Looking for Velvet Taco vegetarian options? Order the Beer Battered Cauliflower, Fried Paneer, or Nashville Hot Tofu taco at the counter. Add queso, elote, guac, or salsa on the side. Here’s what’s safe, what sounds meat-free but isn’t, and what to skip if you’re keeping it vegan. Checking other chains too? The What’s Vegetarian homepage covers what about the vegetarians for dozens more.
A Quick Look at Velvet Taco
Velvet Taco opened in 2011 on Henderson Avenue in Dallas. It started as a late-night, counter-service taco spot with globally inspired flavors, not straight Tex-Mex. Restaurant executive Randy DeWitt created the concept through his Dallas restaurant group, now called FB Society. Jack Gibbons joined soon after as co-founder. FB Society also runs Twin Peaks and Rockfish Seafood Grill, so Velvet Taco grew up inside a bigger restaurant incubator, not as a lone startup.
Private equity has owned most of the chain since 2016. L Catterton took a majority stake that year. It sold that stake to Leonard Green & Partners in November 2021, and L Catterton and FB Society kept minority shares. Leonard Green still owns the majority in 2026. Clay Dover ran the brand as CEO from 2017 into late 2025. Chris Schultz took over on December 3, 2025. He previously led Voodoo Doughnut and spent years at MOD Pizza and Starbucks.
The chain stayed small and Texas-heavy for most of its life. Growth picked up fast. Velvet Taco ran about 38 units across 6 states in April 2023. That grew to roughly 49 units by the end of 2024, then more than 50 restaurants across 8 states by December 2025, including Texas, Illinois, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, Florida, and Arizona. A franchise location in London’s Broadgate Circle opened in November 2025, the brand’s first outside the US.
Sales grew right along with the store count. System-wide sales hit nearly $148 million in 2024, up 21.6% year over year, according to Technomic data reported by Nation’s Restaurant News. That made Velvet Taco the top-growing chain in the Mexican fast-casual category that year.
Velvet Taco Vegetarian Options: What to Order
Velvet Taco marks several menu items with a “V” for vegetarian. Marked doesn’t always mean vegan, though, and a couple of items that sound meat-free aren’t. Here’s the item-by-item breakdown, checked against the current official menu and nutrition page.
| Menu Item | Vegetarian | Vegan |
|---|---|---|
| Beer Battered Cauliflower Taco (queso blanco, hot sauce, avocado, corn pico) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (queso blanco is dairy) |
| Fried Paneer Taco (ranchero salsa, tikka sauce, raita crema) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (paneer and raita crema are dairy) |
| Nashville Hot Tofu Taco (napa slaw, ranch crema, pickles) | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ Check (vegan without the ranch crema, ask before ordering) |
| Seasonal Veggie Bowl (roasted vegetables, guac, queso blanco, basmati rice) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (queso blanco is dairy, rice cooking liquid not confirmed) |
| Queso Blanco (side) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (dairy cheese) |
| Red Curry Coconut Queso | ❌ No (Velvet Taco discloses trace shellfish) | ❌ No |
| Elote (queso listo, lime crema, queso fresco) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (dairy cheese and crema) |
| Guac | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Ranchero Salsa | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Crisp Tots & Sunny Egg | ❌ No (peppered bacon) | ❌ No |
| Kid’s Tots | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ Check (fried in shared oil, see allergy notes) |
| Red Velvet Cake | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (standard recipe uses dairy and eggs) |
Vegetarian Tacos at Velvet Taco
Three tacos carry the “V” label right now. The Beer Battered Cauliflower taco is the closest thing to a signature order: crispy battered cauliflower, queso blanco, sabor hot sauce, avocado, and candied pepitas in a flour tortilla. The Fried Paneer taco leans Indian, with ranchero salsa, a mild tikka sauce, raita crema, and Thai basil. Nashville Hot Tofu is the spiciest of the three, built on crispy tofu with napa slaw, ranch crema, and pickles.
All three come in a flour tortilla. Watch for cross-contact, though. Velvet Taco’s allergen policy states that fried items across the menu, including chicken, fish, and cod, can share fry oil. None of the fried tacos are guaranteed free of meat or fish contact.
Some third-party vegan guides describe an older falafel taco as a zero-modification vegan item. It doesn’t show up on the current official menu. Treat that claim as outdated, not something you can order today. Call ahead if a specific vegan taco is the whole reason for your visit.
