This article relates mostly to restaurants in the Main Beach area of Laguna Beach but there are a handful in south Laguna and the surrounding area. Most of these restaurants have vegan and/or vegetarian options in addition to non-veg, making them great options for a group with mixed dietary preferences.

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Main Beach
South Laguna
Not veg nor vegan-friendly restaurants
Honorable Mentions – veg and vegan-friendly near Laguna Beach

Main Beach Restaurants

Zinc Cafe the only all-vegetarian restaurant (that I know of) with many vegan options. It’s located in downtown Laguna Beach. It’s casual dining and very good!

Rasta Taco is a Mexican-Jamaican fusion outdoor restaurant in downtown Laguna Beach. They have vegan and vegetarian burritos, salads and tacos. I love this place. They have the best burritos that I’ve ever had….and I have always lived in places with incredible Mexican food.

This restaurant is all-outdoors just 2 blocks from the beach and very casual. You order and pay at the counter.

Romeo Cucina is an authentic, family-owned Italian restaurant in downtown Laguna Beach. They have 1 vegan pasta dish and more vegetarian options. We typically order the Rigatoni pasta and the Margherita pizza but they can make many of the pizzas vegetarian. This is a sit down, more upscale place, though there is no dress code. In addition to having excellent food, the service is also excellent. They have limited hours so make sure you look it up before visiting. This is 2 blocks from the Main beach. If you sit outside, you may get an ocean view.

Urth Caffe has many vegan dishes, vegetarian dishes and items that can be made vegan including vegan salads, vegetarian lasagna, burritos, waffles, bowls and pizzas. I like the food. This is a casual, very popular eatery as it’s directly across from the ocean, near Las Brisas. The service is mediocre. If it’s really busy, once you order, if you need anything such as to inform someone that the water dispenser needs to be refilled – good luck! But they have vegan desserts such as chocolate cake, pumpkin pie and chai boba with plant based milk options. And my favorite dessert are their cookies.

You stand in line – outdoors, order and pay at the counter. They give you a number and bring your meal at your table. Most of the seating is outdoors. There are water stations where you will find flatware, napkins and to-go boxes. Urth is great for the awesome atmosphere and good food, but don’t expect good service.

Finney’s Crafthouse is a fun, large sports bar in downtown Laguna Beach. The have plant based burger options, vegetarian pizza, tater tots, fries, onion rings and salads. The cauliflower tacos are delicious! We also like their nachos without carnitas – though this dish is not vegan. They put this cilantro cream on the seasoned chips – it’s unique and delicious. We always find the service attentive and friendly and it’s in a great location. This is the perfect spot to enjoy a meal and drinks over whatever game is on. Go Lakers! It’s in a great location just up the street from Forest Avenue – in the downtown area. They have covered outdoor seating and a big indoor area.

Thai Brothers. Thai Brothers is in the main touristy area of Laguna Beach but it’s on a small side street. This is a small restaurant with no views. They have limited items for vegans and vegetarians. We could not eat any of their curries as they all have fish sauce. The noodle dishes and stir frys can be made vegetarian. The fresh rolls are vegan.

We ordered the fresh summer rolls. The fresh vegetables were deliciously crisp and served with warm peanut sauce – the best peanut sauce I’ve ever had.

We ordered the drunken noodles which we found bland. We were disappointed in this restaurant. For an appetizer + 1 entree it was $40 including tip. We didn’t even order beverages – we drank water. I understand that restaurants in Laguna Beach are pricey but since we didn’t care for the entree, it was disappointing value for money. We have not ben back since and if we are craving Thai, instead drive a little outside of Laguna to Thai Bamboo Bistro in Irvine.

Adonis is a Middle Eastern restaurant right in downtown Laguna Beach. They have vegan options such as pita bread, hummus, falafel, salad, stuffed grape leaves and wraps. I found the food to be ok – it’s good if you’re in the mood for Middle Eastern and you’re in Laguna Beach.

Dolce Gelato is fantastic! They have so many vegan options, unique flavors and friendly service. This cute gelateria is in downtown Laguna Beach.

Nirvana Grille is a nicer sit down restaurant with a fair share of vegetarian dishes.

Restaurants in/Towards South Laguna Beach

Natraj Cuisine of India serves north Indian cuisine. This family owns several restaurants. I’ve been to their other locations and like them. My mom went to the Laguna Beach location and said it was ok – not great but also not bad. Natraj is a couple miles south of the Main Beach.

