When I tell people I’m vegan, they often say “that must be so challenging to eat vegan!” Well, no, I think it’s really easy actually.
At home being vegan is as easy as eating any other kind of diet. I only buy vegan groceries, so therefore I only have vegan food in my house. When I go to grab a snack or make a meal, I don’t even have to give it a second thought because my only options are vegan food. It’s not like I look in my fridge and see cheesy dishes and chicken wings!
The only part of a vegan diet that can be challenging is dining out. All of the control is in someone else’s hands. But, I LOVE going to restaurants. So what do I do? Here are my tips for how to eat vegan at any restaurant (and not order salad).
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Call ahead.
As someone who is horribly phone shy (I get nervous just ordering a pizza), this tip is not my favourite, but it’s REALLY helpful. If you have plans to go to a restaurant and you aren’t sure of the vegan options, just give them a ring and ask. If the restaraunt really doesn’t have any vegan options, you can change your plans, (although I have never had that response before). It also let’s the chef know ahead of time that you are coming so if they want to prepare something special they have the time to do so. Then when you get to the restaurant you can relax because you already know the options. I have even called a restaurant and been thrilled and surprised when I was told they had a separate vegan menu! I wouldn’t have know that unless I asked. You can also try looking the menus up online, but it can sometimes not be clear if items are actually vegan, so I always suggest a call.
Be clear.
When I first made the switch, I hated saying the dreaded word “vegan” as I was somehow worried chefs would get mad at me. This isn’t true. I have heard from both chef and waiter friends that they much prefer someone being clear in their limitations so they can address it correctly and without confusion. When you first walk into a restaurant, if you haven’t called ahead, ask the greeter about vegan options. They will be able to tell you before you even sit down. If there is no greeter, ask the server right away. The last thing you want to happen is that you already have your drinks, everyone places an order and then you realize there is nothing for you to eat. Asking as soon as possible ensures a relaxing dining experience.
Be nice.
When you ask, just be polite. You don’t have to shout at the world, don’t make a million demands, and don’t try to deconstruct the ingredient list, just ask if there are any vegan friendly options with a smile on your face. Not everyone understands what vegan is, so if they don’t know, help them out by just telling them what you don’t eat. No animal cruelty talk here, this isn’t the place or time. If you’re nice, people will be nice right back.
Look for the codes.
Menus often have little icons next to items that indicate which items are vegan or vegetarian, just like they do if it is spicy. Sometimes it’s a little “v”, sometimes a leaf, or other fun icons. Just look for the guide so you can know what they stand for.
Be a clever subber.
Most menus have vegetarian options which can easily be made vegan. Just ask if the dairy or egg can be removed from the dish to make it vegan friendly. Sometimes when you remove an ingredient the dish might need something else to boost it up a notch, so what I like to do is peruse around the menu and if I see another ingredient I think would be great, I might ask for a substitution. A good example of this is if I am ordering a veggie burrito, I would ask for the cheese and sour cream to be removed, and instead replace it with guacamole. Saying the word sub or replace is key because then hopefully they don’t charge you extra! Sometimes if there are no main dishes that are easily made vegan, I will look to the sides. Often there are lots of side dishes that are vegan friendly, or can be adapted, so I will order a big plate of those.
Get the apps.
There are lots of great apps or websites that will help you find great veg friendly restaurants near you. This can be especially great for travel. My favourites are Happy Cow and Vegman, which find restaurants in your area that are vegan friendly, and VeganXpress which helps you find vegan options on popular chain restaurant menus.
Vegan Restaurants
The beauty of vegan restaurants is you actually have a whole menu to choose from! I know, joy! Go ahead, feast away!
Vegetarian Restaurants
Just check to make sure the items you are ordering are vegan, the servers understand your language, so they will know how to edit a dish if needed to make it vegan friendly.
Thai Restaurants
I love a good vegetable pad thai, vegetable cold rolls, green mango salad, lemon grass or coconut soup, vegetable curries, and vegetable rice dishes. Just make sure to ask for no egg, no fish sauce (in everything), and that curry paste use is vegetarian.
Japanese Restaurants
I order edamame, vegetable sushi rolls, vegetable tempura, miso soup, fried tofu, and noodle soups. Just make sure to ask for no egg, no fish sauce, and no bonito flakes (dried fish flakes).
Chinese Restaurants
Vegetable spring rolls, vegetable dumplings, vegetable soups, vegetable fried rice, vegetable noodle dishes, and beancurd are all great options. Again, just make sure to ask for no egg, no fish sauce, and no oyster sauce.
Italian Restaurants
Bruschetta, grilled artichokes, bean salads, olives, bread with olive oil and balsamic, salads, pasta with marinara sauce (most pastas don’t contain eggs, so just ask to be sure), vegetable pizzas with no cheese. Double check that there is no cheese or eggs in your dishes. I often say no parmesan as well as they sometimes toss it on right at the end.
French Restaurants
I find French can be one of the most challenging options as they use so much butter and cream in their recipes, but sometimes you can get away with vegetable soups, roasted veggie platters, bread, salads, or ratatouille might be vegan. Ask about butter, cream, and chicken/beef stock.
Greek Restaurants
Hummus, tahini, olives, pita bread, vegetable dolmades, panfried potatoes, Greek salad, roasted eggplant, grilled veggies, and grilled veggie wrap. Just make sure to ask for no cheese or yogurt.
BBQ or Steak Restaurants
You might think I’m crazy, but I have eaten at BBQ restaurants and lived to talk about it. Try deep fried pickles, french fries, sweet potato fries, vegetable chili, BBQ vegetables, sometimes they even have BBQ tofu, vegetable sandwiches, salads, and baked potatoes. Make sure to ask for no cheese, sour cream, butter, mayonnaise and make sure the batters don’t contain buttermilk. I sometimes find it’s easiest to order several side dishes, and ask for them on a plate all together.
American or Canadian Restaurants
French fries, onion rings, potato wedges, veggie burgers, and veggie dogs. Ask about mayonnaise, cheese, and eggs in the ingredients.
Ethiopian Restaurants
Lentil, bean, and pea dishes, cabbage, and other greens, and injera (flatbread). Ask about butter, cheese, and egg.
Middle Eastern Restaurants
Falafels, coucous, tahini, vegetable samosas, pita bread, tabouleh, and rice. Just make sure to ask for no cheese or yogurt.
Indian Restaurants
Vegetable samosa, vegetable pakora, saag, dal, rice, channa masala, naan bread (check that it isn’t made with yogurt or butter), and a lot of other great veggie dishes. Just make sure to ask for no butter, ghee (clarified butter), cream, or paneer (cheese).
Jamaican Restaurants
Fried plantain, veggie or potato roti, jerk vegetables, callalloo, festival, rice and peas, ackee (no salt fish), curry vegetables, bammy, and vegetable patties. Just make sure to ask for no butter, or eggs.
Mexican Restaurants
Salsa, guacamole, tortilla chips, vegetable or bean burritos, rice, vegetable tacos, vegetable fajita, and vegetable chimichanga. Ask about sour cream, cheese, lard, and that the rice isn’t made with chicken broth.
Do you have any other tips or discoveries? Leave them in the comments!
Hi Sam,
I thought that tomato sauce in an Italian restaurant would be safe – but guess what – some of them add BUTTER to tomato sauce. Took me by surprise…so was glad that I asked and that my server was informed.
BTW, came across your site when I went completely plant-based in November and was looking for recipes.
Picked up you book and sent a few of my friends your way. You’ve got a great thing going!
Yikes! It’s always a good idea to ask. 🙂 Thank you so much, Mika! So happy you are enjoying my recipes!
Excellent article! Great info! Positive spin on every aspect!! Great organization and layout of info!
Thank you so much, Nicole 🙂
Hi do you think you could add a seafood restaurant to the list? I’m not sure what to do when going to a seafood restaurant :(. Thanks so much for your consideration! :))
I would definitly recommend calling ahead, and making sure they have options for you 🙂
hi Sam!
Just on a side note, Moussaka is made with Bechamel sauce, which is made with milk so I wouldn’t recommend it 🙂
Love your post!
