There was no shortage of food to be enjoyed over my trip to California a few weeks ago. Despite it being an Expo West-centered trip, I still got the chance to enjoy some food outside of the trade show. That is, on the days that I wasn’t completely full on all the samples that were handed out over the weekend. I went here with some vegan friends I made on Instagram, including UnhealthyVegan who I recently did an interview with. It was actually his idea to go to Loving Hut in Upland, which is a completely vegan establishment located in Upland, CA. Read on to see what we ordered and shared with our whole table.

One of the entrees we shared was the Kung Pao Wow. Made with soy protein, celery, onion, and chile sautéed with kung pao sauce topped with peanut, small salad and rice. As a small disclaimer, I wasn’t the one doing the ordering so I might be a little off on the names. However, this dish was delicious! I loved the salty, crunchy taste from the peanuts compared to the soy protein which had a meaty texture. I really enjoyed the side salad, which had a dressing that was half sweet, and half savory.

One of the people who joined us was feeling a little under the weather so she ordered a soup to have while the rest of us shared the food. I’m not sure what this was, but from the photo it looks like the Loving Ramen. That dish is made with wheat noodles, bok choy, corn, mushroom, and soy protein and it comes in a decent-sized bowl. I heard this was good, so I guess you’ll just have to take their word for it!

Next was the Garden Chow Mein, which used to be one of my favorite takeout dishes before going vegetarian. This was super delicious too, and it tasted even better than I remembered! I loved the vegetables in here, and the noodles had a nice “bite” to them, meaning they weren’t too soft.

One of the specials at this Loving Hut were these fries. I think the sauce tasted like a cheesy ranch, so these were a little like nacho fries with the jalapeños on top. Our table actually ordered two of these they were so good. Normally I wouldn’t think of ordering fries at a place that’s serving vegan Asian-inspired cuisine, but they turned out to be a wonderful idea!

I ordered a Thai Iced Tea with coconut milk to drink alongside my water. This was incredibly sweet with just a hint of the actual tea taste. I don’t know if I would order this again to go with my meal but it would be a great dessert item all on its own.

The next dish is the Mongolian Delight, made with red/green bell pepper, green onion, and soy protein cooked with Mongolian sauce and served with a side of rice. I could definitely tell that the meat was made with TVP (texturized vegetable protein) as it was fairly chewy. The sauce really made the dish spectacular and the veggies added a crunch. I thought this was really good when you mixed the rice to get a bite of everything on the plate all at once.

Remember how I said Chow Mein was one of my favorites for a long time? Well fried rice was always a close second. I was told that the Loving Fried Rice was good, and I was not disappointed in the slightest! This looked and tasted just like the fried rice I had tried before I went vegetarian. It’s made with stir fried rice, soy protein chunks, mixed veggies and onion. If you get the chance to go to Loving Hut in Upland, don’t forget to order this!

Because all good things come to an end, I had to order some Carrot Cake for dessert. I was already super stuffed so I had a few bites and then passed this on to someone else to finish. I don’t normally go for carrot cake, but this was super tasty! It probably would’ve been even better if I wasn’t so full, but I’m still glad I got the chance to try one of Loving Hut’s desserts!

So in all Loving Hut was an awesome place to eat at, and I’m happy I had the opportunity to go on my California trip. Let me know in the comments, have you been to Loving Hut before and what are your favorite things to order? Or, if you were to go there in the future…what would you order off their menu?