50 Best Vegetarian Restaurants near Lake Forest

“Simply amazing for the last 15 years running!“

“God bless Egg Harbor Cafe and all personal, The best service“

“I love reviewing and eating Japanese food, and being from Japan, I find it very difficult to come across truly authentic Japanese cuisine. Most American Japanese restaurants barely scratch the surface of what Japanese food really is.

This place not only captured the atmosphere of a real Japanese restaurant, but the food itself was genuinely close to what you’d find in Japan. I had the pleasure of ordering the Zaru Soba Tempura, and I honestly haven’t had authentic tempura in a long time. I’m happy to say it exceeded my expectations, the food was outstanding.

What made the experience even better was that the waiter spoke to us in Japanese, which really showed the restaurant’s respect for the culture and added to the authenticity.

Japanese authenticity rating (if this restaurant were in Japan): 7.8/10
American-Japanese restaurant rating: 8.9/10

Overall, this place is amazing and absolutely worth visiting.“

“Excellent food and great customer service there - unlike the Highland Park location which was horrible, consistently messing up orders every time without compensation, even after complaints.
Unsubscribing won't make SPAM stop from LM corporate (which actually violates Federal Privacy law). So I was forced to block them.“

“Very good fresh Mexican food. The usual menu choices were offered along with a few specials. My drink was strong, friends margaritas were pricey for the size but ok. Their chips and salsa were nothing special. We enjoyed the fried calamari but the sauce was a bit odd and we would’ve enjoyed a cocktail sauce more. The empanadas were tasty but I wasn’t sure there was actually any beef inside. \n\nMy chicken fajitas were very good but could’ve used a bit more flavor. The chicken, peppers and onions were grilled just right. The beef tacos were a hit as well as the taco special. Beef fajitas were so so. \n\nService was excellent but the room was very loud and made it hard to converse. Eating outside might be nicer! I’d return.“

“Great food. awesome customer service.“

“Another amazing experience at Le Colonial. The best food, great service and the ambiance is the best in town. Can’t wait until our next visit.“

“We had an awesome girls afternoon out with some great drinks and an awesome server than was full of suggestions and fun entertainment. Jorge G did a great job!“

“delicious food served by treat people. find your way in.“

“This is the best trip👈 😉 I took 2get 👉my grow on. He has all you need 2 start your journey to a success. He offers free advice, open to learning how you're doing. Go here & expect to find all your needs. He even sells starters.“

“After a few hours at Volo Auto Museum we decided to explore the area and head over to the lake. Driving through Waukegan, we stopped into Papa Marcos Grill and Kabob.\n\nWhat a gem. We stepped up near the counter to read the menu and soon enough it was our turn to order. We started chatting with the owner's wife and she is so nice and so friendly. Offered recommendations and we settled on our choices. Fried mushrooms to start and I ordered the Vegetarian plate, with Falafel, rice stuffed grape leaves and rice. Mr. Bee had the lamb plate. The mushrooms were amazing, nice and crunchy without being greasy. Both of us loved our plates and the fresh naan bread. Our lunch even came with two small pieces of Baklava that was perfect. The best Baklava we ever had was actually in Greece and this one was right up there with it.\n\nThe food is fresh and light and delicious. From the front of the restaurant you don't expect much, but once inside you feel if you are stepping into Greece with excellent Mediterranean food.\n\nWhat a treasure!“

“this place was great the service and the food 👌“

“I strongly recommend them, the food is good I'll come for more“

“Food was excellent as always and our server Moses made it extra special. Always one of my favorites!“

“First time in 10 years since I haven’t had Dennys in general. As my return. Good customer service, staff are pleasant, The Triple Burger is delicious. Highland Park is very safe and I will be coming back!“

“fantastic food. great flavors and large portions. love the Huli Huli chicken and pork belly combo meal. I loved the poke nachos. thanks for your hospitality will be back.“

“Absolutely incredible. Very very nice staff and guy took our order. Explained everything so clearly and was extra patient while me and my friend decided what we wanted to order. We also came in at a weird time for lunch (2:30pm). Guy was so great. Split everything in our order for us because we wanted to share. Food was absolutely amazing to match the service. 5 stars. Well done.“

