Yahoo Movies Boise loves its greens, is rated a top city for vegetarians. Here’s where it ranks
The start of October for most people marks the beginning of cold weather, pumpkin spice lattes and Halloween decorations going up early.
But for around 15.2 million Americans, Saturday, Oct. 1, marks another special occasion: World Vegetarian Day. A month later, Nov. 1 is celebrated as World Vegan Day.
And as it turns out, there aren’t many cities in the United States better than Boise for vegetarians and vegans to live in, according to a new study from personal finance website WalletHub.
The City of Trees is ranked No. 11, a jump from when it was ranked No. 25 in 2019.
Source: WalletHub
WalletHub determined the best cities for herbivores to live in by looking at three key dimensions: affordability of vegan and vegetarian food; diversity, accessibility and quality of food; and the overall vegetarian lifestyle.
The three key dimensions were further broken down into 17 sub-metrics, such as the average meal cost (affordability), access to fresh vegetarian food (diversity, accessibility and quality), and vegan and vegetarian meetups per capita (lifestyle).
Boise didn’t rank necessarily high in any metrics — 25th in affordability and diversity, accessibility and quality, and 44th in lifestyle — but its rounded scores moved the city up the list.
For example, of the 100 cities rated, San Francisco ranked No. 1 in the latter two categories but 99th for affordability, resulting in the city dropping to seventh overall. Miami ranked fourth and eighth in the latter two dimensions, respectively, but 82nd in affordability, dropping it a spot behind Boise.
Data was gathered from the U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Department of Agriculture and Feeding America, among other sources.
Who is Idaho competing with?
According to WalletHub, here are the cities that Boise is ranked alongside in the top 15 places to live as a vegan or vegetarian:
Portland
Orlando
Los Angeles
Phoenix
Austin, Texas
Seattle
San Francisco
Tampa
San Diego
Lexington-Fayette, Kentucky
Boise
Miami
Cincinnati
El Paso, Texas
Plano, Texas
Best leafy restaurants in Boise
The first day of October may mark World Vegetarian Day, but as noted above, Boise is an excellent city year-round. Here are some of the vegan and vegetarian restaurants in the city:
Address: 122 N. 5th St.
Located on the east side of downtown Boise, Dharma Sushi & Thai offers multiple tofu-based rolls, vegan tots and teriyaki bowls, and the brand-new Rainbow Rice — rice cooked with basil, pineapple and coconut.
Address: 225 N. 5th St.
Take your pick; everything here is vegan. Scrambled tofu breakfast burritos are sold all day, and vegan versions of tacos, quesadillas and sandwiches are available at different times of the day.
Kibrom’s Ethiopian and Eritrean Restaurant
Address: 3506 W. State St.
There are options here for everyone. Kibrom’s opened in 2017, bringing a taste of Africa to Boise’s North End for meat-eaters and vegans alike. If you want to avoid meat, some options include veggie samosas, spiced vegetarian spaghetti and veggie Firfir.
Address: 8675 W. Franklin Road
At 208 Pho and Vegan, you can enjoy a three-course meat-free meal: tofu and taro-filled crispy spring rolls, Pho Chay, which is a vegetarian pho, and stir-fried mixed veggies and tofu.
Address: 1505 S. Broadway Ave.
Being vegan or vegetarian doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a good pizza. Pizza Twist has 13 veggie paneer pizza options and 11 vegan pizzas.
