Behind the business are Jackelin and Laura, its owners, who have maintained for 30 years a formula that is now almost a rarity in central Zaragoza: home cooking, real ingredients and a menu that adapts each day without losing the spirit with which they started. The loyalty of students, professors and local residents has continued to grow, and in recent months the restaurant has also begun to appear among those seeking food recommendations on social media.
Aside from its affordable prices, there is another reason Los Helechos remains full after so many years: the feeling of eating something made with care, without rushing or shortcuts. And that is the part of the story that is least often told.
THIRTY YEARS OF SELF-SERVICE, VEGETABLES AND TIME-HONORED RECIPES
The restaurant opened three decades ago at number 21 Corona de Aragón Street, very close to the San Francisco university campus, and since then its philosophy has barely changed. Everything that comes out of the kitchen is vegetarian, with vegan options and adaptations for those following specific diets—something that was practically unheard of in the city in the 1990s and remains unusual today on a daily menu.
The system is simple and without frills: customers take a tray, choose from the dishes available at the counter and carry them to the table themselves. It is a setup designed for a quick lunch, but that has not diminished the care given to the food: vegetable rice dishes, legumes, soups, pasta and salads that change frequently according to the season and the day.
That constant rotation is, in fact, one of the features most often mentioned by those who know the place: it is not unusual to eat there several times a week without having the same dish twice. The menu includes two dishes to choose from, a drink and dessert, and costs around 8 euros—a price that is becoming increasingly difficult to find in the university area without giving up food that is genuinely cooked fresh.
Jackelin and Laura have been running the restaurant’s day-to-day operations for three decades, and that continuity can be seen in the way they treat customers: many say the owners recognize them, ask about them if they have not appeared for a while and create an atmosphere more like a family kitchen than a restaurant with constantly changing staff.
WHAT PEOPLE WHO HAVE ALREADY VISITED LOS HELECHOS SAY
Customer reviews of Los Helechos agree on several points, even among those who do not usually eat vegetarian food. In reviews posted on Google, several people highlight the generous portions and say the quality of the ingredients comes through, something many did not expect at that price. Other reviews emphasize the value for money and note that, although the space is small and fills up easily, the food makes the wait worthwhile.
One comment sums up the kind of loyalty the restaurant inspires: several customers say they are not vegetarian but became regulars anyway after first trying it while accompanying someone who is. It is a pattern that recurs in the reviews: the initial surprise at the price gives way to surprise at how well the daily menu is prepared, with many describing it simply as the most homemade food they have tried outside their own homes in Zaragoza.
That word of mouth has also reached social media. Zaragoza-based content creator Sara Sanromán, known on Instagram as @lasanroman, recently visited Los Helechos and featured it in a reel that has circulated widely among her local community. In the video, Sara highlights how delicious the food is and draws attention to a detail that matches what regular customers say: the dishes change very frequently, so it is not a place where diners grow tired of eating the same thing.
She also points out two other features that are particularly typical of Los Helechos: the restaurant is almost always full, a sign that customer loyalty is not limited to passing students, and its desserts, priced at just 1 euro, are almost a reason to visit in their own right. Details like these, beyond the price of the full menu, are helping turn Los Helechos into a regular stop for those looking to eat well and cheaply near the University.
