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- Top Rated Bakery in Chicago
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Healthy Substance - Garfield Ridge
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Vegan
Vegan
Juice bar
Delivery
Take-out
Mexican
Bakery
Catering
Latin
Latin restaurant offering traditional dishes that Includes vegan tamales, vegan sandwiches as well as vegan desserts. Confirmed open May 2020. Open Mon-Sat 11:30am-8:00pm, Sun 11:30am-6:00pm.
52 Reviews
First Review by SailorVegan
crazeedeysi
Points +93
Amazing!! - Edit
It’s so nice to have a vegan Mexican restaurant so close to home. The carne asada tacos and torta were sooo good! Can’t wait to come back and try other items!
Read morePros: Yummy food , Very clean , Friendly Service
Guest
Bill.c63
Points +122
Excellent - Edit
I had their new steak platter. It was amazing! It’s a soy-based steak they make in-house. One of the best things I’ve tasted. Highly recommend this place!
Read morePros: Excellent food, Very clean , Nice ambiance
Guest
timurphy
Points +23
Fantastic!! - Edit
I’ll absolutely be back
Read moreGotta try everything on this menu
Pros: Fantastic fresh salsas, Excellent Birria tacos, Super friendly service
Guest
annalised
Points +400
Very good experience! Would go back! - Edit
General summary and logistics:
Read moreThis place is great — fully vegan, authentic fresh flavors, nice staff, and a super clean restaurant! My omni husband and I visited last weekend — it wasn’t crowded at all on a Saturday night. Street parking was fine — we were able to snag a spot just down the street, even on a busy Saturday night.
Food:
➡️ We only got a few things but I wanted to try the whole menu, everything looked so good. We got the carne asada burrito which was really good texture wise, but i wish it had a bit more flavor. My husband got carne asada tacos and a chicken taco. He really liked them (3 total) but they were super tiny and he could have had 3 more! The rice pudding was a great dessert.
Pros: Fully vegan, Fresh and authentic, Nice physical space and staff
Cons: Slightly high prices
Guest
wiselatina
Points +93
Excellent variety of vegan food - Edit
This has become my favorite vegan restaurant and I’ve been to many places in the city and nearby suburbs. My favorite is the supreme nachos and I hadn’t tried much of anything else on the menu for the first few years since discovering this place! The horchata is so delicious. I’d missed it since transitioning to plant based. Have had their chili, soups, tacos, tamales and their entrees, hard to resist my favorite nachos though! Had to visit their new location in wicker park during their soft grand opening and it’s still my favorite place! Their activism towards animals is a huge part of their success too! This is a great family business that cares about their customers.
Read morePros: Supreme nachos and all the menu options , Decor of the famous vegans and vegetarians , Close to my home
Cons: Miss the gorditas , Dine in area could use some art or plants
Guest
oatbug
Points +58
Good food! - Edit
Amazing vegan mexican food in chicago! Love the rice pudding, nachos (although I wish they were more generous with the cheese..), and the tacos are so good but sooo tiny ! Zucchini soup is super good during sick days (:
Read morePros: Good nachos, Yummy food
Cons: Small portions
Guest
SammieBretz
Points +93
Mini and Regular Burrito and Tacos - Edit
Tacos were awesome! I got the asada and pastor. I’m impressed with the flavors. The corn tortillas were incredibly fresh. The mini burritos were okay. Very soft mushy inside. The potato was the mushiest. The fajita was a little more flavorful. The regular asada burrito was a perfect portion.
Read morePros: Portion, Flavor, 100% Vegan!
Guest
Taylorvegan
Points +89
Lovely option in the area! - Edit
I always love a vegan restaurant that has an emphasis on the animals and not your health! Very tasty burrito, loved the mini burrito too. And we got the thumb print cookies and they were great even 4 days later!
Read moreGuest
amyvotta
Points +564
Nice vegan stop - Edit
Tasty vegan eats! Sweet spot on my travels as I stopped for a day in Chicago. Nice ambience & dining area, too.
Read moreGuest
jewel_amanda
Points +18
Mexian roots made with love 🥹 - Edit
Every time I come to the area, I always stop by! Tamales are 🔥. Honestly, everything here is so good. 🥹
Read morePros: Tamales, Mini burritos, Desserts
Guest
ElkaBolhafner
Points +36
Delicious - Edit
Close to highway, vegan deliciousness. We travel to Chicago a few times per year. Finding vegan fare isn’t impossible but the close to thoroughfare is a huge plus. And the food was so good. Rice pudding hit the nostalgia notes. Yum
Read morePros: All vegan, Lots of seating, Helpful staff
Guest
ramgad
Points +16
Latin foods - Edit
Great place for lunch. Everything is vegan. Pastry also very good and moist. Would definitely go again.
