El Veganito

I would give the food and staff 10 stars if I could! On my first visit we got a ton of food because everything sounded delicious and we had enough left over for a second meal. We got quesabirria tacos, guacamole with chips, and veganito adobada fries. Everything was A+ amazing. The adobada was incredible, the tacos were life-changing, the guacamole and jalapeños and salsa were perfect, even the chips alone are worth the trip! The folks at the counter were super friendly and helpful, too. The only downside is the location in a sketchy mall where it’s hard to find the food court if you’ve never been there before. But it’s worth it! Persist and you will be rewarded with the most delicious feast!

After Google Maps took me to the back side of Macy's and said I had arrived, I ventured around the otherside of the building and found the Food Court where infact I found El Veganito. I am glad I did not give up. The service was fast and friendly with prices less than what was published on the internet. I got the Machaca with some fries and it was a delicious and filling meal. Definitely worth going back to try other menu items.

The restaurant is inside a mall, we had a jamica, but it was super watery it was literally water and sugar. The quesabirria was good, but the taquitos de papa were really hard and thick tortillas it hurt my teeth . It was a 7/10

AMAZING Mexican food!! AMAZING Vegan food!! We are so glad we listened to our friend’s recommendation to eat here. You have to come see for yourself. We ordered the sopes with carnitas, burrito with carnitas, and Veganito fries with soy protein. So much FLAVOR! And so much food!! I wish our trip had another day so we could come back tomorrow!!

Best Mexican food we’ve ever had! Everything was so fresh and tasty - we loved every dish

This might be one of the few infamous reviews. I had been meaning to visit this place for over 5 months. Having read the reviews, I was super excited. I drove an hour to reach this place. We ordered Sopes and Veganito burrito (with Jackfruit). It’s not the first time that I’ve tried vegan mexican food. Honestly, the food didn’t live up to the hype. At best it was average. I’ve had better vegan mexican food in San Diego. The Sopes were too salty. And the burrito was too bland and lacked flavor, particularly the jackfruit. The only good thing was the green salsa. I would not recommend driving there just for food. If you happen to be in the area it may be worth a try. If you want to drive for vegan Mexican, I would recommend Phatties in Escondido (suggestion is not sponsored).

Today my sister and I decided to try this place because it came highly recommended by a friend. Unfortunately, what should have been a pleasant experience quickly turned into frustration due to the poor customer service. Here’s what happened: My sister ordered first, and I went right after her. I clearly ordered tacos de papa, a side of rice, and a bottled Coke. The cashier entered my order, I paid without double-checking, and when my food came out, I noticed I was given beans instead of rice. Mistakes happen, so I didn’t think much of it. My sister, who was standing next to me when I ordered, politely took the beans back to the cashier to let him know I had ordered rice. Instead of simply fixing the issue, the cashier immediately insisted that I “did not say that,” dismissing both of us. Shocked, my sister repeated that I had ordered rice—she heard it herself. The cashier grabbed the beans, repeated that I was wrong, and then spoke to the cook in Spanish in a dismissive tone. At that point, we already felt uncomfortable, but I still got up to pick up my rice, thanked him, and started to walk away. That’s when he sarcastically told me to “have a nice day” in a rude, mocking tone. What could have been a small misunderstanding turned into an unnecessarily unpleasant and disrespectful experience. In any professional establishment, you do your best to resolve issues respectfully and ensure the customer leaves satisfied. Instead, this cashier chose to argue, dismiss, and belittle us over something so minor. For a business that likely doesn’t get much foot traffic, I’m shocked by how little they value their customers. It’s one thing to make a mistake—it’s another to treat paying customers with attitude and make them feel so uncomfortable that they don’t even want to sit and eat there. Most businesses at Grossmont Center don’t last long, and with this kind of service, I can’t imagine this one will either.

