Our Favorite Vegan Restaurants in Portland - EverOut Portland

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Believe it or not, this Detroit-style bacon mac and cheese pizza from Boxcar Pizza is 100% vegan. (Boxcar Pizza)

If your New Year's resolution involves reevaluating your meat and/or dairy consumption, adopting a vegan diet, or going plant-based for the annual "Veganuary" challenge, you've got plenty of delicious options to ease you through the transition: Portland was recently ranked the most popular city for vegans in 2020, based on search data from Google. We've rounded up this list of vegan restaurants worth trying, from vegan Detroit-style pizza at Boxcar Pizza to comfort food from Plant Based Papi. Check out our food and drink guide for more ideas.

Aviv Tal Caspi's Pearl District restaurant (which was recently vandalized with anti-Israel graffiti) and its new Killingsworth sibling Little Aviv offer "plant-based Middle Eastern magic" in the form of hummus, soy curl shawarma, falafel, smoked cashew Gouda mac and cheese, sandwiches, grain bowls, Impossible burgers, and coconut-based ice cream.Southeast, NorthPickup or delivery

Avocadamama This food cart specializes in vegan mac and cheese. Opt for the "OG Mac" with cheesy rigatoni topped with breadcrumbs, or branch out into more adventurous flavors like buffalo cauliflower, shredded barbecue jackfruit, or taco jalapeño. They also sell home macaroni and cheese kits with their proprietary vegan cheese sauce, dry shell pasta, and breadcrumbs, as well as their cheese sauce all on its own.NortheastPickup or delivery

Black Seed Burger Cult Everything at this burger joint started by four former Sizzle Pie employees can be made gluten-free or vegan. Portland Mercury contributor Suzette Smith writes in her column Takeout Club, "They've put thought into how to make all their food appealing to the various food methodologies they serve. For instance, Black Seed aren't reliant on vegan patties, but order plant-based, gluten-free ground chuck, from West Coast company Before the Butcher, so they can give it the pressed and charred taste of traditional burgers."NorthPickup or delivery

Black Water Bar The stalwart spot for punk rock shows also has a great menu of vegan eats like seitan French dips, grilled Chao cheeze, and buffalo soy curl sandwiches. While we anxiously await the return of live music, they're available for takeout and delivery.NortheastPickup or delivery

Boxcar Pizza This 100% plant-based pizza parlor specializes in Detroit-inspired pies. Suzette Smith writes, "Boxcar Pizza easily falls into the category of vegan food that you crave, even if you aren't vegan. The luscious imposter mozzarella and ricotta on Boxcar's Bianca pie may as well be real cheese for all its melted, gooey goodness. While walking home from Boxcar on a misty winter evening, I achieved a perfect hygge moment after chomping into a garlic piece buried inside seasonings of basil, sea salt, and red pepper flakes, all while grease ran into the palm of my hand."Northeast Pickup or delivery

Butterfly Belly Asian Cuisine This hidden pho gem may not be fully vegan, but it has gained popularity with plant-based eaters for its copious veggie options. Suzette Smith writes, "Though they're most proud of their bone broth beef pho—their bone broth is cooked for 48-hours to get all that delicious flavor—Butterfly Belly is also an underground hit with gluten-free eaters, vegetarians, and vegans. Butterfly advertises a dedicated gluten-free menu, and their menu is vast—everything from sweet potato fries to Vietnamese fusion tofu tacos!" She also recommends their veggie-packed Garden Pho with shiitake mushroom broth.NortheastPickup or delivery

DC Vegetarian This vegan joint slings hefty burgers, sandwiches, and subs as well as bagels and breakfast sandwiches.SoutheastPickup, delivery, or outdoor seating

Dinger’s Deli Satisfy your yen for hearty, stick-to-your-ribs sandwiches with the offerings from this East Coast-style plant-based deli, which serves pulled jackfruit Cuban sandwiches, vegetable meatball subs, "cheezesteak" hoagies, "chickun" parm sandwiches, and vegan grinders, plus veggie bowls, braised greens, avocado toast, and more.NortheastPickup or delivery

Dirty Lettuce This BIPOC-owned Cajun/Southern food truck serves a menu of profoundly comforting vegan soul food. The Portland Mercury's Blair Stenvick writes, "The seitan-based chicken and ribs were firm and savory, and the crispy skin on the chicken was satisfying enough to rival KFC. I've never been one for plant-based seafood alternatives—something about trying to mimic fishiness feels wrong to me—but those fritters brought me back to a trip I took to North Carolina years ago. The classic Southern sides rounded the meal out perfectly."NortheastPickup

Ditto! If you're looking for the simple pleasure of a melty, oozy, toasty grilled cheese, you'll find it at this food cart, with options ranging from "The Teddy" (vegan cheddar, mozzarella, and smoked provolone on toasted white bread) to "The Finn" (vegan cheddar, tempeh bacon, sliced tomato, greens, and balsamic glaze on toasted sourdough). Optional add-ons include barbecue soy curls, potato chips, basil ricotta, sautéed mushrooms, and more.NortheastPickup or delivery

Doe Donuts This popular vegan donut shop was declared best vegan donut in the country by VegNews readers two years in a row and offers distinctive flavors like salted vanilla bean, strawberry milk, Portland fog, and tiramisu.SoutheastPickup or delivery

Epif This vegan South American spot is a favorite of herbivores and omnivores alike for its flavorful, inventive menu, with dishes like empanadas, sopapillas, pimentones rellenos, and chocolate canela cheesecake.NortheastPickup or delivery

