The Best Plant-Based Burgers in LA

Get a vegan cheeseburger or make it a double. This Chinatown walk-up - which recently opened a Highland Park location - makes their own delectable patty with mushrooms, eggplant, cashews, barley, garbanzo beans, celery, leeks and a top secret spice blend, topped with Follow Your Heart vegan American Cheese. Shoestring fries, tofu nuggets and a Topo Chico make it a meal worth sharing.

This Los Feliz staple has long offered their tasty, grainy No Animal Burger—order it without the Thousand Island dressing and voila, it’s vegan. Jalapeño pickles, avocado and the potato bun make for a mouthwatering, messy mouthful.

This Los Feliz fast food joint may be the new kid in town but they clearly know their stuff, offering the rare option of either Beyond or Impossible patties as well as crispy sweet potato “frots” (fries + tots), shakes and soft serve. Limited seating inside and tables outside make it dog-friendly, too.

Who knows burgers better than a steakhouse? If you like veggie burgers of the old school rice and bean-based variety, Houston’s offers a huge house-made patty bursting with flavor. The bun is vegan but grilled in butter unless you ask them to leave it out. Try it at their Manhattan Beach or Pasadena locations (this is a fancy burger—check the dress code!).

The menu in this tiny Koreatown grill is as simple an In-N-Out Burger's, but everything here is plant-based. Get a double or single Impossible Burger, a side of tater tots with your choice of dipping sauces, a coconut-based shake and a hearty chopped kale Caesar salad to balance it all out.

For those who like their "meat" a little beet-y, the Beets Me Burger at Seabirds Kitchen in Long Beach fills the void in the market with their house-made shiitake, beet and chia patty; almond butter (it works!), grilled onions, pickles, arugula, and herb mayo.

This upscale Westside pub takes their vegan menu seriously and the way they make their Impossible Burger stands out—two patties grilled to perfection, topped with vegan provolone, house-made piccalilli, roasted tomato aioli and arugula.

When it’s 2 am and you have to get your munchies on, Swingers Diner (in Beverly Grove or Santa Monica) is the place to be. The house-made veggie and quinoa patty topped with vegan cheese, spicy mustard, lettuce and tomato, served on a toasted wheat bun more than satisfies, especially washed down with the “Hardcore Peanut Butter Shake”—now with almond and oat milk options.

The Flaming Melt on sourdough is all the rage at the Vegan Hooligans pop-up, available with Impossible or Beyond meat inside, while a side of gooey Asada Fries brings the taste buds to life. Find the hardworking Hooligans in Eagle Rock at Abby’s Diner during dinnertime and vending all over town, including Punk Rock Thursdays at Besties Vegan Paradise from 6-10 pm.

The Veggie Grill chain offers some very dressed up versions of the Beyond Burger as well as their own Grilled Quinoa + Veg burger - full of grainy goodness, topped with house-pickled onions, vegan American cheese, arugula, and cilantro pesto.