Opinion 15+ top vegan food spots in Sydney

Looking for the best vegan food in Sydney? Add these restaurants to your list – there’s an option for everything, from fine dining to comfort food!

Sydney boasts an impressive array of vegan restaurants and cafés these days – and there are even more options to consider when you include veg-forward establishments that may not be 100% vegan, but still offer some incredibly tasty plant-based options 😋🌿

With so many amazing places to choose from, the only hard part about finding vegan food in Sydney is deciding where to go first, especially if you’re only in town for a visit. 

I’ve found that heading to Newtown is always a safe bet – after all, it’s nicknamed “Vegan Valley” for a reason – but there are some absolute must-visits dotted elsewhere across the city too!

I’ve been lucky enough to dine out a lot in Sydney (for very serious research purposes only, of course) and have put together a list of my top standouts to help you prioritise the best of the best.

Consider this your vegan bucket list for Sydney – repeat visits may be necessary!

Click to jump straight to each restaurant:

• Shift Eatery
• Le Gourmand
• Yulli’s 
• Gigi Pizzeria
• Funky Pies
• Vandal Taqueria
• Yellow
• Neko Neko
• Khamsa Eatery
• Mr Charlie’s 
• I Should Be Souvlaki
• Soul Burger
• Comeco Foods
• Pizza Madre
• Bad Hombres
• Alibi

Shift Eatery

Surry Hills

This minimalist café-deli hybrid is out to prove that the future of food is 100% plant-based, and, true to their name, inspiring many people to make the shift along the way!

When I first laid eyes on the menu at Shift Eatery, it reminded me immediately of Smith & Deli in Melbourne – which, if you’ve been, you’ll know is the highest compliment I could possibly give.

Like Smith & Deli, Shift Eatery offers a tempting range of vegan-friendly deli items and goodies, right alongside an assortment of fully-loaded breakfast and lunch options that are enough to make your eyes and your mouth water. Think everything from a vegan big breakfast to a classic stack of maple-drenched pancakes, with all kinds of delicious cheesy toasties, sandwiches, poke bowls, and salad bowls in between.

They even do what they claim is the “best vegan bacon and egg bagel in the world”, and the rate at which this bad boy tends to sell out is pretty compelling proof that they’re right! Be sure to get in early if you want to get your hands on one – although if you miss out, there are heaps of other incredible options to fall back on.

My top recommendations would be the vegan salmon bagel, which features a divine house-made tomato lox, dairy-free cream cheese, sliced cucumber, capers, and fresh dill; and the reuben toastie, which is jam-packed with indulgent layers of corned ‘beef’, sauerkraut, Russian dressing, vegan cheddar, and pickles.

The smoked tofu toastie is also a standout – it’s packed with nutritious greens, tomato, and pineapple, and finished with lashings of the most addictive lime-tahini sauce and sweet chipotle mayo.

All this flavour is exactly why Shift Eatery has become my go-to lunch spot in Sydney! Don’t miss out on this gem if you’re in town… I’m already planning my next visit 🤤

Check out Shift Eatery on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Le Gourmand

Newtown

If you’ve got any kind of sweet tooth, you have to visit Le Gourmand. It’s an utterly charming, entirely vegan patisserie serving up all your favourite French treats, from perfectly crispy macarons in every colour of the rainbow, to plant-based pain au chocolat and flaky croissants – even vegan crème brûlée and Belgian chocolate mousse!

And if you’re more of a savoury person, Le Gourmand has you covered on that front too. Take your pick of pastries with all kinds of incredible fillings, like ham and cheese, vegan bacon and egg, and cheese and salami, toastie-style croissants.

I tried a vegan pesto and mozzarella croissant and an almond-crusted croissant last time I was here, and they were so mouthwatering that I’ve been dreaming of both ever since. Because sure, you can find vegan croissants in stores these days, but you just can’t beat the flaky butteriness of freshly baked, authentically French vegan croissants – and that’s exactly what Le Gourmand does best. 

Check out Le Gourmand on Instagram and see their opening hours here. 