Fermenter The "friendly neighborhood beneficial bacteria emporium" has moved into the Farm Spirit space. The new location focuses on takeout, with a selection of hot sauce, vegetable kraut, nut-based spreads, and plant-based cheese, as well as breakfast with dishes like breakfast bowls and tartines on Saturday mornings. There will still be some onsite dining, including a couple of tables indoors and covered, heated street seating. The space also has new kits for making kombucha and sauerkraut, for all your home fermentation station needs. SoutheastPickup, delivery, or covered heated outdoor seating

Ice Queen This native- and Chicana-owned plant-based frozen dessert shop makes treats like ice cream, paletas, and even TikTok-trendy hot chocolate bombs.Southeast Pickup

Ichiza Kitchen Cyrus Ichiza's pan-Asian spot serves big, comforting bowls of "chicken" adobo and noodle soups, plus other veg-friendly recreations of popular dishes, like dim sum rice rolls, crab rangoon, and chili oil wontons.SouthwestPickup or delivery

Kate’s Ice Cream This ice creamery makes 100% vegan ice cream using organic coconut and cashew milk and local, seasonal produce, with flavors like marionberry cobbler and salted peanut butter brittle.NortheastPickup or delivery

Mama Đút Thuy Pham's Vietnamese pop-up, which she started at the beginning of the pandemic while unable to continue her usual job as a hairdresser, specializes in vegan Vietnamese food, with remarkably realistic plant-based versions of crispy pork belly, chicken wings, and other meats. In November, she opened a brick-and-mortar restaurant. The menu includes bao, vegan "phish sauce wangs," grilled "pork-less" skewers and "pork-less" skins, My Tho noodle soup, steam rice dumplings, mochi snowball cakes, sweet and salty sesame coconut corn pudding, Vietnamese coffee cheesecake from Muse Cheesecakes, and ube and Vietnamese coffee tarts from Toast'd. Suzette Smith writes of the restaurant's vegan pork belly buns, "The marinated fake pork is soft, the buns are steamed, and the delicious homemade kimchi and vegetables hit with the perfect spicy fermented punch."SoutheastPickup

Mirisata This hit Sri Lankan pop-up-turned-restaurant is entirely BIPOC worker-owned and serves an all-vegan menu. One of the most popular dishes is a rice and curry plate with a variety of curries served over banana leaves. They also have a vegan version of kottu roti (a famous Sri Lankan street food typically made with godhamba roti and vegetables, egg and/or meat, and spice), made with meatless Chick'n or polos (jackfruit). SoutheastPickup, delivery, or outdoor seating

Modern Times Belmont Fermentorium The experimental brewery Modern Times has an all-vegan menu of pub grub like Beyond sausage breakfast sandwiches, seitan asada fries, chicken fried "steak" and waffles, burgers, and "Munch Wraps" (a vegan take on the Crunchwrap Supreme, made with Beyond meat, Chao cheese sauce, and cashew sour cream).SoutheastPickup

Plant Based Papi Another vegan quarantine pop-up that spawned a brick-and-mortar location: Jewan Manuel's vegan comfort food sensation Plant Based Papi, which serves dishes like truffle mac and "cheese" tacos and crispy fried "chick'n" sandwiches, opened a permanent restaurant in the former space of Floyd's Coffee Shop in late December.SoutheastPickup

Petunia’s Pies and Pastries This woman-owned gluten-free and vegan bakery has been featured in Food & Wine and The New York Times, and bakes up treats like cookie monster "babycakes," salted caramel cookie bars, coconut cream pie, pecan sticky buns, and more.SouthwestPickup, delivery, or outdoor seating

Safframen This Japanese and Persian-influenced ramen shop serves soul-soothing plant-based noodles and broth. Blair Stenvick wrote of the konkatsu ramen, "The broth gave a nice kick to the perfectly pressed tofu and house-made noodles, which had a lovely soft, slightly chewy texture. I often find myself disappointed by giant ramen bowls overflowing with 10 different toppings, as the flavors can easily get muddled. But Safframen's broth and toppings were perfectly curated to create a simple, but lasting, impression. This is all I want to eat the next time there's a snow day in Portland."NortheastPickup or delivery

Salt & Straw As per yearly tradition, Salt & Straw is scooping up their "Vegandulgence" series this month with five dairy-free flavors that prove plant-based can be just as decadent, including banana avocado sorbet, peanut butter strawberry crumble, bourbon and caramelized honeycomb, coconut rice pudding, and chocolate hazelnut cookies and cream.Northeast, Northwest, Southeast

Pickup or delivery

SushiLove Going plant-based doesn't have to mean forsaking your sushi cravings: This vegan, gluten-free food cart and "micro-restaurant" serves creative rolls like the "Tiki Tiki" (pineapple chili soy curls, gai lan, sriracha coconut flakes, and spicy mayo) and the "Glazed and Confused" (miso-glazed sweet potato, avocado, pickled ginger, sesame seeds, and house-made "sur-eel" sauce).Northeast, Oregon CityPickup, delivery, or outdoor seating

The Sudra This popular restaurant serves inventive and colorful vegan versions of Indian staples, such as soy curl tikka masala, kale saag paneer, and jackfruit vindaloo.North, NortheastPickup, delivery, or outdoor seating

Unicorn Bakeshop This playful bakery whips up whimsical vegan and gluten-free sweets, including cakes, cupcakes, bars, and more, and will deliver right to your door.SoutheastPickup or delivery

Vtopia If you're missing the creaminess of dairy, check out this all-vegan artisan cheese shop in Goose Hollow, which makes its own raw aged cashew-based cheeses in flavors like brie, mozzarella, chevre, cheddar, muenster, and more. You can also get souped-up vegan mac and cheese, sandwiches, kombucha, cashew milk, desserts, and even take-and-bake vegan lasagna.SouthwestPickup or delivery