Just TheChowdah

This is probably the best vegan Asian food I have ever had anywhere. Vegan, organic, gluten free, from scratch ingredients, made to order. With over 2000 menu item variants, the menu is a literal book. You'll find something you like. My only wish is that they had a few cheap items on the menu, so I could come here every day.

Second time coming to Thanh Tinh Chay and I cannot say enough great things about this restaurant! I am not vegetarian or vegan, and the first time I came with a friend who is vegetarian and had rave reviews. This time I took another non-vegetarian or vegan, and we both absolutely loved it. The menu is incredibly long, but more options to choose from! The wait staff is so friendly and warm and love telling you about the restaurant’s origin story, how everything is made and with what, and so much more. You get free fruit water that is not only delicious, but made fresh daily in the mornings and their wait staff is constantly refilling your cup. The food is vegan and gluten free, but even meat eaters will love this place as their “meat” options taste amazing. We got the Spicy Beef Soup and Helen’s platter (amazing lettuce rolls), and we’re both blown away by both dishes. Large portions, too! At the end we were also given complementary desserts, crème brûlée and mango tapioca, and those were also so good, even though we said we were both full after our entrees, we still both had both desserts each! Definitely come it, it is worth your time and your stomach will thank you! The prices may seem higher and the parking can be a little cumbersome… but it’s worth it for the amazing food and all the extras you get! Don’t miss out on this place!

We went there after seeing all of the fantastic reviews both on Google and Yelp as well as seeing this place in Yelp’s list for the top 100 restaurants in the country. We are not huge fans of vegan but went there anyway to give it a shot. And, oh my, everything was amazing from the food, the service and the atmosphere. It’s a small place located near North Park and so it’s not like you are going to stumble upon it. The best thing I can say about this place is that if you didn’t know it was vegan, you would be thinking you are eating meat. Most of our dishes had “beef” but it was great. We had the dumplings, pani puri, noodles and a dish with steamed rice. Trae, our server, was soooo helpful. Highly recommend you give it a shot.

Caroline Nalezny Garcia

Our meal here was mouthwateringly delicious! The pork belly spring roll had a fantastic crunch inside along with the fresh flavors within. The garlic noodles were addicting, bok choy and veggies cooked perfectly, and the chicken was crispy. The mushroom stir fry with beef had well balanced flavors. You can truly feel the love put into this meal. Even the water is divine! (We learned from staff that it's fresh citrus and fruit water that they make daily). As others have mentioned, they make everything from scratch - even the rice paper for the spring rolls - and you can tell because it tastes so fresh. I'm not a vegan but I enjoy vegan food, if I were ever to become a vegan, I'd be eating here to meet my 'meat' cravings - they do a great job! The staff was so lovely and accommodating. They offered us crème brûlée for dessert and it was delectable. A friend sent me a gift certificate to Thanh Tinh Chay for my birthday since she had heard it was amazing and it matched and exceeded expectations. It's unassuming from the outside but definitely a hidden gem! We will be back! :)

Jaja

Wow, amazing service! And even more amazing food! The server explained to us how they make all the stuff in house that’s why they’re able to have such an extensive menu of all vegan dishes! Loved Helen’s special fried rice and the sate noodle soup. Our food was served by a lovely elderly lady. And in the end, we even got to try their vegan creme brulee, which is the best creme brulee I’ve ever had. Will definitely bring more friends here!

Nancy Wolf

We are in San Diego for one night. I can't believe our good luck at finding this place. It has won all kinds of awards for vegan restaurants and has truly earned them. Everything we ate and drank was exceptional! They offer over 200 items on their menu. It is a very small place, seating only 44 people. We are in town in order to board a ship tomorrow for a two month cruise. I bet this is the best food we will have on the whole trip. Our adventure started with a light juice that was a mixture of many juices and was complimentary. We ordered crispy spring rolls that came with lettuce, mint, and carrots to wrap around the spring roll. It was made in an air fryer and was very crisp but wasn't greasy at all. My husband ordered a spicy noodle dish with vegan Vietnamese sausage. I had Helen Steamed Buns. For dessert we had three small servings of: tapioca pudding with mango, cheese cake, and flan. We are stuffed and happy!

이지은

Seriously so good. The service was phenomenal and I really appreciated how our server took the time to go over the menu and what went into making the food! She was a gem! The bahn mi was delicious and the egg rolls were so yummy. I haven't had a bahn mi since being gluten free 15 years ago so this place was truly a treat for me. Everything is gluten free, vegan and organic. Would highly recommend stopping by especially if you're gluten free!