Angie xo
Thanks so much! I didn’t realize that, thanks for the heads up, I have removed it from the post 🙂
Awesome! Have a great day 🙂
There’s another version of Musaqaa where green peppers, eggplants and potatoes are fried then we add tomato sauce on top. It’s very delicious & eaten with flat bread or rice.
The Greek version is made with bashamel but not the Egyptian /middle eastern version. But some egy restaurant make it with minced meat. You have to ask first.
This sounds really tasty. I have to try it out!
Sam, thank you for a wonderful post! I’m phone shy as well but that is a great tip!
Hi Sam!
I came across your article while researching information to create a similar Guide for the 4,000+ members of the Plant-Based Nutrition Support Group in Michigan (pbnsg.org). Your article is so thorough, I’d prefer to provide them with a link to it! Any chance you’ll be updating it anytime soon to include the additional great suggestions in the Comments section? Thank you for the extraordinary good that you do!
For sure, feel free to share a link to this post and any post on my site. 🙂
Regardless of whether you pick the restaurant or not, looking up the menu online beforehand is a great way to ensure you make a better meal choice. BTW, this is an amazing article pack of informative details..
Thank you so much, Ashley 🙂
Love the article but have you looked into GMO and what that means. Some of the foods you recommend like veggie egg rolls are fried in canola oil. 90% of canola is GMO. GMO have been shown to cause tumors and possibly cancer in rats. Check out the Non GMO project for common foods that contain GMO.
Hi Cree, this article is simply about how to eat vegan and is not focused on GMO’s, but it’s always good to be aware of your own dietary concerns.
Ob fried foods – always ask if the restaurant has a separate fryer for vegetables. Sometimes there is only one; wings, fries and all. Some restaurants use tallow or lard or a “mixed oil” in the fryer. Couple of places I never even made it through the door, which was where the smell of the oil hit me.
All those vegans who want to experiment with Food are warmly welcomed to India, where 50% of the populace are Lacto Vegetarians, from street food to Fine dines a large chunk of dishes are vegetarian, just ask them not to add Ghee and voila you have your vegan food. To name a few items-
Chaats ( Bhelpuri, Samosa chat, panipuri)
Dosa
Idli- Vada – Sambhar
Aloo tikki
Gulab Jamun
Jalebi
Rajma- shawl
Veg Biryani
Malai Kofta
Kaju curry
Vada pav
Aloo Paratha
Pakoras with Pudina chutney
Hell we even have a Veggie Burger in Mcdonalds!
I love it!! I want to come! Thanks for sharing, Mahendra 🙂
This is so helpful! (I’m saving your comment and googling all these).
Thanks 🙂
You’re most welcome! Glad you find it helpful 🙂
That is very nice Mahendra! However, some of the items listed are heavily milk based , Vegans do not eat milk or milk based products like yogurt, butter, ghee or paneer. For example, gulab jamuns are deep fried milk solids in a syrup. Malai kofta, is vegetable dumplings in a rich cream-based sauce. Jalebi may contain yogurt starter and may be fried in ghee, that needs to be checked. Veg biryani may contain yogurt and/or ghee. Also, aloo parathas may be buttered. While vegetarian food is easily available in India, vegan foods may not be understood as easily. South Indian foods such as dosa, idli and sambar are morel likely to be vegan.
Great info, thanks!
Once you’ve been vegan for a while (I have for 10 years) you get so expert at this, it’s just ‘how you roll’, lol.
I used to get a little anxious. But knowing a bit about the different cuisines and how things are made helps to identify what is likely to be in it. I find now even my (non-vegan) friends know what to say when they are making a booking, which is really lovely and means I don’t have to make a seperate call.
Very useful article, I wish I’d seen it 10 years ago!
Thank you so much!
This helped. Can you write back just to say hi?
Haha, absolutely, hi Peter!
I hate to add to all the comments about ‘vegan’ products actually being prepared in a non-vegan way, but many restaurants will cook pasta, potatoes and rice in meat flavored broth for added flavor. And almost all soups will have a meat broth base unless otherwise noted. I even went to one restaurant recently where I found out that the carrots and broccoli were steamed over chicken broth – yuck. That one really surprised me. So be sure you always, always, always ask! So many servers/cooks/restaurants still don’t get what vegetarian or vegan really mean.
Which is why I love the calling ahead idea! I am definitely going to start doing that.
Yes, there can always be some un-fun surprises. Calling ahead is my preference as well 🙂
There’s a Thai/south Asian restaurant near me that offers a Pho. They would only need to modify the broth, which is made of fish, to turn the dish vegan. They say that some of their items are vegan, but I really want this item. When I asked them if they could add more vegan options to the menu, the person said they could ask the owner. But it didn’t seem like they were going to.
Should I pursue this further or just let it go? Their menu as a whole is very veganizable, which is why I feel like they should be able to accommodate.
Personally, I would just make my own pho, here’s my recipe. It’s always good to request vegan options, so they see there is demand. I don’t think pressuring them into making more vegan options would do much, however. If they get lots of requests for vegan options, that will make the biggest difference.
It looks great! But I don’t see myself putting in the effort to cook it. I’ll just go without the pho.
Great article! Do you find though that you have to let go of being fussy about additives? Because restaurant staff aren’t going to know what tiny additives are in their ingredients!
In Toronto, veganism isn’t super weird anymore, so I generally find that restaurants will already have a vegan item on the menu, or already have suggestions up their sleeve. If I am ordering something that might contain an ingredient the chef may not think about I will point it out. So for example, if I order Thai food, I will clarify that I don’t want egg noodles and fish sauce. I find it works for me!
Heads up – I grew up in a Japanese family and often music soup and noodle soup bases will have Bonito dashi, a fish-derived broth flavoring, in it.
Thanks for the heads up Will!
I am officially gonna need a notebook for my purse for all these vegan 101 tips. So helpful thanks
Haha! You could print them if that helps? So happy you love them Rachel 🙂
Great post and comment thread! I wanted to add for those who do no cheese pizza that I’ve had great experience with taking my home made vegan cheese in to the restaurant and they are happy to put it on the pizza when they bake it. Even in the south US in rural locations, so that’s always a great option!
Ooh great idea Beth! Love it 🙂
Have to ask about the dough and sauce. Lot of times not vegan
Some pizza joints [e.g., Mellow Mushroom] brush the crust with butter. Another “grill the server” point….
Since mellow mushroom has a vegan cheese option, they seem to be more aware, and when I’ve ordered pizza there with vegan cheese and forgot to mention no butter/parm on the crust, the servers have actually pointed it out!
In Greek restaurants, Baba ganoush is also vegan! 🙂 It’s a roasted eggplant dip (I wasn’t sure if that’s what you meant by roasted eggplant). It’s SO good and it looks/tastes creamy. It’s amazing!!
I’ve found that a lot of naan bread isn’t vegan, but that roti bread (similar, but not as thick) in Indian restaurants is almost always vegan!
I don’t go out to eat very much because I’m vegan mainly in part to food allergies (allergic to dairy and eggs, but was already veggie for 7 years due to health/environmental reasons before the food allergies emerged), but I’ve just been diagnosed with Celiac’s, so this will be an interesting transition!
Yes baba ganoush is awesome! Vegan and gluten free can be tricky for sure, but I have found it more common these days in Toronto anyways. Hopefully there are some good options for you where you live!
Great tips, thank you. I am also very hesitant to talk on the phone! I order online whenever possible. I’d rather type a zillion words that call someone.
Haha! Yeah, I am getting better at the phone. I figure, what’s the worst they could say, they don’t have anything vegan, then I just move on. At least I am bringing awareness to the demand for vegan food even if they aren’t accommodating!
Hi Sam, great post! Calling ahead is an amazing tip! It usually results in getting the most interesting, and arguably most carefully prepared and best meal at the table 🙂
But on the odd occasion where we find ourselves going somewhere that we have no control over (like for a birthday or something) I usually just eat ahead or quickly eat a protein bar on the way there and hope they have good fries, or steamed veggies or something…it usually works out.
Hi Tim!
