Evolution Fast Food took over the spot where Village SD used to be (which was one of my favorites), and I'm happy to say this place did not disappoint. I love their menu, lots of different flavors and options to choose from. My go-to is the Evo Burger with the black bean patty, which is always so good. Service is fast, and they even have a drive-thru in the back, which is super convenient. I've always dined in, and while they share space with another vegan restaurant so seating can be a bit limited, there's still usually enough. Parking is easy, which is always a plus. Overall, a great spot for quick, flavorful vegan food. read more

Evolution Fast Food - Evo Burger - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California

Non vegan reviewer here. The fysh tacos had a nice crunch to it but lacked salt/ fishiness taste. Majority of the flavor came from the chipotle cashew cream sauce and guac. Maybe it would taste better if they added lime slices on the side. Took about 10 minutes from ordering at counter to receiving food. Most likely wouldn't order fysh tacos again. Saw a lot of people ordering dishes with fries in it. Maybe get that instead next time. There are very few tables indoor and a few tables outdoor, recommend for small groups only. Shares parking lot with Donna Jean restaurant. read more

Evolution Fast Food - Fysh tacos - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California

This place was a little tricky to find. We came for a late Friday lunch after an airport pick up. I wasn't super hungry but he was. It was decorated in hearts for Valentines Day. I ordered the Buffalo Cauliflower with light Buffalo sauce. He got the Fuego burger with the pickled Jalapeños. Every thing was pretty tasty but their Housemade Ranch was very memorable. The place with empty, they was one person picking up an order. They have items to buy to go as well. Some interesting items. I think this is a great vegan option. Will be back again. read more

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Was really excited to try this place after seeing they had vegan fish tacos. I miss fish tacos since going vegan! Unfortunately the texture didn't do it for me. I don't think the coconut is necessarily meant to mimic fish, but it also seemed like it wasn't cooked enough. Too much of a raw coconut crunch, so it wasn't worth gettin my opinion. Chili cheese fries were fine too. Not super flavorful. They have a big menu though, so I'd definitely be back to try some other options. read more

Evolution Fast Food - Coconut Fysh Tacos and Chili Cheese Fries - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California

This place had been on my list for a long time, and I finally got a chance to try it. It's located next to Donna Jean and shares a space with Val's Kitchen, all three are in the same building, though they appear to have separate kitchens. I ordered the EVO burger and it was excellent; the bun was especially soft and delicious. I also got the carne asada fries, which were great when eaten hot. I'll definitely be back to try more items from the menu. They have a few indoor tables and a nice outdoor "beer garden" with shaded seating as well. read more

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I was starving after spending all day at the Pride parade and needed a boost! I had my dog with me, so I decided to eat out on the patio. The service was friendly when I ordered at the counter. I was super thirsty from the parade, and they hooked me up right away with ice water! The patio was beautiful with flowers and had a peaceful vibe. I ordered the carob date shake and enjoyed it while I waited for my food. The date shake was phenomenal! My happy place is the Coachella Valley, and this date shake was better than any I've ever had there. The Fuego Burger was really good, and so were the carne asada fries. I loved the seasoning on the fries and the sauce on both the burger and fries. I definitely want to come back to try the raw burger and one of their chicken sandwiches. Try the date shake and thank me later! read more

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Every once in a while I get a hankering for some vegan meals. This place is guilty pleasure of mine. A little bit on the expensive side but dang does it taste good. Love getting it to go and walking to Balboa Park. Everyone is super nice and accommodating. Love the funk atmosphere. read more

I learned about this place from our visit at Donna Jean next door. I then learned that it is a sister establishment of Donna Jeans so I knew it was going to be good! I have tried a few things but my favorite are the carne asada fries! The preparation is on point and the food is full of flavor though we might have been hit with some shrinkflation as the portion was noticeably smaller than previous visits. Even the cabbage wrapped raw veggie burger was tiny! Service is kind of meh but no biggie. Cool tip: they have drive up service where you can park in the back, order your food from your phone and have it brought to your car! read more

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Their fast food may be awesome but their latte and their matcha was really awful! Don't bother with that for sure! I will go back to try the food but they should give up the coffee and matcha which were both weak, and the coffee was sour. read more

Wow. I loved this place for vegan food. I'd say it's one of my favorite vegan places. The chicken bacon and swiss delicious and flavorful. Pretty big as well. The mushroom swiss was ok but I'm not a fan of mushrooms but boyfriend really enjoyed it. The fries were crispy and delicious. Service was good. read more