They should change the name to “WHOA!” Because that was my reaction after the first bite. I had the Veganito Burrito and was thoroughly impressed. Full of flavor. I used the green sauce that came with our meals and was amazed. Fast, friendly service. Large portions… come hungry! We were told that this is the best Mexican food in San Diego and it lived up to the billing.

El Veganito has some of the best vegan food I've ever had, and I can say this as a former vegan! The way they replace traditional, non-vegan ingredients with just the right vegan ingredients blows my mind each time! My go to order is the Sopes and an Horchata, and each time I have them, I ask myself why I don't eat here more often! Both of those items are so delicious and flavorful! The sopes are honestly better than any meat sopes I've had, and the horchata is in my top 3 horchatas! You can't go wrong with any item from their menu, they're all very good choices! They are located inside the food court at the Grossmont Center, so there is plenty of seating space. The one thing to be aware of is their days/hours, Wed-Sun! I have found myself craving this place on Mondays more often than I can count, and each time my heart breaks when they are not open. The staff is always super nice here and I cannot recommend this place enough, for vegans and non-vegans alike. Please go support them, as vegan food as delicious as this is so hard to find!!

Omigoodness El Veganito is MIND BLOWINGLY GOOD. This place has incredibly flavorful, well crafted dishes in spectacularly generous portions. We ordered potato taquitos, El Veganito fries & burrito with adobada, fish tacos, sopes, and horchata for 3 people. The flavors are complex and well-seasoned. Each dish was fresh but simultaneously gluttonously indulgent. We ate to our hearts content and still had enough for a second meal (which was still bomb the next day). I shared my leftovers with my meat-loving husband and he was convinced I was lying about it being vegan. In his words, "What sorcery is this?!?" Do yourself a favor and head to El Veganito next time you crave Mexican food. You won't regret it!

OMG!!! run here!!! amazing vibe, ppl and yes the food is fire ALL PLANTBASED!!! omg!!!

Flavorful and comforting - this is where I go when I get that craving for vegan birria. It's got the generous toppings, the vegan cheese filling and the consomé to dip the tacos into. Soooooooo good. The guy behind the counter and the guy in the kitchen are cool and friendly too. This spot is located in the food court at Grossmont Mall.

I love the fact that everything is vegan. The portions are large and shareable. The phish tacos have a lot of sliced avocado on them and pair well with the chipotle crema. The lime wedges are a nice touch that brings all the flavors together. The soy adobada in the California Burrito Bowl was well seasoned. We received our food quickly. The food was well-prepared with great attention to detail.

Despite it being in a food court, I must say, they take their vegan food seriously here. Everything was delicious, and the staff were ready with recommendations. I had the phish tacos and was pleasantly surprised that these are the best vegan phish tacos in SD (I've had a lot of vegan phish tacos)! The Jamaica was perfectly sweet, and i can't wait to try the horchata! I'm definitely coming back!

Been wanting to try this place out for a while. I order the vegan Al pastor California burrito and it did not disappoint! First off it's huge , so you get exactly what you pay for. It was very flavorful and their green salsa was the cherry on top :-* chefs kiss Excited to come back and try other things off the menu

Outstanding food! I understand the limited hours, but hope they are able to expand them -- we'd eat there more often.

DELICIOUS!!!!! The food is amazing!! Only place in San Diego with authentic vegan Mexican food that is actually GOOD!!! Adobada fries are 10/10! the large could feed 2 because the portion is so generous! They have: French fries, adobada style texturized soy, guacamole, "sour cream" , creamy chipotle, shredded "cheese", topped with grilled jalapeños, onions, and cilantro My son that isn't vegan had the birria tacos and loved them. They are made out of jackfruit and come with "cheese", cilantro, onion, a crispy tortilla, on the side consomé, lime, cucumber, and radish garnish. The salsas are really good to top off food and give it the finishing touch.! my favorite is the green salsa just because it's the spicier one

Food is always delicious. Highly recommend the Cali burrito with a side of guac. Love seeing more vegan places around the city and this is definitely one of our families favorite spots to grab food from. The service is great as well. Definitely try it out plus there's split house bakery next door to get your dessert on!

