Choosing a plant-based diet gives your body the nutrients it needs, as it gives you plenty of fats, protein, and carbohydrates. You’ll also get quality fiber in your diet when you eat plant-based meals, which contributes to your overall health. Many chefs understand the importance of adding more vegetables, legumes, nuts, and salads to daily meals and offer vegetarian or vegan options at their restaurants. Treat your family to tasty, innovative, and healthy foods at any of these six fabulous plant-based restaurants in the Port Potomac (Woodbridge), Virginia, area.

The Secret Garden Cafe

The Secret Garden Cafe  offers a relaxing environment in a house that was built in 1840 and later converted into a restaurant. When the weather is warm, you can enjoy your meal in the lovely outside garden area.

The menu is not completely vegetarian or vegan. However, if you don’t eat animal products, you’ll find lots of plant-based dishes, including salads, soups, and entrees. Sides include scrumptious items such as cauliflower mash, couscous salad, and roasted potatoes. You’ll also find several pasta and noodle dishes along with sandwiches and wraps filled with vegetables and scrumptious sauces. Diners in your party who eat meat, chicken, or seafood will find delicious items that include grilled salmon, roast chicken, and rib-eye steaks.

Location: 404 Mill St. in Occoquan.

Contact: 703-494-2848.

Taste of Tandoor

If you’re looking for authentic North Indian cuisine, you’ll appreciate eating at Taste of Tandoor. You’ll find plenty of vegetarian options cooked in the fragrant spice blends that give North Indian food its distinct flavors. If you’re not a meat eater, you’ll enjoy the extensive vegetarian menu that showcases plenty of lentils, mixed vegetables, and curry dishes. Order cooling cucumber raita, tandoori-baked naan or roti bread, and mango chutney to go with your spicy dishes.

Monday through Friday, stop by Taste of Tandoor to try the lunch specials, which include several vegetarian options served with salad, rice, and naan bread. Save room for a tasty treat for dessert such as vegan coconut balls, rice pudding, or mango ice cream. After a day exploring parks in the Woodbridge area, your family can refuel by dining at Taste of Tandoor.

Location: 13836 Smoketown Road in Woodbridge.

Contact: 703-897-7200.

Hunan Garden

Chinese food is very popular, and you can satisfy your craving for this international cuisine when you dine at Hunan Garden. The team at this restaurant breaks down the menu into select categories to help you easily read the options and make your choices. As you start your meal, enjoy appetizers such as steamed dumplings or cold noodles with sesame sauce. On a cool evening, you can order savory seaweed or bean curd soup to warm up.

Meat, seafood, and poultry eaters can find something scrumptious to try here, and non-meat eaters have a wide range of options, such as vegetable egg foo young, chow or lo mein filled with noodles and vegetables, and entrees such as Kung Pao tofu, General Tso’s bean curd, or Buddhist delight with vegetables and savory sauce.

Location: 12437 Hedges Run Drive, Suite 1715 in Woodbridge.

Contact: 703-494-5005.

Fresh Life Cafe

Fresh Life Cafe is a simple dining establishment where you can get smoothies, acai bowls, salads, wraps, and vegan Brazilian street food. You can choose from a wide variety of refreshing smoothies with fruit and your choice of soy, almond, or coconut milk. Many believe that acai fruit has various health benefits, and Fresh Life Cafe offers several styles of acai bowls with fruit, granola, and either agave syrup or peanut butter.

Enjoy a satisfying wrap filled with plant-based protein, vegetables, and delectable sauces or sandwiches made with vegan cheese. On a cool afternoon, order the tomato bisque or yuca soup topped with cashew cream. If you’re looking for Brazilian street food, try the vegan risole pastries stuffed with vegetables and vegan cheese.

Location: 13895 Hedgewood Drive, Suite 149 in Woodbridge.

Contact: 703-459-6619.

Layla’s Lebanese Restaurant

Enjoy a taste of the exotic Mediterranean when you dine at Layla’s Lebanese Restaurant. When you eat Lebanese food, you’ll enjoy healthy whole grains, legumes, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and savory spices. The team at Layla’s Lebanese Restaurant welcomes families and offers fresh, high-quality homemade food full of color and flavor.

Once the staff seats you, you can order appetizers such as creamy hummus or baba ghannouj, before enjoying a tabouleh salad or a bowl of savory lentil soup. Vegetarians can order the moussaka stew that’s filled with vegetables with a base of stewed tomatoes. If you’re looking for traditional Lebanese cuisine, you can order beef, lamb, or chicken shawarma, grilled salmon with tahini, or seasoned kabobs served with a house salad.

Location: 2217 Old Bridge Road in Woodbridge.

Contact: 703-492-1500.

Afghan Bistro

Vegetarians and vegans will embrace the diverse range of plant-based options that Afghan Bistro offers. The chefs at this international restaurant use warming, exotic spices that are claimed to boost the immune system. Most items on the menu are gluten-free, and there are loads of vegetable dishes to help you stay on your health and wellness journey. Start your exotic meal with an appetizer such as the roasted eggplant or butternut squash topped with garlic yogurt, dried mint, and spicy cayenne or the dumplings filled with mushrooms and topped with a bean medley.

Exciting vegetarian dishes include green beans and eggplant simmered in a tomato stew with garam masala and spicy chickpeas with mushrooms and saffron-infused basmati rice. If you want your daily dose of greens, order the sabzi chalou with slow-cooked spinach, kale, and collard, mustard, and turnip greens with fresh dill and saffron rice. Be sure to save room for rice pudding with crushed pistachios or vanilla ice cream topped with aromatic cardamom.

Location: 8081-D Alban Road in Springfield.

Contact: 703-337-4722.

Enjoy Dining at These Plant-Based Restaurants in the Port Potomac Area

Are you excited to try some of these local restaurants that serve vegan and vegetarian fare? Is your mouth watering just thinking about the healthy and tasty food these dining establishments serve? If you have a recommendation for another vegan or vegetarian restaurant in the Port Potomac, Virginia, area, let our team at Crème de la Crème of Port Potomac (Woodbridge) know, and we can share this information with our local community.

Mmm… Pasta salad with olives and caper berries by jeffreyw is licensed with CC BY 2.0