Newly updated - the best places in Dublin to eat if you're vegan, vegan-curious or just fancy a break from meat and dairy. There are all places doing it the way vegans deserve - not a stuffed pepper or tomato pasta in sight... (we hope)
1. Kale + Coco
The ladies who brought smoothie bowls to the city have opened a fully plant-based café in Stoneybatter, with savoury nourish bowls and mushrooms lattés as well as those ultra phone-camera friendly smoothies in a bowl. A vegan instagrammer's paradise. Read more about Kale + Coco here.
2. V-face
Stoneybatter is officially the vegan capital of Dublin, you heard it here first (actually we said it here first), and V-face has been making vegans and non-vegans very happy with their plant-based burgers since popping up in The Belfry last summer. The good news is they've secured their own site which is due to open in the coming weeks, but in the meantime you can still find them in and out of The Belfry. Keep an eye on their social media for dates and times.
3. Shaka Poké
The Hawaiian raw fish specialists might not be the first place you'd think of for vegan food but it's big at Shaka Poké, with Tahiti tofu and pickled beets as plant-based options. We particularly like the sound of the 'no catch' with avocado, wakame, edamame, pineapple and cucumber topped with chili peanut sauce.
4. Umi Falafel
Falafel, mezze plates and salads on Dame Street. A visiting vegan from New York recently told us she visited here twice on her trip to Dublin and thought Umi Falafel was the best Middle Eastern food she's had outside of the Middle East. Nuff said.
5. Nutbutter
Nutbutter in Grand Canal Dock have been fighting the plant-based fight since day one, and most of the menu is vegan or can easily be made vegan. Some of the standout dishes include the vegan caesar, the plant-based poke with watermelon sashimi, and the jackfruit tacos, but everything here is flavour first.
6. The Garden Room at The Merrion
Last year The Garden Room in The Merrion Hotel teamed up with blogger and cookbook author Holly White to launch a new vegan menu, and by all accounts it seems to have been a roaring success with dishes like a roasted vegetable buddha bowl and chunky sweet potato chips with cashew cheese. They're updating the menu this week and have just added a lemon meringue tart that Holly says has taken months to get right.
7. Token
Token have been on the vegan case since day one, as the owner's Mum is vegan and he wanted her to have somewhere to eat. They do vegan fried chicken, hot dogs, tacos and even a vegan ice-cream sundae, and constantly come up as a favourite in vegan circles.
8. Urbanity
Urbanity in Smithfield has a plant-based 'flexitarian' menu in the evenings, which is 100% vegan with the option to add meat as a side. They also do daily vegan specials and desserts during the day.
9. Veginity / Vish Shop
If you haven't tried Australian Mark Senn's vegan food before you need to rectify that. The vish and chips, made from cassava and seaweed, is the best fish substitution we've had, and the cauliflower 'wings' are a game changer, giving chicken a serious run for its money. They now have two permanent sites on Dorset Street - Veginity which is more of a sit down restaurant, and Vish Shop which is more fast food/takeaway, but you can sit in. Both are well worth a visit.
10. Shouk
Shouk is serving delicious Middle Eastern, purse-friendly food in Drumcondra that's predominantly vegan, with pittas, falafel, mezze and flavour-packed salads. It's BYO too (€4 per bottle) so you can bring along your favourite vegan-friendly wine.
11. Pho Viet
Pho Viet has some of the best Vietnamese food in the city with a whole page on the menu dedicated to vegan and vegetarian dishes. Try the savoury pancake filled with bean sprouts, carrots, onions and peppers with their homemade dipping sauce, or the vegetarian bun (noodle bowl) with spring rolls.
12. Fallon & Byrne
Fallon & Byrne have had a vegan-friendly menu in their Exchequer Street and People's Park locations for the past four years, with dishes like textures of Irish cauliflower with golden raisins and mixed leaves, and desserts like 'Kinder Bueno' with crunchy hazelnut, honeycomb, coconut and salted toffee sauce. Plenty of vegan friendly wines too.
13. Beo
What were we saying about Stoneybatter? Beo is a new café/wine bar on Manor Street serving wholesome food during the day with wine and "fine dining" at night. Read more about Beo here.
14. Sova Vegan Butcher
One of the go-to's for vegan's in Dublin for the past few years, Barto Sova's ever changing menu at Sova Vegan Butcher includes things like mac n' cheese, seaweed chowder with samphire and strawberry and cashew nut cheesecake.
15. Vietnom
Vegetarian/vegan Vietnamese food with touches of Mexican, like Saigon tostadas and bánh mì with honey-basted mushrooms, peanuts and shallots. Find Vietnom in a food truck at the back of The Glimmerman pub in Stoneybatter from Thursday to Sunday. Read our once over here (contains meat).
16. Cornucopia
Probably the place most people thing of when you say "vegetarian restaurant", Cornucopia has been feeding Dublin's vegetarian and vegan population for over 30 years. Soups, salads, stews and enchiladas with vegan cheese can usually be found at the counter and portions are generous.
17. Brother Hubbard
One of Dublin's most interesting places to grab breakfast or lunch, you'll always find vibrant, flavourful vegan salads and sandwiches at Brother Hubbard, and they've organised several vegan supper clubs over the past year. Sign up to their mailing list to get news about the next one.
18. Happy Food by Yoga Hub
A vegan destination since it opened on Camden Place a few years ago, Happy Food serve up vegan burgers, pad thai and tofu ribs (apparently much better than they sound). A yoga class beforehand will take your health-related zen to a new level.
19. Peploe's
The swanky bistro opposite Stephen's Green is more known for long business lunches than a focus on sustainable eating, but Peploe's introduced a vegan menu last year and it looks good, with dishes like roasted cauliflower with satay chili dressing and butternut squash lasagne.
20. Chameleon
Long-standing Temple Bar restaurant serving Indonesian food tapas style in various 'Rijst Tafel', with a vegetarian/vegan option that sounds almost better than the meat. Balinese yellow curry, sesame fried vegetables and onion bao are some of the herb and spice-packed dishes on Chameleon's menu.
