Vegan News
Sweet Fort Worth vegan restaurant Vida Cafe closes after 2 years
Vida Cafe
There's a sad loss on the Fort Worth vegan scene: Vida Cafe, which specialized in vegan Italian dishes, closed its doors at 3522 Bluebonnet Cir. on May 4.
The restaurant had been open for two years. When chef-owner Belen Hernandez announced the closure, she displayed her perennial upbeat perspective.
"Thank you all for the support but it’s time for us to step into a new door and conquer all the new opportunities coming our way," her post said. "It was an honor to serve DFW area and the amazing Fort Worth vegan community."
Vida Cafe was a collaboration between the award-winning chef and her son, Sammy Garcia, who opened it in 2023 — just a short walk from Hernandez's other vegan restaurant, Belenty's Love, which she opened at 3516 Bluebonnet Cir. in 2020.
Vida offered Italian dishes with a plant-based twist, such as spaghetti, calzones, pizzas, veggie ravioli, and alfredo pasta. Other items included pesto grilled cheese panini, appetizers like mozzarella sticks and minestrone soup, and pasta or Caesar salads.
The food was fresh, homey, and wholesome, and attracted nonvegans as well as vegans.
They also served desserts like pecan pie with a chocolate crust and apple pie cannolis.
One thing that set Vida apart was its cheerful, colorful interior: pink walls, flowers on the wall, floral arrangements on tables, and table lamps.
Hernandez has 17 years of restaurant experience and is no stranger to navigating the openings and closings of restaurants.
Before she switched to the vegan lifestyle 15 years ago, she owned 10 Mexican restaurants and taquerias before closing them to pursue the vegan restaurant path. In 2018, she opened the first location of Belenty's Love in Granbury.
She went on to win the Best Restaurant category for Belenty's Love during CultureMap's 2022 Tastemaker Awards.
She says she plans to keep the spirit of Vida alive at Belenty's Love.
"We will be incorporating the Vida Cafe menu into Belenty's Love," Hernandez says. "We will host Italian Nights, and our homemade gluten-free bread will still be available at Belenty’s."
