The veg & vegan dishes worth a detour, the cafés we still think about, and the desserts we'd cross a city for. Honest picks from places we've actually eaten.
🇯🇵 Japan
Vegan
Mercy Vegan Cafe
Osaka — near Shinsaibashi
Dessert
Rikuro's Jiggly Cheesecake
Osaka — Daimaru basement
Vegan
Hokkaido Soft Serve (Dairy-Free)
Sapporo — Pole Town arcade
Vegetarian
Tofu Set Meals near Nanzen-ji
Kyoto
Vegetarian
Convenience Store Onigiri (Umeboshi / Konbu)
Everywhere in Japan
Dessert
Matcha Castella from Nakamura Tokichi
Kyoto — Uji
Vegan
Kyoto Engine — Veg Chilli Ramen
Kyoto
Vegan
Vegan Izakaya — Gyoza & Sake
Kyoto
Vegan
Ain Soph
Tokyo (Ginza) & Kyoto
Vegan
T's TanTan
Tokyo Station
Vegan
Fujifuku
Tokyo — Asakusa
Vegan
Komeda Café (Plant-Based Kissa)
Tokyo
Vegetarian
Afuri Ramen
Tokyo — Akihabara
Dessert
The Macha House — Matcha Parfait
Kyoto
Vegan
Hatoya Matcha & The Matcha House (Asakusa)
Tokyo — Asakusa
Vegetarian
2foods Vegan Café
Tokyo — Ginza
🇪🇸 Spain
Vegetarian
Patatas Bravas (done right)
Barcelona — El Born
Vegan
Teresa Carles
Barcelona — Eixample
Dessert
Churros con Chocolate
Madrid — Chocolatería San Ginés
Vegetarian
La Campana
Seville — old town
Vegan
Vegan Bowl & Arepas
Seville
Vegetarian
Artisanal Thin-Crust Pizza
Seville — backstreet pizzeria
Vegetarian
La Boqueria Market
Barcelona — Las Ramblas
Dessert
Backstreet Churros
Barcelona — off El Born
🇮🇹 Italy
Vegetarian
Pizza Margherita (Naples-style)
Rome — Trastevere wood-fire spots
Vegetarian
Cacio e Pepe
Rome — any honest trattoria
Vegan
Granita di Limone
Amalfi Coast — beachfront stalls
Vegetarian
Gustapizza
Florence — Oltrarno
Vegetarian
Romeo Gelateria
Rome
Dessert
Tiramisu at Two Sizes
Rome — Trastevere
Vegetarian
I Love Italy — Fresh Pasta
Venice
Vegetarian
Veg Cuoppo d'Amalfi
Amalfi — seafront
🇩🇪 Germany
Vegetarian
Käsespätzle
Stuttgart / Black Forest
Vegan
Curry 36 (Veggie Currywurst)
Berlin — Mehringdamm
Dessert
Black Forest Cake (Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte)
Black Forest — traditional café
Vegetarian
Markthalle Pretzels
Stuttgart — Markthalle
Vegetarian
English Garden Biergarten
Munich — English Garden
Dessert
Triberg Black Forest Cake
Triberg — Café Schäfer
Vegetarian
Lake Titisee Ice Cream
Titisee — lakefront
🇵🇹 Portugal
Dessert
Pastel de Nata
Porto — corner bakeries
🇫🇷 France
Vegetarian
Marais Falafel
Paris — Le Marais
Vegetarian
Early-Morning Croissants
Paris — neighbourhood boulangerie
Dessert
Kugelhopf
Strasbourg — Alsatian bakery
🇳🇿 New Zealand
Vegetarian
Pizza by the Penguin Colony
South Island — Oamaru
Vegetarian
Patagonia Chocolates & Ice Cream
Queenstown — lakefront
Vegetarian
Mrs Ferg Gelato + Cookie
Queenstown
Vegetarian
Glenorchy Café
Glenorchy — end of the road
Vegetarian
Giapo Gelato
Auckland — city centre
🇮🇳 Home Favourites (India)
Vegetarian
Filter Coffee & Masala Dosa
Anywhere in Bengaluru / Chennai
Vegan
Pav Bhaji (no butter version)
Mumbai street stalls
Dessert
Rasmalai
Kolkata sweet shops
Dessert
KC Das Rosogolla
Kolkata — Esplanade
Dessert
Sandesh at Girish Chandra Dey
Kolkata — College Street
Vegetarian
Arsanal Veg Kathi Roll
Kolkata
Got a recommendation for us?
Tell us where to eat next — vegetarian, vegan, or a dessert worth flying for.