VegaDeli

I was looking for a place to have lunch and was looking for a deli. Vega Deli came up several times before I decided to give it a try. WHAT A FIND!
I am NOT a vegan of vegetarian, but like to eat healthy, especially when I am on the road.
I have tried most things on the menu and have been impressed with all of them. I really enjoy the «pasta» dishes made with «zucchini» noodles. The Alfredo (made with cashews, not dairy) and the pad thai are quite nice.
The food can be a little slow coming out at times, but they do make everything fresh. If you want things to come flying out of the kitchen and are pressed for time, you may want to try somewhere else.

They are so friendly and helpful here. I am in love with the Kale wrap, smoothies, and the cookies! Sooo good.

So let me preface this review by stating that I am in fact a meat eater. I am not even a vegetarian let alone a vegan. But I decided to try this place anyway because I’d heard good things about it from my friend, Bekah. She used to be vegetarian and now she’s vegan! I *do* enjoy superfoods and healthfoods and I try to eat healthier when I can so I decided to go. I was already out in Chesterfield so it wasn’t much of a hassle to get there, but if I was coming from my apartment in Midtown, it would probably have been a 35 minute drive or so. (Gah, I can’t wait to move out of the city!)
They now close at 7PM *not* 8PM just FYI. But even so, we got there right at 7pm and the owner was über sweet and still served us! We ate out food outside so they could clean up inside. I had just had a smoothie before getting there so I wasn’t really tempted to try any of the drinks but I am regretting that now because they’re so good! I had a few sips of my friend’s juices and it was so tasty!
I had a black bean «burger» with mango salsa and an avocado on top. It definitely had a lot of flavor although it was tricky to eat without making a mess. Good thing I got a fork! It came with herb roasted potatoes which were very good. I was still sorta missing meat, so I don’t know if I could become a vegan just yet… but I will say if a place like this existed near where I live, I’d be tempted to eat vegan food many more times than just every so often! The prices are a little steep, but it’s kind of to be expected for healthier food, to be honest.
Also they called me on the phone and invited me to go to a health food tasting (which is incidentally today, and I could bring a friend if I want) I just don’t know if I have the energy and conviction to drive all the way out there in a few. It’s tempting though, because I think they’re getting in a whole bunch of new products.
Like I said, great tasty (meatless) food, healthy, a little expensive, and kind of a haul, but the owner is soooo nice and you really do get great customer service here.
Oh and I can’t believe I forgot to mention the cookies. OMFG. The chocolate chip cookies! They are SO good. I ended up buying three. One to eat there, and two to take home. Sean ended up eating a whole one and started eating the other cookie I brought home. He loved it! I couldn’t believe it, because he’s a self proclaimed ‘hater of hippie food’ but he totally loved it, muwhahahaha. I am so tempted to bring him here and convert him into a lover (or at least appreciator) of vegan foods! :D

