Vegan
American
Organic
Raw
Fast food
Juice bar
Take-out
Bakery
Gluten-free
Vegan comfort food in a casual, fast food setting with garden patio and featuring the world's first all-vegan drive thru. The kitchen makes the sauces in-house, and menu offers choices like hand-cut fries, sandwiches and wraps, different kinds of burger patties plus shakes, fountain drinks, and daily desserts. Uses 100% non-gmo ingredients. Location is across from Balboa Park. Est. since 2004 (originally as Kung Food then Nature's Express). Open Mon-Sun 11:00am-8:00pm.
251 Reviews
First Review by divine_health
BanezaM
Points +568
Tasty Burgers and Fries - Edit
We were craving burgers and fries and decided to give delivery from Evolution Kitchen a try. It was delicious! We had the Smash Burger and the Fuego with the beefy patty option. Definitely will return to try again! Highly recommend for a fast food craving.
Read moreGuest
serena98
Points +1184
Love love love - Edit
Immaculate flavor for everything. Milkshake, cake, burger and loaded fries all slapped. Cool murals inside and outside of the establishment as well. Overall wonderful experience
Read moreGuest
VeganLion777
Points +212
Best Vegan Burgers in San Diego🤘🤘🙏 - Edit
So fresh and delicious with Cabbage wrap alternative to bread!
Read morePros: Vegan, Delicious , Fresh
Guest
Reasie
Points +130
So-so - Edit
Amazing french fries - unfortunately my family did not care for the house-made ketchup, so even those went mostly uneaten.
Read moreThe beefy burger has an Alpha brand patty which tasted fine but was super thin. They were generous with toppings/condiments. Again, the ketchup left my son’s burger uneaten. It tastes very heavy on…apple cider vinegar??
The chocolate chip cookie was chewy and delicious. The NY Chocolate was okay - a bit of a let down considering how good it looked. It was very nice and creamy, but sort of strangely tangy - not in a good way.
The staff was friendly and helpful. The outdoor dining space was lovely.
Might come back if I lived in the area. Curious to try the chk’n sandwiches and the cheese sauce on the fries.
I would pack my own ketchup! lol…
Pros: The fries, The dining room, Large menu
Cons: Did I mention the weird ketchup?, Scrawny burger patty
Guest
JasonManias
Points +1341
Stupidly good - Edit
Amazing mix of junk and healthy food. My fav was the chicken bacon Swiss sandwich, used to be my go to at Arby’s and this one really hit the spot. The chickpea salad tempeh wrap was outstanding as well. They even have a drive thru!
Read moreGuest
Alakazam
Points +45
Generous portions and fresh food - Edit
I have been here many times in the past and just remembered it existed. I recently had the grilled vegetable burrito and it was fresh and packed with high-quality vegetables. I shared it with my girlfriend, and we both agreed it was more than enough for us. We also tried the yerba mate, which we found a bit gross. In spite of the gross tea, I will definitely be back for the food.
Read moreAs an aside, the inside of the restaurant is a bit cramped and kind of strange due to the primitive drive-thru set-up, but the back side is secluded and great for a group of friends or a quiet date. This is a much better option than Plant Power, which is pretty hit-and-miss for me.
Guest
junkfoodvegan
Points +143
Great fast food with some healthy options - Edit
I loved the burritos and the bacon ranch fries and the pumpkin shake. Delicious food, prices reasonable for the area, and the food came fast. Would definitely visit again.
Read morePros: Great food, Prices reasonable, Very fast
Cons: No seating
Guest
avokari
Points +150
Great fast food - Edit
I really enjoyed my burger here, and the tacos were good as well. It's great to see more casual vegan food being offered. Very good experience!
Read morePros: Tasty burger, Convenient, Big portions
Guest
lovebeachesandturtles
Points +72
Loved it - Edit
First time here today, and I went twice! Got the mushroom Swiss burger both times. For lunch I had the black bean patty and for dinner I did the tempeh patty. They were both great. I’m not a local, but it’s good to know when I’m back in the area this is one I can count on repeating.
Read morePros: Tastes good, Pricing was right
Guest
FabricioPassos17
Points +46
Perfeito! - Edit
Fase food rápido, lanches e acompanhamentos maravilhosos. Milk shakes surreais.
Read morePros: Lanches
Cons: Nada
Guest
Kaseyfrench
Points +336
Cali burrito! - Edit
Only place I’ve found that offers a vegan California burrito. Love it.
Read moreGuest
CinnamonGoil
Points +110
Delicious!!! - Edit
Absolutely delicious! Plan to return by the end of our vacation
Read morePros: Burger bun, Soft serve ice cream, Shoestring fries
Guest
lilylil!
Points +82
yum! - Edit
quick, tasty food! we tried four types of hamburger and the mozzarella and pesto one was my favorite : the mozzarella was reaally good and felt like real one! the prices are good, especially compared to the (also vegan) restaurant donna jean that is placed next to this fast food!
