[Seasonal. Sustainable. Plant Based. Rustic. Comforting.]
Seasonal, sustainable, plant-based, rustic, and comforting. These words are at the foundation of Donna Jean, Chef Roy Elam’s dream restaurant concept, which first opened its doors in San Diego in 2017, and more recently in Los Angeles in 2022.
Donna Jean is named after chef Roy’s mother, who passed away at the young age of 55 from aggressive breast cancer that he believes could have been prevented if she had been given the knowledge and resources to seek out a plant based diet earlier in life. The story of Roy’s mother is what inspired him to create something that would not only have made her proud but offers comforting, homey, and delicious plant-based food to appeal to even the most stubborn meat eaters. Donna Jean is meant to feel like home to everyone who walks through the door.
Donna Jean serves comfort food that celebrates Southern California’s finest produce—and happens to be 100% plant-based. Seasonality, sustainability, and partnerships with nearby farms are the driving forces behind our menu. Our hope is to start a conversation about what plant-based cuisine can be and to set the wheels in motion for a larger movement.
The chef behind it all
Chef Roy grew up just outside St. Louis, Missouri in the cornfields of Illinois. Home-cooked meals, midwestern summers, travels as a touring musician, and life in San Diego, Los Angeles, and Portland, Oregon, all shaped his culinary vision.
Roy honed his craft working for Matthew Kenney and Scott Winegard at Plant Food in Venice, CA, helping them win the Most Sustainable Restaurant Award. He went on to become head chef of SunCafe in Studio City, CA, where he was known for his cast iron Mac’n Cheese (it was named ‘the best vegan mac and cheese ever” by the Huffington Post).
Since 2017, Chef Roy has been running his own signature restaurant concept in loving memory of his mother, Donna Jean.