For pizza, Wine Gallery is popular. It’s casual but a nicer place. Grab a glass of wine to enjoy with your pizza. This is towards south Laguna, a couple miles south of the Main Beach.

Restaurants in Laguna Beach That Are Nice But Don’t Have Much For Vegans and Vegetarians

Las Brisas is one of the most famous and popular restaurants in Laguna Beach due to its stellar location with stunning ocean views. They serve Mexican cuisine, but forget about vegan-friendly it’s not even vegetarian-friendly. Some friends of mine, a group of 4, all vegetarians, went there and had a horrible experience.

When the server came to take their orders and my friends told him they are vegetarian, he grabbed the menus from the table and even snatched one from one person’s hand and sarcastically said, “salads for you”.

When they were leaving the restaurant, the manager happened to be near and asked how their experience was. When my friend politely told him the honest truth, the manager didn’t care and said, “ok well hope to see you again next time.” Las Brisas has been around since I was a kid. I went there once when I was little and have never been back even though it’s a short 10 minute walk from home.

Carmelita’s serves Mexican food. We ordered cheese enchiladas, which were fine but nothing special. They don’t really have much else. The beachfront location in downtown Laguna Beach is great.

230 Forest Avenue Restaurant and Bar is rated highly on TripAdvisor. The food really caters towards seafood so I have never been.

Starfish is not in the Main Beach area, it’s in south Laguna, directly across from the Montage. It’s also rated highly and serves Asian cuisine from all across the region – again fish and meat heavy, so I have never been.

South of Nick’s is popular SoCal style Mexican cuisine – steak, meat and fish heavy so another one I have not visited.

There are many restaurants in Laguna Beach that we haven’t tried since they have either no or at-most 1 option. And we avoid fish, steak and burger places in-general.

Honorable Mentions – Restaurants Near/Near’ish Laguna Beach That Are Great For Vegans and Vegetarians

These restaurants aren’t in Laguna Beach, but also not far, and have great vegan and/or vegetarian options, making them great for a party with mixed dietary preferences.

HiroNori is not in Laguna Beach, rather neighboring Irvine, but I’m including it as it’s one of the few places with vegan ramen; and it’s SO delicious. We (my husband and I) have tried vegan ramen in a fair number of places across the US and Hiro is always our hero.

Neena’s British and Indian Grocery is an Indian grocery store (duh) and has a small restaurant in the back. It’s very casual but it’s our favorite North Indian food in Orange County.

Mitasie is our go-to for Vietnamese food. It’s 100% vegan and they use a lot of tofu and fake meat products (in addition to fresh vegetables) so it may not be for everyone.

Thai Bamboo Bistro is our go-to Thai place. They have a lot of vegetarian options such as Panang Curry, Pad Thai, Pad See Ew, Basil Tofu and more and the food is delicious. This is in Irvine, off of Laguna Canyon Road.

The Main beach area of Laguna Beach has options and a variety of cuisines ranging from Italian and Mexican to Middle Eastern. And within a 10-15 mile radius you will find even more. Enjoy your time there!

About Me and PassportPages

Thank you for visiting Passport Pages! I was inspired to start this website to focus on vegan and vegetarian world travel tips and info for women travelers and detailed nuanced information, such as “What shoes to wear at Corcovado National Park in Costa Rica.” and “How to Select a Safari Camp”. I hope Passport Pages will be a useful resource for you as you plan your travel adventures! Cheers!

About Me
I’m Samta and have travelled to 6 continents (approximately 50 countries) as a solo backpacker, in groups, and with my husband. In-between trips, I spend time running my edtech company, and of course planning our next trip. I love talking about travel and entrepreneurship. I also LOVE backpacks, DSLRs and flat shoes and…I’m kinda addicted to blueberries! 🙂

What You Can Expect (and not expect)
I like to be specific and nuanced about travel tips and advice.

I am not a full time traveller. My longest trips are generally 2-3 weeks including travel to/from the destination.

You won’t get perfectly planned, Instagram photos on this blog. But you will get authenticity as I usually travel with my DSLR and love to take photos!

I don’t make money nor receive any benefit from this blog. I started it simply because I love travel and I love writing about my experiences in hopes that it will help others.