Houston is one of the top cities for restaurants per capita, and caters to a diverse palate, but finding tasty vegan food can still be a hassle. Loving Hut is the best vegan restaurant in Houston and has made my life much easier. Plus, I don't have to fight through 610 traffic and a crowd of hipsters to enjoy it. They also have super reasonable prices so I don't have to act like "going vegan is so expensive!"
Golden Tenders
You had me at tenders. My favorite thing about Loving Hut is that they keep their dishes pretty normal. No granola. No nag champa. The crunchiest thing you're going to find here are the tenders, and at $5.25 my munchies and budget are both satisfied.
BBQ Rolls
The BBQ spring rolls are legit tasty. They're not skimping on the filling, but the sauce is what makes them really stand out. It's a little lighter than your standard peanut sauce, leaning more towards sweet-sesame.
Happy Go Lucky
Feeling slightly adventurous? The Happy Go Lucky features lemon, lime, and real rose petals. Loving Hut also has boba, jamaica, and other fruit teas, smoothies, and fresh juices. The 20+ drink options on the menu mean I'm always finding something new to try.
Blissful Fried Rice
Looking for something to appease a non-vegan friend? The best vegan restaurant in Houston needs to cater to our non-veg friends, too. I brought home this fried rice and it disappeared in seconds without a single inquiry about the lack of meat. Fried rice is usually the same no matter where you get it, but this one has a sort of grilled flavor. If you look closely, you can see the bit of char on the vegetables. It was amazeballs.
Cheesecake
The picture doesn't do this slice justice. This cheesecake was the best damn vegan item I've ever had. It was absolute perfection; even better than some dairy cheesecake I've had. The manager said some people come in just for the cheesecake, and yes, they make it in house. Guilt-free cheese cake, FTW!
A Family-Run Restaurant, With a Purpose
The manager of Loving Hut, Hung, and his wife took a moment to share some of their restaurant's goals with me. While Loving Hut is a national brand, each location has its own style. The Houston location has a heavy Asian influence, which is reflected in the menu and decor. Hung beams when he speaks about his restaurant and its purpose. They just want to share how easy and tasty going vegan can be. The restaurant even has volunteers who are so passionate about it that they come in to help out around the restaurant.
Loving Hut is like the girl next door of restaurants, and I encourage you to stop by when you are near the west end of beltway 8. Get the cheesecake. Heck, get two and feel good about it!