Thank you! I love when special meals get made for me, it’s the best! I have found that gerneally chefs are excited to make something off menu. When in doubt eating ahead is always a safe idea as well! 🙂
I agree, totally worth the call ahead…and to think some say we ‘miss out’ being vegan 🙂
Some restaurants have told me that they don’t have separate cooking facilities for vegans so the food will be cooked where meat or fish has been cooked. Not ideal but what can you do? Also I recently ate Thai and they told me everything had fish sauce in it and egg in all the noodles so
I ended up with white rice with soy sauce and a few veg not very appealing!
Oh that’s awful! I love Thai food. I always ask about fish sauce, because sometimes the “vegetarian” options use it, but they can often make the recipe without if asked. Most rice noodles don’t use egg, so that restaurant must have been doing something weird! That’s why it’s always good to call ahead if you can. Hope you find better restaurants in your area 🙂
Great post! But please be aware that most Chinese restaurants sauté their vegetables, tofu and noodles in chicken broth. I learned this the hard way–our local Chinese place even had a special “vegetarian” menu, but when I asked (always ask) I was told that the gluten, tofu and vegetables were cooked in chicken stock. And it’s well known that Panda Express prepares its eggplant and tofu dish in chicken broth as well. ALWAYS ask.
Agh! Why do the do that!? Great to be aware of, thanks DX!
Thanks so much for this post! I am a vegetarian but try to eat vegan where I can. I used to get so angry at myself because I cannot seem to go fully vegan very easily, but I have completely cut meat out of my diet so I need to remember that that is a start and is better than doing nothing! I have soya milk for my home now instead of cows milk and vegan spread instead of butter 🙂 Thanks for this it helped a lot!
Congrats on your adventure towards veganism Lauren! Don’t beat yourself up, every step is an awesome step!!! I found with myself, and with my friends that people tend to get more vegan over time. It’s a lot to learn all at once! Let me know if you ever have any questions or need any support. So happy this article helped 😀
what about bread!? how do I know if it has eggs or milk?.. should I ask?
also which alcoholic cocktails are safe to order at a bar?
thank you love this post!
Hi Victoria! Bread is usually vegan safe, unless is challah (egg bread), or a more flavoured bread, but it is a good idea to ask just in case. As for alcohol, I recommend getting the app Vegaholic which tells you which brands of booze are vegan friendly. Don’t even bother asking the bartender, they will have no idea! You can see more apps I recommend that will help in my post Top 8 Must Have Vegan Apps. So happy you loved the post 🙂
When it comes to fried foods a lot of them are deep fried in animal product.
Usually fried foods are deep fried in vegetable oil, but often the meat or fish would be fried in the same oil. So it depends if you are ok with that or not.
I work in a restaurant that uses beef tallow to fry everything. It’s cheaper apparently. So I would definitely recommend asking before assuming they use veg oil.
Good tip! Thanks.
Do you have any advice for polish food? I’m going on holiday for the first time as a vegan so unsure how to navigate it in a different country with unfamiliar foods. Thanks
Hmmm, Im not very familiar with Polish cuisine. With all traveling I suggest to bring snacks such as bars or trail mix just in case. Use the app HappyCow to find vegetarian restaurants in the area you are in. Always speak to the waiter or host to make sure the restaurant can accommodate you. You may be able to find vegan soups (ask about the broth), potato dishes, cabbage dishes, sauerkraut, pierogis that are filled with mushrooms, potato, and buckwheat dishes. Hope that helps!
In dicey situations where you’re not really trusting the establishment maybe it would be a good idea to say that you are a vegetarian who has a severe allergy to eggs, fish/ seafood and dairy. Many restaurants might just think “what they don’t know won’t hurt them”. Not very many restaurants are cool with a guest having a full-out anaphylactic reaction during the appetizers. Sure, it’s a little white lie, but what they don’t know won’t hurt them:)
Yeah, generally I am against saying I have allergies, because I try to bring awareness to veganism, but you’re right Amanda, sometimes in dicey situations it can be the way to go!
I do agree Amanda, sometimes people who are unaware of how vegan “works” are certainly aware of how to avoid cross-contamination of allergens and will go to great lengths to avoid any tragedies from happening! However, I do want to add that, from someone who used to work in a hospital dietary-setting, the food preparers would probably just rather know the truth and that it’s perhaps an intolerance rather than a full-blown allergy. If it’s an allergy, great measures need to be undertaken with regards to separating food, utensils, cutting boards etc. to avoid ANY sort of cross contamination. We used to get new moms in obstetrics saying that they were allergic to all sorts of things, when it was likely, more often than not, just a dislike (which we were always pleased to accommodate). For example, a lot of people don’t like tomatoes. Thinking it was an allergy, we’d have to go and check the ingredients of absolute everything that could possibly contain tomatoes in any form (because we were told it was an allergy), including soups, casseroles, and sauces, when more often than not these items would have been fine for the patient with the dislike of ‘raw’ tomatoes. I guess what I’m trying to say is that people in the service industry are usually more than willing to accommodate dietary preferences, and can usually spot from a mile away those who cry ‘allergy’ when really it’s just a dietary preference. Ever since watching the movie ‘Waiting’ with Ryan Reynolds I’m overly cautious about biting the hand that feeds me, lol!!!
Love these tips, thanks a lot!
You’re very welcome Ingrid!
Thanks for this really interesting article!
I am from Germany and the numbers of vegan restaurants are growing significantly!
If you are visiting Germany I can recommend you guys these following vegan restaurants.
Berlin and Munich got the most vegan restaurants. 😉
https://www.hugit.com/collection/vegane-restaurants-in-deutschland-aa6510193a703e7aecc495ffc0bd193c
You’re welcome Don! I definitely want to go to Germany and eat vegan!!! Someone book me a ticket? haha. Thanks for sharing 🙂
I recently went to Germany and Austria and found Munich to have tons of vegan and vegetarian restaurants! I was in heaven!
Oooo I want to go!
I have recently started transitioning to mostly eating vegan (I am ok with ethically and sustainably harvested game meat). The other day I had a horrible experience at a very nice italian restaurant even tho i didnt even try to order vegan but im really looking forward to going out again. I live in a small town of only a few thousand people and we have a great little italian restaurant bellow my studio. Last time i was there so was the govenor general. I cant wait to ask the chef to create something and see what he comes up with. Unfortunetly my other favorite restaurant in town burnt to the ground a week ago 🙁 i believe being a regular somewhere really helps to make sure you get something that you will be confident in as well as enjoy.
Congrats on your transition Sam, and great name by the way 😉
Yeah not every experience will be great… I was literally served a bowl of hummus once. Yes, that was my dinner, a bowl of hummus. Yippee…. Haha, but you’re right being a regular helps, especially if you are very nice. Make sure you call ahead so the chef knows you are coming. I hope you get some tasty dishes!
I have recently “gone vegan” primarily for health reasons. I have a trip to England coming up. Does anyone know how vegan-friendly I will find pubs in general? Meat pies, gravy, scones, cream tea, ham…and to make matters worse for me, I am allergic to several fruits. I fear I may well be eating many salads and dry toast.
I am from England. Most pubs are modernizing, and serve vegetarian options – although these are often heavy in dairy products, so pure vegans may have to make do with combining a side salad, chips (french fries), and nuts. (And of course, skipping the traditional buttery puddings.) My advice: do what the English do – go to pub; drink booze at pub; drink more booze at pub; stagger to the nearest Indian restaurant, and order a good spicy curry! (Be aware – popadoms will probably come before the curry. The lime pickle and mango chutney is vegan, but I’m not sure what is in the popadoms themselves.)
Great advice Hannah! Thanks for sharing. I would also recommend to download the app Happy Cow. It’s an app that shows you where all the nearby vegan, vegetarian, or veg-friendly restaurants are around you and it works all over the world! Have fun in England!
I am vegan in London if this helps – Happy to say you will be spoilt for choice Jen! Check out Manna in Primrose Hill, lovely pubs nearby for a “London Pub” experience/predinner drinks to enhance the tourist experience in a really untouristy part of town 🙂
Tibbits & Mildreds are lovely and handy when in Central London, and there are many more on Happy Cow (as suggested by Sam – I love Happy Cow!).