I am a meat eater through and through. So, before coming to this place had me a bit nervous considering the fact.
My best friend Stacy was here for the weekend from Memphis, and I want to show her that Saint Louis offers way more variety of food than Memphis does. Living in a city that completely revolves around BBQ and fried food can make it somewhat difficult to eat vegetarian on some levels I am sure.
We had stayed overnight in O’Fallon the night before. She was determined to visit an H&M before heading back, so we made our way towards Chesterfield. I got on Unilocal before hand to search for ‘vegetarian’ in the current location and VegaDeli came up.
Our GPS was somewhat confusing since the address for VegaDeli is actually located in a shopping plaza along with a bunch of other shops. Finally after looking and going in circles for about 10 minutes, we found it.
When you first walk, you immediately notice all the colors and décor they have on the walls. Some have different items with Asian influences from India and China. Many relics adorned the shelves about the ice water and silverware station. The walls are covered with life style quotes. The handwritten menu were plastered on the back wall as well.
VegaDeli offers vegan burgers, wraps, salads, warm pastas, 100% raw items, smoothies, and a kids’ menu. They have a wide selection for all types. For those who not health nuts such as myself, they do offer dishes that almost anyone would like whether if you’re vegan or not. The pastas are made with real whole wheat pasta. In fact, that is what I ordered for my lunch.
I ordered the Penne Power Pasta tossed with marinara sauce, spinach, finished with house made tofu ricotta, and chopped walnuts for $ 8.99. Since they offer a Unilocal check-​in, you can get $ 1 off any menu item. Everything totaled up to be $ 8.80 with taxes.
It was alright tasting. When I tried to have it today for leftovers, I ended up tossing it since it just didn’t have the flavor it consisted of yesterday when I had it for lunch. Meh, it was good at the time.
Stacy ordered a variety of things. She ordered their corn bread, vegan chocolate chip cookies, and her entrée was the Raw Tacos made from raw walnuts, carrots, and spices served on red cabbage.
She got me a cookie especially for me. Happiness in my mouth indeed and my favor thing I tasted. She also let me sample one of her tacos. Probably the first and last time I will taste cabbage willingly. I ate it like a champ though without putting up a fight simply for the experience. I have to admit it was quite interesting. The taste was decent. She appreciated it which is what mattered most to me. All in all, I am sure she spent at least $ 17. Her entrée was $ 10.99 for 2 tacos, the itsy bitsy piece of corn bread slice was $ 2.50, and not so sure how much the cookies were.
Don’t expect to come here and get out in five minutes. They even have a sign emphasizing that they prep your meal with care. It will take time. 15 – 20 minutes minimum. Even though the place is set up like a Bread Co., the timing it takes for stuff to get prepped isn’t the same time lapse as a Bread Co. When we showed up there were only 3 other customers here, and still waited. That was to be expected though, plus we had the time to waste.
Prices are high. Overly high in my opinion. I don’t think a smoothie is worth $ 5.99 from anywhere. I can understand why raw items would cost a bit more since the time and effort it takes to prepare the items, but not $ 10.99 for what you get.
Could this type of life style take me away from my carnivorous ways? Highly doubtful, but I am glad to see that such places exist for those who are vegan and vegetarian. The trip is worth to drive out to Chesterfield if you’re looking for this type of food.

i was visiting st. louis from out of town this weekend, and was looking for a good vegan restaurant. i didn’t think it would be such a fantastic feat in a city as large as st. louis, but if we didn’t want indian, mediterrian, or asian… it was not as easy as you’d think. we came across vegadeli, and were happy to see a menu that was just what we were looking for. cashew cheese and raw food and smoothies… lots of anti-​establishment rhetoric and namaste. perfect. the self-​affirming statements littering the walls is exactly what i expected.
we ordered an appetizer, 2 burgers, a kid’s meal, a smoothie, a green tea, and 2 cookies… and it was over $ 60 with an 18% tip. incredible. i’ve eaten vegan a long time. it doesn’t have to be that expensive. a $ 6 smoothie should sing a song to me before it jumps in my stomach. especially when the most expensive ingredient in it is a banana.
the food was good. the service was good. the soft spoken gentleman behind the counter was kind and made good suggestions for things to try on the menu. it did take awhile to prepare. we waited about 15 minutes or so, but it was no big deal. i hope my food takes a minute to prepare. it’s raw. i don’t want precut or pre-​made veggies or sauces. cut it up right before it hits my plate. i can totally, totally wait.
the portions were a bit smaller than i’ve had at other veggie restaurants of comparable price. that was a little disappointing. the chocolate chip cookie i had? it was $ 2… but it was f’n rad, and i instantly wished i hadn’t shared part of it with my kid. (damn, kid) the kid’s menu was great though. very often, the veggie restaurants i have been to forget that kids eat this food too. they may not want raw pad thai. they may want something more accessible to their little palates… like mac and cheez or pizza. vegadeli nailed this aspect.
i’d give this place five stars, but i’m not sitting on fat stacks. if i had a lot of disposable income, this place would be great. however, i could have eaten three lunches at a lot of restaurants for what i paid at this one. i do understand that, in general, you pay more for fresh. you pay more for clean food. you pay more for health… which is another sad conversation aside. i just know, as someone who eats this way everyday, it does not have to be THAT expensive.
so four stars, but not because the food wasn’t good. just cause i’m not a baller.

