Chicago is the most vegan-friendly U.S. city, PETA says

Chicago is famous for Italian beef, hot dogs, cheeseburgers and other carnivorous dishes.

But PETA, the animal welfare group, named Chicago the country’s most vegan-friendly city in a news release first shared with the Sun-Times.

“America’s former meatpacking capital is now a paradise for vegan eating with an abundance of animal-friendly restaurants,” PETA President Ingrid Newkirk said in a statement.

To celebrate, PETA will give out free slices of vegan deep dish pizza from Kitchen 17 on Tuesday at noon outside City Hall. PETA will also present an award and a vegan cake of the Chicago skyline to city officials.

Kitchen 17, based near Avondale, offers pizza with seitan pepperoni, soy sausage and vegan cheese made in-house.

PETA highlighted other local restaurants such as mainstays Soul Veg City in Greater Chatham and its meat-free “Chicago-Style Frank,” and The Chicago Diner’s seitan “Radical Reuben” in Logan Square and Lake View.

Italian beef chain Buona offers a seitan “Italian Beefless Sandwich” for a vegan version of the menu item popularized by the hit FX show “The Bear.” Near Albany Park, Kale My Name features dairy-free cheddar broccoli soup.

PETA also cited non-dairy cheesecakes at Alice & Friends’ Vegan Kitchen in Edgewater; the plant-based meatball sub at Native Foods in the Loop; oat milk ice cream at Runaway Cow in Bridgeport; and “Soy Al Pastor” tacos at Penelope’s Vegan Taqueria in Andersonville, Pilsen and River North.

PETA’s list of vegan-friendly U.S. cities also recognizes Atlanta; Charlotte, North Carolina; Denver; Detroit; Los Angeles; New Orleans; New York City; Philadelphia; and Washington, D.C.

Newkirk said, “All the cities on PETA’s list have cemented their status as vegan dining destinations, proving that delicious animal-friendly cuisine is available from coast to coast.”

In Chicago, the number of Black-owned vegan-friendly eateries has grown as plant-based dining has become more popular. Last year, food blogger Tamika Price listed 15 restaurants on her blog, Plant-based Tamika, It’s about double the number, since she started tracking in 2019.