Categories: Eat & Drink; Local & Entertainment

A Vegetarian's Guide to Dining Out in the Mission

By Juliette
updated 3 months ago

This is a veggie guide to the Mission District, one of San Francisco's most vibrant neighborhoods. The Mission is famous for its dive bars, its tattooed bike-riding hipsters, and its amazing thrift shopping, but it's also known for its great restaurants. Here are some of the veg-friendly ones. Bon Appetit! Oh, and gratuitous and creepy pictures of Quentin Tarantino included, who my friend Sundeep and I ran into at Boogaloos.

Cha-Ya is Japanese vegan yumminess

This restaurant is a vegan’s dream. Everything at Cha-Ya is 100-percent vegan friendly but the portion sizes and menu offers substantial variety to tempt carnivores as well. The decor is a little clinical and sparse, but the restaurant is spotless, the help (while understaffed) is exceedingly polite, and the menu is inventive and affordable.
Standard Japanese fare like tempura, sushi, udon, soba, and green tea ice-cream are all available and completely vegan. The nigiri is adorable – instead of sashimi slices, you receive vegetable pieces cut to resemble your favorite fish. I recommend the shiitake or the eggplant nigiri. A variety of vegetarian sushi is available, with ingredients like yam, squash, sea vegetables, atsuage tofu, burdock, and avocado. Cha-Ya serves a variety of hot dishes as well, my favorites being the dengaku – eggplant, portobello, and tofu broiled with a miso glaze – and sansai udon, which has a medley of wild vegetables including edible bracken, bamboo shoots, carrots, enoki, and wood ear mushrooms, topped with shredded non, kaiware, and scallions. Average price: $15/person.

Weird Fish makes vegan seafood

Many people are suspicious of meat substitutes. I don’t blame them – the idea of using soybeans to approximate meat seems a bit sci-fi to say the least. However, vegan fish and chips is a novel invention that is as progressive as stem cell research. Weird Fish is like the holy grail for vegetarians and pescatarians because it serves only seafood and seafood substitutes.

The concept seems improbable – flax oil and soybeans manipulating themselves in a way that approximates marine life?! Well, vegan fish and chips are alive and well at Weird Fish, in your choice of tempeh or marinated tofu. The vegetarian take on the Po Boy sandwich is made with portobella instead of catfish, slathered in delicious remoulade slaw and cocktail sauce. There are lots of yummy vegetarian starters too, like the Little B Stack, made of sweet potatoes, spinach, goat cheese, and tofu. The antique décor is whimsical, with mirrors hanging on the walls to resemble the portholes of a ship. The restaurant seats about 20 and manages to be cozy and airy at the same time. Average price: $12/person.

Boogaloos vegetarian brunch

Brunch, brunch, brunch. My favorite meal of the week. I start looking forward to Saturday brunch on Wednesday, and Boogaloos is the best spot for vegetarian brunch in San Francisco. The last time I was here, so was Quentin Tarantino. QUENTIN TARANTINO!!! He ate two entrees and is a lot fatter in person. See the picture evidence.

Anyway, back to the food. This spot actually offers vegetarian gravy, deliciously heaped upon a buttery biscuit and heaped with green onions and herb cream. They offer vegan polenta, fake-steak, and soy beef hash as well. Any egg scrambles can be made with tofu. My recommendations for brunch: the Boogaloo’s classic, 2 any-style eggs with homefries and vegetarian biscuits and gravy, or the Penny-Cluse egg sandwich with fake-steak, a gooey eggy sandwich on an English muffin with cheese and grilled seitan ‘steak’ and a side of soy-beef hash, which tastes delicious with sour cream (I know it sounds weird, but trust). They also do cool things with tofu scrambles, like flavoring them with pesto and cheese.

Be prepared to stand in line with the other Mission hipsters on a hungover Saturday afternoon, but it’s well worth the wait. Average price: $11/person.

Papalote is yummy Mexican vegginess

One word: soyrizo. Soyrizo tastes like chorizo, has the texture of chorizo, is seasoned like chorizo, and is substantial like chorizo, but is completely tofu-based and delicious. Order two soyrizo super tacos filled with cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and salsa for $5.45. Chips and salsa come with every order, and the salsa is unlike any I’ve ever tasted; it’s seasoned with roasted red peppers, a California take on classic salsa.

The menu can substitute tofu for anything, and there is even the option of having tofu mole – which is chocolatey and delicious. You can also put potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, zucchini, eggplant, and – of course – beans in your food, which is much far and beyond more variety for veggies than other Mexican taquerias in the neighborhood. There is always a line at the cash register, but the tables open up quickly, and the mood is bright and festive, with yellow and red paint on the walls, lots of photographs everywhere, and butterfly kites hanging from the ceiling. Average price: $7/person.

Herbivore serves up a vegetarian menu

The menu at Herbivore is huge. Herbivore is like the Cheesecake Factory for vegetarians. They serve everything and the kitchen sink! But that is great for veggies, albeit a tad cheesy and somewhat like a suburban superstore, because when I come here with my vegetarian friends, we all end up finding something on the menu we want to eat even if we’re in the mood for drastically different things.

Herbivore has Japanese wasabi soba noodles, Greek eggplant Moussaka, Chinese Kung Pao stir-fry, Italian gnocchi, Vietnamese spring rolls, Indonesian noodle salad, Pad Thai, and Vegan German Chocolate Cake, all coming out of the same kitchen. But for what it lacks in specialty, it makes up for in bounty. Portions are large and the service is prompt. They also serve things like soy chicken and tempeh bacon. For vegetarians who crave meat, try the tempeh BLT or the soy chicken fried rice. The deserts are all vegan and a variety of organic beers and IPAs are also available to complement your dining experience. Average price: $13/person.

