Because of our deep-dish pizza, hot dogs and Italian beef sandwiches, Chicago doesn’t have the greatest reputation for healthy eating. But the reality is that health-conscious people, including vegetarians and vegans, can find delicious meals all over the city. Below are our favorites.
Beatrix
Craft Your Plate: With four restaurants throughout downtown, Beatrix has an emphasis on healthy dining, including a gluten-free menu. The weekend brunch offers hand-crafted cocktails, fresh-squeezed juices and refreshing main dishes like baked apple and blueberry oatmeal or smashed avocado toast. For dinner, go with the wild mushroom teriyaki bowl or the pistachio-crusted whitefish.
True Food Kitchen
Good Food, Good Mood: Founded by Dr. Andrew Weil, renowned doctor of integrative medicine, True Food Kitchen’s philosophy is “Where ‘good for you’ means good for your tastebuds too.” To further its mission towards clean dining, True Food eliminated seed oils from every ingredient in 2022. Head to River North and try the charred cauliflower or chocolate peanut butter tart.
Deep Purpl
Sweet-but-Healthy Treats: Founded by a graduate of Loyola University’s School of Business, Deep Purpl serves the city with specialty acai bowls, Argentine empanadas and smoothies. Guests can customize their bowls with nutrition-packed superfood toppings like fresh fruits, hemp seeds, goji berries and almond butter. Find it for a midday pick-me-up, a post-workout snack or light lunch at one of the 10 Deep Purpl locations throughout the Chicago area.
Native Foods Café
Down to Earth: Visit Native Foods Café in the Loop for a full vegan experience. In addition to many salads and traditional vegetarian dishes like Buffalo cauliflower and Thai chili Brussels sprouts, you’ll find a Reuben, meatball sub or Nashville hot chicken sandwich made with 100% plant-based meat substitutes. Adventurous eaters can also sample one of the three Senegalese dishes, available on their own or as a combo plate.
Salad House
Your Meal, Your Way: With more than 50 ingredients and 15 dressings to choose from, there’s an infinite number of possibilities at Lakeview’s Salad House. Create your own or go with one of the 18 signature salads–like Santa Fe, Thai peanut or green goddess–many of which are also available as wraps.
Alice & Friends
Just Like Magic: A wonderland of vegan food, Alice & Friends Vegan Kitchen in Edgewater is the brainchild of Alice Lee. Founded in 2001, with the mission to craft an Asian fusion vegan menu for all to enjoy. Start with the fried King Trumpet mushrooms with a Korean dipping sauce before moving on to the Burmese noodle salad. And save room for one of the many vegan cheesecakes and ice creams on the dessert menu.
Fancy Plants Café
Wholesome Grub: Ideal for a grab-and-go breakfast or a spot to work remote, Lakeview’s 100% vegan Fancy Plants Café has options like a breakfast burrito with a tofu scramble and a New York-style bagel with cashew cream cheese, which can be enjoyed with an assortment of innovative lattes. For lunch, try the smoked lentil lasagna or the daily quiche.
Blind Faith Café
Go Green: Offering vegetarian cuisine in a relaxed, casual environment, Blind Faith Café opened in 1979 in Evanston and has become a local institution. Enjoy entrées like black bean ginger tofu or a shiitake walnut loaf for dinner, or stop in for brunch and get the enchiladas verde or barbeque seitan sandwich while sipping on a refreshing peach bellini. Blind Faith is certified by the Green Restaurant Association for its commitment to sustainability, recycling, composting and minimizing food waste.
CAVA
Mediterranean Delights: Inspired by the big Sunday dinners of the founders’ Greek-American childhood days, CAVA was launched in 2010. Build a bowl by selecting one of five greens and three grains, then selecting from a wide variety of proteins, vegetables, dips and dressings, or go with one of the many pita wraps, such as the falafel or spicy chicken and avocado. Its selection of juices include blueberry lavender and pineapple apple mint. Visit its Chicago location in Wicker Park.