The food is good, but they are not always opened during the stated business hours. I drove there once when they were supposed to be opened - all the way from PB - and they were closed during business hours. That's a long drive, and not respectful towards customers. Call first to see if they are open. Always.

This small food stall in a food court made one of the best vegan Mexican meals I've had. This place is a must visit for anyone who wants an authentic cruelty free meal in San Diego- they have so many options for vegan meat like jackfruit carnitas, soy chorizo, vegan asada. I got tacos, loaded fried fries, and taquitos with a generous helping of vegan queso and crema.

Birria Taco and Consume: Birria taco fried. Consume super savory. Would def get again. But maybe better to get Consume when it isn't super hot outside. Super tasty. Expensive combo with Birria and Consume will check if it's cheaper to get a plate instead of a la carte. Fish taco really liked this as well! Would def get again. Also expensive but tasty. Will check if cheaper to get a plate. Will return. No allergy issues and peanut allergic daughter liked it as well. She liked the Birria.

Delicious EVERY time! Great service. Wish it was 7 days a week. A "MUST try" for vegans and non-vegans alike.

I've been eyeing this place through Instagram for months and I was finally able to try it out! It was better than I could have imagined! I ordered the Adobada tacos, I added guacamole (+$3) and got a side of rice and beans (+$3). You can tell it was made fresh using quality ingredients. There was a generous portion of seasoned soy curls. It was steaming and it was so hard to wait for it to cool down. My husband (non-vegan/vegetarian) was also very impressed with how it tasted!!! Please check this place out.. its incredible! I can't wait to try other items!!!

Absolutely love Veganito ! Cinco estrellas El servicio siempre es muy excelente y la comida es muy buena . I personally love the loaded fries but you can't go wrong w anything on the menu ! I only wish this place was closer to home , I would definitely be here every week !

Great food and customer service been here twice, not expensive very reasonable, this authentic place deserves more than 5 stars in my opinion. Try it you won't be disappointed, guaranteed!!

Recently started following a vegan style diet and this place really hit the spot and made it feel as if I was enjoying my food without limitations. So much flavor.

The best vegan Mexican food in San Diego. Sooo authentic and decent portions. Our favorites that we constantly come back for is Adobada fries and the Phish burrito.

Today was delicious again but a few things were off like the fries were so dry and old it made them inedible, super disappointed in that since we got 2 things with fries in it. Sopes we're yummy but super crunchy as well, it must of been a different chef that's learning or something because everything was old and burnt today.

I prefer the adobada tacos here over any traditional taqueria around. They're sooooo good and I'm not even vegan. The horchata has to be made in house because it's incredible. I don't know when was the last time I didn't drink fountain horchata. I am very happy to have found this place.

Vegan homemade Mexican deliciousness! El Veganito is a hidden gem in East county! Everything is so yummy & the staff is super helpful & friendly. You will love the fish burrito and the sopas! Delicious

8.5/10. Just wished they added a lil more French fries! Other than that, would definitely recommend trying for my cali vegan friends :))

Food is really yummy! The food tasted authentic. Service is very nice. Definitely worth trying.

BEST MEXICAN VEGAN FOOD EVER!!!! Literally so good I cannot wait to come back!!! Definitely recommend

We came specifically to the mall to try this spot and it was sooooooooo good! I have a lot of allergies and get nervous trying new spots, but I was able to find a bunch of things I could eat on this menu. We loved the food and highly encourage anybody looking for vegan Mexican food to try this spot out! You guys are great and I hope someday you can expand to Colorado! Yum!

