You would think living in the “Dairy State” would make it difficult to be vegan. Wisconsin prides itself on beer and cheese and brats. Despite my surroundings, I have been able to find some pretty good vegan food at restaurants near me. I will admit, surrounding cities such as Milwaukee and Chicago have far more vegan options, but Kenosha has a few gems worth mentioning.
Read on to find out where to eat vegan in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Daily Dose Cafe
Daily Dose Cafe is a cute little restaurant with a fully herbivorous menu. I only discovered it within the last year as it is not greatly advertised, but the food is so good. Menu items on the herbivorous menu include:
- Spicy Sweet Potato Wrap
- Spiced Tofu Tacos
- Tofu Veggie Scramble Wrap
- Tofu and Toast
- Fresh Hummus and Cucumber Wrap
- Portabella Mushroom Ciabatta
- Impossible Burger
- Split Your Plants Burger (my favorite)
- Fancy Toast
Daily Dose also states that many of their regular menu items can be converted to vegan.
The Apis Hotel and Restaurant
The Apis Hotel and Restaurant is relatively new to Kenosha. The rooftop bar was a cool place to visit last summer and the food was incredible. The Apis has a rotating menu and per the owners, will be very accommodating if they can make something vegan that is not. Current Vegan Menu items include:
- Pickled Vegetables
- Tamari Glazed Cashews
- Charred Warm Olives
- Blistered Shishito Peppers (my favorite)
- Roasted Broccoli
- Cold Udon Noodle Salad
The drinks are also very unique and delicious. The servers are knowledgeable of the menu. They will be able to tell you what is and can be made vegan.
The Buzz Cafe
The Buzz cafe shares ownership with The Apis and Sazzy B. The owner claims that all 3 restaurants will accommodate vegan requests if the ingredients are available.
Current Vegan Menu Items include:
- Totally Roasted Wrap
- That Avocado Toast (ask for vegan bread)
- Blended drinks when specified vegan
The Buzz has been known to feature a vegan special from time to time, so keep an eye out for that.
Sazzy B
Sazzy B has a rotating menu that often features at least one vegan dish. The vegan black bean and sweet potato tacos featured last year were amazing. They are not currently on the menu, but I’m hoping they bring them back!
Currently, at Sazzy B you can get:
- Hummus plate (no cheese)
- Fried Shishitos (ask for no batter if they add milk or eggs)
- Any of the salads (no cheese and sub for a vegan dressing if needed)
It’s recommended to reserve a table if you’re dining here because the space is small. When reserving you can make a note to the restaurant that you are vegan so they can be prepared to accommodate.
Milwaukee Burger Company
I’m throwing in a couple of chain restaurants just to add more choices. Milwaukee Burger Company has a few vegan options on the menu including:
- The Beyond Burger (choose vegan toppings such as lettuce, tomato, and onion and sub bun for a pretzel bun)
- Portabella Mushroom Cap on a pretzel bun
All of the battered items contain buttermilk, but the fries should be fine. Make sure to talk with your server to confirm.
Red Robin
Red Robin is another burger chain that offers a few vegan menu items. If you are worried about cross-contamination, don’t get the fries. But they are not intentionally made with any animal products.
Vegan menu items include:
- The Impossible Cheeseburger (No cheese, mayo, or pickle slices and sub bun for ciabatta or lettuce wrap)
- The Vegan Burger (comes with a lettuce wrap but can sub for ciabatta bun)
- Steak Fries
- Sweet Potato Fries
- Yukon Chips
- Steamed Broccoli
You can pretty much sub an impossible or veggie patty for most of the burgers at Red Robin, but be wary of the toppings.
It is my understanding that there are different options for veggie burgers depending on the location. The ones used at the Kenosha location are vegan. The ciabatta buns at the Kenosha location are also vegan.
Iguana Wanna
I love the space at Iguana Wanna. It’s so spread out. They have a heated patio and even added some outdoor seating with heaters. I wish they had a few more vegan menu items, but what they do have is really good.
Vegan menu items include:
- Veggie Fajitas (specify you are vegan so they don’t use animal products when preparing the tortillas)
- Black Beans
- Coconut Rice
- Chips and Salsa or Guacamole
The margaritas here are fabulous too.
Pimmy’s
Ok, so I have never actually eaten at Pimmy’s, but I hear it’s really good. I reached out to Pimmy’s to see what they had for vegan options.
Here is the list they gave me:
- Mixed Vegetables/Tofu
- Rama with Tofu or Vegetables
- Vegetable Potstickers
- See Ewe with Tofu or Vegetable (no egg)
A spokesperson for Pimmy’s said that most of the items on the menu can be made vegan!
Noodles and Company
Another chain with some pretty good vegan options is Noodles and Company.
Vegan Menu Items include:
- Spaghetti and Meatballs (no parmesan, no meatballs)
- Japanese Pan Noodles (you can add tofu)
- Spicy Korean Beef Noodles (no beef, can add tofu)
- Cauliflower Rigatoni Fresca (no shrimp, no parmesan)
Noodles also has salads available. Make sure you get it with no meat or cheese and ask for a vegan dressing like the balsamic vinaigrette.
El Camino Kitchen
El Camino is a fairly new restaurant to Kenosha. They opened in 2020. We are lucky to have them.
Vegan items on the menu include:
- The Black Bean Burger on a ciabatta bun
- Hongos Tacos
- Veggie Fajitas with flour tortilla, ask for vegan version if getting corn
- Cauliflower Tacos (no cheese)
- All of the fries (plain, waffle, sweet potato, curly, and spicy)
- Guacamole (regular, harvest, and mang0)
- Tortilla chips
- Garden Vegetable Soup
- Quinoa salad with no cheese
- Vegetable Guisado
- Rajas y Avocado (ask it to be made vegan)
- Black Beans
- Jasmine Rice
The owner of El Camino was super friendly and thorough when I reached out through email. If you are worried about cross-contamination, mention you are vegan to your server. They can accommodate to avoid cross-contamination with all items except fries.
Topper’s Pizza
Topper’s recently came out with a vegan menu thanks to the help of Milwaukee plant-based chef Melanie Manuel. I was so excited to actually have good vegan pizza options near by!
Topper’s vegan menu items include:
- Vegan Tuscano Topper
- Veganstix
All of the vegan toppings can be used to customize your own vegan pizza too! Vegan dipping sauces include dairy-free ranch, hot and mild buffalo, marinara, and garlic sauce.