Vegan Soul Food Minneapolis 2026: Trio, J. Selby's, Hard Times & More

Vegan Soul Food in Minneapolis & St Paul: Where to Go

Soul food — the Southern comfort cooking tradition built around beans, greens, cornbread, and fried proteins — is one of the most naturally adaptable cuisines for plant-based eating. The foundational ingredients are largely vegan: dried legumes, leafy greens, sweet potatoes, corn. The animal products (lard, smoked pork, chicken fat) are what's been added over centuries of evolution.

Minneapolis and St Paul have a handful of restaurants doing this right — plant-based soul food and comfort cooking that hits the same notes without requiring the same ingredients. Here's where to go.

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Trio Plant-Based — Saint Paul

Trio Plant-Based is the anchor. This fully vegan Southern comfort restaurant in St Paul is not pretending to be soul food — it's doing soul food, plant-based, without apology or asterisk.

The menu covers all the classics: fried chick'n sandwiches made with well-textured plant protein with a properly crispy crust, mac and cheese with a creamy sauce that doesn't taste like compromise, collard greens cooked low and slow, cornbread that's actually good. The sides are serious — this is not garnish territory. The sweet potato pie shows up and earns its place on any list of best desserts in the Twin Cities.

For a group of mixed-diet diners, Trio is the recommendation. People who don't eat vegan food go here and enjoy themselves. That's the benchmark.

Address: Saint Paul | Check current hours — they sometimes have limited service days

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J. Selby's — Cathedral Hill, Saint Paul

J. Selby's takes vegan comfort food in a different direction: American casual rather than Southern specifically, but with the same commitment to hitting familiar flavor notes with plant-based ingredients.

The nachos are loaded — chip structural integrity maintained, toppings distributed correctly, the kind of nacho architecture that suggests real care. The Crunch Wrap Supreme is better than the fast-food inspiration. The Animal Fries — loaded, messy, completely satisfying — are the late-night comfort food order. The shakes (cookies and cream is the consensus choice) are thick and properly sweet.

J. Selby's is 100% vegan and has been operating in Cathedral Hill long enough to have regulars who've been coming weekly for years. That's what happens when comfort food is actually good.

Address: 169 Victoria St N, Cathedral Hill, Saint Paul

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Hard Times Cafe — Cedar-Riverside, Minneapolis

Hard Times Cafe is a Minneapolis institution. The Cedar-Riverside restaurant has been feeding the neighborhood — and late-night diners from across the city — for decades. The menu is heavily vegan-friendly, the prices are among the most accessible of any restaurant on this list, and the kitchen runs late.

The Helter Skelter (potatoes, peppers, onions, and whatever you want loaded in) and the vegan biscuits and gravy are the comfort food orders. At midnight, when other options have closed, Hard Times is still going.

The atmosphere is unpretentious in the way that places with long histories get — the walls have seen things, the regulars know the staff, and the food is the point.

Address: 1821 Riverside Ave, Cedar-Riverside | Open late / 24 hours on some nights

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Lulu EthioVegan — South Minneapolis

Ethiopian food is comfort food. The injera — fermented, tangy, spongy flatbread made from teff — is one of the most satisfying breads in any cuisine. The stews (misir, tikel gomen, shiro) are warm, spiced, and filling in the way that good comfort food always is.

Lulu EthioVegan is 100% vegan and makes Ethiopian comfort food without compromise. The combination platter — multiple stews arranged on injera, served communally — is the order. Eat with your hands, tear the injera, scoop the stews. This is how Ethiopian food is meant to be eaten.

Lulu has earned extraordinary ratings because the food is genuinely extraordinary. It's not vegan food that's almost as good. It's vegan food that's better than most alternatives.

Address: South Minneapolis | Check hours — they sometimes sell out

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Reverie Cafe + Bar — Powderhorn

Reverie is not soul food in the Southern tradition, but it belongs on a comfort food list. The 100% vegan menu does dark chocolate beignets, loaded sandwiches, buffalo-style items, and a Rev Burger (tempeh, kimchi aioli, smoked onions) that functions as comfort food for people who eat plant-based regularly.

The weekend brunch is when Reverie shines for comfort eating — the menu goes deep into satisfying, filling plates. The 20+ craft tap list makes it easy to stay for a while.

Address: 1517 E 35th St, Powderhorn

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Herbie's Fried Chicken — Northeast Minneapolis

Connected to The Herbivorous Butcher, Herbie's Fried Chicken specializes in plant-based fried chicken. The Herbivorous Butcher's expertise in vegan meat products translates here — the texture and flavor of the fried chicken are serious.

Address: Northeast Minneapolis (connected to The Herbivorous Butcher location)

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Neighborhood Context: Soul Food and Comfort Food Geography

Trio Plant-Based is in St Paul — accessible via I-94 or Green Line light rail from Minneapolis. Cathedral Hill (where J. Selby's lives) is about a 10-minute drive from downtown St Paul, or a short Lyft from the Raymond Ave Green Line station. The Cedar-Riverside neighborhood for Hard Times Cafe is Minneapolis proper — close to downtown, walkable from the University of Minnesota campus area.

Lulu EthioVegan in South Minneapolis is on the Nicollet Ave corridor near the Eat Street restaurant district, making it possible to make a day of South Minneapolis vegan dining — lunch at Lulu, dessert at Glam Doll on Nicollet, coffee at a neighborhood cafe.

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Price Range & Hours

Trio Plant-Based: $15-$24 for mains, $6-$9 for sides and desserts. Check their current hours before visiting — they've had periods of reduced service days. The fried chick'n sandwich is the flagship order at around $17.

J. Selby's: $12-$18 range. Open daily for lunch and dinner. The late-night crowd arrives after 9 PM on weekends. Animal Fries are $10-$12 and worth every cent.

Hard Times Cafe: Very affordable, $8-$13 range. One of the most accessible price points on the Twin Cities vegan comfort food circuit. The Helter Skelter is $9-$11. Open late most nights.

Lulu EthioVegan: Combination platters $18-$24, excellent value for the quantity and quality. They sell out on busy nights — arrive by 7 PM to guarantee full menu availability.

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Pro Tip

The Trio + J. Selby's Day Trip: Both Trio and J. Selby's are in St Paul, about 15 minutes apart by car. The classic combination is Trio for an early dinner (they sometimes open at 4 or 5 PM — check ahead), then J. Selby's for dessert shakes around 7 PM. Two of the best fully vegan comfort food restaurants in Minnesota in one outing.

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Why Minneapolis Vegan Comfort Food Is Exceptional

The Twin Cities vegan comfort food scene benefits from a specific combination: a large, established plant-based community, affordable real estate that has allowed independent restaurants to survive long enough to develop genuine skill, and a broader restaurant culture that takes food seriously. The result is that Trio, J. Selby's, Lulu, and Hard Times are not "pretty good for vegan food" — they're excellent full stop.

Trio's mac and cheese has been compared favorably to non-vegan versions by food critics who aren't advocating for plant-based eating. Hard Times has been feeding Cedar-Riverside for decades. J. Selby's Animal Fries have regulars who drive from the suburbs specifically for them. This is what an established vegan food culture looks like.

For the full picture of vegan comfort food in Minneapolis, see our vegan comfort food guide and our dedicated best vegan soul food Minneapolis collection guide. Browse the MPLS Vegan restaurant directory for all plant-based dining in the Twin Cities.