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Number 9, number 9--the Beatles I have been an elite yelper for nine years now. I must say that Evolution Fast Food getting 11th place in Yelp's Top Burger Spots Nationwide is a huge honor. Number 11 like Isah Thomas aka Zeke of the Detroit Pistons. Evolution delivers plant strong vegan fast food including both cooked and raw with a varied menu. I went with the Mushroom Swiss Veggie Burger having black bean burger as the base. I love made in house veggie burgers such as a black bean burger as I am not a big fan of faux meats yet appreciate they are out there since some folks enjoy them. I made it a combo adding fries and hibiscus tea for $5 more. Nice outdoor seating on the patio with colorful murals added to the ambience. Friendly staff. All compostable wares. Recommended! read more

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I'm no longer vegan, but I still enjoy vegan food especially from Evolution. This is one of my go-to spots when I'm around Balboa Park and want to grab something quick for a picnic. There is a small parking lot and a drive through. The food can take a while, but usually when I come, not many cars are lined up anyways. I like their fries, drinks, and chik'n items the best. The EVO fries are my favorite. I love their cashew cheese and sauces. The items are really hefty and can last me a few meals for me. Makes them worth the price. I decided to dock a star on this review since the carne asada fries I got recently were super salty I couldn't eat much of the "meat". Also on that day recently, service was only okay. The employee at the drive thru window seemed like she was having a bad day or something. I had to wait a while for food as usual. The restaurant itself is pretty small. I've only been inside once. I usually prefer the drive thru. read more

Evolution Fast Food - Carne Asada Fries - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California

This place is awesome! Great menu! I recommend anything with cheese! Great variety and selection. Highly recommend and this place is open late. Everyone is friendly here. read more

Stopped here a few days ago and the food is still just as good in their new location inside Donna Jean! They have their own separate door entrance and waiting area, as well as inside and outside seating. The employees are all very nice. The food was good. Chicken tenders 5/5 I highly recommend going here. read more

The food was phenomenal. We had the pulled pork style bbq sandwich and the burger. We also had the soft serve which I highly recommend. The staff was kind and knowledgeable. 5/5 stars! read more

Pro: Vegetarian/Vegan Quick eats Faux meat options Drive-thru, which is AWESOME! Con: Processed/Fried Fried Options limited on certain types of Vegetarian cuisine Ok, love that this place is essentially a drive thru Vegetarian/Vegan In & Out! Not exactly, but it's close to that, but better than what a Vegetarian Jack-in-the-crack would be! I need to go back soon! read more

They took almost everything off the menu I liked. I can only assume I was in the minority in loving the jumbo veggie sandwich otherwise it would still be on the menu. As someone who doesn't really love fake cheese, I have a hard time with their menu now. I would rather have delicious replacements like their hummus than fake cheese. Same thing for fake meat and fake eggs. I don't need my food to remind me of not vegan food. I wish they even had a really good salad or something, because I want to support. I am just not into their current menu :(. Hopefully I am in the minority and they are doing well. We need all vegan businesses!! (Also I think they changed their fry recipe? Their fries and ketchup were my favorite thing, but last time I got them, they tasted different and came with packages of ketchup instead of the container of ketchup that seemed made in-house). I want to give 3 stars, but I can't bring myself to do that just because a menu is not to my particular taste. read more

Food was delivered without any of the add-ons and side sauces. Burgers were not cooked correctly. Missing an entire meal. Go to Plant Power instead. read more

Great atmosphere at this place! First time here and it did not disappoint. Friendly staff members plus a quality filled menu. I got the classic beefy burger, chicken tender and fries. AMAZING! I chose patio seating and it was the perfect ambience for the perfect meal. Great vegan and vegetarian sections on the menu. If you're in the Balboa area, check them out! Pure goodness. Thank you Evo team for a great meal read more

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I was walking around the city with my boo and we decided to pop in here for a snack. We ordered the chocolate banana smoothie. All of their food is pretty generic but packed with a twist! Our smoothie came with tahini in it. It was delicious. Inside was clean and they have a dining patio out back. It's a little bit hidden but cool. They also have fun graffiti art on the exterior of their space. In the waiting area it's plentiful with plant life. Great customer service. It's a short walk from Balboa Park and close to one of the bridges across Maple Canyon Trail. If I'm in the area again, I'd be eager to taste more of their food. Happy eats! read more

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Plant based fast food restaurant with the drive thru. Evolution really looks like a hole in the wall and it has pretty sizable menu. Restaurant does not have the best appearance although the food is good. Burgers and good while Buffalo chicken fries are amazing. Carne asada fries were nothing special. Equally so was the lack of many dessert choices.... Service was good - but not terribly fast. I would say Evolution is somewhere between 3 and 4 stars and rounding up for novelty approach!!! read more

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Was driving down 6th street and do saw a little homemade sign that said something about healthy fast food... and drive through. What a concept. I figured it was some local startup by an enterprising local neighbor and so I circled back and decided to support. Boy was I in for a surprised. This place has been around for years and it shows in the cool atmosphere. The person taking the order was super cool and walked me through the menu. The menu offering was good, even for a non vegan like me. The Hellraiser burger was great. I will be back! read more

