Donna Jean

Our first time at Donna Jean. It was one of the best experiences ever. The food was so delicious. From appetizers to entrees to the incredible cheesecake it was one great taste after another. Our waitress America was phenomenal. Her expertise and recommendations were wonderful. She took her time with us and made it such a fun dining experience😃 We can’t wait to come back! Our go to spot in San Diego. Ilana and Derek

I’ve loved this quaint restaurant since I came here several months ago. It’s an amazing all vegan restaurant that, so far, everything I’ve tasted has been superbly delicious! We came to SD for business and always plan on eating dinner here. We ordered the bread with oil and balsamic, my bf ordered the lasagna and I got pasta with creamy white sauce with broccolini and mint leaves. Wow 🤩 my taste buds were blown away! Absolutely everything….again, was truly amazing. I would for certain recommend stopping by the next time you visit this area. It’s a 10 on service, atmosphere and foods!

Little known fact: Donna Jean was started because of a son who wanted to help his mother live longer after a diagnosis of cancer. His mother's name was Donna Jean. This restaurant is the best restaurant I've been to in my entire vegan life. I hadn't had lasagna in a very long time. The last time I had lasagna I was not vegan, and one bite of this lasagna was not only better than my memory of my meat containing version, but was less heavy and far more flavorful. The salads were another phenomenal part of the menu. These weren't your regular ho-hum mixed greens salads with croutons or vegan cheese. They posted a complexity that is unmatched with even seven layer salads. Some were sweet, some were savory, but all we're delicious. Finally, for this to be an Italian restaurant don't get it twisted. It is not an Olive Garden or a place where you will go and have a heavy, starchy, greasy and buttery meal. But rather you will leave feeling like you had a full body Italian three or four course meal without the guilt without the heaviness, but way more flavor. Romantic ambiance. I highly recommend this restaurant to any and everyone. It will appeal to even the most carnivorous out there.

Excellent Vegan Restaurant to visit in San Diego if you're near Balboa Park. We found this place as the first suggestion when we googled best vegan food experiences in San Diego. We got to Donna Jean at around 11AM on a Saturday - we were the first ones there and were promptly seated at our table by the host. The server came over a few minutes later, answered any questions we had, and left to come back with glasses of water a minutes later. We ordered The Motherload & Breakfast In Bread. Both the items were well cooked, well seasoned, with fresh ingredients in well portioned sizes. There were a lot of other things I wanted to try on the menu (Nashville Hot Shrooms, Frittata & Fungazi Pizza) which will have to wait until my next visit to San Diego.

Went here for friend's bday for laidback nice brunch on Sunday. Great service. I've eaten so many vegan places and this is one of those solid places you can take a friend and they'd prob be surprised that what they're eating is VEGAN! Pizza and lasagna were our favorite from our meal. We had: Pizza (if trees could talk pizza) - portion size is def good for 2 people, the crust is like that Italian wood oven crust pizza, really good, just like the other reviews. The fennel sausage has a lot of fennel, but it still tasted good (so don't get it if you don't like fennel) Lasagna - really good, sauce was lovely too Cast iron shells and cheese - rich and creamy mac and cheese. It doesn't have that sharp chefdar tangy taste, but more of a mellow cheese taste fyi. Garlic butter sauce - really good, especially to dip with pizza crust zatar ranch - also good

I live locally and have been here a few times now - each time has been great! I love sitting in their outdoor patio area. The food is delicious, beautifully presented, and I am always happy to support vegan dining. Most recently I had the pizza and am amazed at the cheese they use! Would love for them to stay around for a long time. Highly suggest this place!