Read morethey have a space where you can sit and eat, and it was cute, but not really clean : okay to eat a burger!
Pros: 100% vegan , delicious hamburgers, quick
Cons: not suuper friendly staff (but not rude) , place to sit isn’t that clean
Guest
MysticMerman
Points +83
A Holy Space - Edit
This location has been a vegan or veggie business for at least 40 years! Evolution has been there for at least a decade keeping the grounds holy! Ha ha! Evolution is owned by the same people that own Plant Power. It's nice that they haven't changed it. It offers unique items you can't get at Plant Power. Highly recommended!
Read morePros: 100% vegan, A lot of options, Fries are air cooked, not fried
Cons: Closes too early on the weekends.
Guest
DonaldMcAninch
Points +617
Straightforward and yummy - Edit
We got a couple different burgers using the tempeh patties and were very satisfied. The toppings were not as original or innovative as some places, but everything tasted great.
Read moreGuest
marieroberts
Points +1427
We were excited to try but… - Edit
The food was ok but nothing to phone home about.
Read moreI had the evo burger and my husband had a chicken sandwich. We just weren’t in love with the flavours, but of course we’re happy to find a 100% vegan restaurant. Next time we’re in the area we want to try the plant based restaurant right beside it that we somehow missed.
Pros: All vegan, Comfort food when you’re in the mood
Cons: Service mediocre , Ketchup doesn’t taste good
Guest
Spaceprincess1997
Points +72
good and quick! - Edit
My bf and I’s fav fast food vegan place so far! Evolution has really good burritos, tacos, and burgers. It was convenient and pretty quick for a bite to eat. Whenever we visit San Diego, we go to Evolution!
Read moreGuest
MelaniaRyś
Points +71
Nothing special - Edit
I visited this place because it had the best opinions in San Diego and I was disappointed to be honest. The staff was nice but the burger was only ok, nothing special. And the dining room was hard to find, it was behind a corridor with a sing “no trespassing” so I found it after seeing other people going there and after I already ate my burger on a bench outside.
Read morePros: Vegan
Cons: No beer
Guest
HoldenKopman
Points +24
Great food and experience! - Edit
Drove from Carlsbad to this place and it did not disappoint! Though they were not picking up the phone, the customer service was very accommodating! For the food I got the California burrito which had some of the best cashew cheese I have ever had, though it was a little heavy on the vegan carne. Something else extremely notable was that though their restaurant is labeled fast food, the food actually had the opposite effect of fast food and did not make me feel sick as many other vegan restaurants have in the past. They have a great outdoor patio and even though the heaters were not working at the time it was a very enjoyable experience! Next time we are in San Diego area we will be back!! Definitely recommend 👍
Read morePros: Customer Service, Beautiful outdoor Patio, Food!
Cons: Phone service
Guest
CamilaGalvez
Points +1335
Drive tru!! - Edit
El primer drive tru! Tiene muchas opciones para todos los gustos y la kombucha On tap esta deliciosa!
Read moreGuest
NicoleParks
Points +1416
yum! - Edit
really good food and so many options! i got the buffalo chickn fries and a strawberry shake. pricey for fast food but expected for downtown sd. cool art on the walls on the back patio!
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2022-12-15
Guest
MizzB
Points +3727
Vegan dining deliciousness - Edit
Very tasty food, good sized portions, very affordable prices
Read morePros: 100% Vegan, Friendly knowledgeable personnel , Conveniently located, drive thru take out, dine in
Cons: Heavy traffic in busy area
Guest
alannahneedham
Points +370
Good food - Edit
Good food. Friendly service.
Read moreGuest
·X·
Points +17394
Evolution FF - Edit
Looks like my review from 10 years ago disappeared…it was passive 😉. In general, I love EFF. It’s one of the OG vegan fast food places in the area. I’ve always enjoyed the burgers. Definitely a top place in my opinion.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2011-04-15
Guest
skymyers
Points +52
So good for what it is - Edit
This is, by far, the best vegan fast food I’ve had. My girlfriend and I come here all the time and have loved everything except for the vegan bacon, which simply did not seem like bacon at all for us. The shakes are great too. The menu is also a bit cheaper than comparable vegan food in the area. It’s sister restaurant, Donna Jean, which is connected, is also a must try for dine in.
Read morePros: Affordable, Quick , Tasty
Cons: Some options better than others
Guest
cupcake222
Points +98
Outstanding! - Edit
The pesto chkn sandwich and the strawberry shake were A plus!
Read moreChkn was definitely the best I’ve had!
Updated from previous review on 2022-08-17
Guest
MariaLupitaFigueroa
Points +50
Meh - Edit
I was super excited as I’ve only ever heard good things, but I was not impressed. I got the chili cheese fries and I hated them, the buffalo chicken sandwich was okay, I ordered the blueberry cheesecake I believe, but I never got it, so yeah…
Read moreGuest
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