Yulli’s

Surry Hills, Byron Bay 

Flavour-packed Asian fusion is on the menu at Yulli’s. This cosy restaurant boasts two convenient locations, both of which have an eccentric array of furniture and a relaxed, welcoming vibe that’s super accessible for vegos and non-vegos alike. All of the dishes are fully vegan, and there’s a whole separate gluten-free menu, too.

Honestly, everything on offer at Yulli’s is pretty enticing, so if you need help deciding where to start, I completely understand! When I went, I opted for a balance of fresh and fried offerings, including the edamame and coconut moneybags, leek and ginger dumplings, san choy bow, and Korean fried broccolini – all of which tasted divine and were perfect for sharing tapas-style. 

Other standouts include the mini Vietnamese pancakes, zucchini flowers stuffed with beetroot and truffle oil cream, and the sesame-crusted eggplant (and don’t even get me started on the dessert menu), all complemented by what Yulli’s proudly calls some of the best locally brewed beer and wine NSW has to offer. 

Yulli’s also hosts a variety of fun events throughout the year, ranging from art performances and amateur film nights to bluegrass and spoken word. So whether it’s delicious vegan food or some interesting entertainment you want to savour, Yulli’s is the place to be!

Heads up: Yulli’s can sometimes be packed due to high demand and limited room, so be sure to book ahead for guests – or, as a back-up, check out their larger sister venue, Yulli’s Brews, for more plant-based food and drinks.

Check out Yulli’s on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Gigi Pizzeria

Newtown

Gigi Pizzeria used to be your regular old omni pizza joint on the main drag in Newtown – until it underwent a complete revamp a few years back and re-opened as a completely plant-based pizzeria.

With their rustic Italian kitchen and authentic, wood-fired oven cooking up some of the best pizzas in Sydney (vegan or otherwise), Gigi Pizzeria has continued to thrive ever since, with lines sometimes stretching even further than that gooey strand of cheese attached to your first slice. Everyone wants a piece of this plant-based magic!

Their pizzas, once laden with dairy, are now crumbled, shaved, and melted with delectable vegan cheeses instead – picture gooey mozzarella, sharp parmesan, even some dollops of creamy ricotta – and rich with traditional Italian topping combinations that are enough to make your mouth water just reading them off the menu. 

Gigi Pizzeria is also one of only a few pizzerias in Sydney that is a proud member of the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, or the True Neapolitan Pizza Association, which basically means they adhere to an incredibly specific set of regulations to ensure that their Napoli-style pizzas are as authentic as possible. 

I’ll be real with you, I had no idea that pizza regulations even existed until now – but all this goes to show that when it comes to making traditional Italian classics plant-based (and beyond delicious), Gigi Pizzeria is doing it right. 

Check out Gigi Pizzeria on Instagram and see their opening hours here. 

Funky Pies

Bondi Beach

If you’re out near Bondi Beach and need a quick pick-me-up after hitting the surf, look no further than Funky Pies. This pocket-sized spot offers a seriously addictive range of hand-made meat-free pies and pastries, featuring hearty flavours such as the ‘Funky Chunky’ shiitake mushroom pie (a take on the iconic Aussie meat pie), the ‘G’day Satay’ (packed with melt-in-your mouth pumpkin and potato), and my personal favourite, the ‘Eezy Chic’n Cheezy’ (fully of creamy vegan chicken goodness).

Funky Pies has side salads, sweet treats, and dairy-free ice creams on offer too, but the titular pies are obviously the main event… How could you ever go past a crispy, piping-hot pastry on a day at the beach – especially one full of wholesome plant-based ingredients to make you feel nourished, satisfied, and ready for a cheeky post-lunch nap in the sun?

If you can’t make it out to Bondi but are still craving a vegan pie, you can purchase Funky Pies in a variety of stores across Australia, or try one of these other plant-based pastries you can find in supermarkets. 

Check out Funky Pies on Instagram and see their opening hours here. 

Vandal Taqueria

Newtown

With its vibrant atmosphere and perpetual buzz, Vandal Taqueria is a bustling hotspot bringing a rebellious twist to Mexican cuisine. Not only is everything plant-based, it also lovingly ‘vandalises’ authentic Mexican food, drawing inspiration from the Latino food trucks of Los Angeles, where experimenting with culinary cultural fusion is the name of the game.

