Established in 2006, The Vegan Joint on the corner of National and Rose Blvds in Palms, quickly became a neighborhood favorite, serving tasty, healthy Thai cuisine. Strictly vegan, this restaurant has nevertheless become a favorite with carnivores too, thanks to its vast array of delicious dishes.
Breakfast is served all day, with tasty treats including tropical pancakes with bananas and blueberries, and country hash browns with grilled potatoes, scramble egz, onion, cilantro and red pepper.
My favorite "go to" item is the fish wrap (grilled soy fish, avocado, lettuce, tomato, alfalfa sprouts and tahini dressing), which tastes surprisingly like fish. I also love the Shitake Soup with tofu, bamboo shoots, shitake mushrooms and kaffir lime leaves in coconut milk.
The Vegan Joint offers many meat substitutes, such as chicken, pepper steak, fish, seitan and tofu. In fact, they make their own seitan on the premises. My kids' favorite order is the chicken nuggets and garlic fries.
One of the most popular items on the menu is the fresh spring roll, fresh veggies, wrapped in rice paper and served with a tasty dipping peanut sauce. A certain editor I know loves the chicken tacos. The choices are really endless.
For dinner, you’ll find Thai noodle dishes, such as pad thai and spicy mint noodles and Chinese favorites, Kung Pao tofu and spicy green beans. There are also plenty of salads, burgers and “meat” dinners with rice and vegetables.
If you still have room, dessert comes in the form of guilt-free vegan cookies, cupcakes and cheesecake. All in all, the Vegan Joint has plenty of options to satisfy both meat-eaters and vegans alike.
The Vegan Joint: 10438 National Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90034, 310-559-1357
Hours: Sun-Thurs 7 a.m. - 9 p.m., Fri, Sat 7 a.m.-10 p.m.