I’ve had a
gift card to this place for a while, but because it is vegan, I couldn’t find anyone to go with. Even my sis, who is vegetarian, wasn’t crazy about making the trek to Chesterfield for some raw food. However, my boyfriend’s sister, who is a very healthy eater, was excited to try it with me, so we went on a Thursday evening around 6:30 pm.
We had to spend 35 dollars, and both of us thought that we would be ordering a lot of food to do so. We both got entrees (Raw Alfredo for me, and Raw Pad Thai for her), plus a smoothie for me (Mango Escape-​mango, pineapple, bananas, OJ), freshly squeezed juice for her (Rev It Up-​carrots, ginger, and apples), and a cup of soup (kale and potato) for me as well. I presented the gift card to him, and then he said that we owed 18 something. I was confused. I thought that he had made a mistake, and I tried to correct his use of the gift card. Then I realized… wow…2 entrees, a cup of soup, and 2 drinks cost 44 dollars!
Our food did take a long time to come out, even though we were the only people waiting, but we were chatting and not in a rush, so it wasn’t a big deal. I’d rather have freshly chopped veggies than veggies that have been pre-​cut. Plus, our juice and smoothy came out almost right away. She seemed happy with her juice, but my smoothy was incredibly bland. It tasted more like ice than fruit or juice, and was definitely not worth the six dollar price tag. I’m not sure any juice, no matter how enjoyable, is worth eight dollars either.
Our entrees came out, and both were very large plates of veggies. She liked her raw pad thai, though she didn’t seem blown away by it. She commented that she liked feeling full but not grossly full, because the food was so healthy. I was pretty disappointed in my entrée at first, because the «alfredo sauce» (really raw cashew sauce) was basically non-​existent. I asked for extra though, and the guy behind the counter bought me a nice sized cup of it, and was very apologetic that they hadn’t put enough on there. That made it taste a lot yummier, but I still wouldn’t order it again.
I have to say that the highlight of the meal was the cornbread that came with my soup. It was seriously incredible. The service was also really great and friendly, and even though we stayed until 8 (when they close), no one was at our table reminding us or trying to kick us out. And of course, I liked the vibe of the place. It was really quiet and cozy, and they don’t serve animal products at all. Always a plus.
I’ve been a vegetarian basically my whole life (since I was 4), and I don’t mind paying more for high quality vegetarian food. But for a café setting, this was just too darn expensive. I might be back to try other things, but probably not often unless they lower the prices a bit.

I’ll keep this brief. My main problem here was that the food took FOREVER to come out. I walked into an empty café at 12:10 on a Saturday. There were two parties (3 people) in front of me. I ordered two wraps and I was with my 3 year old and 6 year old girls. The food took — without exaggeration — 30 minutes to come out to us. We had to scarf it done because we needed to be somewhere at 1:00.
Prices are high, especially for drinks so I didn’t buy any.
On the plus side, if you are Vegan I suppose this is the place for you. I did find the décor to be nice and relaxing. I could have done without the «Millions Against Monsanto» flyers in front but that’s just a personal thing for me.

I went here for a late lunch by myself. I’m not Vegan but a groupon got me in the doors.
The service wasn’t horrible but it wasn’t spectacular either. The man and woman working the counter seemed extremely soft spoken and unenthusiastic. I asked for a recommendation and both looked at me like a deer in headlights and mumbled a few menu items off. Later, I heard someone else ask them the same question and they were told something completely different. I would think a restaurant such as this should have entusiastic people behind the counter explaining what makes them so special and helping you order.
I wasn’t overly offended by the price of the food. However, a $ 6 smoothie seems excessive! I know I can make my own organic fruit smoothie at home for pennies so the $ 6 seems unjustifiable in my opinion. But, I guess I’m the sucker that bought it.
I ordered a portabella wrap and my food was a little slow coming but I was okay wasting some time this day. It was pretty good, however, I’m not a huge fan of red onions so I had to pick through it. It came with a side of chips and salsa.
As I sat there eating, i watched the girl behind the counter put out huge cookies on a platter. I thought to myself, why didn’t she try to sell me that cookie? I would have totally bought it and now I“m regretting not buying it and I“m not going back to the counter again. So I left, mildly satisfied with my smoothie that should have been wrapped in gold foil for the price.
I can’t say that I will go out of my way to go back. It’s definitely not a place my husband would ever entertain. But, if you like this kind of food, it’s worth giving it a try.

