• 4
• Great vegetarian restaurant with outside seating

Gracias Madre is one of our favorite restaurants in San Francisco and Los Angeles! While the whole menu is vegan, it's one of those places you could take a carnivore or a vegan too, because the options are varied and the cashew cheese is phenomenal, so you don't simply feel you're eating a plate of vegetables. We took a friend whose from Mexico City to the San Francisco location, and he requested to go back again when he came back to town with his wife (both are meat eaters) - to me, that's a true testament to this place! However, in comparison to the San Francisco location (quite dark and a bit awkwardly shaped with many communal tables), this location is one of the most gorgeous restaurants I've ever seen! The inside is quite large and there's a good amount of space between tables. The outside area may even be a bit larger, and it again looks like something out of a design magazine. No touch was forgotten about, and you immediately feel comfortable in this place. Service is generally good here too, and the clientele is more of a Hollywood vibe and less of a hipster vibe, which the SF location is more of. Cocktails are strong and creatively designed. They have a variety of drinks (and a mocktail or two) on the menu. Note that they are expensively priced for what you're getting though. Especially with the mocktail - it ends up being a lot of ice for what you pay for! The appetizers and mains are fantastic here! Guacamole is good, anything with cashew cheese on it is creamy and filling and the entrees come with a sizable amount of food. Our favorite dish is the tamal mojado - a very satisfying dish that comes with pickled vegetables and rice. The sauce is thick and spicy, without being overwhelmingly so. Their coconut bacon is also very cool. It doesn't try to impersonate bacon, and instead has an almost bacon-like texture with great coconut flavor, very unique! The only course that sometimes leaves something to be desired is dessert. We've tried cheesecake, their gluten-free black bean brownie and their chocolate cake. I found all to not be quite as deliciously sweet as a non-vegan dessert (we've even had better vegan versions of all three elsewhere). The black bean brownie came with sauces drizzled on top which certainly made it sweet, but not in the best kind of way. I recommend going elsewhere for dessert. Overall, a very solid restaurant - it could be a perfect date spot or a great place to bring the whole family due to its size!