The Carrot Cake at J. Selby's

CAA strives to make going vegan as easy and accessible as possible so that we can help as many animals as possible. With that in mind, we started the Twin Cities Veggie Awards in 2016 to acknowledge the most outstanding vegan businesses in the Twin Cities area. (See last year’s winners here.)

Of course, we want you to know about each of these outstanding businesses so that you can benefit from what they have to offer. We also want to help these businesses thrive and to encourage other businesses to be more veg-friendly. Ultimately, we want to help create a community in which vegan options abound, where plant-based living is a more realistic option for everyone.

For this second year of the program, we chose winners for five different categories and also awarded a special citation. Each of the five panelists contributed to the long list of nominees. The highest rated business in each category is considered a winner and is listed below along with a few words from each of our panelists. The next five highest rated businesses in each category are considered finalists and are also listed below.

Please note that Evergreen Chinese Restaurant is listed as a finalist in the lunch/dinner category. They are closing permanently on June 25, and we would like to publicly acknowledge the many years of wonderful service they have given to the vegan community. Thank you, Evergreen! (Please be sure to visit them before they close!)

We are grateful for all the businesses in our Twin Cities area that makes living compassionately that much easier and more enjoyable through their vegan options. Here are a few of our favorites:

2017 Twin Cities Veggie Award Winners

• Best Vegan Breakfast/Brunch: Modern Times Cafe

  • “Modern Times has an abundance of delicious and clearly marked vegan items, including my personal favorite, The Jonathan Richman. Vegan specials often pop up too. Get there early on weekends—seats fill up fast!” – Laura Matanah

• Best Vegan Lunch/Dinner: Reverie Cafe + Bar

  • “Enjoy a casual lunch or dinner with Reverie’s simple but delicious menu of hot sandwiches, healthful salads, and house-made baked goods. Linger after dinner for the music, which spans many genres. Stay tuned for news as Reverie seeks to relocate.” – Chris Homsey

• Best Vegan Options after 10pm: Masu Sushi & Robata

  • “I love that Masu has three locations, a fun atmosphere, and a dedicated vegan menu, including inventive rolls, which are always colorful and fresh. There’s something for everyone, and I love their cocktails!” – Sal Kravik

• Best Vegan Sweets: Milkjam Creamery

  • “This Twin Cities hotspot is the perfect place to cool down. Their selection of ice cream always features at least a few nondairy options, and the flavors are playful, unexpected, and always delicious. Standouts are the PB vs Everybody (peanut butter, banana, and oreo) and Black (the darkest coco imaginable).” – Justin Leaf

• Best Vegan Product: Grlk Sauce

  • “The versatility of Grlk Sauce keeps me coming back. I’ve used it in sandwiches, even for “buttering” the outside of the bread before making vegan grilled cheese. GRLK also is great for making sauces creamier and more flavorful. It’s delicious, and I appreciate that the ingredient list is short and simple.” – Laura VanZandt

• Special Citation: J. Selby’s

  • This year’s special citation goes to our community’s biggest vegan success story of the year, J. Selby’s, which opened to huge crowds hungry for plant-based meals. In addition to having a gorgeous space, their eclectic menu features an array delicious comfort food that’s sure to please both omnivores and vegans alike. Plus, they’ve got a pay-as-you-can menu item and lots of gluten-free options. J. Selby’s is truly making vegan food accessible and showing the larger Twin Cities community that the future is in fact plant-based.

2017 Twin Cities Veggie Award Finalists

• Best Vegan Breakfast/Brunch

  • French Meadow Bakery & Cafe
  • Hard Times Cafe
  • Pizza Lucé
  • Reverie Cafe + Bar
  • Seward Cafe

• Best Vegan Lunch/Dinner

  • Evergreen Chinese
  • French Meadow Bakery & Cafe
  • ​J. Selby’s
  • Pizza Lucé
  • Modern Times Cafe

• Best Vegan Options after 10pm

  • ​Amazing Thailand
  • Hard Times Cafe
  • Jasmine 26
  • moto-i
  • Pizza Lucé

• Best Vegan Sweets

  • French Meadow Bakery & Cafe
  • Glam Doll Donuts
  • J. Selby’s
  • K’ul Chocolate
  • Reverie Cafe + Bar

• Best Vegan Product

  • K’ul Chocolate
  • The Herbivorous Butcher
  • Nicky’s Comfort Candy
  • Tempeh Tantrum
  • Vegan East

We couldn’t include every nominee here, but we encourage you to refer to visit VegGuide.org and happycow.net to locate other vegan-friendly grocery stores and dining options in the Twin Cities and beyond. Please also consider following social media sites, such as Twin Cities Vegan and our own Facebook page, which highlight a variety of vegan-friendly businesses in the area.