Soul Veg City: What’s Vegetarian Editorial Review

Soul Veg City is a fully vegan soul food restaurant at 203 East 75th Street in Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood. It used to be Original Soul Vegetarian, and the owners renamed it and remodeled the space with a new deli, a carryout counter, and a patio. The restaurant says it has cooked only with plants for more than 40 years, which makes it one of the longest-running vegan kitchens in the Chicago area.

The kitchen works through seitan, soy, and vegetables, and handles them well. The Amazing Gyro ($16) piles thinly sliced seitan on a pita with cucumber sauce, tomato, onion, and lettuce. The Italian V ($14) packs seitan soaked in au jus onto a hoagie roll with soy cheese. The Chicken Sandwich ($16) comes from in-house seitan that the cooks batter and toss in spicy sauce. Order the Famous Sloppy Joe ($13) for BBQ seitan crumbles, or the Vegan Fish and Tartar ($13) for a cornmeal-battered fillet on a bun. The Falafel ($10) is chickpea-based and comes with Jerusalem salad.

The soul food side shows up in the appetizers and entrees. For the cheapest entry, order the Kale Greens and Corn Bread Muffin ($7). Chicken Drums ($15) arrive crispy or tossed in buffalo or jerk sauce, and the Original Cauliflower Wings ($10) come with the sauce on the side. The Soul Ful Steak ($15) puts battered steak in jerk BBQ sauce over rice with peppers. The Jerk Nachos ($14) use jerk seitan, lettuce, soy cheese, and tomato. The Combo Basket ($15) lets you pick three of battered steak, tofu, cauliflower, mushrooms, or onion rings.

Eggless Rolls ($11) come in Buffalo Chicken, Philly Cheese, or Soulful styles. The Noodle Stir Kai ($12.50) is a spaghetti and vegetable plate, and the Stir Fry Vegetables ($10) sits on seasoned rice. Three tacos ($10) use grilled seitan crumbles with soy cheese. Smoothies run $7 to $9, with flavors like Strawberry Heaven (coconut milk, strawberries, banana) and Citrus Detox. Vegetable juices such as Green Day and Glow Forever start at $9.50. Desserts include Red Velvet Oreo ($6), peach pie ($5), cake ($5.99), and ice cream.

Nothing on the menu contains meat, dairy, or eggs, so a vegan or vegetarian diner can order freely. The cheese is soy-based. The restaurant doesn’t publish a gluten-free or allergen policy that I could find, so ask the staff if you have a serious allergy.

Prices are friendly. Sandwiches run $13 to $16 and most entrees land under $16. You can dine in, order takeout, get delivery, or order direct through the restaurant’s own site, which also earns you $10 off a future order for every $100 you spend. Big groups can use the catering service. The restaurant also runs a sister counter called Vegan Now 2 Go.

The hours are Monday through Friday from 11am to 6pm, and Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 6pm. Call 773-224-0104 for orders or questions. The Thanksgiving dinner packages, which include vegan roast, cornbread stuffing, and mac and cheese, come in sizes for 2, 4, 25, or 50 people. If you’ve never had vegan soul food, start with the gyro and a side of greens.