Ten Must-Try Vegan Dishes in Miami

Vegan dining in Miami is a world away from what it was a few years ago. With Seed Food & Wine Festival making national news, new vegan eateries popping up all over the place, and meat-strong chefs incorporating plants into their menus, South Florida is finally coming into its own. Given this renaissance of herbivorous options, now is the time to highlight some of the best and brightest.

These ten vegan dishes — found in a diverse array of eateries (not all of which are vegan or vegetarian) — will please even the most salad-averse of diners. Bring your picky relatives and add a few years to their lives with all of these veggies. 

10. Wild mushroom salad at Yuga 
Lettuce can be decidedly dull, so it takes a lot for a salad to make its way to a list like this. But Yuga's delicate yet substantial wild mushroom salad is more than your average greenery. Featuring deliciously moist shiitake mushrooms, adorable enoki mushrooms, and fresh field greens with a cilantro-ginger vinaigrette, it's a true treat ($9.95).

9. Cheese platter at Full Bloom Vegan
It's not often that a vegan gets to indulge in a cheese platter. This isn't NYC, after all — Miami doesn't have its own dairy-free fromagerie. Luckily, the gentlemen of Full Bloom offer a platter of Miyoko's Creamery (one of the world's best vegan cheesemakers) delights. It comes with Fresh Loire Valley in a Fig Leaf, Mt. Vesuvius Black Ash, and French Style Winter Truffle — paired with fruit and bread for the full experience ($18).

8. Living lasagna at the Lido Restaurant & Bayside Grill at the Standard Spa Miami Beach
Dreamed up by Mark Zeitouni, the restaurant's food and beverage director, this vibrant dish could convert the staunchest of raw-food haters. Layered and pressed overnight prior to serving, the colorful entrée is a mix of cashew cheese, nut and vegetable "sausage," raw tomato sauce, and a carrot-shiitake mix, all layered with fresh squash. Served cold and garnished with raw olive oil, sea salt, and fresh sprouts, it's an ideal option on a boiling-hot Miami day ($19). 

 
7. Veggie plate at Blue Collar
Thanks to a lot of TLC by Blue Collar's Danny Serfer, vegetables never tasted so good. Biscayne Boulevard's casual eatery has a daily veg chalkboard that offers a host of plant-strong options. Though many of the veggies are cooked with butter, guests simply need to request veganized versions. The asparagus, kale, spinach, roasted potatoes, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, veggie fried rice, beets, and spaghetti squash can be made vegan on the spot, and the purées can be altered with a day or two's notice. Diners can choose four options to create a sprawling, rainbow-hued plateful of deliciousness ($16).

6. Moussaka at Mina's Mediterraneo 
Traditional moussaka may be heavy on the ground beef, but Mina’s vegan version holds its own without the need for animal ingredients. It features roasted eggplant, red and green peppers, and onions, all layered over potatoes and covered in a spicy tomato sauce ($12). 

5. Kung pao tofu at Blackbrick
This aesthetically appealing plate, the brainchild of master chef Richard Hales, features firm tofu cooked in a hot wok with garlic, ginger, red chili oil, and other flavorful additions. Blackbrick's chefs add Chinese brown sauce and a few other magical ingredients, top it with Szechuan wok-roasted peanuts, and — voilà — diners can dig into this satisfying, spicy dish ($19). 

4. Vegan jambalaya at Lokal
Beyond its reputation as a beer-and-burger joint (albeit an exceptional one), this Coconut Grove eatery knows its way around garden-grown ingredients. Lokal's vegan jambalaya is made with local chick'n and chorizo "sausage" (from Atlas Meat-Free Deli in Hollywood), sautéed with a hearty mix of peppers, onions, brown rice, and a homemade Cajun sauce ($15).

3. The geniroll lentil at Choices Café
For any vegan eater who misses sushi, this nori-wrapped roll is the answer. It features a rainbow of ingredients, including lentil meat, avocado, spinach, cucumber, zucchini, carrots, tomato, cashew cheese, and mamuket — a saucy blend of organic ketchup, organic mustard, and soy-free grapeseed-oil-based vegan mayo ($15).

2. Eggplant pastrami at Alter
This remarkable, plant-based version of a classic dish is a major favorite with Alter fans of every dietary persuasion. Brad Kilgore and team take Japanese eggplant, smoke it with hickory spice, then pair the meaty result with local sous-vide carrots and a lovely carrot squash purée. Just be sure to specify vegan; there's a vegetarian version as well ($21). 

1. Flora pizza at Lemoni Pizza & Kitchen
This dreamy pie features an eclectic mix of butternut squash, kale, almonds, a homemade creamy cashew sauce, and vegan Parmesan — all atop Lemoni's pillowy dough. Vegan pizza is challenging enough to come by, but creative, gourmet vegan pizza? With the Flora, Lemoni wins ($14 for ten-inch, $20 for 16-inch).