Vegan
International
Delivery
Take-out
Asian
Fusion
Middle Eastern
African

Farm-to-table restaurant in Pittsburgh's south side, est. 2023. Offers a wide variety of dishes drawing from West African, Korean, Middle Eastern, and Indian cuisines fused with modern American vegan fare. Reported fully vegan February 2024. Open Thu-Sun 12:00pm-10:00pm.


Venue map for Essence Vegan and Vegetarian
© OpenStreetMap contributors

23 Reviews

First Review by vegangrace

@Kendraisoutside

Points +1066

Vegan
19 May 2024

Burnt to a crisp

Wow. Could not be more disappointed.
Everything was inedible and burnt to a Crisp.
I ended up just apologizing to the waitress and leaving bc the food could not be eaten.

Casbrrrrr

Points +223

Vegan
07 Apr 2024

Very impressed

The food was absolutely delicious. Such a diverse and creative menu. The service was extremely good too. I would recommend 100%!

Pros: Great food, Service , Creativity

nagem

Points +40

Vegan
31 Mar 2024

Great addition to the vegan scene

Visited with a friend for dinner yesterday. No wait on a Saturday night. We shared the pakora starter. I got the jollof rice with tofu. My friend got the black bean bowl with rosemary potatoes and a mint lemonade. Everything was absolutely delicious and everyone from the waitstaff to the owner (who came over to introduce himself) were so nice and welcoming. Very reasonably priced. I can’t wait to come back and try more.

Updated from previous review on 2024-03-31

hrn126

Points +573

Vegan
23 Mar 2024

fantastic and unique

highly recommend this restaurant. i loved the traditional west african food they serve and there is a great variety in the dish options. kind staff and lovely dining atmosphere.

meesh1970

Points +65

Vegan
02 Mar 2024

Excellent

The menu was fully vegan and excellent. The dessert were very interesting and tasty.

KelseyCowles

Points +191

Vegan
25 Feb 2024

Soooo good!

Essence is all vegan and all delicious! We’ve tried most of the menu by now and everything has been flavorful and exciting. Don’t skip the mint lemonade and get the kanefah for dessert!

MontanyaCrosby

Points +32

Vegan
15 Jan 2024

Food and service Top Tier!

Everything we ordered was amazing!

J&CVeg

Points +86

Vegan
07 Jan 2024

We cannot wait to return!

ESSENCE'S food is amazing and made for the best leftovers for dinner tonight, along with a side our favorite microgreens from Socratic Hill !!! 🌱4🐾

Pros: vegan options, cleanliness, hospitality

CaseyHale

Points +646

Vegan
05 Jan 2024

Excellent!

Everything I have had has been delicious! The shitake mushroom burger is excellent!

Pros: Variety, Healthy options

rerst17

Points +26

Vegan
22 Dec 2023

Great place!

Very friendly wait staff. Excellent menu. All tasty.

kylewren

Points +84

Vegan
08 Dec 2023

So good! Unique flavor that can’t be beat!

What a wonderful menu! It was an unassuming place with there not being a crowd (steeler home game on a Thursday) but the food was delicious. Brought a non-vegan with us and they enjoyed every bite. Exciting flavors that you can’t find anywhere else in the city. Save room for dessert!

Pros: Unique flavors , Friendly staff

daalai

Points +1489

Vegan
04 Nov 2023

Amazing!!!

The food was absolutely delicious and flavorful. There were a few times with dairy, but they provided an option without dairy, like the Sambosa. The staff and service was wonderful as well. I will definitely become a regular here!

Hineroptera

Points +50

Vegan
29 Oct 2023

Delicious mix of plant based foods

Got the spinach sambosa, black bean bowl and kivali marga. Delightful food, wish I had room for dessert. Reasonably priced too.

Pros: Pineapple ginger juice 😋, Great atmosphere, Super nice staff

frund

Points +24

Vegan
15 Oct 2023

A wonderful restaurant

I attended a special Plant Based Pittsburgh event here where chef was asked to make vegan gluten free no salt, sugar or oil dinner. He did an excellent job! We had daca beans, rice, taboulli, hummus, baba ganush, salad fresh fruit and more. I’m definitely going back!!

Pros: Taste of food , Variety , Price

PlantfullyPittsburgh

Points +27

Vegan
19 Jul 2023

Give them some love!

Chef Ojok is intent on pleasing his customers and minding their dietary needs and allergies. Dishes were all a delight to eat. Loved the Tofu Spinach Dumplings, Jollof rice and Kivali Marga! Happily, there were no mozzarella sticks. So wonderful to get an enjoyable, tasty vegan dinner that was not a boring salad!

Pros: Fresh ingredients , Very friendly service, Something for everyone

gavinislame

Points +120

Vegan
14 Jul 2023

Soggy everything

NOTE: UBER EATS LISTS THINGS WRONGLY AS VEGAN. DO NOT TRUST UBER EATS LABELS, CHECK THEIR WEBSITE. Soggy falafel burger, soggy fries. Lots of vegan options, maybe just a bad batch based on the other reviews here.

Updated from previous review on 2023-07-14

Pros: Clearly labeled vegan options on website

Cons: Pricey for what you get, Wrongly labeled vegan options on ubereats

krpiasecki

Points +89

Vegan
21 Jun 2023

Great Food

I went with two carnivore friends and we all enjoyed the food. We shared the spinach and tofu dumplings, brussel sprouts, jollof rice, cauliflower curry, and asian bowl. Free pita was a nice touch. Even the meat-eaters will return again!

Pros: Friendly staff, Good variety of food choices

Cons: Slightly spicy for people sensitive to spice

fangorn35

Points +41

Vegan
27 May 2023

Good but.

Overall like the concept and the food with one exception. Good unprocessed and healthy vegan food. But… three times in row now the fries were way overcooked and tasted burnt and gross. Also not very clean potatoes. Have had to spit out sand a couple times. Hopefully they up their fries game.

DerekPrieur

Points +26

Vegan
16 May 2023

Very good vegan food

Pomodoro pasta was fantastic and even had some bread with a pomegranate/oil dip as a pleasant surprise. Owner was a very nice person. Will definitely be back to try more things on the menu 👍

Pros: Great food, Friendly people

jjtf

Points +74

Vegetarian
16 May 2023

Great!

Tried this place out tonight. Everything on the menu is vegetarian or vegan. I had the black bean bowl, which was delicious. The chef also gave me bread and a pomegranate dip while waiting for my meal. Tasted wonderful. Great service. Waitress was very friendly. I will definitely be back to try other items on the menu.

sbridgett

Points +26

Vegan
15 May 2023

Awesome vegan restaurant

Awesome vegan restaurant!!!

Pros: The menu is all vegan, Nice restaurant and good food, Friendly staff

prb1001

Points +33

Vegetarian
19 Apr 2023

Delicious new vegan spot

New gem in Southside, everything on the menu looked amazing and what we did order (a falafel burger and some jollof rice) was some of the best vegan food I've had since moving to Pittsburgh

Pros: Lots of vegan options, Very friendly staff, That pomegranate jam + olive oil w/ fresh pita

Cons: Hasn't yet established a coherent vibe/ambiance, Portions a tad bit on the small side

vegangrace

Points +139

Vegan
16 Apr 2023

Something different for everyone

They've recently opened and they have so many different cuisines - everything was great! Staff are really nice and clearly passionate about their food!

Pros: Many different types of cuisine, all great! , Excellent jolof rice , Lovely staff!




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