Ambience is clean and fresh. Food very was tasty, but a tad over-​priced.
My husband, whom I was trying to convert to raw, was not impressed with the portion size at all. He did like the taco he ordered, however.
I will consider going back, but I need to see a little more value to make this a worthwhile repeat.

Who says eating healthy has to taste like crap? Not this girl. I already consider myself a healthy eater but trust me, visiting this place will show you how to do it right. And for those of you who are big babies about venturing out into Chesterfield, it’s literally 30 seconds away from the highway… so it’s really just not that big of a deal. :)
Walking in, you notice the delicious smells right away and the colorful décor! It’s relaxing, bright, and you can definitely feel all kinds of good energy in there. Take time to read the sayings painted on the walls.
If it’s lunch you’re after, you’re in luck. Wraps galore! The kale wrap (cashew cheez spread, kale, red cabbage, avocado) and the Sunset Wrap (sun dried tomato spread, mixed greens, red peppers, carrots, cucumber, onion) are both really good and affordable at just $ 7.99 a pop. There are tons of salads and «burgers» as well, so you can try a variety of things. They have a nice sized raw menu, too, and I really want to try the raw pad Thai (zucchini «pasta» with carrots, black olives, cilantro, peppers, herbs & Thai almond sauce.) Yum, just yum. Juices, smoothies, coffee, cookies, and other goodies are all there too, and I have my eye on the brownies…
Try this place! It might inspire you to eat a little healthier and have an open mind to raw food. If you hate it, there’s a McDonalds nearby that you can certainly drive through to get your processed food fix.

Went here for lunch and was what I was expecting: very healthy, tasty but a bit pricey food. That’s not to say it’s over priced, just that this much fresh food isn’t cheap. It’s hard to have character when you’re in a strip mall, but this place is nicely decorated. The food took a while to make, but it wasn’t a bother and I suspect it’s because items were cut (like the cucumber) to order.
I tried two wraps and a kale, spinach and apple juice. Everything was really good. The wraps were both flavorful and light. They were heavy on fresh, cold vegetables but weren’t bland. The sauces which came with them were great. The juice was expensive, but tasty and worth it.
Pros: tasty, healthy food
Cons: you pay for the freshness, food took several minutes to be prepared, the website is really bad

Om nom nom nom.
Super yummy. If you are not a vegan, I suggest you stick with the «traditional» dishes like a salad or a wrap. Diving into raw vegan tacos can be a big and scary leap for some. The cornbread salad is soooo gooooood. Add avocado to it, things can only get better when avocado is involved. The raw beet and tomato soup is amazing. The kale wrap has an amazing dressing on it too.
There is outdoor seating with comfy chairs, magazines to read while the make your order. We showed up at noon one day and the soup wasn’t ready. They open at 1130. And strike me as a lunch time café. And the soup wasn’t ready. Worse things have happened, I’m sure.
Overall a great place to eat and well priced.

with all the organic /​fair trade /​vegan hippy stuff going on here i canNOT believe they use plastic take out containers!!! Truly unbelievable. Hello — how about some consistency?
My food also was pretty bland and nothing special — the kind of thing that would turn off the open minded meat eater. Maybe some of their other food is better but I’m not going back to find out.

