Cali is one of the top 3 biggest cities in Colombia. It’s the Colombian home of salsa dancing. But is it vegan friendly?
I spent a week there to find out. Here’s the breakdown of the loves, the likes, and the disappointments.
Now, slight disclaimer: this list is about as comprehensive as I could get in the week that I was there. But of course, you can’t do everything in one week. If you’ve tried anything not listed here, I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
The Loves
Let’s start with the great.
When I’m considering if I loved a restaurant, there are a few factors I take into account. Is there something special about what they offer? Do they have a decent selection of vegan or vegetarian options? Is the atmosphere unique? And is there something memorable about the meal, service, or décor? Each of these restaurants meets most of these criteria.
Café Momentum
Yum. Yum. Yum. I think this was my favorite restaurant in Cali. The atmosphere is classy without being stuffy.
Our server went out of his way to make sure we have an incredible experience.
The menu isn’t massive, but it offers a selection of tapas, sandwiches, and desserts. They have an excellent selection cocktails and mocktails. I wanted to try everything on the menu, but we settled on the Focaccia sandwich (made with cashew cheese, walnut pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, smoked peppers, arugula, and balsamic reduction) and the Moorish-style seitan (made with Moroccan-spiced seitan, white bean hummus, ash oil, crunchy leeks, and pita bread).
Let me tell you, the Focaccia sandwich was one of my favorite things I ate during my entire trip through South America. It was perfectly cooked, and all of the individual components worked together to create something special. The bread was heavenly: crisp exterior, fluffy interior, and made with dried tomatoes. Chef’s kiss.
The Moroccan seitan was delicious and all of the elements were fantastic, but it wasn’t quite as show-stopping as the focaccia.
To drink, I went with the Bacanal Mocktail (made with Isabella grapes, thyme jam, chamomile tincture, lemon, and soda). Usually, I’m a cocktail girlie, but I went with the mocktail version today. Honestly, this drink didn’t even need the alcohol because it’s special as is, but there is a cocktail version available for those interested.
We ended the meal with a sliced of chocolate cake. It was very rich and moist, but it’s not quite as memorable as all of the other dishes. I’m not much of a chocolate person, so my slight indifference to this dessert may just be attributed to that.
Patti Gelato
This is a gelato shop tucked into the San Antonio neighborhood. This company has several locations in Cali. I just happened to be having coffee across the street and saw on their sign that they offer vegan flavors. Of course, I had to stop in to try.
What I loved was how inclusive the selection is for people with speciality diets including vegan and sugar free. There is clear signage about what diets each flavor meets, the calories in each flavor, and even the grams of protein. It’s rare to see a dessert shop that is so inclusive for those with restrictions.
I was pleasantly surprised by how many vegan flavor options there were. Normally at ice cream shops there are one or two vegan flavors, and those are typically fruit sorbets. Don’t get me wrong, I love fruit-flavored sorbets, but it is nice to have some variation. The vegan flavors included: macadamia, pistachio, cashew stracciatella, coconut, chocolate, hazelnut, and passionfruit mango.
The gelato was light, flavorful, and still pleasantly sweet. The gelato does use a sugar substitute to add the sugar-free sweetness. I won’t say it’s the best gelato I’ve had, but it was good and it was nice to have so many options.
Dulcinea
I loved the design of this restaurant. It’s has a casual, vintage décor and a choice of couches, booths, or tables to sit.
I decided to start my day here because they offer breakfast items; however, even though I was there at 10am, I opted for the pizza. They were having a special deal on this pizza, and it was calling to me.
I love a good pizza. The crust, the sauce, and the toppings all have to work together to create a flavorful experience. This one did it. I loved all of the toppings, but what really stood out was the sourdough crust. They have a gorgeous sourdough starter that they use in the dough, and it imparts a lovely sourdough flavor.
Beyond the funky décor and the delicious pizza, I loved how friendly the staff was. They made sure that I was well taken care of, and they were very inviting and warm. No one spoke English, so it’s an opportunity to practice Spanish. But even if there’s a language barrier, they take great care of you.
