The Vegetarian Guide to Downtown

mexicali

Hunting out meat-free meals in the heart of Los Angeles

By Katherine Davis

"Shojin looks, at first, like the other Japanese Restaurants surrounding it on the third floor of the Little Tokyo Galleria except for a small sign in the window that reads "VEGAN"

While Downtown L.A. lacks in staunchly vegetarian restaurants, it has no shortage of quality meat-free meals-they just might not be where you would expect to find them. From a Little Tokyo sushi restaurant, to a gastro-pub that serves almost exclusively sausage, Downtown’s best vegetarian options are sometimes found in its most un-vegetarian places.

The Animal Lover at Nickel Diner
524 S. Main Street
(213) 623-8301
Breakfast/Lunch 8 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday
Dinner 6 p.m. - 11 p.m.  Tuesday-Saturday
$8-$14

 

Just over two years old, Nickel Diner has already caught the attention of The Food Network and Oprah Magazine. The attraction, explains owner, Kristen Trattner, is nostalgia. “Nobody cooks anymore so it’s like home cooking is the new exotic food.” And while most old fashioned, bacon-and-eggs-centric American diners can be unwelcoming to herbivores, the abundance of vegetarian and vegan home cooking on its menu is one of the many things that sets Nickel Diner apart from its competition. Among appetizing vegetarian options like the quinoa-stuffed avocado or the smoky vegan chili, a true standout dish is the Animal Lover from the breakfast menu. Served on a bed of fresh spinach, and mixed with garlic, sweet peppers, and organic beans, this dish, which resembles scrambled eggs but is tofu-based, packs enough spicy flavor to wake you up in the morning. It is all topped off with a dollop of goat cheese for a bit of sweetness and charm. Like the rest of the items on Nickel Diner’s menu, it’s a little bit nostalgic, a little bit quirky and entirely delightful.

The French Onion Sandwich at Sandwich Shop
531 W. 6th Street
(213) 627-1508
8 a.m. - 4 p.m.  Monday - Friday
11 a.m. - 4 p.m.  Saturday
$6-$8

 

The French Onion Sandwich seduces with its delicate combination of sweet and savory. The concept is simple: caramelized onions and melted Gruyere cheese between two pieces of toasted raisin and walnut bread in a serving size that leaves you neither hungry nor overly full. It is one of a few meat-free options at Sandwich Shop, and like all of the items on the brief menu it comes served on a paper plate with a simple garnish of a few tiny pickles. The no-nonsense name “Sandwich Shop” says it all-this place is gimmick-free. Wedged on 6th Street between a few flashy chain restaurants, the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it lunch space appears unassuming and austere, but its creativity is all in its sandwiches. The Financial district offers an endless array of busy lunch cafes, but Sandwich Shop stands out for its rare combination of elements: the atmosphere is unpretentious, the prices are affordable, and the sandwiches-even the vegetarian ones-are great. 


The Veggie Taco at Señor Fish
422 E. 1st Street
(213) 625-0566
11 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Tacos $2.25-$3.50

 

Knowing where to find good tacos is an important survival skill in a taco-loving city like this one. Good, meatless tacos, unfortunately, are sometimes hard to come by. Luckily, Señor Fish, a Little Tokyo Mexican spot with a full bar and a spacious outdoor patio, offers a variety of mouth-watering vegetarian options. The veggie tacos are fresh and flavorful, piled high with rice, beans, corn, zucchini, lettuce and pico de gallo. And with no meat or cheese, they offer all of the satisfaction of eating Mexican food without the artery-clogging guilt. If guilt is not a deterrent for you, however, the vegetarian-friendly potato tacos are a deliciously indulgent treat. Potato and cheese stuffed inside a small tortilla then deep-fried and topped with salsa, these are rich, greasy and oddly appetizing. All of Señor Fish’s vegetarian options are tasty to begin with and made even more enjoyable by the restaurant’s homemade salsas and delectably spicy guacamole.

The Shojin Roll at Shojin
Little Tokyo Galleria Suite 310
333 S. Alameda Street
(213) 617-0305
5:30 p.m. - 10 p.m.  Monday - Friday
11:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Wednesday - Friday
Noon-10 p.m. Saturday - Sunday
Sushi $6-$11

 

Pumpkin tempura, grilled shiitake mushrooms, fried tofu, cucumber and yamaimo (a Japanese root vegetable eaten raw), rolled up with brown rice and seaweed, the Shojin is an entirely different experience from most sushi restaurants’ version of a vegetable roll. That is to say, it’s great. A surprising combination of flavors and textures from the sweetness of the pumpkin, the full-flavor of the brown rice, the smoothness of the mushroom and the unusual crunch of the yamaimo, the Shojin Roll is an appropriate namesake for the equally surprising Shojin Restaurant. Shojin looks, at first, like the other Japanese restaurants surrounding it on the third floor of the Little Tokyo Galleria except for a small sign in the window that reads “vegan.” There is not a fish, or any other animal product for that matter, to be found here. Vegan food can be intimidating and Shojin does serve its share of scary sounding fake meat items. Their fresh and original vegetable dishes, however, such as the Shojin Roll, the wildly flavorful shiitake tempura appetizer, or the simple and sweet shiitake and avocado roll can be enjoyed by vegans and non-vegans alike.

The Vegetarian Mexican Chipotle
Sausage at Wurstküche
800 E. 3rd Street
(213) 687-4444
11 a.m. - Midnight
Sausages $5.75-$7.50

 

Wurstküche, which is German for “sausage kitchen,” sounds like an unlikely provider of vegetarian food, but owner Joseph Pitruzzelli assures that meat-free options were part of the restaurant’s concept from the very beginning. For those that don’t mind eating next to someone dining on veal, alligator or rattlesnake sausages, the menu’s three veggie sausages made by Seattle’s Field Roast Company are popular options. So popular, in fact, that the vegetable and grain based meatless sausages make up one of the biggest portions of Wurstküche’s sales, and it is not just vegetarians who are ordering them. Even meat-loving Pitruzzelli admits he finds himself regularly craving veggie sausage. The Smoked Apple Sage and Vegetarian Italian sausages are both satisfying, but not unlike grocery store variety vegetarian sausages. The Mexican Chipotle sausage, on the other hand, is a unique taste experience. Its smoky, dynamic flavor demands attention (in a good way, not that weird, fake meat way). It is the spiciest of the three and not for the weak-of-taste buds, but topped with caramelized onions and sweet peppers, and washed down with an imported European beer and a big order of Wurstküche’s signature Belgian fries (which are vegan), it makes for a hearty meatless meal.


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