My husband is a Vegan, and my two daughters 11 and 7 are not. We at home we eat a very balanced diet and I make sure they have a complete protein/ etc. My question is, does anyone have a great family resturant suggestion that we could all eat at? We have found Cafe Graditude... which is ok- but my youngest has a hard time finding anything she likes. We would love a place that my husband can eat at, but it not totally Vegan.
Hi C., not sure where you are but Herbivore in Berkeley and SF is good too. I don't think it's entirely vegan, but I'm not sure. What about pasta for a treat, I'm sure your husband can eat at Italian restaurants. Also many mexican restaurants don't use lard in their beans these days and the kids can enjoy the food too.
Hope this helps,
M. (meat eater that was vegan and veg for many years in Berkeley)
Try New World Vegetarian on 8th St in downtown Oakland, or Souley Vegan, on 13th St. I've taken meat eaters to both places, and they have always been amazed at how good the food was. (By the way, kids don't have to eat meat to get complete protein or good nutrition.)
there are several vegetarian restaurants in the bay area and at all of them you can order vegan. cha ya (one in sf and one in berkeley) is vegetarian japanese, manzanita around emeryville is vegetarian, there is a vegetarian burrito place in sf on valencia and 24th called papalote, in oakland the cactus taqueria makes their rice and beans vegan and they have a nice grilled veggie plate, there is a new vegan soul food restaurant in downtown oakland called souley vegan around the corner from a vegetarian chinese restaurant called the golden lotus, whose sister-restaurant (more like cousin restaurant since they aren't owned by the same people but are affiliated w/the same organization) which the sooo good called golden era in the tenderloin. there is also a seafood and vegetarian chinese place on college ave (good,casual and cheap) called the great wall. and of course there is always herbivore, which i think is just okay. i would consider all there places family friendly and i think a kid would be happy eating at any of these places, unlike cafe gratitude. check out the reviews at yelp.com and happy eating.
There is a restaurant in San Francisco called "The Herbivore" that is excellent. All vegetarian and some vegan, but certainly not lacking for flavor, variety, and quality. Even meat-eaters I know enjoy their food. You might also try Buttercup Grill and Bar. There are a number of them throughout the bay area. They don't specifically offer vegan, but they do offer vegetarian in addition to a lot of traditional favorites with meat and they are good about accommodating special diets. The Unicorn in Berkeley is also a good one, but a little upscale and not so much a kids restaurant. Try Yelp and City Search as well. They are both good online resources for restaurants etc. and the reviews are pretty accurate. Hope that helps! I'm a vegetarian, and with all the different definitions and perceptions out there, I know how hard it can be!
C.,
I second the advice of the restaurant Herbivore. Besides the one in SF, there is one on Shattuck in Berkeley. I'm not sure of the cross street but it is close to the Shattuck Theater??
They have really good food.
Hope this helps.
When my vegan friends come to town, we eat Ethiopian/Eritrean food. My four year old will eat the hummus happily--it comes on the vegetarian platter. We also go to one of the many "fake- meat"- offering Chinese restaurants, such as Lucky Creation in Chinatown. Soully Vegan in Oakland is new so I haven't tried it but vegan soul food (bbq tofu, all kinds of veggies) sounds fantastic and kid friendly. Vegetarian sushi is out there, too.
