PETA names Chicago the country's most vegan-friendly city

Chicago Tribune

4 days ago

Alison Eichhorn was raised in a Dairy Queen. Her parents owned a location in Lansing, where she started working when she was 14. At 19, however, Eichhorn gave up her favorite treat — a chocolate peanut butter cup Blizzard — to become vegan.
Eichhorn spent the next several years wondering why she couldn't find a vegan replica of a Blizzard. Eventually, she took matters into her own hands. In May 2024, she opened Runaway Cow in Bridgeport with her partner, Aaron Gutierrez. The ice cream shop offers oat milk soft serve in chocolate, vanilla, swirl or the featured flavor, with a myriad of add-in options for a Snowstorm. Just like a Dairy Queen Blizzard.
Runaway Cow was one of several vegan spots named by PETA in early June when the animal rights organization recognized Chicago as the top vegan-friendly city in the country.
'People may be surprised that the city that was once named 'The Hog Butcher of the World' is now a vegan paradise,' said PETA representative Amanda Brody.
Brody said PETA chose Chicago because it has become so easy 'to enjoy classic Chicago dishes' in vegan form, citing Buona's Italian beefless sandwich and Kitchen 17's vegan deep-dish pizza. At Runaway Cow, Eichhorn offers fully vegan beef sandwiches and Chicago dogs.
Rafael Tenorio, who lives in LaGrange, has been vegan for 10 years. He stopped eating meat after he began volunteering at animal shelters, joining his daughter in the lifestyle. He has found it easy to maintain in the Chicago area. Most restaurants, he said, can accommodate vegans even if their menus are not designed for them.
Tenorio's approach to vegan food leans plant-forward. He likes being vegan in Chicago, but not because of beefless hot dogs — he prefers to prioritize vegetables in his diet.
'I find there are so many vegans who are hung up on meat,' he said.
Tsadakeeyah Emmanuel is not one of them. The chef and owner of Majani, a South Shore fast-casual all-vegan spot that focuses on Southern cuisine, said his restaurant is 'definitely plant-forward.'
Emmanuel opened Majani in 2017, when he remembers there being only about a half-dozen vegan restaurants in his area. Now, he feels that the vegan scene in Chicago is robust, supported even by nonvegans. The vast majority of his customers are meat-eaters.
'We're glad to see Chicago is rising in the food scene, and the vegan food scene,' Emmanuel said.
Dame Dia has had a similar experience at Native Foods, where he estimates that 80% of his customer base is not vegan. Native Foods offers traditional Senegalese dishes — many of which are already vegan — among a wide variety of other foods, such as imitation chicken sandwiches.
He took over the Loop location of the chain restaurant because he believes in the health value of vegan food.
'People want to change their lives, they want to be healthy,' Dia said.
Many vegan restaurant owners tout a strong sense of community among vegans in Chicago. They have different feelings, however, about the strength of veganism in the city. While Emmanuel feels optimistic about his dream of one day opening a 'vegan village' — a collection of all-vegan restaurants in one place — Eichhorn worries that veganism may be a dying fad. She feels like she sees vegan restaurants closing all the time.
'We're still seeing people afraid of the word 'vegan,'' she said.
That's why Runaway Cow markets itself as a neighborhood ice cream shop first, and a vegan eatery second. Many of her customers don't realize they're eating oat milk ice cream until Eichhorn breaks the news. They're always pleasantly surprised.