Their food is so good! Best authentic Mexican vegan food I have ever had. This is the real deal. Their portions are also very generous. Highly recommend

This review is long overdue. My husband and I visit El Veganito at least once every two weeks. It is our absolute favorite place to go. It is conveniently located inside of the grossmont mall food court. The staff are always super kind and welcoming. The food is ready quickly, and the portions are very large! I used to get the carnitas tacos every time, but I also like to branch out when they have a special menu (the birria melt is amazing ) . This is definitely in my top 5 of best restaurants/food I've had.

I got the veganito burrito and to be honest I wasn't crazy about the adobada or the chipotle cream. The portions are huge and I liked the jamica. I think it's awesome there is a vegan taco shop at the mall. My wife really enjoyed her fish burrito and she is a meat eater.

Always closed during business hours. I've driven here so many times just to find them closed. The food is good but if you're never open when you're supposed to that's a one star for me. If they could get it together this place could be good. Also had a young man working here give me the wrong order and then charge me more.

Yes ...like this restaurant...good Vegan tacos And very friendly staff love the taco menu

Firstly, the place is in the mall's food court; for those of you unfamiliar with the place. I had to drive around before realizing, so trying to spare someone else that. The CA burritos are definitely over hyped for no reason. It's nothing but ground beef in some sauce. Imagine eating a CA burrito, but replace the meat with sloppy Joe. On top of that, they want you to pay an additiona $4.50 to add guac to a CA burrito, a burrito that's supposed to already have guac. This CA burrito tasted nothing like a typical CA burrito. The burrito cost about $15, then you have to pay an extra $4.50 for guac that they put on very sparingly. For $4.50 you get about one tablespoon of guac. On top of that, the person I spoke to on the phone to place the order seemed to be annoyed. This place does not have a posted menu, you have to call to get their IG handle and look at the menu through the site in their bio. I only gave this place a two star because their burrito was not terrible, definitely edible and a good portion, but I think they only give good portion sizes because its filled with ground beef. Of course I mean vegan versions of all of the foods I have mentioned. If you're looking for a good vegan CA burrito, go to Hugo's Cocina in Ocean Beach or even go to Plant Powered Fast Food for a ÇA burrito that's more decent than the one at this place.

The adobada tacos was not just the best vegetarian taco I ever had it was some of the best tacos I ever had. I loved it. I also had the California burrito and it also did not lack for flavor and it was massive. I left stuffed and satisfied with the food. The gentleman at the register was very kind and patient. Come check this place out it is definitely worth a meal wether you're vegan or not. I highly recommend it!

Best vegan food I've had! When it came out I was surprised by how good it looked. I will most definitely be coming back

Tried the Veganito Fries yesterday. Was very impressed with the quantity as two people couldn't finish it together at my place. Definitely will come again. Very taste and loved the jackfruit, never had it before as a substitute.

One bite of their Sopes and I was in Mexico! Omg I'm blown away with how amazing this food tastes, I was definitely worried about this place being so expensive and thinking "what if the food is garbage" I would hate to waste money. I would drive an hour to have this food again, best Mexican food in San Diego and it's Vegan! Wow!!!! I don't know how you made these flavors work but keep going!

The prices are a bit expensive, that is the only reason I put 4-stars (and the hours). But the food is to drool over. They are very helpful and the cooks are very quick! I always get my lunch on time and don't spend too much time waiting for it. Which I appreciate! I do wish their hours are better, that's for greedy reasons. I want MORE!

This place is so freaking good! The adobada burrito is so amazing!!! I also bought the large Vegan Fries to share with my family of 4 and Lawd!!!! It' was mind blowing how the carnitas and adobada on the fries was so so so Yum! So the large can feed easily 3-4 people and has all plant base items cheese, sour cream, grilled jalapeños guacamole, pico, jackfruit (which I hadn't tried but was so good a gave a texture of a chicken) as it was seasoned so good and the adobada (which you can have two plant proteins to select the other option is extra veggies) had a nice texture too that mocked the real thing of beef!!! Transitioning to vegan (2 weeks in) this place was just awesome I forgot I was eating vegan food nonetheless healthy food lmbo No but for real Ok how to get here so google will get you lost so the best way to get to this is know that it's in the food area at the Grossmont Plaza near Macy's. I even stopped at "Split" as suggest by staff for vegan dessert all handmade and fresh just outside of the court Just thought I'd thrown that in

