In the 1920s, Los Angeles decided it needed an airport, and thus LAX was formed. The place is the home of some of the easiest transportation, being a hub spot for international and domestic flights. But what do you do if you’re a fledgling little vegan who wants something to eat? Don’t feel the need to prep some food, LAX has your back. What places are generally easy to eat at, and which ones need a bit of negotiation? From my experience, here are some of my suggestions:
Note: Some terminals will have Farmers’ Fridge vending machines, but I have yet to find many vegan options. I don’t know why people suggest Farmer’s Fridge as an option; truthfully, you can find more options or snacks at a magazine or bookstore at any of the terminals. You might find something useful, but I will skip it as a suggestion.
Double Note: I am skipping anything offering salad as the only option. I am not interested in having just a green-leaf salad as an option when I’m traveling. I would rather just eat snacks.
Terminal 1
At Terminal 1, an easy option to eat would be Panda Express. They used to offer the Beyond Orange chicken, but that has been discontinued. No one knows why Panda Express would take away something fun and niche, but maybe companies want to cherish the “no, let’s not change our menu ever” motto. The vegan food that Panda Express now offers are:
- Rice (White and brown only. Don’t eat the fried rice)- The rice is steamed.
- The eggplant tofu is a tofu, eggplant, and red bell dish in a spicy sweet sauce. The dish is made with vegetable stock instead of chicken.
- The vegetarian egg roll is a finely chopped cabbage, carrots, green onions, and a Chinese noodle dish wrapped in a wonton pastry and deep fried until golden brown. It is an excellent standard dish for a snack or something small to eat in case you don’t want to have something massive.
- Chow Mein is a stir-fried noodle dish prepared by stir-frying boiling noodles sautéing with some vegetables and tofu. They used to be made with flavored chicken broth, but now they don’t.
NOTE: The Supergreens is a dish of kale, cabbage, and broccoli; however, some Panda Expresses cook it with butter. If you’re brave, you can ask if it wasn’t cooked with butter, but I tend to be a coward when it comes to asking if something has animal products in it, so I kept it off the list.
There is a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, which offers a ton of vegan coffees for your quick travel needs.
Trejo’s Tacos also offers vegan taco options. I would suggest going here solely because I greatly advocate supporting Danny Trejo. He hasn’t done anything of note, I know. I just like his personality.
Einstein Bros Bagels has a couple of vegan bagel options like cinnamon raisin, everything, plain, and blueberry. You can have it with peanut butter. However, I wouldn’t say that Einstein Bros is that delicious, so maybe go here if nothing else is available.
At Urth Cafe and Bar, there are a couple of coffee options with nut milk and a Vegan Sprout Sandwich.
Terminal 2
Note: There is a Breeze which makes custom meals that can be ordered 24 hours before. However, as I wrote before, this must be ordered 24 hours in advance. Even though that would be convenient to get the perfect meal if you have a business trip, it’s not an easy task to go through.
At Terminal 2, the restaurants or eateries that are available are Built Custom Burgers, Starbucks, Pick Up Sticks, and Barney’s Beanery.
Built Custom Burgers offers an impossible cheeseburger (omit the cheese and the brioche bun) and fries. They have a whole wheat bun or lettuce, which can be used as a substitute. Make sure to double-check that they don’t use mayo for their burgers.
Pick Up Sticks offers steamed tofu and vegetables that could be mixed with the house, firecracker, orange peel, or sweet and sour sauce. You can have that on steamed rice topped with a vegetable spring roll.
Barney’s Beanery offers tacos which can be made vegan. Make sure they don’t use butter and cheese.
Terminal 3
Terminal 3 has a Starbucks, Panda Express, and Alfred Coffee. I have already written about the vegan options to look out for with Panda Express and Starbucks. They have some coffee that offers vegan oat milk options with it. If you want a snack there, they have plain bagels that can have guac or peanut butter added to them.
Alfred Coffee has a ton of vegan options for coffee. Any coffee could substitute some vegan milk with it.
Terminal 4
Terminal 4 has Campanile and Dunkin’ Donuts. Campanile should have some vegan options. The menu states some vegetarian options, with four being overtly vegan. There are good snack dishes and actual meals like an impossible burger.
Dunkin’ Donuts which offers vegan milk alternatives for their coffees and hash browns. They offer some bagels which can have peanut butter and/or jam.
Terminal 5
Terminal 5 should have a Loteria Grill, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Donburi Bistro, Lemonade, Monsieur Marcel, and Ford’s Filling Station. Places that offer a ton of snack and meal options.
Loteria Grill can customize a vegan-ized burrito, taco, or bowl concoction; remember to ask for no beans and rice. Those are not vegan. It has been around forever, so they’re well equipped to make something vegan.
Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf offers many vegan options for the coffees you might have.
Donburi Bistro offers vegan appetizers like crispy tofu and crispy garlic fries. Still, overall, it doesn’t seem like they have many options. There are also two Coffee Beans that, once again, offer coffees with vegan milk.
Lemonade has been around forever and generally goes through a seasonal change with its menu. At Lemonade, you will find some sort of vegetable dish or salad dish that is more filling than just a green salad. Even though I wouldn’t have a salad when traveling, Lemonade is the exception.
Monsieur Marcel offers some snack-y items (hummus, chips, chips, and salad greens). However, I have to reiterate that I generally don’t want a salad when traveling.
Terminal 6
Terminal 6 has Earthbar, which has some vegan smoothies and vegan cookies. Even though they are not full meals, having something fresh sometimes feels a little comforting. Also, it’s pretty rare to find a vegan cookie, and the ones they sell are higher in protein.
There is also Peet’s Coffee, which offers vegan milk options for coffee.
Terminal 7
Terminal 7 doesn’t have any full vegan options. Two restaurants offer salad concoctions, but there aren’t any dressing choices, so the only option is vegetables. I suggest just getting snacks. There is also a Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, but like I wrote before, there aren’t many vegan options.
Terminal 8
Carl’s Jr runs supreme as a hub spot for vegan opportunities. Their fries are vegan and offer a beyond burger if you omit the cheese and the sauce. The food is good, but it’s definitely not healthy.
Terminal B
Terminal B, or the international terminal, offers many options ranging from American to Asian. First, at the west gates, is Panda Express and there are two Coffee Beans and Tea Leafs.
There is Unami Burger, which offers fries and an impossible burger. I suggest they omit the sauce and cheese.
Santa Monica Brew Works has a couple of vegan options. Some of their beers, the avocado toast (check if they add cheese), the crinkle cut fries, and the German pretzel (double check if they add butter), would be easy options.
There are Edamame, Chili Garlic Green Beans, and Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps at PF Changs.
While I have discussed the vegan options at the eateries, there are possible snack options at the magazine and bookstores. Some of these places might also close soon (I have found so many vegan option suggestions at airports only for them to be closed when I look for them), so I’m staying wary of that. It’s pretty clear the bookstores at LAX buy a variety of snacks, so there is always an option to have.