Lots of chains have vegan options (Costa Coffee even a vegan cake/slice thing now!) – Pizza Express, Yo Sushi, Giraffe….
And we even have a vegetarian pub – with mixed reviews 😉 (I suggest eating downstairs, but other people love the twee upstairs!) http://www.thecoachandhorsessoho.co.uk/
See the Green Note in Camden for amazing music, and veggie “bar food” (Ticketed music but a neat place to go!)
I hope you have a lovely trip 🙂 Bring a coat – it’s taken a turn for the cooler this past week!
Great tips Jesse! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Fed by Water in Dalston is also an incredible restaurant serving Italian Cuisine. They have vegan and non-vegan pizzas, calzones, pastas, salads, breads, and more! Funny though, last time i was there they served the garlic bread in the shape of a fish haha
Loving the tips! I’ll be living in Bath for a few months next spring and I was a bit worried…. Glad to hear there’ll be options!
I’m supposed to go to a fancy seafood restaurant for a business dinner tomorrow night so I called ahead and asked if their veggie burger (the only vegetarian item on the menu) could be made vegan. I was told no, it could not. I then asked if they had any other vegan options, maybe side dishes? Again I was told no and then the person abruptly hung up on me. If I can’t convince my boss to take our business partners to a different restaurant, I don’t think I will join them as it would be awkward for me to go to a place that clearly does not welcome vegans and where I can’t eat anything.
Wow! That’s so rude! I am so sorry you had that experience Eva. 🙁
I have never had such a negative response from a restaurant. Good thing you called ahead at least, so you didn’t have to deal with that attitude in person. I was in a restaurant last night, that was definitely meat focused, I was literally staring at a big display of hanging salamis. They were so kind and made me so many delicious vegan things! That’s the way all restaurants should be, it’s a service based industry. Hopefully your boss is kind enough to take your business to a different location. Best of luck!
Thanks! This was the first time I’ve had a negative experience like that. My boss did take our clients to a different restaurant but I ended up working late at the office and never made it to the dinner anyway.
On a positive note, I went to Chili’s today and ordered four different side dishes (garlic roasted asparagus and tomatoes, steamed broccoli, black beans, and corn on the cob without butter) which made a delicious and filling vegan meal!
That’s awesome! Sometimes the sides are the way to go! 🙂
have the veggie burger with mustard lettuce and tomato or order a salad or restaurants have salads.
I love veggie burgers!
We occasionally eat at Denny’s. I know they have a veggie burger thats ok, and s few sides, but I talked with the manager, and now order a skillet that is very good. They have a Bourbon chicken skillet. Now I have them remove the chicken and sub it with wild rice. They steam the veggies and bourbon sauce on the side. Its very good.
Tammy
Oh that sounds delicious! Thanks for the tips Tammy! Always a good idea to ask 🙂
I forgot to mention another idea. I often order the Apple Pecan chicken salad from Wendys, minus the chicken and cheese. They usually deduct anywhere from .60 to $1 off. I do splurge on the pomegranate vinagrette, and add a plain baked potato.
Ps, Love your blog.
tammy
Thank you Tammy! Both for the helpful tips and for the blog love 😀
This is an awesome article! I have been vegan/vegetarian for going on for years, and I live in the rural parts of the South. It can be really challenging just ordering even vegetarian because everything down here is deep fried and covered in bacon, lol! Most of the restaurants here in my area are American or steak houses. This really helps a lot 🙂
Haha, deep fried and covered in bacon, oh no! I’m glad you find this helpful Arriel 😀
Thank you, thank you! This is so helpful!!
You’re very welcome Carey 🙂
Most restaurants if not all, will cook vegetables in the grill that they make the meat. I have found that many do not tell you all the truth. I have many friends that work in restaurants. So my advice, if you are Vegan like me, eat salads, fruits and never cook food in a restaurant that also serve meat.
Thanks for the top Pedro. Yes, a lot of restaurants cook meat and other things on the same grill. It’s up to you if you are ok with that 🙂
WARNING!!! Just want to let you guys know in authentic Japanese restaurant they usually use ‘dashi’ in everything, even cooking the rice and this is not vegan… Unfortunately 🙁 living here in Japan is hard!
Thank you for the warning Saga! I find in Canada you are usually able to get dishes without dashi or other fish containing ingredients, but I don’t know how difficult that is in Japan. Thanks for the heads up!
I am not a full vegan as of yet, but I am a vegetarian who is dairy, soy and egg free (being soy free is a challenge within itself).
I’ve never thought of calling ahead to restaurants and I think I will do this next time I am going somewhere I am not familiar with.
Often times, I order sides and focus on veggies and potatoes.
But beware of baked potatoes!!! I went to texas roadhouse (definitely not my first choice!) and ordered a baked potato and found out that they smother the outside in bacon fat!!! ugh I was so grossed out by that idea. I never and even considered that was a common culinary practice.
Also, if you order sweet potato rolls (sometimes called Idaho rolls) at a sushi restaurant ask for no eel sauce. This sauce is made with fertilized eel eggs 🙁
Thanks for the tips Scarlette! This is why I think it’s important to not just order the veggie dishes, but to make it clear that you are vegan. This way bacon fat, and eel sauce are hopefully avoided in the kitchen! Yuck! Calling ahead, or at least speaking to the greeter when you arrive, and your waiter helps make it clear. 🙂
As a vegetarian of 4 years who just recently went fully vegan I really appreciate your tips and those of your followers in the comments. Thank you!
When I had just become a vegetarian I went on holiday and my family really wanted to go to a steak house. I was already prepared for the disappointment of having to stick to the small side salad or stuff like that, but my dad asked the server if they could come up with a vegetarian dish for me instead.
and I then got this huge plate full of all kinds of fresh, grilled veggies, potatoes in a sea salt crust and a salad and it was divine!
That’s so awesome! Ask and you (usually) shall receive. So happy it’s going well for you! Even steak houses have veggies in the kitchen 🙂
Being a health advocate myself is mentally and physically rewarding. Eating nutrients from whole, plant-based foods is self-giving, but referencing “vegan foods” is a bit unnecessary. I am only saying this because there is no “vegan food;” a vegan diet is comprised of food that came from the earth. Plants. Thus, if you are recommending people to change their lifestyle to suit the vegan life, I wouldn’t use the term vegan food, because that doesn’t exist, all it is, is REAL food the CAME FROM EARTH. 🙂 Eat nutrient-dense plant based foods for a healthy environment and body. peace
Hi Barbara,
I think there might be misunderstanding of the definition of vegan. The definition: “Veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as is possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.” It is about avoiding animal products. That is the foundation of a vegan lifestyle. You can eat junk food and still be vegan. A plant-based diet is focused on eating plants for health reasons, but it doesn’t necessarily mean vegan. Hope that helps you understand better. Let me know if you have any questions!
With regards to eating at Japanese restaurants, when I have called ahead, I have found the following.
1. When Vegetable Tempura is fried, the veggies are not separated from the fish. Everything is fried together.
2. With the vegetable noodle dish, be sure to ask that the vegetables and the noodles are cooked separate from the other foods. I have found this to not be vegan.
3. All of the sushi rice is sweetened with sugar. In the U.S. “sugar” is neither vegetarian nor vegan.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_char
Vegetable sushi rolls are not vegan or vegetarian because of the “sugar” that is added to the rice.
maybe
it is possible the sugar is vegan, but there is no way to know. Chances are it is not vegan
I error on the side of caution when it comes to japanese sushi and I don’t eat there any more.
I still call, but often find only one or two menu items that are truly vegan.
Thanks for the tips Johnny, it’s great that you are so aware of what’s in your food. For me, the minor amounts of animal products that may be in the foods this way are just not worth the worry for me. I still need to be able to eat out with friends, and I feel that if I got this specific, it would be very difficult. I like to live by the definition of veganism by Donald Watson: “Veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as is possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.” http://www.vegansociety.com/sites/default/files/uploads/Ripened%20by%20human%20determination.pdf
So for me, worrying about these trace amounts of animals products is just not practicable for my lifestyle. If it is for you, then that’s perfect! I don’t know about in the US, but not all sugar in Canada has bone char in it. A common brand here is Redpath http://redpathsugar.com/faqs/ I make sure to buy bone char free sugar for my home, but I do not worry about the sugar used in restaurants.
