• CLOSED: Mad Mex

  • (16)
    8

    Closed

  • White Veg-options
Lacto
American
Fast food
Delivery
Take-out
Mexican
Non-veg

Serves meat, vegan options available. Mexican restaurant chain serving salads, bowls, burritos and more. Offers tofu, non-dairy cheese and sour cream to make dishes vegan. This one is loud bar setting near Ohio State University where one could go with non-vegetarians. Reported closed, Jun 2018.


16 Reviews

First Review by johannah

jaredhammond55

Points +47

Vegan
05 Jul 2012

Good food

Our waiter was vegitarian and really went out of his way to make sure our meal was vegan. It was a little dead, so this may of helped. Excellent food, excellent portions, good price. Definitely will be going back soon. A fair amount of options.

Pros: Good food, Checked vegan status of food., Good portions

RileyLimbach

Points +108

Vegan
17 Apr 2018

delicious, unique vegan options!

Good drinks, nice atmosphere for a college kid or adult. MUST try the herbavore tofu tacos, SOOO flavorful with the Asian Mexican flavors.

Pros: great vegan/veg options

Cons: not cheap for a college kid, sometimes service is slow

Tabgreenvegan

Points +1031

Vegan
28 Mar 2018

Great Mexican Food!

I love Mad Mex! They have so many clearly labeled vegan options!! The nachos are killer the enchiladas are one of my favs too!!

MHstone

Points +28

Vegan
17 Mar 2018

Can satisfy a hungry tummy

This place has epic vegan burritos and the beans are seasoned so perfectly. If you aren't as hungry, you can just order rice and beans from their sides too. Lots of vegan alternative cheeses and sour cream.

Pros: nice atmosphere, good sizes for what you pay, vegan products

junejunejune

Points +42

Vegan
09 Mar 2017

Good for Vegans and Omnivores Alike

I live super close to Mad Mex and started coming here frequently when I was still eating meat. I was a little worried about the options I'd have eating here as a vegan but I've been pleasantly surprised.
The staff is super accommodating and I've never received strange looks for altering menu items. They have stuff for vegetarians (like burritos and tofu wraps) and they offer Daiya cheese and Tofutti sour cream instead of animal-based versions. I've even ordered their nachos without cheese and with vegan sour cream- it was delicious!
Once, before changing my eating habits, I ordered a shrimp enchilada and the shrimp were literally frozen. Like, there were ice chips between the tortillas. Last week I ordered an enchilada with tofu and the tofu was cold, too! I couldn't believe it... I go to Mad Mex at least once a week and I've never had this problem with any other dishes. When I told the waiter about it they quickly gave me something else, which was nice.
Highly recommend the "Tofu Wrapture" with Southwest tofu.

Pros: Bangin' waffle fries!, Daiya cheese and Tofutti sour cream, Amazing, cheap margaritas

Cons: Icy enchiladas, Few healthy options, Often need to wait for a table

Silly Little Vegan

Points +1042

Vegan
13 Oct 2016

Love their Tacos!

I really enjoy dining at Mad Mex! Great portions and plenty of vegan options. My go-to meal is their tofu tacos. Their tofu is crispy and served in either soft or hard shell taco shells and comes with rice and black beans. They also offer vegan sour cream.

If you're there during Happy Hour, they also offer great drink specials.

Pros: Plenty of vegan options, Vegan sour cream and cheese available

Cons: Often busy and loud

CorissaMarie

Points +3007

Vegan
04 Sep 2016

Delicious but loud

Mad Mex is my favorite "regular" restaurant that has vegan options! Vegan options are clearly marked but most meat options can be substituted with tofu and vegan cheese. My favorite is the Tofu Rapture with mild buffalo sauce and the waffle fries with vegan ranch! Also, on weekdays they have half price food from 10pm-12am and $6 giant margs. The only down falls are that it's loud and service is typically pretty slow.
PS- sit at the bar and you'll get free chips and salsa!

Pros: Vegan Friendly, tofu, deals

Cons: loud, slow

DamnItJenna

Points +15

Vegetarian
22 Feb 2015

One of my fave veg restaurants in Columbus!

The service is always slow, but also always very helpful about vegetarian and vegan options! I'm slowly transitioning from vegetarian to vegan, and thus place is awesome! I got a super burrito with tofu and daiya, even though the cactus on top has a dairy base (you can get it without) and it fed me for three separate meals! Their guac is bomb too! Definitely will be back.

Pros: Close to campus, accessible parking, college-walle

Cons: slow service, can be loud

Lisa

Points +409

Vegan
12 May 2013

Incredibly good food!

Stopped here for a light meal. Got the tofu appetizer and a side salad with VEGAN ranch dressing! Waiter was great at making vegan recommendations. The food was AMAZING, I was really impressed. Also loved the artwork all over the place! Really fun!

Pros: Great food, Fun atmosphere, Knowledgable staff

rmills12

Points +69

Vegan
21 Apr 2013

Good food/Bad Service

The vegan options here are awesome. Its hard to find many vegan mexican food places out there without just not eating cheese. This place uses daiya and tofutti sour cream. The food was really good and really filling. The service was really bad though. In reading other reviews here and other sites seems to be the norm. The food was worth it though. I recommend giving it a shot.