Cameron Wong

Best vegan restaurant ever!!! Even better than some non-vegan restaurant. We ordered the udon miso soup, crab noodle soup, banh khot, and banh bot loc. the desserts were also very good! We had the creme brûlée and che. All of it was made with no diary and no eggs. It’s amazing what they can do with the ingredients they have and even making it taste better than the original. Highly recommend this place! We will definitely be back.

I am not vegan or vegetarian, but the food here is good tasting for everyone. The waitress took her time to explain the vast menu, that was well appreciated. Everything we had was really good, full of flavor. Hard to believe some of it was vegan, like the spring rolls. Even the water was special, with a nice hint of fruit

Great food and service! All vegan restaurant with a massive food-made-from-scratch menu to choose from. I reccomend trying their variety of deserts after your meal. I got the flan with caramel. I forgot the exact # of my soup, but I believe it was a yellow curry. Highly reccomend. Take care! 🍀

Crystal Horton-Taylor

Thanh Tinh Chay is truly one of the best vegan restaurants in San Diego. The food is so good—made with high-quality, organic ingredients that genuinely feed your soul. Every dish feels nourishing, flavorful, and prepared with so much care. What really makes this place special, though, is the people. The staff are incredibly kind, welcoming, and hardworking, and they go out of their way to make every visit a great experience. They’re happy to share their story, what they stand for, and the intention behind the food, which makes dining here feel meaningful and personal. The menu is massive with endless variety—there are literally thousands of options to explore, so you’ll never run out of things to try. My family has become regulars, and we’ve brought plenty of non-vegan family and friends here as well—and every single one of them has loved it. We’ll be moving soon, and Thanh Tinh Chay is one place we already know we’ll deeply miss. If you’re in San Diego, this is an absolute must-visit—vegan or not

Encinitas Tony

A truly special place for creative Asian cuisine, even if you aren't into plant-based. ​This place is something else. It feels like stepping through a magical portal—not because of the building, which is a fairly modest spot in San Diego’s Little Saigon, but because of the food and service. I am not a vegan or a vegetarian, but the sourcing and cooking here are so on point that I didn't miss meat for a second. I'm talking incredible flavors, textures, and presentation, starting with the special water they serve and going all the way to dessert. What is absolutely flabbergasting is their ability to pull this off with over 1,000 items on the menu. It is the definition of a nondescript, hidden culinary gem. I'm just very grateful for the experience.

Cris Blackwater

I visited this restaurant for their gluten-free bahn mi’s and was thrilled to discover that their entire menu is gluten-free! As someone with a wheat allergy, it’s incredibly liberating to have so many options without having to guess what I can or cannot eat. The variety of choices is simply unbelievable. I can’t even recall the last time I had egg rolls or bread that was so perfectly flaky. Everything I tried was absolutely delicious. The service was top-notch and the staff was incredibly friendly and welcoming. The entire experience was a 10/10. I can’t say enough good things about this restaurant. I’ll definitely recommend it to all my friends and plan to return many times.

Clint Anderson

Exceptional! Stir Fry Garlic with Shakin' Beef. Tasty, putting the various sauces on it gave it different types of flavors. They have hundreds of items to choose from (I think it was stated, "2000 choices"?). The prices fit the quality, and we left extremely satisfied with the meals and value. Don't let the "Vegan" throw you off. I'm a carnivore, and you can barely tell the difference, which is not always the case with non-meat establishments. The crispiness makes the meal, and everything is very fresh and hot. About 10 years ago I tried a Vegan stint for a few months, but had to quit when I went to Japan. It was tough to find good places in the US--this place would have been a great find to keep me from swapping back. We finished with flan and tapioca pudding--I wouldn't generally buy those deserts, usually, but I wanted to lick the plate. They both had a unique flavor. Even the lemonated water was delicious. The place was packed (understandably, and for good reason), but we were seated immediately. Trust the hundreds of 5-star reviews and your instinct and give it a shot! Returning SOON.

Dneil B

Wow. Really good service our waitress was a very nice lady just amazing I could not believe that the meat was vegetarian and my favorite part was that they use natural sweeteners as opposed to processed sugar in their drinks and deserts. Most restaurants are not so sugar free friendly so I really love this spot and delicious highly recommended.

Kaitlyn Madriaga

I don’t usually write reviews but this place was so good that I had to. We had the dan dan noodles with beef and the banh mi with pork belly and crispy pork. These were some of the best dan dan noodles I have ever had in my life. The texture and the flavor of the proteins were very on point. You could not tell anything was vegan and they make absolutely everything in house, even the bread. We also had the creme brûlée, which I would recommend to anyone who comes to eat here. I am recommending this place to everyone I know lol