Everything else on the taco lineup splits by protein: chicken (Spicy Tikka Chicken, Buffalo Chicken, Rotisserie Chicken, Chicken & Waffle), beef (Bacon Smash Burger, Slow-Roasted Angus Brisket, Chimichurri Steak), pork (Quesa Birria, Hatch Chile Pork), and fish (Mexi-Cali Shrimp, Grilled Salmon, Fish n’ Chips). None of those work for vegetarians. Velvet Taco also runs a Weekly Taco Feature, a rotating limited-time item. It usually isn’t vegetarian, so check the current feature before you order.
Bowls, Sides, and What’s Vegan at Velvet Taco?
The Seasonal Veggie Bowl is the one bowl built for vegetarians: roasted vegetables, guac, corn pico, avocado crema, pickled onion, queso blanco, napa slaw, and basmati rice. It’s vegetarian, not vegan, because of the queso blanco and avocado crema. Queso Blanco and Elote are the same story on the side menu, both dairy-based and vegetarian only.
Actual vegan options are the plainer ones. Guac is just avocado, cilantro, jalapeno, lime juice, and red onion, with no dairy listed. The newer Ranchero Salsa is fire-roasted tomato, poblano, tomatillo, jalapeno, and lime juice, also dairy-free on the official ingredient list. Beyond those two vegan options, going vegan takes some asking. Have the counter hold the dairy toppings on the cauliflower or tofu taco, then confirm the tortilla and fryer situation yourself. Velvet Taco hasn’t published whether its flour tortillas contain butter or whether its beans and rice use meat-based stock.
Special Dietary Requirements and Allergies
- Shared fryer oil. Velvet Taco’s own allergen policy says fried items with different allergens, including chicken and fish, can be cooked in the same oil as the Beer Battered Cauliflower and other fried vegetarian items. Skip the fried tacos if cross-contact with meat or fish is a hard no for you.
- Red Curry Coconut Queso contains shellfish. This one sounds plant-based because of the coconut. Velvet Taco discloses trace shellfish in it anyway. Don’t assume a coconut-based item is automatically vegetarian.
- Crisp Tots & Sunny Egg has bacon. The name reads like a simple potato side. It’s actually built with peppered bacon and a fried egg, the one item on this menu most likely to trip up a vegetarian who orders by name alone.
- Rennet source isn’t published. Velvet Taco hasn’t stated whether its cheeses use animal or microbial rennet. Ask a manager directly if you’re strict about that.
- Beans, rice, and tortillas are unconfirmed on animal stock and fat. No official source spells out whether the black beans or basmati rice cook in meat stock, or whether the flour tortillas contain lard or butter. Ask before ordering if this matters to you.
- The weekly rotating taco (WTF) is often meat or seafood. It isn’t part of the standard vegetarian lineup, so check the current feature before you assume it fits.
Tips for Vegetarians at Velvet Taco
- Start with the Beer Battered Cauliflower or Fried Paneer taco if dairy is fine and you want the most filling vegetarian option.
- Order Guac and Ranchero Salsa on the side if you’re vegan. They’re the two items with no dairy or animal ingredients on the official menu.
- Ask for the Nashville Hot Tofu taco without the ranch crema for something closer to vegan, and confirm the tortilla with your cashier.
- Skip the Red Curry Coconut Queso and the Crisp Tots & Sunny Egg. Both sound vegetarian-friendly but aren’t.
- Order the Seasonal Veggie Bowl instead of a fried taco if shared fry oil worries you. The vegetables are roasted, not fried.
- Check the Weekly Taco Feature before you order. It rotates and is usually built around meat or seafood.
- Call your specific location for a firm answer on rennet, tortilla ingredients, or bean and rice prep. Velvet Taco hasn’t published that detail chain-wide.
Conclusion
Velvet Taco gives vegetarians three real tacos, plus a bowl and a handful of sides. It’s still a dairy-heavy menu with only two confirmed vegan items. Order the Beer Battered Cauliflower or Fried Paneer taco if dairy is fine. Stick to Guac and Ranchero Salsa if you’re vegan. Skip the Red Curry Coconut Queso and Crisp Tots & Sunny Egg, since both hide non-vegetarian ingredients behind vegetarian-sounding names.
This chain is still growing fast, with new locations opening in Arizona and its first restaurant outside the US now open in London. That’s worth a repeat check every year or two as the menu evolves. For the bigger picture on eating vegetarian at restaurants, see our guide to eating vegetarian and vegan at restaurants, browse more restaurant guides, or check out what’s vegetarian at other fast-casual chains like Chuy’s Tex-Mex and Jason’s Deli.