Unfortunately, in today’s animal product based world, it’s basically impossible to be vegan in every way, so I just do the best that I can. Everybody’s definition of what that is will be slightly different, and that’s a-ok because we are all making a difference in this world. 🙂
thank you for your comment that person sounded crazy!
I like this response, Sam. My husband, 2 year old daughter, and myself are mostly vegan – i.e., 100% vegan at home, but will partake in a bit of dairy when eating at relatives (example, regular margarine even contains milk ingredients). We really don’t want to stress them out with what to cook for us; although I do usually take something vegan to “wow” them (like those vegan meringues!). That said, it’s virtually impossible to be 100% stringent vegan and live with technology. From the tires on our cars and bikes, to the computers we surf vegan sites, even the plywood in the structures of our humble vegan homes… http://roogirl.com/20-everyday-items-that-contain-animal-ingredients/
I guess it’s one way the animal agri-business ensures the use of all parts of the animals (which I guess is better than waste what can’t be eaten).
But to the article at hand, this is an awesome read with lots of great tips from you and from the commenters. Thanks for posting this.
Yes I wish we could be 100% vegan but that’s just not a reality. Everyone is different, but for me, I think it is more important to show how easy (and delicious!) a vegan lifestyle is. If I got mad at my friends or myself for every tiny mistake, then I bet you I wouldn’t have influenced my friends to become vegan, and likely I wouldn’t be vegan either. I do the best that I can, and I think that’s all you can ask of people.
Funny story: When one of my best friends first went vegan, she called me in a guilty panic, and admitted that she didn’t think she could be fully vegan because she is intolerant of gluten, and the combo of both vegan and gluten-free was just too difficult at restaurants. She said she would remain vegan at home. I told her that was totally fine, that doing something was a lot better than doing nothing. She felt so much relief that I wasn’t judging her! The funny thing was that she actually hasn’t wained off the vegan diet at all and it’s been 1/2 a year now. It was just like she needed permission to make mistakes, even though she hasn’t even made them!
It is so unfortunate that so many things we use in daily life contain animal products, but this is when it comes to supply and demand. If we stop demanding meat then the supply will diminish, and so will the use of the animal by products in todays world.
Beware of chicken broth in Chinese restaurants. Recently I ordered tofu with veggies from the vegetarian section of the menu, and while asking the server questions about eggs or dairy, found out that the dish is made with chicken broth. Thinking that chicken broth is vegetarian is beyond me, and now I wonder how much of it I ate before while thinking I am ordering a vegetarian dish. Also, dishes sometimes arrive with meat despite you explicitly asking for a meatless option.
Hi Olga,
Good to know! I have definitely never received meat in my dish, eekk! That would be awful, but I am not sure about chicken broth. I wonder how much of it I have eaten now too…. Always a good idea to ask! 🙂
Unfortunately it also depends on where you live. Living in France, in Lyon, the city of gastronomy and cooked meats, I can tell you that A LOT of restaurants don’t bother with vegetarian and even less vegan options. Luckily it’s true that you can still find stuff to eat in Asian, Italian, Greek, Middle east and African restaurants. Sometimes I know I’m not going to eat something spectacular, it’s just for the fun of going out and be served. But the best food is usually at home… which is a bit of a bummer because I used to eat at restaurants a lot before going vegan.
I’ve been to California and Australia, an there it was really different, I was so glad I could really enjoy restaurants again !
Oh that’s a bummer. Yes not every area is as easy as others. I’m lucky that it’s pretty easy for me in Toronto, but honestly I prefer my home cooked meals 9 times out of 10 anyways!
Just came back from holidays in France and I think by the end of the week I thought I’d turn into a pasta marinara or a vegan pizza. But it was either a salad or the above carb loaded dishes.
I always travel with my vegan protein powder because no regular French restaurant seems to ever have lentils, chickpeas or beans which I would love, even if they were just tinned and sprinkled over the top of my meals.
Restaurants in most countries are excellent in changing meals for me, but France seems to be the most difficult place for a vegan diet.
I do love a good pasta marinara… I think I could probably eat that every day and be totally happy, but I know not everyone is as crazy about it as I am! haha. Yes, I imagine France would be difficult as they use so much cream and butter in their cooking. Thanks for sharing your experience Nicki, and it’s a great idea to travel with some vegan snacks 🙂
isn’t marinara seafood like anchovies?
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/16857/marinara+sauce
Hmm weird! I have never seen seafood added to it and they still call it marinara! No generally marinara is just a simple tomato sauce. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marinara_sauce
That site is Australian, maybe the word means something different there?
so, did some checking and in Australia (and other countries) marinara is taken to mean including seafood
the sauce you describe is called napolitana here
Macquarie dictionary
marinara
/mærəˈnarə/ (say maruh’nahruh)
adjective of or relating to a pasta sauce based on seafood, as prawns, mussels, etc.
[Italian (alla) marinara in the manner of sailors, from marinaio sailor, from Latin mare sea]
it seems that the US may be one of the few places that does not associate seafood with marinara so if in the UK, Aus or NZ and even in some parts of Italy you may want to describe the sauce, not name it 🙂
So interesting!!!! And good to point out. Now if I go traveling I will be careful about that. Thanks cat!
What a great guide! It must be where I live, because I often get told that there’s nothing vegan on the menu and/or have to explain what I don’t eat as a vegan. Calling ahead is such a good tip because, especially if you’re going out with a bigger group, it takes away the awkwardness of waiting and having others wait, too, as the waiter goes back to ask the chef what dish can be made vegan. That and/or asking if there’s anything vegan available before being seated (this is especially good when traveling!).
Thank you Eva! It always baffles my mind when I hear of people getting turned down by restaurants… You mean you don’t have vegetables? Yes, calling ahead or asking the greeter is the best, it avoids the awkwardness and you can relax when seated instead of panicking about what you might be able to eat. So happy you found my guide helpful 😀
Occasionally I do run into a restaurant or server that will refuse to do something to assist helping with this. I once went to a restaurant that had limited vegan options. So, I decided to go for sides, and wanted a baked potato to round things out. The menu stated they only serve baked potatoes after 5:00 p.m., but I thought “Hey, how hard is it to bend the rule a little and microwave me a potato?”, and I asked nicely if they would make an exception and zap me up a potato. But, no…emphatically NO way would they do this for me. It was strange, and I didn’t want to push the issue…so instead ended up eating hummus with veggies and french fries (yes, potatoes, but NOT baked, LOL). I decided for the prices they charged they should have accommodated my request and just given me a darned “baked” potato! If I hadn’t been in a mountain village with limited choices in eateries, I may have walked out and looked for a place that would have given me better service. Mostly, though, my hubby and I have had great service where ever we have eaten and you are definitely right in that asking or calling ahead is key. Whenever we ask what they can do for us, the waitstaff is usually very happy to do what they can to please us!!
Oh no, that’s such a bummer Lavender! The only excuse I could think of is if they actually bake their potatoes in the oven (and not a microwave), because this takes a good 45 minutes. Either way if that’s the case they should have simply explained it to you. Such a bummer when restaurants aren’t helpful! So happy most of your experiences have been good 🙂
Those are some great tips, thanks! I would add to this that finding vegan options in rural areas is close to impossible (pack a picnic for road trips). When I went vegetarian, I lived in a semi-rural area in Texas. There was NOTHING vegetarian except subway and pizza. When I went vegan several years later, those options pretty much evaporated altogether. Also rural grocery stores won’t have much.
It’s been my experience in Texas that both calling ahead and being very specific with the server guarantee you nothing. I get conflicting information all the time. One day I’ll go to a restaurant and they’ll assure me whatever they’re making me is vegan, and I’ll return a few weeks later and they’ll tell me that they use meat and dairy in every single dish, and they can’t do anything for me. I once ordered a veggie burger that came out as beef, sent it back, came back with mayo, and had to send it back again. I got my food after my family was all finished. I’ve seen vegan menus with eggs. It really depends on how trusting you are and how willing you are to risk accidentally eating non-vegan.