So picture innovative veggie twists on all your Mexican favourites – tacos with crispy Korean eggplant, ceviche tostadas with ginger and sesame ponzu ‘tuna’, wild mushroom quesadillas, even ‘meaty’ birria nachos topped with a decadent chickpea créma… and then a few even more unconventional menu items you never knew you needed until now. Cheeseburger spring rolls, anyone?

You can order the tasting menu (which also happens to be gluten-free) to get a good cross-section of everything, or just pick your favourites off the menu. All the beer and wine is 100% vegan too! 

If committing to serve sustainable food and drink wasn’t enough, Vandal Taqueria also uses solar powered ovens, sources ingredients from local growers, and even sometimes cooks by candlelight due to their “no lights in the kitchen at night” policy. Plus, all their furniture is upcycled and decorated by their resident graffiti artist, Arnie Arnold – making dining here just as much a fiesta for the eyes as for the taste buds.

Check out Vandal Taqueria on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Yellow

Potts Point

Spearheaded by an award-winning team behind Monopole, Cirrus, and Bentley Restaurant + Bar, Yellow is a sophisticated yet laid-back vegan fine dining experience that’s perfect for any special events you have coming up.

Fittingly housed within what used to be a bohemian artists’ collective and gallery, Yellow manages to elevate vegetables themselves to an art form, with meticulously crafted dishes designed to celebrate the diversity and versatility of plant-based cuisine. Best of all, it’s a set menu, so all the decision-making is done for you!

All that’s left to do is sit back, relax, and prepare to be amazed by the veggie-based masterpieces about to head your way (which, by the way, have earned Yellow two Chef Hat Awards in the prestigious Good Food Guide, so you know they’re going to be good).

From smoked tomato with flaxseed and capers to cured eggplant with pickled red onion and broad bean miso, to sugarloaf cabbage skewers with whipped potato and pickled mustard seeds – the delicate balance on every plate is an incredible showcase of the culinary team’s ingenuity and attention to detail. 

The menu also aims to always hero seasonal, locally grown veggies, so you’ll have a unique experience depending on what time of year you visit. 

(In my humble opinion, the best time to visit is right now 😉)

Check out Yellow on Instagram and see their opening hours here. 

Neko Neko

Newtown

Nestled in the heart of Newtown, cat-themed Neko Neko offers a unique blend of Japanese cuisine, both plant-based and pescatarian – and while their menu isn’t entirely vegan, the vegan options they do have are ridiculously yum. 

First, take your pick of drool-worthy ramens: There’s a delicately creamy tan tan ramen made with a tahini and soy milk broth; the ‘Neko Neko’ ramen, made with a soy-sauce-based clear broth; or a spicy tofu ramen option that gets its kick from a punchy house-made chilli oil. 

Pair any of these heavenly noodle dishes with a generous side of pan-fried quinoa gyoza (I always order twice as many as I think we need for the table – they’re that good!), sticky-sweet agedashi tofu, and a soy matcha latte, and you’re about to slurp and sip your way into a food coma of blissful proportions. 

There are plenty of other vegan-friendly sides to choose from too, like cauliflower karaage with vegan garlic mayo, and delightfully flower-like lotus root chips. Just make sure you side-step any dishes with fish in them, and ask your server if you need any help making sure your order is plant-based. 

Check out Neko Neko and see their opening hours on Instagram.

Khamsa Eatery

St Peters

Family-owned Palestinian gem, Khamsa Eatery, is positively beaming with brightly coloured artworks, lush greenery, and an indomitable community spirit – and its fully vegan menu is just as vibrant and warming as its vibe. 

Picture bowls of smoky baba ganoush drizzled with pomegranate molasses, garlicky tzatziki peppered with mint and dill, refreshing fattoush salads, lentil-rich share plates, freshly baked Palestinian bagels, pastries, pumpkin kibbeh balls served with a hearty plant-based mince, and, of course, the ever iconic Palestinian classic: crunchy, bronzed falafels.

For drinks, cool off with a freshly squeezed juice, or cosy up with a steaming mug of traditional Nablus coffee, infused with aromatic hints of maple and rosewater.