Pakwan is great for carnivores and vegs

Nestled among a string of Mission dive bars, Pakwan has the boisterous feel of a pub in the setting of an Indian/Pakistani restaurant. This Indian/Pakistani restaurant offers a section in their menu titled “Vegetarian Delights,” and delightful these dishes are. Standard veg Indian fare like Saag Paneer, Aloo Palak, and Daal Chana are available, but the stand-out menu option is the Bengan Bhartha, which you can order Pakistani or Indian style (Pakistani style being the creamier of the two). The Sabzi – mixed vegetable curry – is also yummy, and at $4.50/dish, the prices cannot be beat and the serving sizes are plentiful. This restaurant is also BYOB and will happily open beer and wine for you at no corkage fee. And oh, did I mention the vegetable samosas are $2.99 for two mammoth balls of potatoey goodness? Average price: $6/person.

Cafe Gratitude is deliciously raw

Stepping into this restaurant is like stepping into the kitchen of a 1970’s era East Bay commune. This high-of-ceiling dining spot is cheery and inviting, with murals painted all over the walls of life affirming imagery – in one, an eldery lady invites a hobo into her home on a snowy eve. In another, a girl looks into a desert oasis and sees a mirage of abundant farmlands reflected in the water. While these gimmicks might be a little too hippy-dippy for some, the food is where the restaurant shines.
All of the menu items have names that begin with the words “I am” – for instance, “I am vigorous,” “I am bold,” “I am sustained,” “I am dazzling,” “I am fabulous,” etc. A variety of beverages are offered in the juice and smoothie menu, and e3 live (bacterial culture) can be added for the health food fanatics. Most of the food is raw and served lukewarm, but even a carnivore will happily turn herbivore for a meal as healthy and appetizing as this. I love the warm grain bowls served with steamed veggies and quinoa (a South American grain pronounced keen-wah). Try the “I am Accepting,” the faux-sushi bowl served with Bhutanese red rice, sea vegetables, and kimchee. Average price: $16/person.

Cafe Ethiopia makes happy veggies

Ethiopian food is healthy, tasty, and great for vegetarians. In my opinion, this is the best Ethiopian food in San Francisco. The restaurant itself is large and clean, with a bar that serves Ethiopian beers on tap. The décor leaves a little to be desired, but the food is beyond reproach.

There are a variety of vegetarian dishes and salads, the best deal being the vegetarian combo, which provides a choice of any three vegetarian options. The bread is light, tangy, and delicious, and the portion sizes are gargantuan. The hamli (chopped collard greens sautéed with onions), ater (split peas flavored in bervece sauce), and kantishara (sliced mushrooms served with tomatoes and onions) are my three favorite dishes, with tastes that compliment one another and are delicious with the Ethiopian bread. For those who are brave, try the tejj – Ethiopian honey wine. Tejj is very sweet and definitely not for everyone, but maintains somewhat of a cult following among Café Ethiopia enthusiasts. Average price: $11/person.

Sunflower makes great veggie pho

Vegetarian pho is harder to come by in San Francisco than you’d expect, even though the city is rife with veggies. The veggie pho at Sunflower comes heaped with cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, cabbage, mushrooms, and bean sprouts, with delicious vegetable broth that blends seamlessly with a healthy dash of hoisin and Sirarcha. The imperial rolls and spring rolls both come vegetarian, substituting tofu for meat. They even have vegetarian Vietnamese crepes, using shillot mushrooms instead of meat and egg sauce instead of fish sauce.

The best deal is the vegetarian lunch special, where for $7.95 you can pick four of your favorite vegetarian options on the menu. The lemongrass tofu entrée and the vegetarian vermicelli (glass noodles with lettuce wraps) are also delicious. The restaurant is small and the ambiance is bland, but the food will keep you coming back for more. Average price: $11/person.

St Francis is American and veg friendly

This amazing brunch spot in the Mission is very vegetarian friendly. It’s everyone friendly! Prepare to enter a time warp back to the 50s when you arrive at this modern take on the old timey neighborhood diner and soda fountain. This is a breakfast all day kind of place, with lots of classic fare like (veggie) burgers, omelets, sandwiches, and ice cream treats. Sit at the bar, order a garden burger with a side of fries and a chocolate malt, and revel in all the nostalgic Americana. They even sell novelty candy at the candy bar near the entrance.

The staff is tattooed, artsy, and polite, and the diners are a fun mix between families with children and Mission hipsters. You will have to wait in line during peak brunch hours, but try the mac and cheese – it’s worth the wait. Average price: $10/person.

Dosas are vegetarian delights

This is South Indian cuisine at its best, served in a large and trendy restaurant with mirror-covered orange walls and lamps hanging from the ceiling. Dosas are famous in India for being street food, but these dosas provide a gourmet twist on the classic cuisine. These dosas, which are are delicious and ALL entirely vegetarian – along with the uttapams, which are open-faced dosas – are like large crepes filled with vegetables, and are served with a coconut and tomato chutney, a sambar, and a spicy lentil and vegetable soup.

To properly eat the dosa, you dip a piece into the lentil soup, add a bit of both chutneys and the sambar, and eat with your hands. The Chatni Masala is especially tasty and is filled with a spiced chatni of ridged gourd, a seasonal and rare vegetable originally from India. Spicy soy sausage is available as a meat replacement in any dish. On weekends, Dosa serves the Indian variation of brunch, with omelets seasoned with Indian spices and large dosas filled with eggs and cheese.

Dosa also has a variety of healthier options, including a selection of salads (all vegetarian) and soups. The Rasam “fire broth” is mouth-watering, a spicy tomato broth flavored with tamarind and lentils, sipped from the bowl like miso. The curry Bloody Mary is to-die-for, mixed with soju, curry leaves, and green chiles. Average price: $16/person.