On another note, some model citizen in my town has put together a blog lifting and describing all the vegan options at all the restaurants in town. She keeps it updated and it’s the best vegan restaurant resource I’ve ever seen.
Hi Laurel
Great tips! Thanks for sharing. Yes, rural can be more difficult for sure. Of course it always depends on the restaurant or town and the people that are in it. That restaurant resource sounds perfect! I wish we had one of those for every little town… and big towns too for that matter! I always bring snacks with me for long car trips, and if you are lucky enough to pass by a fruit and veggie stand, there is nothing better than munching on some fresh ripe produce!
I bring my own condoments with me when I eat out. I have very small jars of just mayo, earth balance butter, and nutritional yeast. Sometimes I bring a couple slices of chao cheese.
That’s a great idea Deb, you are way more organized than me! haha.
How about oil they fry in Or grill they use? I believe that has traces of non vegan stuff. How do you guys deal with that?
Hi Jo,
I would say that depends on your own personal preference. Personally I’m ok with my food being cooked in a kitchen that also cooks animal products. This is because if I wasn’t ok with this, I would likely only be able to eat in vegan restaurants or in my own home, and that isn’t ok with me. I prefer to show how begin vegan is easy and doable for everyone. It’s easy to find vegan options anywhere, vegan food is normal food, and I love to go out with friends who may or may not be vegan and demonstrate this to them as well. This is also the same as buying products that say “may contain dairy” or other animal products. These products are prepared in factories where animal products are also prepared. Some people may feel more or less comfortable with eating in restaurants that are not exclusively vegan, but that choice is up to them. I would rather show people how being vegan is easy and fun, then to show them how they will never live up to the standards. Being vegan isn’t about perfection, it’s just about doing the best that you can, and whats right for you.
Let me know if you have any more questions!
Sam
Beware deep fried pickles. At least in the southern USA, most battered fried foods use milk or buttermilk to help the breading (flour or cornmeal) stick to the vegetable (pickles, okra, mushrooms, etc.) before being put into the deep fryer. Always ask your server and if they don’t know, politely ask them to check with the kitchen.
Great tip Donna! I will add this info in there. Thanks for sharing 😀
Most appetizers are safe and can be ordered for tapas style dining.
I love tapas style dinning! Great tip Rose. 😀
Problems I found with Japanese restaurants (both in England & Japan) are tempras are usually made with batter with eggs and dip is usually made with bonito. It’s the same with any soup dish. Only certain type of soup is traditionally made with kombu dashi, so you really need to ask as waiters don’t think about these issues. Unfortunately, they are not very flexible to make the dashi specially for you with kombu. Problems with Chinese restaurants are not usually with hidden ingredients, but it’s the way they use the wok. Once they cook one dish, they just wipe the wok or add hot water and rinse it quickly. It means they use the same wok that has just cooked a meat & it’s not washed properly. I don’t know how many vegetarians/vegans are concerned about this but I definitely am!
Thanks for sharing Gem!
Always good to be aware of what you are getting into, and the right questions to ask. 🙂
I just finished an awesome Lebanese meal, it just so happens the Lebanese place near me makes most of their food vegan. I had vegan Kebbeh and swiss chard with black eyed peas, garlic, onions and lemon juice, she told me to cut up some pickles when I got home and eat it with that. YUMMMMM
I general tend to go to restaurants and tell them I have a dairy and egg allergy and I don’t eat meat, most places seem to be pretty helpful (especially at Disney World). I will have to try the call ahead method next time.
Oh Lebanese! Your meal sounds absolutely divine. You are making me hungry!
Unfortunately it doesn’t always work when you call ahead, as I found out to my cost just this week! Even though I’d previously visited this particular restaurant and they were very happy to make a vegan dish, when I went back a second time (after phoning ahead and asking if they would be able to make something for us to which I was told yes it wasn’t a problem) once we had arrived and sat down we were told there was no note on our booking mentioning a vegan meal had been requested and the chef refused to prepare us something ‘off menu’. Needless to say we left and went to another restaurant who were more than happy to accomodate us.
What a terrible experience!! That’s such a bummer Sara. You would think that because it’s the service industry, they would be willing to serve you. They obviously don’t deserve your business!
Nice article, although I’d have to disagree about Thai. They’re an absolute nightmare. You can’t just specify ‘no fish sauce’ because that will only relate to ingredients that they use themselves, not constituent ingredients. So for starters I’d remove curries from your safe foods list, because it is very rare to find vegan curry pastes, they almost always contain both shrimp paste and fish sauce.
Also for asian food in general, particularly Chinese, you also have to specifiy no oyster sauce. Many asian restauranteurs genuinely believe that oysters are vegetables.
visiting thailand was hands down the worst food experience of my life. fish sauce in EVERYTHING, even ‘plain’ noodles and in onion ring batter. By the end of the trip I had given up and just ate salad sandwiches.. although it wouldnt have surprised me if there was shrimp in the bread dough and the salad washed in fish sauce instead of water.
I would never every recommend that any vegan goes to thailand, and that’s just the food, let alone their mind-blowing levels of animal abuse (e.g. the elephant ‘crushing ritual’)
yeah i agree about thailand. I also have found japanese food can be difficult unless you specific no bonito flakes.
Great tip Cate, thanks for sharing!
Oh no! I have not been the Thailand yet, but I wanted to go, now I am scared!! Thanks for the warning Ian, I will look into it further before booking a trip.
Yeah, **** thailand. Unless you don’t mind not being able to eat any food and dont mind horrific animal abuse. The scenery and wildlife is beautiful, but that doesn’t make up for it.
Here’s the #1 reason never to go anywhere near the place. Elephants are dangerous wild animals, yet somehow the ones in thailand are docile and obedient. This is the reason why, this is what every single elephant goes through to get it into that state (warning, this video is one of the worst things you’ll ever see):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVckvi_gWVo
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/10/1016_021016_phajaan.html
You see those hook things on every elephant tour, e.g. in the guy’s hand here:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/cms/binary/5785008.jpg
The standard response you get from elephant handlers on tours is that they don’t use the hooks, they just use them to point. It’s because they don’t have to do anything more than point, because the elephants are so terrified by the sight of them.
Well, that’s the elephants that are left anyway, there are only 5000 now. 100 years ago there were 100,000.
A friend of mine also went to Thailand, he actually went on an elephant tour. Their elephant was being tempramental, not wanting to do the tour, so the handler took out a knife and held it to the throat of the elephant’s baby.
The elephant then started behaving.
How did the elephant even know what a knife is?
Wow that is shocking!!! Thank you for sharing Ian. Poor elephants. It’s horrifying how many species are endangered right now because of humans greed. It makes me so sad 🙁
You are exhausting. Sometimes it’s better to not write off an entire country based on a handful of things. My time in Thailand was much less daunting. Yes, there are some awful things which happen in other cultures(as well as cultures much closer to home…), but that doesn’t speak for every person. When visiting, be weary who and what you support. This goes for everywhere. As for dining out, it helps if you have someone who speaks the language with you. There are some options, but it’s true that there are not a huge number of them. It’s much easier to purchase your own food.
I am ‘exhausting’? Grow up.
I’m not writing off Thailand on the basis of ‘a handful of things’, I’m writing it off on the basis of my entire experience. It wasn’t entirely negative, there were some really amazing points, but on balance, I wouldn’t go back there even if you paid me to.
Oh how I agree with this! When I say it, people reply “Oh but the Thai are such a gentle people”. The levels of abuse and cruelty were astonishing – and the food really hard to eat as even fried greens were considered ‘not finished’ unless they tipped fish sauce all over them. I find all the Asian countries so casual about animal usage that it’s really difficult.
That’s so rough. One day we will live in a more humane world…
I second this. I once went to a Thai resteraunt with a huge vegetarian menu. When explaining I was vegan I found out that ALL their vegetarian dishes had fish in. Rude.
The only thing they could make me was a veggie stir fry and it was swimming in soy sauce. Imagine a bowl of soy sauce soup with some veg thrown in. It was grim and I’ve been put off Thai food for life!
