Diane Warren has many talents. Songwriting, of course, is at the very top. After all, she has been nominated for Best Original Song at the Oscars no fewer than 17 times for her musical contributions to hit films such as Mannequin, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, and more. Warren’s first nomination came in 1987, and from 2017 to 2026, the songwriter has been nominated every single year. Clearly, hitmaking runs in her veins—she’s the force behind everything from Toni Braxton’s “Un-break My Heart” to Cher’s “If I Could Turn Back Time.”
But Warren, a passionate animal welfare advocate, has another important skill: finding the best vegan food in Los Angeles. The songwriting legend has put in the hours. According to her friend Lori Rischer—a marketing executive in the music industry and yoga teacher—the pair have eaten at virtually every vegan restaurant in the city.
Writing for LA Yoga, Rischer confirmed that one of Warren’s favorites is Crossroads Kitchen, a vegan fine-dining Mediterranean restaurant by chef Tal Ronnen. In a recent interview with LAist, Warren also named the Beverly Grove spot as one of her favorite restaurants in the entire city.
Crossroads
She’s not alone. Crossroads is loved by many Hollywood stars, including Travis Barker, Kourtney Kardashian, Kevin Smith, Joaquin Phoenix, and many more.
Warren also highlighted Follow Your Heart, Pura Vita for “great Italian” food, and Julie Goes Green, which she says serves “the best vegan pizza” in LA.
Beyond Mediterranean and Italian fare, Warren told LAist she has a soft spot for Southeast Asian cuisine. She enjoys takeout from Vinh Loi Tofu in Reseda, as well as downtown Vietnamese restaurant Au Lac. The latter is known for its plant-based takes on Vietnamese classics like banh mi, pho, and claypot fish, alongside fusion dishes such as paella and ravioli. “It’s the best,” Warren said.
Au Lac
Is Diane Warren vegan?
Warren is a longtime vegan, partly for the health benefits, but primarily because of her love for animals. “Everything I do, besides music, is for animals,” she told USA Today in 2025. The songwriter once rescued a cow from slaughter, an experience that inspired her to open her own animal sanctuary, Mousebutt Rescue Ranch, in 2017.
In 2016, Warren received the Humane Society of the United States’ Humanitarian of the Year award. During her acceptance speech, she urged people to reconsider their dietary choices.
“To those in the audience who are already vegetarian or vegan, thank you,” she said. “We are making a huge difference knowing that kindness to all creatures is not an option but the only way. For those not there yet, realize that when you eat meat, you’re not eating something. You’re eating someone.”
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Charlotte is a VegNews editor and writer based in sunny Southsea on England's southern coast.