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3.5 stars. My husband has always liked this place because of the BLTA wrap. We hadn't been back in a long time. So recently we went back and my husband got the BLTA and I got the salad. My husband initially was disappointed because his BLTA came as a sandwich instead of a wrap. But the main thing was that while we both love tempeh - the tempeh here this time was very mushy despite being obviously browned and crisped on the outside. The inside was so soft and mushy and mealy. It was weird. Maybe it was an off day? read more

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I hadn't been to Evolution since their location moved to take the place of Village Kitchen in North Park. They now offer indoor seating in a shared space with Donna Jean. The menu was updated and everything we tried was tasty. The bacon cheeseburger is especially tasty with a beyond patty and tempeh bacon. The buffalo chicken tenders are extremely filling. The service is excellent and everything is served quickly. The prices are excellent considering the portion sizes are large enough to split in half. read more

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Ordered their coffee, which was subpar, got two vanilla hazelnut lattes and they tasted sour and like piss. Ordered via the app and waited nearly 30 minutes even though it said it would be ready in 10 minutes. We pulled up to the drive up, and an employee told us that we should've pulled up front for faster expediting. What is the point of the drive up in the back, if you want us to pull up to the front. Just say that in the first place. We will not be purchasing coffee from Evolution again, it was horrible quality and the customer service was unacceptable. I shouldn't have to pay $15 for two coffees and have them suck. Sorry Evo, but we like your food not your coffee. Maybe stick to food and not coffee. read more

Come on Yelp. Number 11 in the nation? This isn't number 11 in the city (not even the county) of San Diego. We got their most popular items: California burrito - wayyyy to salty, couldn't taste anything else. Disgusting. Buffalo chicken sandwich- only taste we picked up was spice, nothing else. No flavor, just spice. Evo burger - huge ginormous bun with a tiny patty. Not good, even if it was its lost in the bread. Evo fries - the only thing that was good, but how do you mess up fries with thousand island dressing? You can't, it's good by default. Come on Yelp, please rethink this Number 11 in the nation! Golly... read more

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Fast and friendly service! Very nice worker willing to answer all questions and make recommendations. Clean restaurant with well kept interior. Food was good for being vegan fast food - my husband and I are doing a Daniel fast with our church and he is a big meat guy but he was super satisfied with his burger from evolution. He couldn't even finish it! My Buffalo chicken sandwich was great and we left full and happy. read more

I really enjoyed the mushroom burger with the Evo fries. I will certainly be back to try other choices. Service was fast and friendly with a great atmosphere. read more

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I needed to brush off my buzz and this spot was a hop, skip, jump away. Here was my experience. AMBIANCE: Parking: Street parking and plaza parking. I came on a Monday evening an hour before closing and it wasn't too bad. Seating: Initially I thought it was a grab-and-go place but I turned the corner and there was a actually a dining room with room for maybe 40 people or so. Feels: It's in DTSD and not too far away from Balboa Park. The spot itself is decorated with creative mural designs and plants. I dig the hip-hop music like QTip playing in the background. It's a pretty spacious place to lounge out. Great for families, friends, or a simple food adventure. FOOD: Bacon Cheese Fries + Chicken (Recommend) Wow! The cheese is very deceiving as the appearance and aesthetics looked like regular cheese. Bacon was well seasoned to provide some nice crunchy and savory flavor. I asked for fried chicken to add a feel of protein to it. The fries were solid, crunchy and fulfilling. CUSTOMER SERVICE: Chef Adam and Josie are awesome! Friendly people with pleasant interactions TL; DR OVERALL: 4.5 Stars. Awesome! I need to come back for more. I enjoyed the selections, food was delicious, and the experience was pleasant. Whether you're vegan or not, this is a good spot to grub out. I look forward to coming back here again. TIPS: * Check their website for daily/seasonal specials. read more

Evolution Fast Food - Woot! - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California

I really enjoy the breakfast burrito on the weekends. It's great when your super hungry because it's very filling. I love the milkshakes here, strawberry being my favorite. I also enjoy the carne asada fries , better than the real thing ! Service is also great , I love the patio space private but surrounded by cool art and plants read more

I have been driving by for years and vowing to try it, I finally went and it was amazing. I had the classic "beefy" burger with fries-delish! There is a small parking lot, plenty of seating, and the employee who took my order was kind and patient. I'll definitely be back. read more

