Looking for quick and easy vegan fast food? Many popular chains like Taco Bell, Burger King, and KFC offer plant-based options. This guide shows you how to order vegan at fast food restaurants, with tips to customize your meal for a delicious, cruelty-free bite on the go!
🥗 Tips for Ordering Vegan Fast Food
I've traveled extensively across the U.S. and internationally and have learned how to navigate fast food chains to find vegan options. Here are some key tips to make eating vegan on the road easy and stress-free:
- Know how to modify orders: Most fast food places are flexible. If an item contains dairy or meat, ask to substitute or remove those ingredients. At Taco Bell, for example, replace meat with beans and omit cheese and sour cream.
- Order through an app: Apps allow you to customize your meal easily, reducing the chances of mistakes.
- Bring some extras: Pack things like hummus, vegan mayo, or cheese to elevate your fast food meals.
- Ask about vegan options: Many chains don’t advertise all their vegan offerings, so don't hesitate to ask!
- Check the menu online before visiting: This saves time and ensures you know what's vegan-friendly before ordering.
- Order a side salad: A simple way to make a meal more filling while on the go.
🌮 Taco Bell
Taco Bell is hands down the best fast food chain for vegans. You just need to order items without cheese and sour cream. Saying "fresco style" will automatically remove dairy and replace it with tomatoes, but I find it safer to specify your request.
Here’s what I say when ordering:
- Cheesy bean and rice burrito (from the $1 menu): No cheese, no creamy jalapeño sauce, add lettuce and guacamole.
Other vegan options at Taco Bell:
- Black bean burrito: No cheese, no sour cream, add guacamole and lettuce.
- Bean burrito: No cheese, no sour cream, add guacamole and lettuce.
- Veggie Mexican pizza: Fresco style (no cheese). Add potatoes and guacamole.
- Veggie power menu bowl: No cheese, no sour cream.
- Crunchy or soft taco: Fresco style, sub beans for beef, add guacamole.
- Black bean crunch wrap: No cheese, no sour cream, add guacamole.
- Nachos Bell Grande: Sub black beans for beef, no cheese, no sour cream, add lettuce, pico de gallo, and guacamole.
☕️ Starbucks
- Oatmeal with soy milk
- Latte: Made with soy, almond, oat, or coconut milk.
- Vegan bagel with avocado spread
- Java chip frappuccino: Hold the java chips, no whipped cream, and use non-dairy milk.
🥪 Panera Bread
- Mediterranean veggie sandwich: No feta, on country rustic or French baguette.
- 10 vegetable soup
- Mediterranean grain bowl: No feta or yogurt, sub extra hummus.
- Any salad: Sub meat and cheese with avocado, quinoa, and hummus.
- Modern Greek salad with quinoa: No feta, balsamic dressing instead.
🌯 Chipotle
- Sofritas burrito or bowl: Rice, black/pinto beans, salsa, guacamole, grilled veggies, and lettuce.
🌯 Qdoba
- Veggie burrito or bowl: All the veggies, beans, and guacamole (no cheese or sour cream).
- Impossible burrito or taco: No cheese, no sour cream.
🍔 Carl’s Jr.
- Beyond famous star and fries: No cheese, no mayo.
🍟 Burger King
- Impossible whopper: No cheese, no mayo.
- Fries
- Breakfast:
- French toast sticks
- Hash browns
- Impossible breakfast sausage patty
🍩 Dunkin' Donuts
- Avocado toast
- Vegan bagels: Plain, Cinnamon Raisin, Everything, Sesame (no cream cheese).
- Hash browns
- English muffin
🏰 White Castle
- Impossible burger slider: No cheese or mayo.
- Veggie slider: No cheese, no mayo.
🍌 Tropical Smoothie Cafe
- Beyond chicken available for wraps, sandwiches, or bowls (request no cheese or mayo).
- Hummus veggie wrap or bowl: No cheese.
- Smoothies: Can be made dairy-free.
🥖 Subway
- Veggie delight: All the veggies, no cheese or mayo, add avocado and Subway vinaigrette.
- Beyond meatball sub: No cheese (available at select locations).
🥡 Noodles and Co.
- Tofu can be added to any dish
- Japanese pan noodles
- Penne rosa: No cream, no cheese.
🍝 TGI Fridays
- Beyond burger & fries: No cheese, no mayo, can be ordered “green” (wrapped in lettuce).
🥤 Del Taco
- Beyond avocado taco
- Beyond 8-layer burrito: Ask for it to be made vegan.
- Beyond cali burrito: Ask for it to be made vegan.
🍫 Gas Station Snacks
- Kind bars
- Clif bars (some flavors may contain honey/dairy)
- Oreos
- Pringles
- Trail mix
🥔 KFC
- Beyond fried chicken
- BBQ baked beans
- Fries
- Apple turnover
🍕 Mellow Mushroom Pizza
- Veggie pizza: No cheese, no butter on the crust, vegan cheese available.
🍅 Blaze Pizza
- Design your own pizza: Vegan cheese and meats available.
❓ FAQs
Wendy's has limited vegan options like a baked potato (no butter or sour cream), side salad, and fries.
McDonald's is rolling out the vegan McPlant burger in some U.S. locations, but the fries and hash browns in the U.S. contain milk and beef fat.
🚙 Final Thoughts
I hope this guide shows you how easy it is to find vegan options at common fast food chains! If you need snack ideas, check out my post on vegan snack ideas for kids.
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