourful and built to impress.
What to order: The spicy “tuna” dynamite roll, the Purple Treasure roll and the house gyoza.
Address: 12406 W Washington Blvd, Culver City
7. Satdha Plant-Based Thai Kitchen
Neighbourhood: Santa Monica | Price: $$ | Best for: Refined Thai after the beach
Do not be fooled by the strip-mall setting. Satdha serves refined, creative Southeast Asian cooking that leans on vegetables rather than faux meats, and it is one of the best-value meals near the coast.
What to order: Beet-dyed noodles, cashew “tuna” endive cups and the lion’s mane fried “chicken”.
Address: 2218 Lincoln Blvd, Santa Monica
8. Café Gratitude
Neighbourhood: Larchmont Village and Venice | Price: $$ | Best for: A healthy breakfast or lunch
The original LA vegan institution is still going, now with two locations. The menu of bowls, wraps and superfood tonics (each named after an affirmation) is as wholesome as ever, and it remains a reliable choice for a nourishing daytime meal.
What to order: A blackened tempeh bowl, an açaí bowl and a superfood tonic.
Address: 639 N Larchmont Blvd, Los Angeles; 512 Rose Ave, Venice
9. Donna Jean
Neighbourhood: Sherman Oaks | Price: $$ | Best for: Pizza and pasta in the Valley
Worth the drive over the hill, Donna Jean serves vegan Cal-Italian comfort food in a relaxed neighbourhood dining room, with gluten-free options for most of the menu.
What to order: A pizza and a pasta to share, the house bread with garlic butter, and dessert.
Address: 4720 Woodman Ave, Sherman Oaks
Good to know
- Book ahead for Crossroads, Gracias Madre, Planta and Pura Vita, particularly on Friday and Saturday nights.
- Many of the city’s best non-vegan restaurants now offer a dedicated plant-based menu, so it is always worth asking when you book.
- Opening hours and menus change often in Los Angeles. Check each restaurant’s website before you go.
More tips for Los Angeles
Brooke is a Tasmanian-born writer and professional baker who started World of Wanderlust in 2013 and has since travelled to 86 countries. These days her guides focus on what she knows best: the bakeries, hotels and places worth crossing the world for.
