We’ve verified eight independent vegetarian restaurants in Washington DC and its close-in suburbs, and five of them cook without any meat at all. Two are fully vegan and three are fully vegetarian. The other three serve meat but label their vegetarian dishes on the menu. They sit in Dupont Circle, Georgetown, Adams Morgan, Chinatown, and H Street NE, plus Takoma Park in Maryland and Falls Church in Virginia. This page sorts them by area so you can pick one stretch and stay in it.
Our editors checked open status, hours, and menus on each profile between August 19 and September 7, 2026. Hours change, so check the closed days below before you go.
Vegetarian restaurants in Washington DC by tier
We rate every restaurant on a five-tier scale. These eight land in three of the five.
- 100% vegan (2): DC Vegan and Pow Pow serve no meat, dairy, or eggs. You can order anything on either menu.
- Fully vegetarian (3): Vegz, Dieu Huong, and Chay cook with no meat or fish. Vegz uses paneer and yogurt, so vegans should look for its (V) marks.
- Marks vegetarian items (3): Chaia, Herbivore Indian Cuisine, and Seoul Food DC cook some meat and name their vegetarian dishes on the menu.
Nothing sits in the vegetarian-friendly or less-friendly tiers yet. DC has plenty of ordinary restaurants with a veggie entree, and we haven’t verified them. For now, we list the places where you won’t have to guess.
Washington DC at a glance
| Restaurant | Area | Tier | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|
| DC Vegan | Dupont Circle | 100% vegan | Open daily |
| Herbivore Indian Cuisine | Georgetown | Marks vegetarian items | Open daily |
| Vegz | Adams Morgan | Fully vegetarian | Open daily (weekday break) |
| Chaia | Chinatown | Marks vegetarian items | Open daily (Sunday lunch only) |
| Pow Pow | H Street NE | 100% vegan | Open daily |
| Seoul Food DC | Takoma Park, MD | Marks vegetarian items | Sunday through Tuesday |
| Dieu Huong | Falls Church, VA | Fully vegetarian | Thursday |
| Chay | Falls Church, VA | Fully vegetarian | Open daily |
Dupont Circle and Georgetown
DC Vegan at 1633 P St NW is a vegan restaurant, cheese shop, and bakery in one room. The cooks make Italian-American comfort food. Order the meatball sub, and call ahead, because it sells out. Regulars also talk about the fried mushroom “calamari” and the Chesapeake fritter sandwich, which the kitchen builds on hearts of palm and Old Bay. A case by the counter holds wraps, salads, and cannoli. DC Vegan opens seven days, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, with weekend brunch from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
A short trip west, Herbivore Indian Cuisine at 1639 Wisconsin Ave NW in Georgetown has a name that oversells it. The cooks make chicken and lamb too. Herbivore earns the listing with its menu layout, which gives vegetarian entrees their own column, from Saag Paneer and Chana Masala to Malai Kofta and Baingan Bharta. The restaurant doesn’t say whether the paneer curries share pans with the meat, so ask if that matters to you. Mixed tables do well here. Herbivore stays open until at least 9:30 p.m. every day.
Adams Morgan and Chinatown
Vegz at 2120 18th St NW is a basement South Indian kitchen in Adams Morgan, and every dish is vegetarian. Chef Swarn Singh builds the menu around dosas. Start with the Masala Dosa, or try the Taco Dosa if you want something odd. The menu marks vegan dishes with a “(V)” and gluten-free ones with a “(G.F).” Vegz closes between 2:30 and 5 p.m. on weekdays, so plan dinner or an early lunch.
Chaia at 615 I St NW is a taco counter where vegetables are the default. Eight of its nine tacos have no meat, and only the Aji Verde Braised Chicken does. Get the Chipotle Sweet Potato Hash or the Braised Mushroom, and the Seasonal Sampler if you can’t decide. A trio costs $13. Chaia keeps gluten, peanuts, tree nuts, and soy out of its kitchens, but staff say they can’t guarantee zero dairy or egg cross-contact, even on vegan tacos. Chaia closes at 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday (9 p.m. in summer) and serves 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday.
H Street NE
Pow Pow at 1253 H St NE is a plant-based, kosher-certified fast-casual spot. Chef Margaux Riccio runs Chinese, Japanese, and Korean techniques through an all-vegan menu. Order the oversized egg rolls and the sesame chik’n. A bowl or a couple of egg rolls costs $10 to $20. Pow Pow opens daily from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., and you need to RSVP through Eventbrite for weekend brunch. A second Pow Pow sits downtown at Franklin Square.
Outside the District: Takoma Park and Falls Church
Seoul Food DC at 7302 Carroll Ave in Takoma Park, Maryland, serves Korean small plates, and nearly all of them are vegan. Chef Anna Goree makes a plant-based Korean fried “chicken,” scallion and kimchi pancakes, and cauliflower japchae. Two dishes contain real chicken, and the menu marks both. Small plates run $8 to $18. Seoul Food opens Wednesday through Saturday only, with a break from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.
Falls Church, Virginia, holds two fully vegetarian Vietnamese kitchens. Dieu Huong sits inside the Eden Center at 6795 Wilson Blvd and used to run as Thanh Van. Order the pho. The restaurant hasn’t confirmed whether its faux meats are free of dairy and eggs, so strict vegans should ask. Dieu Huong takes cash only and closes on Thursday.
Chay at 6351 Columbia Pike opens daily from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. The menu marks vegan and gluten-friendly dishes and flags peanuts. Get the Bò Lúc Lắc, a vegetarian “shaky beef” made from seitan and tofu, and an $8 order of Chả Giò spring rolls to start. Chay works well for a table with a vegan, an egg-eating vegetarian, and someone with a peanut allergy.
Chains and listings outside the count
Our independent count leaves out chains. Fruitive is a 100% plant-based, kosher-certified cafe in CityCenterDC with waffles and acai bowls, and it has two DC locations. Great Sage is an all-vegan restaurant in Clarksville, Maryland, well north of the city. It has served vegan food since 2004 and sits outside the area this page covers.
What a visitor should know
- Check the closed days. Seoul Food DC closes Sunday through Tuesday. Dieu Huong closes Thursday. Chaia’s Chinatown counter shuts at 2 p.m. on Sunday. Vegz closes between lunch and dinner on weekdays.
- Fully vegetarian isn’t the same as vegan. Vegz cooks with paneer and yogurt, and Dieu Huong hasn’t confirmed whether its faux meats contain dairy or egg. Vegans should read the marks and ask.
- Some kitchens cook meat. Chaia and Seoul Food DC each cook one or two meat dishes, and Herbivore cooks chicken and lamb. Call ahead if cross-contact matters to you.
- Group by area. Dupont Circle and Georgetown pair well on one trip. Chinatown and H Street NE both sit east of Dupont, so they pair too. Falls Church takes its own afternoon.
- Coverage has holes. We have no independent listings yet in Arlington, Alexandria, or Bethesda, and we keep adding restaurants. The full Washington listing shows everything we’ve verified so far. Check DC Vegan’s menu or Seoul Food’s small plates before you go.
Washington DC vegetarian and vegan FAQ
Where to start
Eating with a meat eater? Try Herbivore or Chaia. For a fully vegan menu with no questions, go to DC Vegan. Pow Pow is the cheap, fast pick. If you’re craving South Indian, head to Vegz. Willing to cross the river, drive to Chay or Dieu Huong for Vietnamese. For other cities, browse the vegetarian restaurant directory.