I’m by far not a vegetarian, but I am definitely a foodie which means I try just about anything out of curiosity. Since STL is certainly not overflowing with vegetarian restaurants, I was intrigued enough to give it a try.
I ordered the raw tacos (carrots and nuts) and the Chunky Monkey smoothie (cocoa, banana, almond butter, flax). Both were good to the last bite/​drop. They use fresh ingredients and rotate their menu based on the season.
As I was finishing up, I struck up a conversation with a couple of people who had been sitting in the next booth. One of which was a man who shared with me his experience of becoming a vegetarian and the ultimate health benefits he’s seen. The other individual was the owner (Gina) who was extremely hospitable and a delight to chat with. Ultimately, I was thrilled with the friendly atmosphere of both the staff and customers.
There are plans to start cooking classes on site in the near future and I plan to sign up. I’m fascinated at the creativity involved in making veggies into scrumptious meals.
I’ll be back…

Having been a vegan since late December i feel i have a pretty good grasp on what vegan restaurants should be like. Breaking my leg in a ski accident in February during a weekend in MI forced me to move back to STL from Chicago for a few months following surgery for rehab. Can you imagine trying to get around on crutches in Chicago? Its not fun, trust me.
Initially, i was pretty confident that finding/​having a vegan BBQ burger (i’m fairly addicted thanks to The Chicago Diner) was out of the question in STL. And finding one fairly close to my place. After countless searches online for ANY vegan restaurant in the STL area that hadn’t closed, lo and behold, VegaDeli!
I met mi madre here on a week night around 7. The place was pretty empty, but i have no doubt it gets busy during lunch. The woman who i assume owns or mangaes this place greeted us at the register. It appears she is the entire staff — taking orders and cooking the food. Which at first made me wonder how good the food could actually be. I mean, if she does EVERYTHING, the food is probably prepared first, then frozen and reheated? I am probably very wrong, but it definitely got me thinking. Nonetheless, Kudos to her, love love love this place.
The décor is similar to a coffeeshop in every aspect. Colors are earthy, with comfy booths. Hanging from the ceiling and walls they have like what i’ll call «wooden people.» Basically, its just tree branches and sticks that are dressed in knitting string to look like people. Very neat!
I ordered the BBQ burger, and a side of Mac and Cheeze. We weren’t waiting that long for our food (which helped propel my thoughts of frozen food). The burger was great! LOVED the bread — which was more like wheat pita bread than a regular slice of bread. The actual burger tasted like the garden burger you would buy at whole foods. — Which is not a bad thing, i can just hope it doesn’t have as much sodium as those do. The mac and cheeze was ok. the sauce was runny, so if you’re looking for a creamy, rich sauce, move along. It definitely didn’t satisfy my «cheese» craving… oh well, live and learn.
The mom ordered off the RAW menu (awesome that this is even an option!!) and got a salad with some sort of cashew dressing. I’ve been hearing about this dressing for WEEKS. She wants to go back just to find out how they make it. She loved it!!!
I will definitely be back!!! SO GLAD there is a vegan restaurant in the burbs of STL!!!

I found this little place by accident, turning around in the Schnuck’s parking lot. Tah dah, the words VegaDeli in bright white!
I went in, and ordered from the large menu which are sitting at a stack at the counter, then sat down. I couldn’t decide which I wanted: Vegan Lasagna, Vegan veggie burger, raw food taco, and tons more choices. I was surprised by the number of choices on the menu. A whole front page, with the back being the beverages, and desserts.
The decorations are cool. Branches from the ceiling with ornamental things hanging from them. Art work for sale on the walls. Neutral coloring, and booths and tables to sit at.
I decided on the raw vegan tacos, with carrots as the base. It was bought to me quickly. The taco shells were raw oats and other grains, gluten free. One bite, and oh sweet mother of the earth, it was good. The shells (unlike my own try at making raw taco shells), actually held together. That’s a plus.
There was a bit of lettuce and red cabbage, and a few tomato pieces which I removed. The shells were bulging with filling and the tacos were seasoned perfectly. I never can get used to raw food being not quite as warm as I like it to be. (Raw, duh on me).
I passed on dessert. They have mint chocolate vegan brownies and cookies. Their hours are such that you need to get there mid afternoon for dinner. The atmosphere is a bit Bohemian, which I love. The music is from the late 60’s. I didn’t know St. Louis was such a Bohemian city, but I’m thinking after today, that it is.

i like this place! I first tried Vegadeli b/​c I read a review in Sauce Magazine about the black bean burger with mango and it was awesome!
I haven’t tried much else but a few smoothies and the wheat grass. I need to go back and try more items. But I can tell you I have many friends who absolutely adore this spot. So if you are vegan and need to satisfy your craving hit them up!