Although Khamsa was founded in 2019, its origin story actually begins much earlier, when chef and co-founder, Sarah Shaweesh, relocated from Jordan to Australia and began learning about the benefits of veganism for animals, the planet, and people. She felt a deep sense of responsibility to minimise her impact and help shape a kinder, more just world. 

“Because of the Palestinian struggle, it was important for me not to be involved in anything that enacted harm on the environment … I decided to bring my two interests, food and Palestine, together. I was already working on veganising a lot of Palestinian food and desserts I grew up with.” 

And so, Khamsa was born – with the intention of sharing how delicious sustainable plant-based food could be, as well as celebrating the rich cuisine and culinary heritage of Palestine. 

And how beautifully the two go hand in hand 🧡 

Khamsa has quickly established its place in the hearts of the Sydney community, winning people over with its traditional, soul-nourishing dishes, many made using recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation.

You can find this hopeful, sunshine-filled vegan eatery tucked right next to St Peters train station, opposite Sydney Park. 

Check out Khamsa Eatery on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Mr Charlie’s 

Redfern

This viral American eatery, dubbed “the vegan version of McDonalds” is pretty hard to miss – with a glossy red shopfront and a cheeky golden frown where those ubiquitous golden arches would usually be.

If you’re feeling a little cheeky yourself, and craving all the nostalgia of fast food (with none of the animal products), Mr Charlie’s is hands-down the place to be. They offer a completely plant-based menu with plenty of iconic meals to sink your teeth into, like their ‘Not a Cheeseburger’, ‘Not a Hamburger’, ‘Not a Chicken Sandwich’, and even convincingly chicken-y ‘Impossible Nuggets’. 

My personal favourite order here, though? The gloriously tongue-in-cheek Mr Charlie’s Frownie Meal, which, just like the Macca’s Happy Meal it may or may not parody, features a burger, nuggets, fries, and a drink. It’ll transport you right back to your earliest childhood cravings for trashy, tasty fast food – and, equally, pitch you into a vision of a future where cheap eats can also be kind, with no hidden costs for animals or the planet. 

Sydney is the very first international location for Mr Charlie’s, so show them your support when you’re in town, and fingers crossed there’ll be more locations to come around Australia soon! 

Check out Mr Charlie’s on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

I Should Be Souvlaki

Newtown

The Santorini-blue frontage and hot pink neon sign tells you everything you need to know about I Should Be Souvlaki’s vibe. Punnily named after a wickedly catchy Kylie Minogue song, they’re serving up wickedly tasty, traditional Greek comfort food – with the playful modern twist of being entirely plant-based! 

Co-founders Emma and Adam started out by selling vegan chicken souvlakis at the Sydney Vegan Markets, quickly developed a hungry fan-base, and demand only skyrocketed from there. The couple evolved the venture into a fully-fledged restaurant on King Street in 2021 and have continued to impress with their glorious Greek vegan menu ever since.

I Should Be Souvlaki’s mantra is that 100% plant-based food should be 100% flavourful and fun, too, and they absolutely deliver. Their signature souvlaki dishes involve marinating wheat, soy, and mushroom-based proteins for 60 hours or more, which results in rich, savoury pieces of vegan ‘meat’ that are full of juicy flavour and seem to all but melt in your mouth.

And it’s not just souvlakis – there’s plenty more to choose from, from plant-based ‘seafood’ like salt and pepper ‘calamari’ to wraps, satisfying salads, vegan baked goods, and more. 

Book a table in the banquette-style dining room to soak up the bubbly atmosphere, or order takeaway to enjoy your Mediterranean feast at home. 

Check out I Should Be Souvlaki on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Psst, fellow Melbournites – there’s an I Should Be Souvlaki Canteen here in Brunswick too!

Soul Burger

Glebe, Newtown, Randwick, Parramatta

Touted as “Australia’s first gourmet plant-based burger joint”, there’s a lot of well-deserved hype around Soul Burger! It’s got four convenient locations around Sydney and is definitely worth a visit when you’re in town.

Part of the reason Soul Burger is so popular is that it offers a diverse menu with tonnes of ‘meaty’ vegan options that smell, look, and taste just like their animal-based equivalents, making it an especially great go-to if you’re travelling with a mixed group of vegos and omnis. I’ve taken non-veg friends here before and they’ve sworn that in a blind taste test, they never would have guessed the burgers were vegan!