Never thought I would be giving Evolution 2 stars, but here we are unfortunately. I used to love this place when it had a drive-thru and I returned several years later to see that they removed the drive-thru completely (and possibly moved locations?). Now it is no longer the hole-in-the-wall place it used to be (in a bad way) and is a shared business with Donna Jean, another vegan restaurant. It's small inside as most of the indoor space is for Donna Jean. There is outdoor seating but we just ate inside being the only customers at lunch time. Unfortunately this is where it goes down hill. Me and my girlfriend ordered burritos and they were automatically cut in half (for "Presentation" I'm guessing), but this is a red flag for me. Staff seemed unenthusiastic to be there and the vibes were a little off so we took most of our food to-go. We were up-sold on some fries because it was some sort of "combo" which I'm sure ended up costing more. The "ketchup" we got for the fries was basically like if someone just cracked open a can of tomato paste and called it ketchup. $43 for 2 burritos (which were small portions, cut in half), some fries and 2 fountain drinks is a bit steep to say the least. Overall I won't be returning here and recommend Plant Power over Evolution. read more

Evolution Fast Food - Burrito was cut in half and a small portion - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California

Came by to pick up a quick bite before walking over to balboa park and we really enjoyed the food. The chicken burger was good and the pesto chicken burger was amazing! There's a drive through and dog friendly outdoor seating. Service was great, will stop by again. read more

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Drive thru - efficient. Right in their small parking lot. Order and pull up to wait a bit for your food. Pumpkin shake - yummy!! It was made where you can actually taste the pumpkin (not talking about the spice). California burritos - omg, one of the best. At first I was bummed there wasn't any hot sauce or salsa, but after getting into the burrito - tasting the guacamole, the spices, it is super satisfying. My bf has been aching to get these burritos for the past month and we finally made it. He would prefer eating this burrito every week than our local taco shop. He is mostly vegetarian and does not normally prefer whole wheat burritos. This says a lot! read more

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I used to love this place, but something has changed. The chkn strips on this visit were just straps of tofu, before it was seitan. If I wanted tofu, I would order tofu. Beefy burger still good, thank goodness, as are the shakes. But my beloved chikn.... sigh. read more

Cool spot was in the area working took an early lunch did not know they opened at 11 was there a 10 and they catered to me as if they where open I relay due appreciate it great service great food will bring the family to try out some items on there menu. Garcia Family approved. read more

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I really wanted to give this 5/5 but the customer service is terrible. Ordered online and they told us they didn't receive the order. We waited in the car for 25 min for them to then complete the order and they never told us it was ready (after they said they would call us). Food tastes great but if you're sensitive to unhealthy food then this will trigger you pretty quickly. Portions are not as big as they look in photos. Food 5/5 Atmosphere 4/5 Cleanliness 5/5 Customer service 2/5 Speed 2/5 Price 4/5 Outdoor seating? Yes Wheelchair access? Yes Restrooms? Yes read more

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so blessed to have a delicious vegan fast good joint in SD! The first time I tried this place by accident- and I fell in love. Buffalo Chick'n sandwich is my go to here! I sub for a wheat bun (taste better imo) & add vegan ranch. So fire! Their fries are also great, including their chili cheese fries! If there is one thing you want to try here it's definitely the Buffalo chick'n sandwich; I've brought non-vegan friends here and they too are a fan of the sandwich. Highly recommend trying this place! read more

Evolution Fast Food - Buffalo Chicken Sandwich w/ranch and Fries - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California

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Upsetting experience First here is the good - it is vegan. The black bean taco would be higher rated IF they had a warm tortilla; it was cold. They skipped the lettuce we asked for - even on the ticket. The chili was so so - we wouldn't order it again They won't offer you one you have to buy the two and you can't mix and match the types (black bean/fish/pollo and carne Asada) (of course plant based) As I usually do I took photos. As we were waiting a guy (manager Juaquin) comes out calling the name on the credit card we used and saying hey did you take photos of my staff?! He was very aggressive toward me and my young daughter. No problem to say hey we prefer no pictures of our staff ...if you could make sure your review you don't show staff, we'd appreciate it. There were so many ways he could've been direct but kind and gentle. He came across harsh, rude and intimidating. It was unneeded aggression. I recommend he put up a sign that says no photos or no photos of the staff. Or perhaps only photos of the menu allowed. I have no problem with that policy but it was the delivery that was very aggressive and put us off this place. Staff at ordertaking could be a little bit more knowledgeable about what the ingredients are. A number of reviews and in the questions section, express a lack of information on the ingredients, what are the oils, what are they using to make the protein (is it heavy wheat) ... For me I will never go back. read more

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Always good friendly service. Quick to get food out to us. The buffalo sandwhich and buffalo fries are the best vegan ones I have ever had . The lucky matcha shake was sooo good. It had like a coconut whip cream on top was amazing 10/10. Please if u guys can have matcha shake year round I will be back weekly lol. read more

Evolution Fast Food - Lucky Matcha Shake - Vegetarian Near Me - San Diego, California