I was in Chesterfield and craving something a little healthier to counter-​balance all the Halloween candy and cocktails from the days before. Then I remembered Vegadeli.
I had been there once before when they opened and while I didn’t have any real food, the smoothie was good, so I decided to give it a shot.
There used to be a big chalkboard-​menu behind the counter. Not anymore. Now, the menu is in about 10 – 15 different frames right next to the door surrounding RFT reviews and the like. I totally missed it when I first walked in. It was a very strange set-​up for a menu and really threw me off. Who frames their menu? And in so many different frames? Weird.
After staring at this menu/​art contraption for a few minutes I finally settled on a hummus pita. Not earth-​shattering, but whatev. It was exactly what it sounded like. Hummus, field greens, and tomato on a pita. Except there was very little hummus. And it was like $ 7.00. It tasted good, but unfortunately for them, I’ve been to Sweet Art.
Compared to my favorite Sweet Art sandwich (which is essentially the same thing with a hell of a lot more hummus and served on a wrap) it sorta paled in comparison. And at Sweet Art, one sandwich is good for two meals. Plus it has avocado. Avocado is like the bacon of the vegetarian world. Everything is better with it.
Service was… strange. The girl working the counter was not overly enthusiastic and then disappeared about half-​way though my lunch. Literally, went into the kitchen (I assume) and never came back.
Oh, and no wifi despite what you may have read elsewhere.
Bottom line: for healthy meals and treats, Sweet Art is still the best bet.

I’m giving this place 5 stars because it is the only all vegan restaurant in the St. Louis area. However I would like to make a couple of points:
— The place feels like a starbucks with branches everywhere
— The menu is a bunch of frames on the wall, is not obvious, and should be accompanied by some sort of sign that says «menu» perhaps
— The service is a little off. I waited for several minutes before being greeted, awkwardly standing there, having missed the aforementioned menu wall art. When my order was finally taken, the girl didn’t make eye contact at all, mumbled a lot, and got my smoothie order wrong.
—There are artificial sweeteners there (splenda, etc). These are all chemicals that are tested on animals. It’s a serious bummer to see in a vegan place. They should loose the chemicals in favor of natural alternatives like Stevia, or Agave.
Having said all that, the food was freaking great! I had the vegan burger and it was really good. My smoothie, while not the smoothie I ordered was delicious and filling.
It seems to me that people open places like Vegadeli because they are passionate about food and health, and are not always the best business people. Here’s hoping they get a little better with time.

I understand that I may have just come on the wrong day for this place, especially given reviews on other sites; however, I was not very impressed with Vegadeli.
Overall, the décor was nice and inviting and the employees were too; however, my friend and I ran in to far too many disappointments. I ordered the McVegan; after paying the owner came to our table and proceeded to tell me they were lacking some of the ingredients but could put spinach on it rather than tofu… so I went with the substitution. In addition to the sandwich I also ordered some of the mixed vegetables from the deli case. In my opinion everything was just OK. I didn’t care too much for the McVegan, and I just ate the vegetables because I was starving… they weren’t very good. My friend didn’t care for the wrap, and in fact, the wrap was minimal… both meals were very small, especially for how much they were charging. I also tried my friend’s smoothie and just wasn’t impressed. It was made primarily of ice and we joked that you had to chew it.
I saw that they had cake at this location too. When I finished eating [my little bit of food] I was still hungry and decided to try the cake. I went up to order it, proceeded to pay for it, and just about as the girl was about to run my credit card she told me I wouldn’t be able to have frosting on it. Then she talked to the owner and she said she’d put some drizzled chocolate on it. By this time, I was annoyed with the place so I opted to go without the dessert.
When I lived in St. Louis I long awaited the opening of a purely Vegan place and appreciate the fact that one has opened; however, there are far better places in St. Louis than this one.
***My friend (that also moved from STL) decided to give this place a try during his visit recently (his gf tried it previously and didn’t like it either) and apparently he says they’ve got their stuff more together now. So if I were you I’d definitely try it – my rating is purely based on my experience.***