Pros: Vegan menu options, Daiya cheese, Good food

Cons: Service, Service, Service

DirtySoyChai

Points +40

Vegan
11 Mar 2013

One of my favorite restaurants in Columbus

Mad Mex has excellent vegan choices including Daiya vegan cheese, vegan sour cream and ranch, tofu that can be added to any meal and a vegan cheesecake. They also don't charge extra for vegan cheese! My favorites include the chopper salad with tofu and vegan ranch, black bean soup, Thai curry burrito, quesadilla with spinach and beans and the veggie fajitas. The sangrias are great as well.

Pros: many vegan options, delicious, good service

ramachandra

Points +109

Vegetarian
20 May 2011

funky place to get Mexican food

I've been to Mad Mex many times. If you go in the evening or on the weekends, it can get really loud and busy. Sometimes the music is way too loud. But if you go during lunch, you have the chance to sit back and peacefully enjoy the funky decor. They have a mailing list that you sign up for on their website and you'll get a free lunch for signing up, plus one for your birthday. The menu has a surprising number of vegetarian, vegan, and veg-possible options. Two items that stand out in my mind are the Thai Curry burrito and the Black Beanie Quesadeeni. The portion sizes are huge and you can get deals at certain times (I've heard that they have an all-you-can-eat lunch Monday, but I have not confirmed whether this is true or not). I haven't had any bad experiences like the other reviewers have had... just one time we asked the waiter if he could make sure our food was completely vegetarian and he gave a response like "ummm... okay" which isn't exactly reassuring. Like the others have said, this is an especially good place to go with omni friends and everyone will be happy.

Pros: interesting food choices

Cons: noisy

moonwomyn13

22 Feb 2013

I have ordered the black beanie quesadeenie many times, having been assured it was vegan. However, the last time I ordered it I was informed by a vegan waiter that it is NOT VEGAN because the beans contain mayo and parmesan cheese.

Don't know who is uninformed, but I have not ordered it since!

DasTeufulNagatier

Points +57

Vegan
14 Nov 2009

Not recommended

My husband and I have given Mad Mex many chances but unfortunately an overwhelming percentage of meals we've eaten here have been made incorrectly. I've had chicken in my chickpea burrito and dairy cheese and dairy sour cream instead of soy/tofu. I've been lied to about ingredients. The potato taquitos cannot be made vegan, by the way. The tofu sour cream tastes awful. We won't be returning to this restaurant.

Pros: open late

Cons: food made incorrectly, uninformed staff, extremely noisy

xsamx

Points +422

Vegan
10 Nov 2009

Excellent vegan options

I can't echo the sentiment of other reviews (particularly on Yelp) about the zoo-like atmosphere and terrible service. We went late Sunday night and the place was almost empty. Most of the food is half off from 10pm to 12am which is a great incentive to eat there late.

As far as I can tell, the vegan sour cream is not Tofutti or a commercial brand; it says "tofu sour cream" in the menu and definitely has a different consistency and taste from the processed, soy-based stuff most vegans are used to. Not bad, just different. The soy cheese is most likely Follow Your Heart though I couldn't find out for sure.

The vegan options are incredible. They have a crispy tofu dish that rivals any Asian restaurant in Columbus or otherwise, complete with a mild peanut sauce, sesame seeds, and soy sauce. It was incredible. They also feature hummus with Mexican pumpkin seeds which sounds incredible, though I didn't try it.

The burritos are excellent and many other dishes can be vegan, including the tacos. The wealth of menu options and customizations make Mad Mex a great place to go with your omnivore friends. They are a relatively small chain (about 10 stores nationwide), so recommend they carry a popular food service mock meat (Boca, for instance) before they blow up! We told our server and he was very receptive.

Overall - another excellent restaurant in Columbus for vegans and vegetarians, with late-night hours.

Pros: vegan-friendly, taste, variety

keillorandel

Points +45

Vegetarian
09 Nov 2009

Excellent Food for Veg and Non Veg

It is rare to find a place that is equally god for vegetarians and our non veg friends, but this place is it. It has become a must visit when we are in columbus. I highly recommend almost everything on the menu. It can be a bit spicy, but the flavors are fresh and vibrant. This isn't bland nor is it the big cheese glops you expect in many Mexican places. It tastes remarkably complex- lost of different flavors and textures harmonize into each distinctive dish. I especially loved the green salse and the hummus. The chickpea chili was too spicy for me, but my better half loved it.

Pros: near campus, fresh , unusual dishes

Cons: a bit too spicy on some things

johannah

Points +19

Vegan
31 May 2009

So-So

Mad Mex can be good, but it depends entirely on what you get. The soy quesadillas are not good. Howver, the Thai Curry burrito is delicious (and vegan) and so is the chickpea soup. I would suggest going after 10 pm (they are open til 2) because the burritos are half off.

Pros: Vegan Options, Atmosphere, Hours

Cons: Price, Some foods




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