Plant-based diets are all the rage these days. Health gurus expound on the benefits of vegan, vegetarian or even flexitarian eating (mostly plant diet with animal and dairy proteins in limited quantities) to reduce the risk of getting certain cancers and chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease while helping to maintain a healthy weight. Environmentalists are pushing the diet because raising animals for food creates massive amounts of greenhouse gas. And celebrities of all kinds from Bill Clinton to Ellen DeGeneres have gotten on the bandwagon with visible positive effects.

In response to this demand, restaurants are rising to the occasion with lots of choices for those who want to eat veggie dishes. Eight to 10 years ago, menus had the obligatory vegetable platter to satisfy customers who wanted to go meatless, but these days chefs are offering innovative, flavorful vegetarian appetizers, soups, entrees and tapas — some so tempting that carnivores will be swayed just by the creativity of the preparations. Another trend in response to the rise of whole plant diets are restaurants that specialize in that style of eating only. In Marin, we now have Veggie Grill in Corte Madera and Easy Living Foods in Novato, and places like The Plant in Mill Valley serving plant flexitarian. In addition to restaurants, ethnic eateries, takeout counters and even food trucks have gotten into the act with choices that go beyond quinoa pilaf and kale salad.

In this article, I wanted to highlight some of the choices around the county that offered a selection of all types of food with a special emphasis on vegan options. Fortunately there were lots of options but since I can only cover five, I would love to hear from you about your favorite vegan eateries. Send me an email with the name of the restaurant/truck/stand and what you like to eat there and I’ll write a post on the IJ’s Zest blog Word of Mouth with what readers have suggested.

Sol Food

The Caribbean beats, bright colors and lush plants pull you into Sol Food and the flavorful food and drinks keep you coming back. As the lines outside both outposts of this Puerto Rican food restaurant can attest, people are crazy for Sol Food. Vegan options are plentiful and exotic with four kinds of plantains, pink beans studded with Spanish olives, black beans with peppers and onions and plenty of rice to sop up the flavorful juices. Daily specials include veggie stew on Thursdays and rice cooked with pigeon peas on Sundays, and nothing beats a bowl of the lentil soup on a cold, foggy day. Add to that organic salad with garlicky dressing, ripe avocado wedges on the side and a chilled limeade and all is well with the world.

• Prices range from $3 for beans a la carte to $9.50 for a large vegetarian combo plate (that’s entirely vegan).

• 903 Lincoln Ave. near Fourth Street in San Rafael, 415-451-4765. 401 Miller Ave. near La Goma Street in Mill Valley; 415-380-1986, www.solfoodrestaurant.com.

Tony Tutto Pizza

For seven years, Mil Valley’s Tony Tutto (really Greg DiGiovine) has been delighting vegetarian pizza fans with his creative combinations using homemade artisan dough and all organic ingredients. Each day the certified pizzaiolo crafts three or four specials, of which is vegan, like broccolini and shallots with tomato sauce and chili oil. In addition, the menu features six vegan pizzas, like the puttanesca with tomato sauce, mixed olives, capers, garlic, oregano, basil and spicy chili or the garden of love light that features a crust baked with lemon, olive oil, rosemary and pine nuts that’s topped with organic arugula salad. Pies are enjoyed in the charming front patio of the restaurant with a friendly staff taking good care of you.

• Vegan pies range from $12 to $14.

• 246 E. Blithedale Ave. near Millwood Street in Mill Valley; 415-383-8646; www.tonytuttopizza.com.

Thep Lela Thai Restaurant

Great Thai food is abundant in Marin but this elegantly cool spot in Mill Valley’s Strawberry Village mall offers a sophisticated, comfortable place to settle in and enjoy well-spiced Southeast Asian specialties. From jewel-like fresh summer rolls to traditional tom ka, the rich and tangy coconut milk soup, to pad Thai and green papaya salad, the vibrant vegan dishes at Thep Lela are rife with fresh herbs, gorgeous colors and textures. Spongy fried tofu pillows with a marketbasket of vegetables and tongue-slapping spice add interest to the wide, pleasantly chewy noodles in kee mow. Curries are smooth as velvet with a subtle, building heat in the green variety that’s tamed by a pretty cake of steamed white rice topped with a cap of purple rice. Dishes can be made without fish sauce and the flavors don’t suffer with the tang of lime, galangal and lemongrass filling in.

• Vegan appetizers are $5.50 to $8, soup and salads are $5.50 to $10, and curry and noodle dishes are $12 to $13.

• 615 Strawberry Village, Mill Valley; 415-383-3444; www.theplela.com.

Good Earth Natural Foods

Green river soup and deep blue shake are just a couple of the items available at the extensive takeout section of Good Earth Natural Foods. Both the Fairfax and Mill Valley stores have an extensive salad bar with tossed theme salads as well as ingredients to make your own. The hot bar features vegan breakfast, lunch and dinner items such as tofu scramble, mushroom barley risotto, Tunisian chickpea stew and baked beans. The kitchen makes two or three vegan soups every day and offers several more varieties in the cold case while sections of the deli counter give shoppers the ability to customize a meal. A wok area cooks all types of bowls to order, the taqueria makes tacos, sopes, nachos and more. Traditional sandwiches with lots of fillings are made to order and a pizza oven turns out sumptuous pies. And — there’s more — the deli case is stocked with all kinds of vegetarian goodies and the bakery has a sweet and delicious selection of vegan desserts. Everything at Good Earth is organic and non-GMO as well.

• Pizza is $3.49 a slice, taqueria items are $8 to $9, salad and hot bar are $8.98 a pound, soups are $2.49 for a half pint, $4.49 a pint.

• 720 Center Blvd. near Willow Avenue in Fairfax; 415-454-0123 and 201 Flamingo Road near Panoramic Highway in Mill Valley; 415-579-1714; www.genatural.com.

Lotus restaurants

Surinder Sroa has created a mini empire of Indian restaurants around Marin and all offer a cornucopia for vegan diners. The plentiful buffet at the flagship Lotus Cuisine of India in San Rafael always has two or three vegan entrees, two types of rice, vegetable pakoras and a selection of six to eight sauces and chutneys to spice things up. Naan is included but the kitchen accommodates vegans with chapati bread on request.

Lotus Chaat and Spices in San Rafael cooks fun Indian street food that is mostly vegan and tasty. Try the different types of puris, crispy little rounds stuffed with chickpeas or potato curry or take on one of the kitchen’s dosa, a large, rolled crepe made with lentil flour with a choice of different types of fillings.

The charming storefront Café Lotus in Fairfax serves up northern Indian specialties like vegetable curry packed with flavor or biryani with abundant fresh vegetables, raisins and cashews.

•$11 for the all-you-can-eat buffet lunch at Lotus Cuisine, $8 to $10 for chaat, $12 to $15 for dosa; $9 for southern Indian specialties at Lotus Chaat and Spices, $11 to $13 for curries; $13 for biryanis at Lotus Café.

•Lotus Cuisine of India, 704 Fourth St. near Tamalpais Avenue in San Rafael; 415-456-5808; www.lotusrestaurant.com. Café Lotus, 912 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. near Taylor Street in Fairfax; 415-457-7836; www.cafelotus.com. Lotus Chaat and Spices, 1559 Fourth St. near F Street in San Rafael; 415-454-6887; www.lotuschaat.com.

Brooke Jackson is a freelance food writer, blogger and recipe consultant. Send her an email at ij.brookejackson@gmail.com.