Zea Maiz
If you’re in Colombia, you have to try an arepa. There are tons of street vendors selling them, but those are normally made with butter and/or cheese.
Zea Maiz was the first restaurant I came across that both specializes in arepas and offers an array of plant-based options. They have a diverse menu of arepas stuffed with a variety of fillings. They offer 12 vegetarian flavors and 3 vegan.
I wanted to try all 3 of the vegan flavors. They have both small and large options, but if you’re trying multiple arepas (which I definitely recommend), go for the small. They are $2-3, and 3 of them were too much for me to eat in one sitting. I saved my leftovers for breakfast the following morning.
I loved the variety of flavors, and with each arepa, they offered a unique dipping sauce. I was pleased just with the sheer variety, but I was impressed that each option was equally flavorful.
The only sticky point for this restaurant is their limited hours (they are only open from 5:30-10:30pm Tuesdays through Sundays). I absolutely understand only operating during dinner hours, but I feel like I see it more commonly with fine-dining restaurants. I would prefer this style of food for lunch, but I’ll take what I can get. It made for a great dinner.
The Likes
Crillon Lovers
A Peruvian Criolla restaurant in the San Antonio neighborhood. Yum! This restaurant isn’t a plant-based restaurant, but they have 3 vegan/vegetarian options (depending on your modifications). The limited number of options is the only reason I have it in this category. I would have loved to have a few more options, especially in the appetizer section.
Again, though: I’ll take what I can get.
For my meal, I had the Chaufa, which is a Peruvian fried rice dish. It’s cooked in a wok, so it developes a really nice flavor. I especially enjoyed the mushrooms. They have a nice marinated flavor, and the wok added some smokey goodness.
Service was just ok. I went in the mid-afternoon, and restaurants always have a bit of a lull during that time. Having worked in restaurants, I totally get the afternoon slump. But at a certain point, I was pretty convinced that my server had ended their shift and didn’t transfer my table to another server. No one came over to my table after my food was delivered, so I had to get up to request my check/a to-go box. Definitely not a big deal though. I’m sure during busier times of day, service would be more attentive.
Frutos del Sol
I’m on the fence for Frutos del Sol. They have quite an extensive menu, so I had a tough time choosing. I ended up going with the Menu del día and the Crispy Tofu Burger. The menu del día was great—it came with a burrito, beet soup, and a beverage. It’s simple, but flavorful fare. The burrito and beet soup were very nice. I think the beet soup was my favorite item on the table. It was very light, but packed a lot of flavor into each bite.
The Crispy Tofu Burger was fine, but I was hoping for more. I liked all of the components of it, but none of them are big flavor players. The tofu itself was a let down. It’s fried, but didn’t it didn’t taste like there were many spices or flavors to add dimension. It was just bland. The bun also tasted a bit stale. I did enjoy the sauce that came with the burger. It had a slight sweetness, which gave the sandwich more depth of flavor.
Though the food was hit or miss, there were other things I did love about the restaurant. First, there is some really cool artwork on the walls. There are several rooms available for seating, and each one has a different color palate and feel to it. Second, the service was really friendly. One thing I don’t see often is that the server comes to a table with a spice box with six different spices, so you can add the spices according to your own palate.
Madre Selva
This meal was massive. It’s a menu del día style, and they give you two menu choices. There’s nothing else on the menu except those options, so it makes it easy to choose.
Usually the portion for a menu del día is generous, but not overwhelming. I can normally eat the whole meal and be reasonably full. This one had full portions of everything, so I was very pleasantly surprised. I even had enough to take leftovers home for dinner.
As with many menu del días, the quality of food isn’t exceptional because it’s often cooked in batches and reheated to order. Quality can be lost when making high quantity.
I thought the food was good and filling, but I wasn’t blown away by it. There was a few vegan meat and cheese substitutes. I’m not a huge fan of those substitutions, but I’ll eat them occasionally. The chorizo substitute in the soup was actually quite good. The Milanese substitute was tough and lacked flavor.
