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GuideUpdated July 16, 2026

8 Best Vegetarian Restaurants in Chicago

8 vegetarian and plant-forward Chicago restaurants that earn the recommendation on merit, not just category.

The best vegetarian restaurants in Chicago are Smack Dab Chicago, The Chicago Diner, Lakeview, Handlebar, and more. Start with Smack Dab Chicago if you want the strongest overall first pick.

By Priya Sharma•8 ranked picks•Published July 16, 2026•Updated July 16, 2026
Methodology•Editorial team
Smack Dab ChicagoThe Chicago Diner, LakeviewHandlebar
8 Best Vegetarian Restaurants in Chicago
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Top picks at a glance

#1Smack Dab ChicagoVegan • Rogers Park • value#2The Chicago Diner, LakeviewVegetarian • Chicago • value#3HandlebarVegetarian • Wicker Park • value

Who this guide is for

The best vegetarian restaurants in Chicago don't feel like a compromise. These picks are strong on their own terms — with menus that make the choice feel intentional rather than obligatory. Picks span Rogers Park, Chicago and Wicker Park.

Quick picks

Smack Dab Chicago
Vegan • Rogers Park
Smack Dab Chicago is a sensible vegan call in Rogers Park in Chicago when you want something that usually lands well.
The Chicago Diner, Lakeview
Vegetarian • Chicago
What The Chicago Diner gets right — and has gotten right since opening on North Halsted in 1983 — is that it doesn't perform vegetarianism at you.
Handlebar
Vegetarian • Wicker Park
Handlebar is a vegetarian pick in Wicker Park in Chicago when you want dinner to feel a little more planned.
Browse all Chicago restaurantsBack to Chicago hub
Editorial details
Author: Priya Sharma
Published: July 16, 2026
Last updated: July 16, 2026

On this page

  1. 1. Smack Dab ChicagoView →
  2. 2. The Chicago Diner, LakeviewView →
  3. 3. HandlebarView →
  4. 4. PLANTA ChicagoView →
  5. 5. True Food KitchenView →
  6. 6. AO Hawaiian HideoutView →
  7. 7. Kale My NameView →
  8. 8. Soul Veg CityView →

How the restaurants compare

Editorial restaurant image stand-in for Smack Dab Chicago
Google
Smack Dab Chicago
Rogers Park • Vegan
9.9/10
TastyPals Score
Price
value
Best for
dinner
Mood
Rogers Park
Editorial restaurant image stand-in for The Chicago Diner, Lakeview
Google
The Chicago Diner, Lakeview
Chicago • Vegetarian
9.9/10
TastyPals Score
Price
value
Best for
Plant-based
Mood
Casual
Editorial restaurant image stand-in for Handlebar
Google
Handlebar
Wicker Park • Vegetarian
9.9/10
TastyPals Score
Price
value
Best for
Wicker Park
Mood
Wicker Park
Editorial restaurant image stand-in for PLANTA Chicago
Google
PLANTA Chicago
Chicago • Vegetarian
9.9/10
TastyPals Score
Price
value
Best for
Plant-based
Mood
Casual

How we chose

We looked for restaurants that feel like a strong fit for the guide topic, not just the most obvious names in the city. The shortlist favors rooms with clear mood, dependable pacing, and enough distinction to help someone decide faster. Read our full methodology →

Room tone

Lighting, pace, and general energy all need to support the reason someone clicked this guide.

Food fit

We favored restaurants that feel best suited for the moment, not just restaurants with broad reputation.

Useful range

The final list tries to give readers enough variation in neighborhood, price, and style to compare real options.

8 ranked picks

The Chicago Diner, Lakeview — What The Chicago Diner gets right — and has gotten right since opening on North Halsted in 1983 — is that it doesn't perform vegetarianism at you. This Lakeview institution predates the green-juice aesthetic by decades, and that longevity informs every decision the place makes. The room runs on unpretentious diner bones: counter stools, worn booths, a clientele that spans longtime vegans who were regulars before veganism had a brand, hungover twenty-somethings from Boystown, and families splitting plates on a Sunday. At a price level that keeps the check genuinely accessible, The Chicago Diner is built around access rather than aspiration — and longtime observers of the place will tell you that reads as a deliberate stance, not an accident. The drinks menu is where the Diner routinely surprises first-timers. The Lavender Gimlet is known for threading floral and bright without veering into soap territory — the kind of cocktail that reportedly earns a second order on reflex rather than novelty. The Hippie Toddy has a reputation for delivering what a good toddy promises: herbal, warming, with a slow-building quality that justifies the name. The Peppermint Spike is described by regulars as darker and more indulgent, landing somewhere in the territory of a dessert course poured into a glass. The Daymaker and Dreamboat round out a cocktail roster that takes its whimsy seriously enough that the bar program functions as a genuine anchor for the room, not an afterthought. Practical reality: weekend brunch draws a consistent line on Halsted, and regulars recommend arriving before 11am if you want to skip it. The line reportedly moves, but on the Diner's own schedule. A window booth goes fast; the counter fills with solo diners who know the rhythm. Skip delivery — by most accounts, the room itself is the context that makes this place make sense. View restaurant →

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PLANTA Chicago — Most plant-based restaurants in this country are still making one of two mistakes: apologizing for what's absent, or moralizing about what's at stake. PLANTA Chicago has apparently decided to do neither. The Chicago outpost of this plant-forward brand positions itself squarely in the maximalist, high-gloss lane — the kind of room that reads sleek and intentional, with a price point that sits at a single dollar sign, which feels almost incongruous given what the plating reportedly looks like. The crowd, by most accounts, skews young and diverse, and is there for dinner, not a wellness lecture. This is destination dining that happens to be fully vegan, and that framing distinction matters. What the menu is doing, specifically, is translating global comfort food through a plant-based lens without flattening the source material into beige obscurity. The Bang Bang Broccoli is consistently described as lacquered and boldly sauced — a dish that leads with confidence rather than apology. The Chili Crab Noodles have developed a reputation for real funk and heat, the kind of aggressiveness that registers as a deliberate creative choice. Diners tend to point to the Crispy Rice as the table-quieting opener — the one that earns immediate consensus. For anyone approaching plant-based cooking with skepticism, the Brisket Kimchi Fried Rice is the reported corrective: the kimchi's ferment-forward intensity does structural work, and the plant-based brisket is noted for its textural presence rather than mere symbolic inclusion. The Korean Chick'n Sandwich rounds out the lineup as the straightforwardly satisfying, no-asterisk sandwich option on the menu. Practical reality: this is a group-dining setup that performs best with four to six people moving through multiple dishes simultaneously. Weekend dinner reservations book ahead — walk-in optimism at prime hours is genuinely optimistic. Book the table before you talk yourself into something else. View restaurant →

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Wicker ParkRogers ParkVegetarianVegandate nightdinnercocktail

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Personalized city picksCleaner shortlistsBuilt for iPhone and Android
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Your taste. Our picks.
Smarter follow-through after the guide: better restaurant context, quicker narrowing, less second-guessing.
For tonight
Date night spots with warm rooms and polished service
Next step
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