"Planta Cocina is a glamorous vegan restaurant right on Marina Del Rey that serves some of the best plant-based sushi in LA. The menu is also packed with drink options. Non-Alcoholic Options: Four mocktails, including a paloma and mango sour with botanical elixirs, a cucumber mule, and a spirit-free margarita. There’s a long list of interesting juice concoctions, too." - cathy park
"“Tig is vegan and this was a choice of hers. I had never been. We went to the one at Marina Del Rey, which is just fun to go eat by the water. The first thing I saw on the menu before she arrived was a sushi section. And I was really leery about ‘vegan sushi’ with ‘salmon’ and watermelon—obviously, salmon is in quotation marks. And there was an eel, an unagi, which is my favorite sushi. They had an eggplant unagi. I guess internally I might've been rolling my eyes a little bit, but I really shouldn't have been because it was absolutely incredible. We also tried their street corn, and I can only do a little bit of corn because it gets all over my teeth and it drives me crazy. But that was also wonderful. And then she insisted that we get the big cookie at the end. I love that they just call it exactly what it is: it's a big cookie and it was delicious.”" - brennan carley
"It’s probably one of the more beautiful, if not the most beautiful, restaurants in LA that is vegan. They really do try to make it a bit more upscale. You can dress up if you want to, but you don't have to if you don't want to. The way they present the dishes makes it feel really fun. When I took some of my friends there, they ordered the vegan sushi and said, “I can't believe how much this tastes like fish.” I really enjoy seeing those reactions to good vegan food that's been thought out and curated in that way." - brennan carley
"Meet MDR’s best option for a waterfront dinner that just so happens to be vegan. Planta Cocina's glitzy space is right on the boardwalk, and it feels like the West Coast version of the Versace mansion. Expect vegan sushi, pasta, and bar snacks that, for the most part, hold up against their meat-and-fish counterparts. We especially love the miso-glazed eggplant nigiri, which beats whatever you’d find at your average sushi spot. Book a table on a “Maki Monday” (AYCE rolls) or “Pour Decision Wednesday” (half-priced wine bottles) to make the most of Planta’s weekly specials and hopefully impress that vegan DJ you met on Hinge." - nikko duren, garrett snyder, sylvio martins
"I found Planta Cocina, which debuted in 2023 and sits in Marina del Rey where the temperatures are consistently cooler, to be a standout plant-based option. The menu stages stunning dishes like the ahi watermelon nigiri and a firecracker roll layered with sweet potatoes, avocado, unagi, gochujang mayo, and chili salt; staff also throw mushrooms, corn, and Japanese eggplant on the robata grill. There are other choices such as the hearts of palm “crab” tostada, an al pastor taco bowl, and a pasta verde with Woodland mushrooms and tomatillo salsa. In addition to inventive cocktails and an excellent wine selection, their non-alcoholic options are some of the best in the city, and you can even take advantage of the adjacent city-operated water taxi that costs $1 to cruise around the Marina." - Eater Staff