This is my favorite vegan Mexican restaurant. Any time I am in the area I try to get it. My go to is the veganito fries with adobada. I love getting the large so I can do half and half with the proteins. These are super filling an messy, a fork and many napkins. The adobada, carnitas, and phish tacos are very tasty. You really can't go wrong, pretty much everything on the menu will blow your mind!

I don't get it why this place is in an unassuming corner of a shopping mall. This place blew my mind with their adobada tacos and their phish burrito. Please add the green salsa and put enough lime to taste when you eat. It was a flavor burst every bite!! And on top of that it is vegan !! What!! I am a vegetarian/vegan and this is absolute heaven. I will definitely be coming back for more when I am in SD. My best mexican food experience till date!

This is literally the best vegan Mexican food I've had in my life. As a so cal girl I'm very picky and when I made the switch to vegan/vegetarian I was terrified I'd miss out on my favorite foods. Not the case with this place around. Everything on the menu is extraordinary. I'd give this place a million stars if I could.

Excellent!! At first, $15 for burrito seemed like a lot. But its big and worth it. I ordered the Phish Burrito - it's big enough for 2 meals. But get 4+ sauces. I only got 2 sauces and it wasn't enough.

This gem is worth the trip to the mall food court and definitely worth the $, although i won't be able to go as often as I'd like because of it. I got the Veganito burrito with carnitas and OMG it's amazing.

Such a great spot. Love being able to get a delicious vegan experience at El Veganito! Have gone back to these guys many times. Victor and his crew are tip top when is comes to making authentic mexican food thats vegan in so cal!

I ordered a "California burrito" paid 16$ and it was AWFUL!! There is nothing vegan about this place. The meat may be soy but the tortillas are still regular tortillas a made with lard,, the meat was so salty and had TOO much seasoning. Over powered any other ingredients. I will Not go back and the burrito wound up in the trash! YUCK!!!

So damn delicious! I def recommend the carnitas burrito! It's huge and packed with flavor. The horchata is great and super authentic! I'll forsure be coming back on my next trip to SD

A hidden gem :) It's made fresh to order but exercising patience is worth it! So far I have tried the California burrito, a variety of their taco selection, and their tostada. Even if you are not a plant-based eater, I recommend. For Vegans, this definitely is a heavy, tasty, cheat meal! I wish they would open another location more central in San Diego or even in Chula Vista!

I ran into the Veganito at the First Friday Vegan Market event at Grossmont mall. I'm not a vegan, but certainly have no issue eating vegan for or anything else for that matter. I grabbed something familiar to my palate: adobada tacos made from soy and many of the traditional adobada ingredients for flavor and color. A set of three cost $11. The mini tacos came on a quality warm corn tortillas. The soy base adobada was quite good. I enjoyed the flavor and its texture. The addition of the chopped cilantro and white onions was just right. However, I did miss the the liquidy guacamole sauce. If they make that and include it with the $11 price, these would be solid. What are you waiting for peeps? Bring it! I tried all three house made hot sauces, one on each taco, and they were all very good. Each offered their own distinct flavor and heat level. My favorite was the green one. It had a good zing! Service was friendly enough and busy, busy, busy!

First time eating here. Thank you for having all vegan options! The food is so good. We ordered the Bee Fast burrito, breakfast tacos and tacos de papa some fries and horchata. Sooooo good. Total Comfort food. Good portion sizes. Prices same as other vegan spots hard to say when your feeding a family of 5 . After I saw the portion size and how good the food was I was satisfied. Definitely want to come back here. Everything we ordered was yum.