ELife Restaurant (Everlasting Life Vegan Restaurant)

It was nice to eat somewhere with so many vegan options! I would definitely get the breaded vegan chicken cutlets again and the biscuit was pretty good but I do not recommend either version of the mac and cheese because the mac is quite soft. I regret not choosing the grits over the mac because those looked great! Drink option are all bottled juices and smoothies and a few lemonades - no water, soda, or tea.

Love the gluten free soy free options.

Took BossLady to Everlasting Life for the first time. She absolutely loved it. She had the BBQ tofu cashew mac and sautéed broccoli. The lemonades were a bit sweet. I added coconut water to dilute, and it was very good.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Entrees

The food is good and sometimes not good. You have to stick to what you know you like. They do a pretty good job, and I love the cakes they have. Please try them.

Vegetarian options: It's actually all Vegan and it's something you have to try for yourself. There is something for everyone's flavor profile and the menu changes from day to day.

Parking: Tons of parking, so that is never a problem

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Entrees, Vegan Mac & Cheese, Kale Salad, Vegan Express

Decent
Not bad

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 3

Service: 3

Tired of driving across town for food to be unavailable!

5 stars food always fresh

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Macaroni and Cheese and Spinach, Sweet Potato Cake, Chicken Filet Mac and Cheese Kale Greens, Mock Chicken Salad, Sandwich, Salad, Blueberry, Sweet Kale, BBQ, Carrot, Sausage, Pot Roast over Rice, Mock Chicken, Entrees, Jerk Chicken, Vegan Mac & Cheese, Chicken Salad Sandwich, Kale Salad, Vegan Express, Steamed Broccoli Biscuits and Home Fries

I’m not vegan, but wanted to try a new restaurant not knowing everything was vegan made.. the customer service and atmosphere is amazing! Again, I’m not vegan so the food was a surprise to me but it looks delicious so I didn’t think twice until I tasted the texture. I would highly recommend to vegans and plant based family!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

It's no longer black owned. The new owner is Hispanic, I believe. Keep in mind that this is relevant because ELife when it was Everlasting Life was originally supposed to be a plant based black American soul food restaurant. There has been a drastic change in food quality and overall service. I remember the original owner who was very community oriented and very focused on promoting some of the knowledge of black nutritionalists like Dr. Sebi---- all of that is GONE. They used to offer so many non soy options as a result and just a wider variety of culturally centered very healthy options. You could tell that there was a mission behind the food----a desire to feed a community in a healthy way and educate the community about healthy eating as well. People would gather there for events or just to interact in a safe space. They would hold weekly small markets of local small business owners in the black community. There were classes and informational seminars all focused on healthy living and food.

It was an amazing atmosphere. It's sad to see the changes because my family had been regularly (at least weekly) buying food from Everlasting Life since the mid 2000s (2008). I myself used to go there almost daily when I was hard core vegan and considered Everlasting Life to be one of the tools that ensured that my health was on point. I cannot suggest such frequent visits now. I don't think it's that healthy. It's plant based junk food more so these days. The love is not there. It's now just another place in the DMV that sells food with the gimmick being that the food is plant based.

That being said, the food itself is not good and obviously not made by those who grew up eating black American soul food. Watery mac and cheese, sad overcooked drummies, amd lackluster HARD (undercooked) greens. It's tragic.

I will also say this--- unfortunately, since the pandemic, I have noticed "others" coming into our communities and purchasing formerly black owned spaces and then still billing themselves as "black owned" or keeping on 1-2 figureheads who have no real influence upon the daily operations of the business just to continue to say "black owned". Many times this happens when the original owners want to retire but there is no one to take on the business----- this is something to consider for those of us who are entrepreneurially minded. You don't always have to create a business from scratch, sometimes you can look in your own backyard and find business owners ready to sell. As for Everlasting life, it's sad to see what has become of what was once a cultural icon in the local community.

Joint now known as ‘ELife’ if you don’t see the popular sign of old. Hope this helps to avoid driving around the lot like me with all of the construction going on (lol).

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 5

Service: 5

So flavorful, filling and fun!! Unique and delicious. I had the chance to try ELife at the Animal Rights Conference in 2019.

Outstanding love everything ❤️

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Jerk Chicken

Their juices are amazing! I tried the watermelon and Anxiety Anchor( cilantro, cucumber, celery, kale and apple). This makes me want to stock up weekly.

⚠️⚠️⚠️This place is just nasty!!! Where do I start? They have fallen off of a cliff since 2018/2019 they do not make there food as they should. Their Mac n cheese is dry, bland or waaaay to watery. Their dummies are too tough or sometimes even to undercooked I'm gonna leave this review and you guys can let me know if anything improves. I don't think the owner cares black owned businesses have to do better!!!!! And also customers, lets stop normalizing giving our money to people/ companies that don't care about the product they're putting out!!!!! And good customer service. Stop making these selfish people rich!!!⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️

Atmosphere: 1

Food: 1

Service: 1

I visited this restaurant on a Saturday afternoon. I had just finished taking my daughter to Watkins Park and remembered my dad told me about this place. Decided to give it a try since it’s located by the highway and I live in VA and don’t frequent this area often. The customer service is nonexistent. It was three young ladies behind the counter and I was not greeted. The lady that was the cashier had an unwelcoming demeanor, she didn’t even try to fake it. Mostly all the entrees are soy based, so I just opted for the three sides platter. My sides were actually good; sweet potatoes, cabbage, and great northern beans. Also, purchased a fruit punch juice that was delicious. Unfortunately, I’ll probably not return due to the lack of customer service and non-soy entrees.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 4

Service: 2