“Modern decor, great service, excellent meal. Nice couples place. Not sure what to get? Our server gave us great recommendations. Will be back.“

“We were in Chicago for a visit from Texas and I decided I was really craving dumplings. I googled dumplings and Dangelas popped up. Reviews were amazing so we put it in the GPS and off we went. We arrived 30 minutes before closing but it didn’t matter. The best dumplings I’ve ever had. I wish I didn’t live so far away because I would be there at least once a week!“

“Amazing service ! Bar tender Jimmy was absolutely great. My boyfriend and I stopped by for a quick drink and soup before the movies and had a Good time thanks to him!“

“Had an amazing lunch today at Spirit Elephant. Started with a delicious mushroom soup, followed by the best buffalo chicken egg rolls I’ve had. Main course was a double smash impossible burger with garlic aioli and Gouda cheese. I was stuffed, but I miss carrot cake so when I saw it on the menu I had to order it. Hands down the best carrot cake vegan or not!“

“Simply AMAZING! Ochoa’s is easily one of the best Mexican restaurants in the area. We recently used them for catering (25 people), and everything exceeded our expectations. Communication was top-notch, portions were huge, and the food was incredible. Guests couldn’t stop talking about the juicy chicken and steak, the homemade chips and salsas, and guacamole that could honestly be eaten by the spoonful. Mr. Ochoa truly takes pride in his food — you can taste the love in every bite. Highly recommend for both dining in and catering!“

“First time trying Highly recommended“

“That Little French Guy makes us happy every time we head that way. The Champs de Élysées doesn’t have better! It’s being back in Paris, every unique French delight. Thank you for our favorite place to visit often.“

“Love the New owner Jay. The food - that includes vegetarian as well as non- veg delicious. Authentic & portions were large. Go with your family, carry out - all good. Jay treats us like family. I see him stopping at all the tables ensuring their dining experience is enjoyable.“

“I grew up in Brunei and their food is the closest i have felt to home. I ordered the Nasi Lemak, kuih lapis and roti paratha.“

“I can't say enough good things about this restaurant! They went above and beyond to take care of my veteran fiancé for Veterans Day, (even though we were a day late in being able to visit), taking care of us like family, from the regional director to all the restaurant staff. The food was terrific and my fiancé loved everything; the food, the staff, and the military/first responders decor, and the respect given to veterans. They even put his picture from his Army service days on their wall, which gave him a huge smile when he saw himself displayed on their wall along with photos of so many other veterans. And even though we don't live nearby, we will make it a point to visit them every time we get the chance to. Thanks again to everyone there!!“

“Great place for Italian!“

“I stop at Hayashi’s for lunch on a Saturday. Only one table was occupied, so I got a seat right away. The menu offered a wide selection of items to choose from.
I ordered two of the special rolls and a green tea, and they arrived at the table promptly. The rolls were good but not outstanding.
I went to the women's bathroom and found it needed some cleaning, although it was spacious.
Hayashi has very good service, a special menu, and is well-decorated. They just need to make their rolls extraordinary.“

“Great food and great service!“

“Van’s is my new sushi spot for ordering! Can’t wait to actually step inside one day lol but their shrimp tempura is by far my most favorite item!!!!! Everything is delicious.“

“Great place to hangout and good sushi“

“Love it!!!, the food and service was amazing. Would go for it again. 10/10!“

“THE BEST breakfast I have ever had! My family visited for the first time today (tourists) and Loved the atmosphere, our server (didn’t catch his name. But he had the PRETTIEST nails!) and food! 10/10 highly recommend if you are visiting Chicago!“

“The first thing I like is George standing by the door greeting people and saying welcome home. I love the food. The food is homemade and excellent. I love the service. I love the prices, they are very reasonable. There isn’t a thing about that place that I could criticize. I love everything, and that’s why we keep going all the time. Thank you for listening to me. George is a wonderful guy and I recommend that everybody go there. Thank you, Ele & Larry“

