In 2022, comedian and actor Kevin Hart debuted an ambitious concept: an entirely vegan fast-food chain named Hart House. Its first location opened to huge fanfare (and long lines) mere blocks away from the ever-busy In-N-Out near Los Angeles International Airport. Three more Los Angeles outposts quickly followed, and for a moment, it felt like Hart had finally given approachable everyday vegan food the spotlight it had long deserved.

But in September 2024, the chain shuttered seemingly overnight.

It may have been a harbinger of things to come for vegan restaurants across California, as many meatless eateries have shuttered, some after decades in operation, in 2026. 

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While San Francisco-born Cafe Gratitude and alternative protein companies like Beyond Meat once led the charge for vegan alternatives to casual food, it’s clear that the golden age for the category has dimmed considerably. These days, the family behind Cafe Gratitude has gone all in on cattle ranching, and Beyond has since rebranded, betting big on a new line of “clean” protein drinks.

In Los Angeles, traditionally a haven for alternative eating, 16-year-old vegan Mexican restaurant Un Solo Sol in Boyle Heights announced on Instagram that its final day of service will be Sept. 28. 

Dishes from vegan restaurant Un Solo Sol in Los Angeles. 

Owner Carlos Ortez told SFGATE that the closure is part of a bigger global economic crisis affecting all small businesses. 

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“Our industry is vulnerable by the very fact that going to a restaurant should not be a luxury, but it’s now a luxury in these times when everybody has a big drop in their incomes,” Ortez said. “Their budgets are so tight that they cannot afford going out, to relax, to have a good time with friends.”

He added: “It’s even more difficult because the market for veganism is smaller. It’s very specific, not broad like a hamburger. It’s this tiny option compared to that monster option in the middle of a crisis, so it’s impossible that we would not be affected. It’s why vegan restaurants are closing.”

Ortez is right. The Vegan Joint, a plant-based vegan Thai chain, announced in late August that it would close its three Southern California locations serving the likes of Kra Pow burgers in Downtown LA, West LA and Woodland Hills. And after years of growth, vegan fast food brand Monty’s Good Burger closed half of its locations in early 2026, leaving only outposts in Koreatown and Echo Park.

In Northern California, Saluhall, the struggling Ikea-adjacent........

© SFGate