That is such a bummer Liz! I hate hearing these depressing dining experiences. I’m fortunate enough to live close to an amazing (truly) all vegetarian thai restaurant. I hope more of them pop up in other cities too. I love Thai!
they’re rare, because you have to make your own vegetarian paste from scratch, and most restaurants buy pre-made (i.e. including fish and shrimp) pastes, and happily tell their customers that it’s vegetarian
Boo, that’s sad. Good to be wary! Thanks again Ian.
There’s an amazing Thai restaurant near my house that makes their own paste from scratch and it doesn’t contain fish, shrimp, or anything of the sort! My father is allergic to most fish and all shellfish and when asked about the pastes, they said it was safe, showed us how they made them, and my dad has never had a reaction there! The owners are from Thailand, didn’t come over until their children were grown, then opened a restaurant in the states. They were dissatisfied with the quality of the store bought pastes and decided to make their own. They like to add the shrimp and fish sauce on request as opposed to adding it in automatically because it affects the flavor and is a personal preference for them. It’s always great to ask because you’ll never know what you’ll find!
That’s so great to hear Sophie!! It’s very true, you never know what you’ll find until you ask, and that’s why it’s so important to ask. I have literally been given entire vegan menus that weren’t part of the regular menu. Not sure why a restaurant wouldn’t promote all of their options, but there ya go!
Haha! Oysters are certainly not vegetables, but oyster mushrooms sure are. I have not had much of a problem at the restaurants that I have gone too, and many already have a vegetarian section, but it’s always a great idea to make sure. Thanks for the tips Ian!
It’s a mix of cultural and religous.. the concept of vegetarianism in china is tied to chinese bhuddism, and chinese buddhist diet (while otherwise vegetarian) includes oysters, clams and mussels.
You just can’t at all go by whether or not a restaurant has a vegetarian section, because their definition of vegetarian might be completely different to yours.
I looked on google images for the first chinese menu with a vegetarian section, and no surprise it has oyster sauce in it:
http://www.richardchineserestaurant.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/menu21.jpg
So even if you ask which dishes are vegetarian, you won’t get the right information. I just fake allergies, I say I have a severe allergy to any seafood including fish sauce, shrimp paste and oyster sauce.
It’s the only way, another example is when ordering vegetarian hot and sour soup in a chinese restaurant and finding shredded chicken in my mouth, i called the waiter over and asked him if it was chicken, he said yes, i said but this was listed as vegetarian, he said yes. I said chicken is not vegetarian, he said yes it is, because the pieces are only small.
My husband and I are chef and pastry chef of a fine dining restaurant. We have a vegan plate on the menu, not just sides and pasta thrown together but a thoughtfully prepared plate. Other items can be modified. Please don’t be afraid to call ahead or ask your server! No one will do anything awful to your food and I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
Chefs watch the trends and know that plant-based eating is a huge and growing way of eating. (We eat that way most days ourselves!) The more requests for plant-based food a chef sees, the more likely they are to put those kinds of dishes on the menu. Thanks for this article!
Thank you so much Ann! It’s so great to hear you have a thoughtful vegan dish already on the menu, I love that! Thanks for the boost of encouragement for calling ahead, I agree, you will often be pleasantly surprised 😀
ahh I am definitely going to have to build up my confidence to phone ahead!! I live in little ol’ New Zealand and the city I am in in particular isn’t very vegan friendly, and I love going out to eat!! This has become so much of a struggle for me that I am even looking into starting my own vegan food truck, so thank you for the advice!!
Definitely call ahead Jade! What’s the worst that could happen? They say no, you say ok, and hang up. The best? You have a fantastic meal out! 🙂 Also, a vegan food truck sounds amazing!!
I would be cautious about ordering miso soup at a restaurant — while miso paste is certainly vegan, the stock it’s mixed into is frequently fish-based. Be sure to ask! Some places may use a vegan dashi made from mushrooms or kelp only, or a vegetable broth instead.
Great tip! Thank you for sharing Lemons 🙂 I love miso soup so I will be sure to ask!
Hi! I just came across this article on Pinterest and I love it. I am not familiar with some of these cuisines so it may be helpful to refer to if I’m ever in a Jamaican restaurant 🙂
I’d also like to add that LEBANESE food is amazing! Baba ghanoush and hummus, lebanese potatoes (which are delicious – diced potatoes sauteed in olive oil with lemon, cilantro, garlic, and chilis, mmm…), falafel, pita bread, veggie kababs, salads (just ask for no feta), and probably a ton more im not even thinking of. it’s my favorite!
Just thought that might be helpful!
Oooo Lebanese!! I don’t think I have ever had a fully Lebanese meal, but I have definitely tried (and loved) baba ghanoush. Plus it’s fun to say! Thank you for sharing Kori! Welcome to my blog, I look forward to seeing you around 😀
Thanks for all the advice! I’ve been vegan for 2 years now, and a vegetarian for 5 or 6 years before that. I’ve never thought to call ahead to a restaurant to see what they can offer! I am also picky about fried things. I don’t like my stuff to go in the same frier as all the meat. I always ask. There are only a few places in my area (Newark/Wilmington, DE) that offer vegan options. I’m sick of going to those places and eating the same things every time. I wish more places around me would offer more vegan items! Thanks again for the tips!
No problem Dawn, happy you liked my advice. 😀
I would definitely try calling ahead. You will probably find way more options that you didn’t know existed.
Have a great culinary adventure!
I’d rather die than call ahead, but I can see it has definite advantages. I would do it for a special occasion/restaurant. You notice, it’s the ethnic restaurants that tend to have good vegan/vegetarian options. Vegetables are a huge part of their cooking traditions and even religion.
Haha! Well that’s a bit extreme but I know how you feel, haha. That’s right, ethnic restaurants are generally way easier to go vegan at, which is a-ok by me!
Great tips here! I am still holding out hope that ALL restaurants will have a vegan dish on the menu someday soon. My husband are I are masters of the no cheese pizza. On the road we look for Chipolte or Subway (veggie sub).
I am with you Kathy, and I think it is only a matter of time before all restaurants do. I know in my city, more and more vegan restaurants are opening (joy!) and I often see little signs in the windows of other restaurants saying they have vegan options. Times are changing! Great tips for on the road meals too.
i ask for no cheese pizza all the time and the shops are very willing to use tomato sauce and pile on the veggies. If you are making pizza at home use homemade pesto for the sauce. Very yummy. I make one using pesto fresh diced peaches and chopped mint. My kids love it.
That sounds delicious Linda! I love, love, love pesto. I will try one without my husband who can’t get past tomato sauce but hey, he is Vegan so who’s complaining? Your kids must be amazing!
I have never had peaches on pizza before but I certainly want to now!! It sounds like pineapple on pizza, but better. Thanks for the inspiration Linda!
One of the best restaurant meals I have had recently was actually at a seafood restaurant. The chef cooked up a special vegetable plate for me that was amazing. Plus, it was so colorful and beautiful that even the waiter thought he might be able to go vegan (at least part time).
That’s amazing Claire! I think chefs are happy to have a chance to be a bit creative and make something off the menu once in a while. So glad your experience was so good!
Great tips. I love this idea for a post. I should do one for my area for vegan and gluten-free eating. Thanks for the inspiration.
Thank you Kate, glad you enjoyed it and found it inspiring!
Definitely call ahead! I was going to be eating at a restaurant with a group of friends after a long bike ride, so I didn’t have any choice on the restaurant. I called ahead to the restaurant, at which point the person that answered the phone said I could have salad…. I informed her I would be much too hungry for salad, at which point she had someone from the kitchen come on. They told me about a lovely pasta dish they would be able to make for me with lots of fresh veggies. It ended up being fantastic and my friends envied my dish!
That’s awesome Jordyn! So happy you had such a great experience. I’m really glad you said you would be too hungry for salad, and that you ended up with an amazing pasta! I love when friends are drooling all over my vegan dishes. 😀
That’s so funny that you’re phone shy too! I’ve been like that since I was a kid and I still make my sister or mom call and ask about vegan options for me! Haha pathetic, I know! All of these tips are excellent, but the calling ahead thing is huge! I have had some of the best vegan meals ever at non-vegan restaurants when I’ve called ahead! A lot of times the chef will make me up something special that the omnivores at my table end up drooling over! Obviously the nicer restaurants will be more catering, but you’d be surprised at what you get can at a non-vegan place just by asking! Staying away from the chain restaurants is helpful too, since a lot of their meals are pre-prepared, but it’s still doable of course! Thanks for this great list!