“Great, authentic Italian cuisine. Never disappoints.“

“Stopped here on our way through town. Friendly service and delicious food in a cute little town.“

“I am a regular and love the street corn tots and loaded hush puppies. Please keep them. Love the beer though!“

“Food was absolutely delicious!! Highly recommend!!“

“What a great experiences! The food was amazing! The family enjoyed themselves in the beautiful restaurant and wonderful staffs! Definitely reminded my daughters of grandma's cooking! 🫰“

“First time at Kuma's Sushi Bowl yesterday...1) Wife went there for lunch. 2) I stole some of the wife's bowl. 3) We both went back to grab two bowls for dinner, partly to pay her back for her lunch. And, I'd like to add that it's not very close from us. Great, fresh and delicious sushi bowls. Worth upsetting your significant other for!“

“I would go here again and again. Food quality is excellent. What can I say about NICK the manager. Outstanding manager. He listens to customer. Make sure we leave place very happy. If you complain about food, he will replace immediately without any questions asked. He makes sure that all the customers are very happy. We order a corn soup, my wife thought it was not spiced up enough. She asked waiter to spiced up. Manager came and told her that this is the way it comes and cannot spice up. He replaced her with another type of soup and did not even charge us for that. Great place to go for diner with family and friends.“

“This is a rarity today for restaurants of any type, a par-excellence value! This is a diner/breakfast/lunch restaurant, a few booths and counter seats. Most of the activity by the staff is out front, no secrets. Many customers have dined there frequently, they are regulars and recognized, the waitress can practically write the order without asking, they know the person that well. Occasionally it is a first timer and because of the ambience they feel free to voice their opinion as to how good it is, as we did the first time we ate here in late winter 2025.

We had driven by Sandy’s many times and I often remarked, we should try them out, and we would have sooner, but the parking is the limiting factor, basically curbside parallel parking, only 4 or 5 spots are in front of the restaurant, others down the block and across the street. There may be some in the alley behind but I’m not aware of any. I’m unable to walk any significant distance, so if the parking isn’t right near the door, I’d pass Sandys by, but that is my issue, if you are healthy, the distance isn’t an issue

The food is great, the owner/chef/cook knows what is expected of a dinner establishment. The eggs are prepared as asked, if the request is “over-medium” the egg whites are cooked through, yolks runny, and edges crisp ... Anyone who has trained as breakfast fry cook will know how to make eggs to request, and yes that is a SKILL. The biscuits and gravy are the best I have had in the NW suburbs, there is breakfast sausage crumbles in a cream gravy, and the gravy actually is seasoned and not just white flour paste.

No matter how rushed and busy a restaurant is, they should never lose sight of the fact that each meal served is important, there are not many 2nd chances in the restaurant business. I’m guessing that one of the wait staff is probably the owner, this is the difference, she is watching that the customer’s expectations are met, she deserves an A.“

“we had an excellent experience here today!! Felipe was our waiter and WOW, that guy is awesome!! he was.the best server ever!°° we had a bit of everything. .steak..scallops...lobster...king crab and all the fixings.... also the best drinks!..Happy 42nd Bob Chinn!!“

“My fiancé and I went for breakfast at the Gurnee location yesterday. Both mens and womens bathrooms were out of order. No additional bathrooms for the employees!!! How can a restaurant be able to be open without facilities for patrons let alone the employees working an 8 hour shift!?!? Our waitress pleaded for me to call OCHEA!! She also said it is not the first time!!“

“great food, friendly staff, excellent customer service“

“Louie's is the best place to eat in Waukegan. Great Italian food, thin crust pizza, fried chicken and fish. Everything is great. They give you the best bread hot from the oven when you sit down. Huge bar. Family friendly. You can't go wrong at this place.“

“Absolutely love it. we enjoy the food.. and the stuff is great 🤩“

“Atmosphere + fantastic food + excellent service = my Stevens experience. Whether in the cozy dining room or at the large oval bar, it's a great experience. The staff is professional and friendly, even Leslie the owner spent time with us. I would give it 10 stars if that was an option. Have been there several times and never disappointed“