If you think about restaurants as having 3 points to try to hit (quality, quantity, and price), I would say Madre Selva hits two: the quantity is huge and the price is very low, but it was at the sacrifice of some quality.
I would still go back for a cheap, filling meal. And I’d be curious to try other menu options.
One thing I loved were the gorgeous murals throughout the restaurant. They are beautiful. There are lots of spaces for different seating options, and even a small garden area which can feel like a nice reprieve from the city.
Vegano Flor de Loto
To be completely transparent, I don’t actually know if this restaurant deserves to be in this section. I only went for breakfast, so I couldn’t really assess the full menu.
The restaurant opens at 9am, and I arrived around 10:15am. Even though they were open, it felt like they weren’t quite ready for customers. And though they have a printed menu for lunch and dinner, they only had a few options for breakfast that they presented verbally.
I opted for the scrambled tofu, and it was good, but it wasn’t exceptional. It felt like something I could easily make at home. Which isn’t a bad thing, but when I’m eating at a restaurant, I like to feel like it’s food I would have to put a some effort into making a home.
I would have loved to try this restaurant later in the day when I could freely choose from the menu. Because I was there for breakfast, I just feel like I didn’t get the full experience.
Alma & Cafe
This is another one I’m on the fence about. It wasn’t bad per se, but it was just not great.
The restaurant is attached to a yoga studio, so you feel those influences in the design of the restaurant. I could definitely see it being a great spot to eat after a yoga class.
For my meal, I opted for the salchipapas. Salchipapas is a traditional Colombian dish (it’s basically French fries topped with a sliced hot dog and a variety of sauces). I’ve been waiting to try it until I found a good vegan version of it.
This plate was massive. I easily could have split it with another person.
The dish has two types of potatoes, vegan hotdog, vegan bacon, and corn slathered in ketchup and a vegan tofu cheese. On the plus side, I appreciated that they offered the vegan tofu cheese as an alternative to regular cheese. Compared to some pre-packaged vegan cheeses which can be quite waxy, this one had a great creamy texture. On the negative side, I wasn’t a fan of the vegan bacon that they used. I opted for the more complex ‘Salchipapa Amor’, but I probably would have been happier with the simpler version. I didn’t necessarily dislike it, but I also just didn’t love it.
One great thing here is that they have a small grocery in the front of the building where you can buy all kinds of vegan items.
The Disappointments
Ichiraku Ramen
Man, this restaurant was disappointing. The design of the restaurant promises so much, but the food really let me down.
The company has locations in Cali, Bogotá, and Medellín. I was really hopeful because my dinner companion had eaten at the one in Bogotá, and had a great experience. So I was looking forward to the meal.
Now, let me say, the aesthetics of the restaurant are extremely stylistic and cool. With its dim red lighting and anime adorned walls, the restaurant is just cool.
The menu offers a handful of vegetarian or vegan options. We went with the gyoza and ramen. To be fair, the gyoza was quite good. It was well cooked, well presented, and quite flavorful.
Now the ramen—I’ve only had a handful of ramen I haven’t liked in my life, but this was one of them. It wasn’t bad, but it just wasn’t good. The broth wasn’t flavorful. None of the vegetables are strongly flavored (corn, avocado, lettuce), so they just didn’t add much to the dish. The tofu wasn’t flavorful at all. It was fried and served in the broth, so it lost it’s crispiness very quickly. I was just really unimpressed with the ramen as a whole.
This restaurant isn’t plant-based, so I do understand there being less emphasis on their plant-based options. I truly do get it, but if you are plant-based, there are other restaurants that have a wider selection of better options. I wouldn’t eat here a second time.
Final thoughts
I feel really lucky to have the opportunity to try so many restaurants in Cali. Before I went, I was questioning whether I wanted to go to Cali at all. But, I’m glad that I did. I had some awesome experiences, and had a lot of good food along the way.