Read morePros: Great options, Tasty dishes
Guest
stretchwithgumby
Points +171
nice surprise not too far from Midway airport - Edit
Large, bright, airy, friendly place. I ordered the chilli soup which was indeed a soup (not a thick stew) and was of the tex-mex variety. It was very flavorful and nicely portioned, although it did not come with any bread/crackers/tortillas which would have been a plus. I also ordered the quesadilla which literally melted in my mouth. The side salad was fresh and vibrant.
Read morePros: mom-and-pop atmosphere, on-street parking in the area was not bad, reasonable portions at reasonable prices
Cons: They only had two drink selections., Archer Avenue is a very busy street.
Guest
ElVeganoLoco
Points +293
Delicioso! - Edit
This is my go to spot any time I visit Hometown and need to stock up on delicious meals during my visit.
Read moreI have pretty much tried the whole menu and have yet to find anything that disappoints me.
Portions are very generous, usually have left overs.
100% recommend!
Guest
Bumbeedoop
Points +19
Wonderful! - Edit
They serve excellent vegan Mexican food.
Read moreGuest
SavingthePlanetJanet💚
Points +18
Yummy vegan Mexican food - Edit
Happy to have found this place thanks to this app.
Read moreI am visiting my hometown and was so excited to see this place blocks away from where I grew up.
Healthy, fresh ingredients.
Carrot cake was amazing!!
Salsa is yum, ask for extra
Pros: All vegan , Friendly staff, Clean
Guest
mmarnesen
Points +38
Truly delicious and healthy vegan Mexican food! - Edit
I drive so far out of my way to get burritos from this place. I work in downtown Chicago and live in Wheaton. Please franchise and expand! Love you!
Read moreGuest
jadaruss
Points +1833
Amazing Mexican food - Edit
I love their food so much! It’s definitely one of my favorite restaurants in Chicago, and in an area with limited options!
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2022-10-23
Guest
BradleyWallace
Points +233
Vegan Mexican - Edit
Healthy Substance has great Mexican food. I ordered the chorizo and egg torta and it was amazing. The bun on this torta was perfect, it was light and fluffy but flaky on the outside and could hold up to the heft of the contents of the sandwich. The seasoning on the chorizo was full of flavor. I also had the rice pudding and a fresh pineapple water. Both of these were fantastic as well.
Read moreGuest
JenniferPooch
Points +239
Best Vegan Mexican - Edit
This place is seriously amazing. Everything I've ever had here has been incredible, but their al pastor is put of this world. I really love their Fresh Water drinks too, and usually will get one when I'm there (flavors change daily). Most recently, I had the al pastor tacos with everything on them (cheese and sour cream), a Pineapple Fresh Water drink, and their rice pudding for dessert.
Read morePros: Excellent quality , Good menu variety (100% vegan), Affordable
Guest
Laugust
Points +207
Incredible - Edit
Me and 2 others got a meal each and we all loved it. It sucks I'm a little of a far drive from here because I want to go back already!! The staff are so friendly too.
Read morePros: Amazing food, Rice and beans are great, Salsa verde
Cons: Don't have horchata every day, Extra salsa costs $2
Guest
KimberlyRileyAllen
Points +76
Amazing food! With every penny. - Edit
I love that there are a lot of options .
Read moreGuest
nicolefarris
Points +135
Holy mole-y! - Edit
One of the best meals I’ve had in a long time!! I got the Al pastor taco - so good and two tamales - poblano and green mole. I haven’t had tamales in too long and these were absolutely perfect.
Read moreI bought a pound of their in-house Al pastor and a mini chocolate cake for the road. The cake was tasty, but a bit dry.
Pros: Quality flavor, Lots of options
Guest
connorb
Points +110
Awesome food and great service - Edit
I really enjoyed visiting Healthy Substance last weekend. They were very busy and kept the kitchen running post closing to finish up all the orders.
Read morePros: A lot of different things to choose from, Tasty smoothies, Yummy deserts
Guest
Haley_Kat
Points +356
So good - Edit
The tacos were delicious and the staff was very friendly! Will definitely be back to try other things
Read morePros: All vegan!
Guest
chale91
Points +144
Best Latin food in Chicago - Edit
My husband and I stopped here on our way to the airport. It was too delicious and we will be going back once he returns from his trip! The tacos were his favorite and I could not tell you the last time I had a tamale THAT good. I wish this was closer to where we live. We will be coming back every time we are in Chicago.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2021-11-07
Pros: All vegan, Great prices, Woman owned
Cons: Too delicious
Guest
itzelle.anahi
Points +58
my FAVORITE place to eat - Edit
I’m always ordering food from here!! Gotta try the whole menu. I highly recommend getting a vegan cake to go with your order as dessert!! Always fast and friendly service and it is SO NICE to have a vegan place on the southside!
Read moreGuest
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