As soon as I start listing some of their options, you’ll see what I mean: They’ve got a classic bacon and egg burger with melted cheese, hash browns, and BBQ sauce, a lamb brisket burger with roasted peppers, aioli, and relish, a Southern fried chicken burger… even a hoisin duck burger.

For sides, you’re looking at a seemingly endless menu of items like beef halal snack packs, meatball subs, lime and chicken salt fries, cheesy bacon fries, chicken nuggets, cinnamon churros, and decadent dairy-free milkshakes in all sorts of flavours, like chocolate, banana, caramel, choc-strawberry, and banoffee pie. 

Good luck deciding what to try first!

Check out Soul Burger on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Comeco Foods

Newtown

This wholesome little Japanese café is special in more ways than one – not only is everything on the menu completely vegan, it’s also completely gluten-free and (mostly!) nut-free too. 

Because Comeco Foods have endeavoured to be so inclusive of all dietary requirements, it means that just about everyone can enjoy their amazing donuts, brownies, and sushi rolls. And trust me, you will! 

Their unique sourdough-based doughnuts, appropriately named ‘sourdoughnuts’ have garnered a bit of a cult following at this point, and you’ll see why when you stare down the list of flavours. They’ve got all the classics, of course, like cinnamon sugar and glazed options, but they’ve also got specialty flavours like iced raspberry, salted caramel custard, matcha custard, and mocha coffee custard, which all pair beautifully with the slightly tangy sourdough base. 

The doughnuts are available all throughout the week, but Comeco Foods only serves their signature vegan sushi on the weekend, so time your visit appropriately!

Some of their most popular sushi rolls include the aburi eggplant teriyaki roll, smoky BBQ miso roll, and the karashi roll with vegan schnitzel – and their grilled capsicum nigiri, inari, vegan chicken karaage, and katsu curry rice are incredible too.

I love making Japanese-inspired dishes at home, but there’s something quite satisfying about being able to order the real deal (and from a fully vegan menu, no less)… We’re so lucky to have an incredible melting pot of global cuisines here in Australia, but I must say, the menu at Comeco Foods makes me even more determined to do a proper plant-based food tour of Japan someday.

Check out Comeco Foods on Instagram and see their opening hours here. 

Pizza Madre

Marrickville

Pizza Madre (which poetically translates from Italian to Pizza Mother) is a cosy vegetarian pizza joint brought to you by the team behind the ever-popular cafe and pasta bar, Two Chaps – and it shares a similar culinary philosophy in terms of only serving up a handful of simple dishes, but doing them to absolute perfection 👌

The shared DNA is such that Pizza Madre even borrows a few of Two Chaps’ ingredients – most notably the chef’s four-year-old sourdough starter, which, alongside a blend of Australian-grown flours, is what gives Pizza Madre’s crusts their signature tart bite and earthiness. 

From base to topping, every bit of their Neapolitan-style sourdough pizzas is made without a single ingredient imported from Italy, which I’m sure some pizza purists would find sacrilegious, but only makes the environmentalist in me love this place even more 💚

Pizza Madre’s commitment to using seasonal, high-quality ingredients means that their offerings do change from week to week depending on produce availability. (Umm… sampling a different plant-based pizza every week? Yes please!) 

What you can consistently expect is five or six classically prepared pizzas loaded up with all kinds of moreish toppings – from roasted portobello mushrooms, toasted hazelnuts, braised eschalots, and Jerusalem artichokes to zucchini ribbons, basil hummus, green peas, and heaps more. 

The menu is vegetarian, so note that pizzas will be topped with dairy cheese as the default. To make your order vegan, you can ask to either go cheese-free or to swap out the cheese for some Madre-made vegan mozzarella, which is lovingly crafted on site from soy or cashew-based yoghurt, and rich and gooey in all the right ways. 

Check out Pizza Madre on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Bad Hombres

Surry Hills

If you’re craving amazing vegan Mexican food that really packs a punch, Bad Hombres is where it’s at – put this on your dining-out to-do-list, stat. Everything on the menu, from ‘meaty’ Pastor mushroom tacos to fishy ‘tuna’ tostadas, is 100% plant-based and deliciously inventive. 