Hahaha, phone shy twins! So happy you have had such great success calling ahead! I agree, sometimes chefs go out of their way to make awesome vegan meals and make you feel special! It’s amazing. Agree, I generally stay away from chain restaurants because they are just not my thing, but fancier or little restaurants are usually happy to accommodate. So happy you enjoyed this post Nicole. I wish you phone bravery in the future. haha
This is very helpful, thank you! I wish there were this many options to try out in my area.
You’re welcome Kit! I hope it helps for the limited options you have in your area. 😀
You may need to ask at Mexican restaurants about lard – some recipes for tortillas and other things (like refried beans) use lard, so good to check.
Great tip Sally! I added that one in as well. Thank you!
great article! think i’ll pin this to have for reference when dining out. i live in south texas, the land of mexican food, which is love. just have to be careful and make sure to ask about the rice. much of it is prepared with chicken broth so i always ask.
Great tip! Thanks Cindy, I will add that note in there for people to reference. So happy you enjoyed the article. 😀
I am non-dairy, gluten free vegetarian and have been for 15 years except GF hat is 3.5 years. I love to cook and love to try to make dishes on my own that I have tried elsewhere or know that is regularly to be non-veg so cooking is fun and easy for me. I know it is not so easy for everyone though. It is blogs like this one that show people how easy it can be. I love this blog. My new challenge is feeding my 2.5 year old son – some days he won’t eat my cooking and it could be the same thing I have fed him before when he loved it and other days he eats more than I can understand – where does he put it all? I try to encourage my father to eat healthier as he has standard American health problems related to diet, including type II diabetes which does better when he makes the effort. If he were made to go vegan he would not know what to do. UGH. I have even taken him to the store and showed him how to read labels and what to look for & avoid. Keep up he good work. I may go vegan I the near future – this blog makes it seem doable.
Awww wow, thank you Delia! So happy you love my blog, and that I make vegan seem doable, (which I totally think it is)! You are such a great sport for encouraging your father in a healthier direction. I know nothing about feeding babies (yet), so I have no tips for you, but I wish you the best of luck! Thank you so much for your kind words, they totally made my day. 😀
Great tips. I have found that most naan breads are made with yoghurt though, so they are not suitable for us vegans
Oh good call Mark! I added that info in the post so people can be aware. I have definitely had vegan friendly naan before, but always good to make sure. Thanks for your tip!
I agree with Mark, vegan friendly naan breads are quite rare in the UK, in restaurants, recipes and shops (altho there are the odd one or two!) , and I’d definitely go for a chapati (as long as it’s made with oil not ghee) before a naan bread every time, especially if there are language barriers..
Also we don’t have many brands of veggie burgers/hot dogs over here that don’t have (egg) albumen in, and that might not be an ingredient the server recognises as an egg product, but nowadays you can check their allergen sheet 🙂 (It’s UK law now that all places serving food must list allergens, great news for vegans!)
This is really sensible, practical advice, thankyou for putting it together 🙂 xxxx
Thanks for sharing Lisa! Great to hear about the new UK laws, that will really help out!
You’re welcome I am so happy you liked my article 😀
Paneer masala and Saag Paneer are not vegan. Paneer is the Indian equivalent of cottage cheese.
You are totally right, whoops! Thank you for pointing that out. (Can you tell I don’t eat Indian very often). I removed them from the list. Thank you!
For Japanese food be careful of bonito flakes, they’re in everything! Especially Miso Soup.
Great tip Amy! I will add this to the list. Thanks for sharing!
Great suggestions! I’m a bit confused about the Indian suggestions for saag paneer and paneer masala, though, since paneer is cheese and many saag dishes are made with cream. My favorite Indian restaurant is great about substituting mushrooms for paneer, though, and has a nice “pure vegetarian” (their code for vegan) section. YUM!
Ohmygoodness, you are so right Amy! Can you tell I don’t eat Indian food often? Haha, I made the changes to remove those dishes. So great to hear that your Indian restaurant is so accommodating!
This is great! I’ve been a full-time vegan for about six months now and have struggled at time to eat at restaurants. The bf and I eat out a lot and I’m always embarrassed to say “vegan” because I feel like a nuisance… Great tips!
Don’t be embarrassed Natalie! I find that asking about “vegan friendly” options is somehow easier to say than just stating that you are vegan. It also directs the question to the menu, in a friendly way. 😀
I know what you mean – when I go out with a group of friends I always hate asking if there is egg in their veggie burgers or no butter on the table bread – with my husband I don’t mind as much. I try to call ahead as much as possible. If it is a chain you can mostly look on their website or send an email if you have a few days before hand.
Good reads 🙂
Thank you Leigh! Yeah it can feel a little funny at first, but I found once I saw how accommodating people usually are, I gained more confidence. 🙂
Good article. I, too, have found that most chefs at fancier restaurants are happy to oblige. But one word in your opening paragraphs caught my eye: limitations. Haven’t you found that going vegan has exponentially INCREASED your options? Instead of saying “I can’t eat that,” go with “I don’t eat that; I eat this.” There are no limitations; there are more choices!
Hi Dianne,
I totally agree, since going vegan I think my diet is more varied than it ever was. That said, when I eat at a restaurant that isn’t catered to vegans, the choices are usually quite limiting. I too like to approach veganism with positivity, but be careful about being confusing. If you tell the restaurant that you eat vegetables and grains, but you don’t tell them what you don’t eat, they might get confused and make something not vegan friendly. So happy you too find chefs are happy to oblige!
I have found that being plant-based has expanded my palette in home cooking and limited my options in eating out. I HATE spending $10 on a salad (I don’t find them very satisfying anyway) and surprisingly, even though I live just outside of DC, which I would consider to be culturally diverse, everything is meat-centric including Indian, Asian and Mexican (be careful with rice as they often use chicken stock to flavor it!!). I used to enjoy the experience of eating out and now I find it cumbersome and boring as my options are very limited unless I go vegetarian. I think I’ll try your suggestion in calling ahead to see if they can accommodate a plant-based diet – it kind of takes the spontaneity out of it, but you gotta do what you gotta do 🙂
Aww, that’s such a bummer Carey! I have never been to DC before, so I don’t know what the options are like there. Have you tried the Happy Cow or Vegman app to find vegetarian and vegan restaurants? I am sure there are at least a few. Yes, calling ahead is very helpful, but even if you don’t call ahead, ask the greeter. Lots of times chefs have made a special meal for me and they seem to even enjoy doing so. I will add the note about chicken broth in there, thanks for the tip! I hope you find some better options than salad!
Sadly, yes, I have tried both Happy Cow and Vegman – 2 results within 30 miles, both are Asian style cuisine, which is fine, but not much variety 🙁 I’m sure there are more options in DC, but the traffic is so awful around here and taking the Metro and parking can be an additional $20 just to go into the city. I think I’m just going to have to get really brave and start asking if the kitchen staff can accommodate me – I’m always so afraid they’ll spit in my food, haha! Thanks for the great advice, though!
Aww that’s such a bummer! Definitely try calling ahead, I think that will help a lot. It’s the service industry, they want to make you happy! They won’t spit in your food. Just be very nice and polite, and I am sure you will be pleasantly surprised. I know some chef friends of mine say they actually like these kinds of challenges as they get to be creative instead of cooking the same things over and over. Hope that helps!
I made a Pinterest board of places that have vegan and gf options for a recent trip I made there with my friends (I’m V, one of my friends is V/GF, and the other is GF). Here it is! Hopefully it will help.
https://www.pinterest.com/lindsietrego/gf-vegan-dc/
My personal favorite is Busboys & Poets. DELICIOUS. They even have vegan brunch options.
Great idea Lindsie! We should make these boards for every city in the world 🙂
Thank you, thank you, Lindsie! This is so helpful!