Guide to Delicious Plant-Based Eating in Vancouver

With Vancouverites’ commitment to sustainability, fresh local produce, and healthy living, it is no surprise that the city is a top destination for plant-based food. Vegan options are many, including a diversity of cultural cuisines, charming cafes, as well as festivals and markets devoted to plant-based eating.

Award Winning Restaurants

Vancouver’s plant-based restaurants have received considerable critical acclaim. For example, The Acorn in Mount Pleasant is not only MICHELIN-recommended, but also the winner of Best Vegan Restaurant in the World 2019 (Big 7 Travel) and Best Vegetarian Restaurant 2022 (Vancouver Magazine). Their locavore menu contains vegan dishes such as shiitake with soy braised squash, kelp, ginger, and ginger leaf; and cabbage with Yukon gold potatoes, miso and mustard sauce, and tarragon.

Folke, also MICHELIN-recommended, was one of Canada’s Best New Restaurants 2023 (enRoute) and also won silver in the Best New category 2023 (Vancouver Magazine). Folke prioritizes local ingredients in their entirely plant-based cooking, with creations such as tapioca dumplings with mushroom xo, chili oil, and ponzu; and celery root with lemongrass, pine mushrooms, and smoked tea.

Diverse Cuisines

Vancouver has many other vegan restaurants to choose from, their range of cuisines reflective of the multiculturalism of the city.

The Naam, the city’s longest running vegetarian restaurant, serves an international mix, including a Thai dragon bowl with steamed veggies on brown rice with tofu, cilantro, and coconut curry sauce; and a Maui burger with pineapple, mushrooms, water chestnuts, and teriyaki sauce.

MeeT also draws on global influences for their menu that celebrates vegan comfort food. Expect to leave satisfied after enjoying items like a mac ‘n’ cheese bowl, a Southern fried chick’un burger, and butter chikkin noodz.

Vancouver is known for their excellent sushi. MILA in Chinatown serves great sushi, such as an okonomiyaki roll, aburi carrot lox oshi, and tuna crispy rice. They serve other outstanding dishes that range from a smash burger to mushroom and sausage tagliatelle. Sushi Maro in Yaletown features two menus, one of them being vegan, with options like a Taste of Yaletown roll with vegan crab cake, cucumber, oyster mushroom, red pepper, green onion, and jalapeno.

Chickpea began as a food truck serving Mediterranean/Middle Eastern vegan cuisine, and then expanded to a brick-and-mortar location on Main Street. You have to try their signature hummus, incredible chickpea fries, and falafel.

Vietnamese cuisine, with its use of fresh herbs and greens, lends itself to vegan cuisine. Chi on West 4th Avenue is a plant-based Vietnamese-influenced restaurant serving dishes such as a banh mi with Prime Roots deli meats, walnut pate, aioli, pickled daikon and carrot, cucumber, and cilantro. Do Chay offers some really tasty vegan Vietnamese food, like a vegan “prawn” lemongrass curry with tofu, eggplant, carrot, and sweet potato. Other excellent Vietnamese restaurants also have vegan dishes, such as Saigonville, which serves vegan salad rolls, spring rolls, and a pho with king oyster mushrooms, gai lan, carrot, okra, tofu, and noodles.

The pizza game in the city is going strong. Virtuous Pie is a favourite for vegan pizza, with inventive selections like gochujang cauliflower and superfunghi with wild mushrooms and truffle almond ricotta. Pizzeria Grano specializes in vegan/vegetarian Neopolitan pizzas with toppings like plant-based pepperoni; and shaved potato with cashew cream, cashew mozza, garlic, basil, chili flakes, red onion, and tarragon oil.

Sister restaurants Momo Hut and Saino Restaurant serve distinctive Nepalese and Indo-Chinese cuisine. Both of their menus have numerous vegan options, like fried onion pakoda, and aloo bodi tama (black eyed peas with fermented bamboo shoots and potatoes in light Himalayan spices) at Momo Hut. Meanwhile, Saino features cosseting vegan dishes such as a 5 yellow daal tadka with onion, tomatoes, ginger, and garlic.

Bakeries and Cafes

For those craving pastries, baked treats, and light meals, there are numerous vegan bakeries and cafes in town. To Live For Bakery & Café is one of the top ones; they serve their famed banana bread and lemon loaf, in addition to croissants, cupcakes, and custom ordered cakes (e.g., salted caramel chocolate).

Bonus Bakery is another plant-based bakery with all sorts of decadent goodies, like cookies cakes, dipped donuts, and pistachio croissants.

Kokomo, a cute café with multiple locations, offers eats and beverages that are fresh, healthy, and plant-based. Options range from an acia bowl with fresh berries, bananas, housemade granola, toasted coconut, and mint; to a Lush Greens Smoothie. AM Café (Animals Matter) recently opened, serving breakfast, lunch, and drinks, which include a smoked carrot lox croissant, a jammin’ jerk burrito, and a Faux-Let O’ Fish Burger.

We all scream for vegan ice cream! Most ice cream shops in Vancouver carry vegan options. For example, Elephant Garden Creamery features flavours like mango coconut sticky rice, black sesame rice ball, and pandan coconut jade snake (the latter two are rotating flavours).

Markets and Festivals

Vancouver Farmers Markets (currently Riley Park Saturdays 10am-2pm; Kits Sundays 10am-2pm) spotlight local producers, with fresh seasonal produce. In addition, vegan vendors, such as Long Live Mac + Cheese, Spread‘Em Kitchen, and Tempea Natural Foods, are in attendance.

The Vegan Night Market returns March 12 (6-9:30pm) to The Waldorf Hotel (inside 19+, outside family and pet-friendly), with admission by donation. Expect vegan food, vendors, music, and bevvies. Stay tuned for more Vegan Night Market events.

The Squamish Vegan Festival is set for June 6-8, with a focus on food, music, and wellness. And look out for more details on the 2025 edition of Vancouver Vegan Festival (last year it was in September).