Bad Hombres boasts an artsy, industrial-inspired interior – think graffitied walls, exposed brick, and vivid red tables – and an upbeat 80s-inspired playlist that perfectly counterbalances the otherwise relaxed vibe.

Their taco of the week rotates depending on what produce is in season, which makes repeat visits all the more fun! Some weeks, you’ll crunch into a tortilla bursting with the flavours of garlic tahini, pickled onion, chilli, mint, and Brussels sprouts… and others, you’ll be sinking your teeth into eggplant fritters with pineapple habanero salsa, or roasted cabbage, avocado, and fresh coriander, all thoroughly drenched in jalapeño hot sauce.

And the prices are great, too! You can get a six-dish banquet menu for only $40 per person, or take advantage of taco Tuesday to get three tacos for just $15. (The only hidden cost is the self control it’ll take to stop at just three…)

Having earned a reputation as one of the best Mexican restaurants in Sydney, plant-based or not, Bad Hombres is proving how effortlessly tasty veg food can be, and how much plant-based potential there is to explore when you start veganising global cuisines.

Come to think of it, I can’t even begin to imagine what said Hombres are bad at, because it’s certainly not food 🤤

Check out Bad Hombres on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Alibi

Woolloomooloo

Hidden inside the Ovolo Hotel in Woolloomooloo is Alibi, a high-end vegan haven serving up exquisite, flavour-drenched dishes that are guaranteed to surprise and satisfy. The ‘indoor al fresco’ setting is delightfully whimsical – picture a sleek glass pavilion green with hanging plants and trees (real trees!), and glittering with fairy lights, all of which lends Alibi an ambient air of enchantment that perfectly sets the scene for the meal to come.

Every dish is so inventive and surreal; you’d be forgiven for thinking there’s some sort of vegan culinary magic happening behind the scenes… because you’d be right ✨ The Spanish-inspired menu comes courtesy of none other than Australia’s pioneer of plant-based Mediterranean cuisine, Shannon Martinez, and even after frequenting all her restaurants over the years, I still don’t know how she does what she does with veggies!

Martinez is the brilliant mind behind Smith & Daughters, Smith & Deli, and Lona Misa in Melbourne, and has also done restaurant takeovers all across Australia, including at some of the other Sydney spots on this list, like Soul Burger, Gigi Pizzeria, and Bad Hombres.

If you’ve ever explored a Martinez menu before, you’ll know it’s always worth locking in a mushroom dish, which in Alibi’s case would be the roasted mushrooms with Pedro Ximénez garlic sauce, perfect for mopping up with a fluffy piece of focaccia.

Other Alibi favourites include the ‘beef’ carpaccio (somehow made out of rice paper?!) served with horseradish, figs, fried capers and vegan parmesan, the 100% plant-based take on morcilla blood sausage, which is plated on a little hill of pomme de purée and drizzled with buttery-rich soubise sauce, or the slow-braised meatballs. 

If you’re after something a bit lighter, try Alibi’s Caesar salad – made with the fresh, lemony crunch of radicchio, witlof, cavolo nero, and pickled celery – or the chamomile-infused spaghettini with saffron, squash, and ricotta. 

Overwhelmed by all these intriguing choices? Head to Alibi on a buzzing Friday or Saturday to try the chef-curated set menu, or book in an early slot on a weeknight for a more intimate dinner. 

Check out Alibi on Instagram and see their opening hours here.

Discover even more vegan options

Believe it or not, as bountiful as this list is, it’s not even close to exhaustive! If you’re interested in exploring some of the myriad other vegan-friendly spots around Sydney, have a browse on Happy Cow. 

Wherever you are in the world, it’s a great resource to remember when you’re on the hunt for plant-based food. Enter your location and you’re pretty much guaranteed to see some promising pins pop up on the map 📍

I’d love to hear what you think if you end up at any of these Sydney hotspots… Shoot us your thoughts on Instagram – or tag us in your food photos so we can live vicariously through you!

Header image: © I Should Be Souvlaki