A
★ MUST GO · #1 Must go · #1
Aina's Vegan Banh Mi
★ 5.0 100% Vegan ·$$ ·Vietnamese
Vegan Banh Mi, Vegan Donuts, Smoothies
#1 FOR BANH MI IN SAN JOSÉ
Try the Celestial Combination and Spicy Lemongrass vegan banh mi sandwiches.
Ranked by overall rating, signature dish strength, and how much reviewers praise the food. If you only have a weekend, start here.
Must go · #2 #2 Try the avocado truffle burger with your choice of patty including taro or black bean.
Must go · #3 #3 Try the funk bowl with its mix of black chickpeas, purple rice, and fermented toppings
Must go · #4 #4 Try the veggie combo plate for a variety of vegan dishes served with injera.
Must go · #5 #5 Enjoy the vegan filter coffee and customize your sweetness and strength
Must go · #6 #6 Try the matcha and chocolate cream-filled donuts for standout flavors
Must go · #7 #7 Try the lemongrass tofu banh mi sandwich for a flavorful vegan experience.
Must go · #8 #8 Order vegan pizzas whole as slices are not available in vegan options
Must go · #9 #9 Try the Vegan Big Sur pizza with roasted garlic and vegan pepperoni for a flavor-packed experience
Must go · #10 #10 Try the vegan spring rolls and lemongrass tofu dishes
Must go · #11 #11 Try the Vada Pav, praised as some of the best outside India with fresh homemade buns
Must go · #12 #12 Try the fried oyster mushrooms and green lotus egg rolls with peanut and tamarind sauces
Must go · #13 #13 Try the Spicy Cha Cha for a crispy, flavorful dish that’s a crowd favorite
Must go · #14 #14 Try the vegan combo plate—it's filling and affordable for two people.
Don't miss the vegan ice cream milk tea and smoothies like the Happiness smoothie.
Dishes ranked by how well this city's plant-based venues make them, compared to the other 157 cities we track.
5 places worth stopping for banh mi
Try the Celestial Combination and Spicy Lemongrass vegan banh mi sandwiches.
Try the avocado truffle burger with your choice of patty including taro or black bean.
Try the matcha and chocolate cream-filled donuts for standout flavors
Try the #34 vegan tofu deluxe sandwich for a flavorful vegan option
Try the lemongrass tofu banh mi sandwich for a flavorful vegan experience.
5 places worth stopping for boba tea
Expect longer wait times for food orders compared to drinks
Try the 'Pretty in Pink' drink for a standout vegan beverage experience
Try the Sea Cream foam coffee veganized with soy milk
Don't miss the vegan ice cream milk tea and smoothies like the Happiness smoothie.
Try the Pink Lady tea with soft boba for a refreshing vegan drink experience
4 places worth stopping for dosa
Enjoy the vegan filter coffee and customize your sweetness and strength
Try the masala dosa and millet dosa for authentic vegan options.
Try the millet dosa and heart-shaped millet idlis for wholesome vegetarian dishes
Try the Mini Thali for a filling, varied meal with complementary sides
Completely plant-based kitchens. No swaps, no asking, no surprises.
Try the Celestial Combination and Spicy Lemongrass vegan banh mi sandwiches.
Try the avocado truffle burger with your choice of patty including taro or black bean.
Try the matcha and chocolate cream-filled donuts for standout flavors
Try the lemongrass tofu banh mi sandwich for a flavorful vegan experience.
Mainstream restaurants where the vegan side of the menu is treated seriously.
Try the veggie combo plate for a variety of vegan dishes served with injera.
Order vegan pizzas whole as slices are not available in vegan options
Try the Vegan Big Sur pizza with roasted garlic and vegan pepperoni for a flavor-packed experience
Try the vegan tikka masala and biryani for flavorful plant-based dishes
Open before 10, good coffee, the kind of place you walk back to on day two.
Try the avocado truffle burger with your choice of patty including taro or black bean.
Try the Celestial Combination and Spicy Lemongrass vegan banh mi sandwiches.
Try the matcha and chocolate cream-filled donuts for standout flavors
Enjoy the vegan filter coffee and customize your sweetness and strength
Weekday fuel and weekend stretches.
Try the Celestial Combination and Spicy Lemongrass vegan banh mi sandwiches.
Try the funk bowl with its mix of black chickpeas, purple rice, and fermented toppings
Try the veggie combo plate for a variety of vegan dishes served with injera.
Try the avocado truffle burger with your choice of patty including taro or black bean.
Busy rooms with tables big enough for eight.
Try the funk bowl with its mix of black chickpeas, purple rice, and fermented toppings
Try the veggie combo plate for a variety of vegan dishes served with injera.
Try the timatim fitfit and mitten shiro from the dedicated vegan section
Enjoy the vegan enchiladas and breakfast burrito
Menus kids recognize, staff who don't flinch at strollers.
Try the Spicy Cha Cha for a crispy, flavorful dish that’s a crowd favorite
Try the vegan sampler plate for a variety of flavorful dishes.
Try the vegan tikka masala and biryani for flavorful plant-based dishes
Visit on Tuesdays or Wednesdays to get 30-40% off pizzas
Try the Far East Thai Chick’n Bowl and Senoran Bowl for great flavor and variety.
Try the Jamaican jerk and pulled "pork" tacos, both highly praised by multiple guests.
Visit on Tuesdays or Wednesdays to get 30-40% off pizzas
Try the It Ain't Chicken Sandwich for a flavorful plant-based option
spinach · Vegan Food Guide All 244 San José venues on the map. Filter by what's open, save what you'd return for, get walking directions in two taps.
Cities where the banh mi signature also earns a spot in the top essentials — pack a weekend around one.
Yes — San José has 244 vegan-ready venues. The top-ranked are Aina's Vegan Banh Mi, RawASF, Fox Tale Fermentation Project. Spinach ranks them daily on overall rating, signature dish strength, and reviewer praise for the food.
San José scores 49.4/100 on the Spinach vegan city index. The city has 30 vegan-friendly venues and 47 high-quality restaurants out of 244 analyzed.
San José has 18 fully vegan restaurants and 21 vegetarian restaurants. 30 venues score B or higher on the Vegan Friendliness grade.
San José's top signature dishes for vegans are banh mi, boba tea, dosa, and the city also does pizza and burger well. Signature dishes are ranked by how the city's venues score against the other 157 cities we track.
The vegan scene in San José leans American. American is particularly strong, with 10 venues serving quality plant-based options.
Aina's Vegan Banh Mi is ranked #1 in San José by the Spinach Essentials algorithm, which weights rating, signature dish performance, and reviewer praise. See all 15 Essentials for the full ranking.
Spinach ranks vegan venues using the same algorithm the mobile app runs: a composite of Google Maps rating, the Spinach Rating (Wilson-confidence scored), dish-quality Wilson scores from extracted review signals, and city-specific signature dish strength. Essentials add a tier weighting; category lists add their own mood/occasion weights. No pay-to-play.
The ranking refreshes daily from Supabase. The last refresh is stamped at the top of this page. Venue data comes from Google Maps, HappyCow, and Spinach's own review-analysis pipeline.
