Peace, Love & Eatz Brings Vegan Tacos and Smoothie Bowls to DeSoto

When you’re on the hunt for vegan fare, there are a growing number of places you can go in DFW — but it’s likely you don’t think DeSoto. James McGee wanted to change that — so he opened Peace, Love & Eatz, a vegan/vegetarian spot off Belt Line Road.

“I’ve been vegan two and a half years,” McGee says. "I went vegan because of my daughter’s allergies. She can’t eat certain meats, pretty much no dairy, no eggs. She’s allergic to everything. So we just wanted to make the switch with her so she wouldn’t feel left out. We started cooking at the house. Then as we drove around, we saw there was a void out here, in this area of town. So we wanted to do something for our people over here.”

You can find Peace, Love & Eatz in the Grow DeSoto Market Place, an old Ace Hardware store that has been repurposed into a facility that houses everything from restaurants to retail spaces to a fitness center.

“We’ve been getting a pretty good response out here, and a lot of support,” McGee says. “A lot of people said it was stupid to open up on this side of town because they said people out here don’t eat that way.”

Well, they were wrong. Peace, Love & Eatz’s menu has been attracting people near and far — vegan and non-vegan — since they opened on July 4. Smoothies and smoothie bowls are the focal point of the menu.

“I love smoothies,” McGee admits. “I been drinking smoothies since I was a kid. I just wanted to do a better type of smoothie. I was tired of going to chain restaurants where I’d see them getting stuff out of the can and squirting stuff in my drink that I didn’t know what it was. I wanted to help people that were having those same concerns.”

McGee is also offering an assortment of tacos. The smokey taco features roasted cauliflower and garbanzo beans topped with mixed greens, cucumbers and salsa. McGee mentions this one is his vegan favorite, while the Fusion — featuring fried cauliflower and mango — is a top pick for those being introduced to the vegan lifestyle. If you want a little variety, the taco trio is the best route to take.

"Me and my wife came up with the name Peace, Love & Eatz because a lot of people have a lot of struggles and trials and tribulations,” McGee says. “But if you want to have a comfortable life — a good life — and be content, you need peace, you need love and you need good food."

Peace, Love & Eatz, 324 E. Belt Line Road, DeSoto