Quick Take
Vegetarian and vegan eating is on the rise nationally, and in Santa Cruz County, some local chefs are putting plant-based foods at the forefront of their menus. These 13 restaurants have fresh, modern takes on meat-free eating that can appeal to anyone, regardless of diet.
Vegetarian and vegan eating has come a long way from portobello burgers and tofu scrambles over the last few years. More Americans are choosing to eat less meat and dairy, citing concerns about health, climate and animal welfare, and have pushed plant-based eating from a fringe diet into the mainstream. While some diners avoid animal products because of a lifestyle, more and more are choosing plant-focused foods simply because they can be delicious.
In Santa Cruz County, local chefs are channeling their culture and cravings into dynamic vegetarian and vegan food, often drawing from the area’s rich agriculture industry and many farmers markets. Some of the coolest new restaurants are offering entirely vegetarian or vegan menus, including Mariposa Coffee Bar, Pretty Good Advice and Honey B Market in downtown Santa Cruz. Others are putting plants at the forefront and letting meat and dairy take a back seat without banishing it entirely, like the “plant-forward” Grove Cafe and Bakery in Felton and beloved street food mainstay Charlie Hong Kong in Santa Cruz. Others, like Salsa’s Taco Bar, Full Steam Dumpling and Vim Dining & Desserts, make sure that their vegan items are compelling all on their own, and aren’t presented as an afterthought.
Here are 13 restaurants that are setting a new standard for plant-based eating in Santa Cruz County, serving up sensational meat-free meals that everyone can enjoy, regardless of diet.
For a more complete list of vegan options in Santa Cruz County, check out Lookout’s vegan roadmap.
The Grove Cafe and Bakery
6249 Highway 9, Felton | More information
Chef Jessica Yarr describes The Grove Cafe and Bakery’s menu as “plant-forward,” rather than plant-based. While the Felton restaurant’s menu does include some meat and dairy, they play a supporting role, and the flavors of the plant kingdom are the star. Some of the most popular items are vegan, including The Bigfoot, a simple but satisfying sandwich with avocado, crunchy sweet potato, pea shoots and aquafaba-based aioli on homemade sourdough bread, and the Rainbow Bowl, a colorful, hearty salad with quinoa, pickled and fresh vegetables, and tofu. The bakery always has at least one vegan treat, like a cinnamon roll with candy cap mushroom frosting.
Mariposa Coffee Bar
1010 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz | More information
Drawing on the heritage of owners Tram Vu and Chelsea Cabrera, this coffeehouse in downtown Santa Cruz showcases the authentic coffee traditions of both Vietnam and Cuba. It also offers some of its most beloved street foods, like Cuban cubano sandwiches and Vietnamese spring rolls, with a twist – its entire menu is vegetarian. The vegan vermicelli rice bowl ($12) is bursting with flavors from its homemade shallot sauce, vegan peanut sauce, satay chili and fresh herbs. Vu even makes her own nem nuong, a Vietnamese meat alternative, from scratch.
Honey B Market
1005 Cedar St., Santa Cruz | More information
At this honey-colored café on Cedar Street in downtown Santa Cruz, owner Katie Belanger offers a short, hyper-seasonal menu of nourishing whole foods. Belanger is passionate about fermentation and makes her own sourdough breads and pastries, tempeh from legumes like lentils and chickpeas, kimchi and water kefir. Her entire menu is vegan, and includes sweet treats, prepared items like cashew-based tzatziki, and grab-and-go meals like the Nomsters ($14), a burrito-sized spring roll with smoky tempeh, mango, fresh veggies and a zippy peanut ginger dressing.
Pretty Good Advice
3070 Porter St., Soquel, & 1319 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz | More information
Next time a fast food craving hits, head to Pretty Good Advice for its all-vegetarian menu of breakfast sandwiches, burgers, sides and drinks, now with locations in Soquel and downtown Santa Cruz. Yes, items are wrapped in paper and priced affordably – most items are less than $10 – but the seasonal menu includes ingredients from chef Matt McNamara’s own farm in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The California Ranch Burger ($8.75) is a PGA classic, a sloppy smash burger with a homemade black bean patty, avocado, grilled onions and all the fixins, and you can substitute vegan cheese at no extra charge. Fans know to get the sweet potato fries ($7.50) with the banana ketchup, a slightly paler cousin to Heinz that’s sweetened and thickened with banana. It sounds weird, but it works.
Soul Salad
7957 Soquel Dr., Aptos | More information
Aptos’ Soul Salad gives salads a good name. This locally owned fast-casual restaurant approaches salads like a deli, with a menu of housemade combinations as well as a build-your-own salad option, all made to order. The salads are huge, with eight or more ingredients tossed with fresh seasonal greens prepped daily in house and tossed with homemade dressing. All of the produce is organic, and Soul Salad encourages customization, so you can make your dream salad come true. Try the Nisene ($13.50), named after the nearby state park, with corn, cherry tomatoes, quinoa, avocado and roasted potatoes with a cilantro and lime vinaigrette.
Salsa’s Taco Bar
1710 Brommer St., Live Oak | More information
Vegetarian options at taquerias are usually pretty limited, and vegan options can be challenging since Mexican cooking often uses lard, or pork fat. But Salsa’s Taco Bar, a neighborhood taqueria in Live Oak, offers a full vegan menu that includes burritos, chimichangas, enchiladas, tacos, tortas and sopes – with no meat substitutes in sight. Instead, Salsa’s focuses on rice, beans, fresh salsas and housemade guacamole, and add heaping servings of fresh sauteed vegetables for substance. Try the vegan torta ($7.95) stuffed with mushrooms, zucchini and peppers and avocado, with a side of fries, and the vegan chimichanga ($9.95), a deep-fried burrito with beans, veggies, salsa and guacamole wrapped in a sun-dried tomato tortilla.
Namaste India Bistro
1501 Mission St., Suite A, Santa Cruz | More information
There are more than a dozen vegan options on Namaste Indian Cuisine’s extensive menu of authentic Indian dishes, and all of them bursting with vibrant spices and rich flavors, so it’s easy to create a meat-free feast. Even better: at Namaste, the plant-based options don’t rely on meat alternatives. Don’t miss the kadhai bhindi ($15.50), a dish of smoky fried okra and a tangy-sweet sauce made from tomatoes, lime and mango powder, or the baigan ka salan ($17.95), silky Indian eggplant with coconut milk and curry leaves. Round out your meal with freshly baked naan, plus rice and appetizers.
Dharma’s Restaurant
4250 Capitola Rd., Capitola | More information
Dharma’s restaurant in Capitola has been a vegetarian mainstay for more than 40 years, and offers a huge selection of international dishes inspired by Asian, Mexican, Indian and American cuisines, but it still has a lot to offer the modern diner. Its menu was updated in early 2024 and now most dishes are served a la carte so it’s easier to customize your meal. The tempeh Reuben is a classic, especially with a coconut-milk shake on the side. Or try the bo thai, a Thai-inspired vegetable stir fry over vermicelli noodles with crushed peanuts and tofu. Portions are generous, and everything is served cafeteria-style in its spacious dining room.
Charlie Hong Kong
1141 Soquel Ave., Santa Cruz | More information
Charlie Hong Kong has served up healthy Asian-inspired street food in Santa Cruz’s Midtown for more than 25 years, and still has a line out the door every day at lunch time. It takes its ingredient sourcing seriously, and uses only organic produce sourced from nearby farms. Most of its signature bowls are vegan, with the option to add other toppings and proteins, including the Gado Gado ($10.50), with mushrooms and veggies in a black bean sauce, and Spicy Dan’s Peanut Delight ($10.50), a vegetable stir fry in an addictive peanut sauce over eggless noodles. The banh mi-style tofu sandwich ($10.50), served spicy or sweet, is a sleeper hit, and made with Salinas-based organic Jack and the Beanstalk tofu.
Vim Dining & Desserts
2238 Mission St., Santa Cruz | More information
The Westside’s Vim Dining & Desserts has a loyal following for its welcoming service, creative, seasonal menu and jaw-dropping housemade desserts. Chef Jesikah Stolaroff is a whiz at layering flavor and texture, while also making sure her dishes are balanced and satisfying. She also makes a point to always have thoughtful vegan appetizers, entrees and desserts on her dinner menu that would tempt any diner, like a chili and tomato-braised hominy with lentils, delicata squash and poblano cream with crispy oyster mushrooms and chili crunch ($29). Stolaroff is a former pastry chef, so dessert is a must, like the tahini semifreddo with fried banana and coconut jam ($15).
Far West Fungi
224 Laurel St., Suite A101, Santa Cruz | More information
Inside its apothecary-like shop in downtown Santa Cruz, Far West Fungi sells dozens of medicinal and culinary mushrooms in a variety of forms, from fresh and dried mushrooms to tinctures, teas and powders. It also has a vegetarian, fungi-focused café with savory meals and sweet treats featuring wild and cultivated mushrooms. The menu includes a Nashville hot fried lions mane sandwich ($14) made with a spicy, chicken-like lions mane mushroom, an ode to an Italian muffaletta sandwich ($7.50 half / $15 whole) made with king trumpet “mortadella” and marinated portobello “capicola,” and a snickerdoodle cookie made with maple syrupy candy cap mushrooms ($2).
Full Steam Dumpling
1001 Center St., Santa Cruz | More information
Full Steam Dumpling serves up a hyper-seasonal menu of Asian dumplings, noodle dishes, ramen, snacks and specials out of the Santa Cruz Art Lounge, a multipurpose space on Center Street downtown. Chef Andy Huynh sources local ingredients whenever possible, and he and his team make all the broths, sauces and dumplings by hand. Like the rest of the menu, the plant-based items are expertly prepared with layers of flavor, like the mushroom and yam gyoza with housemade chili crisp, delicate crystal dumplings stuffed with oyster mushrooms and tofu, and spicy General Tso’s cauliflower. The vegan ramen’s mushroom shoyu broth has incredible depth and umami, and is loaded with plant-based toppings.
Bookie’s Pizza
1315 Water St., Santa Cruz | More information
Bookie’s Pizza, located inside Sante Adairius Rustic Ales Portal in Santa Cruz’s Midtown, has only a handful of vegan items on its menu of Detroit-style pizzas, small plates and salads, but if you’re looking for a plant-based pizza, beer and wings experience, you can’t do better. On his vegan pie and maitake mushroom “wings”, chef Todd Parker achieves the trademark crunchy cheese “crown” on his dairy-free pizza, topped with sungold tomatoes, green olives, harissa, fresh basil and vegan mozzarella and feta. The crispy mushroom wings are arguably better than the chicken version, and come with vegan blue cheese dressing. Pair it with one of Sante Adairius’ award-winning ales, brewed nearby in Capitola.
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