These Are The Best Vegan Cities In The UK

From plantbasednews.org

A study has ranked the top vegan-friendly cities in the UK based on the number of searchers, restaurants, and positive reviews 

A new market research study has ranked the best vegan cities in the UK.

SIXT, a mobility service provider, reviewed data on tourist search volume for vegan options and the number of vegetarian restaurants, the number with five-star reviews, and other criteria to determine which UK city is the best place for vegans.

According to SIXT, the top 20 vegan cities are London, Bristol, Edinburgh, Manchester, Bradford, Salford, Birmingham, Brighton, Wolverhampton, Newcastle upon Tyne, Sheffield, Glasgow, Coventry, Leeds, Liverpool, Nottingham, Cambridge, Wakefield, Cardiff, and Sunderland. While London topped the list, SIXT noted that the UK’s vegan food scene is “flourishing far beyond the capital.”

Bristol was officially the best spot for vegans outside of London, with at least 50 restaurants scoring 4.5 stars or higher on Google. Edinburgh was found to be the best Scottish city for vegans, while Manchester was named the best northern city. SIXT also praised Salford, Cambridge, and Wakefield, all of which have a good ratio of vegan restaurants to residents and plenty of positive restaurant reviews.

“Wakefield, in North Yorkshire, just outside Leeds, may be a smaller city, but it has made a big impact on this list, ranking as the third best city for vegans per capita,” wrote SIXT. “With 127.88 vegan restaurants per capita, and half of those rated 5 stars or higher, Wakefield is a hidden treasure for plant-based travellers.”

The best vegan cities in the world

SIXT also looked at the best vegan cities in the world. London once again topped the list, followed by New York City in the US, Berlin in Germany, Singapore in Singapore, Vienna in Austria, Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Paris in France, Seoul in South Korea, Zurich in Switzerland, and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.

Barcelona, Spain, took 11th place, and is the home of Asanta, a cafe that Happy Cow crowned the single best vegan restaurant in the world for 2025.

Asanta is a fully vegan eatery located in the Sants-Montjuïc district. Its menu includes a range of classic dishes, such as an olive, truffle, shiitake, and mozzarella focaccia; a mozzarella, tomato, olive, and roasted red pepper focaccia; shakshouka, a tomato-poached egg dish from the Greater Maghreb; and the cafe’s “classic” eggs Benedict.

https://plantbasednews.org/lifestyle/travel/these-are-the-best-vegan-cities/

‘I Spent 50 Hours In Paris Looking For Amazing Vegan Food’

From plantbasednews.org

Fifty hours, five arrondisments, and one flaky croissant later, Paris proved it can do vegan 

Paris is famous for butter, croissants, and cheese; not exactly a vegan’s dream. But Dénes Marton, known for his YouTube channel Daynesh, decided to challenge that stereotype. In a 50-hour trip to the French capital for a family wedding, he set out to find the best vegan food in Paris, a city still clinging to its dairy roots.

Armed with a checklist that featured a vegan croissant, a baguette, cheese, an éclair, and a traditional savoury French dish, Marton wandered through the city determined to prove that France’s plant-based scene is alive and growing.

Along the way, he discovered pastries, world-class vegan meals, and even a cheese counter that would impress any non-vegan Parisian.

Land & Monkeys: The vegan croissant test

Marton’s first stop was Land & Monkeys, the city’s most famous vegan bakery. “The goal while we’re here in Paris is to find one vegan baguette, one vegan croissant, a vegan cheese, a vegan éclair, and a traditional French savoury dish that’s vegan,” he says.

The croissant looked the part, golden, flaky, and delicate, but didn’t quite deliver on flavour. “Overall, the croissant was good. I’d give it a 7 out of 10,” he says, before sampling a pain au chocolat that failed to hit the mark.

Still hungry, he and his family ordered a vegan quiche Lorraine. The texture was “pretty good”, but the flavour, he admits, was “all right,” especially compared to what he would discover later. Still, the visit checked off two items on his list: the croissant and a classic savoury French dish.

Sushi, storms, and a slow start

Next, Marton visited a highly recommended vegan sushi spot, brEAThe Restaurant, one of many suggestions from his Instagram followers. The creative dishes surprised him, but the overall verdict was lukewarm. “We all thought this place was okay, but none of us thinks we would necessarily come back here or recommend it. I definitely wouldn’t.”

The first 24 hours left him unimpressed. Despite Paris’s growing vegan reputation, he found that “even though there were vegan restaurants, if I walked into a place at random, I struggled to find anything besides maybe the occasional attitude.”

That began to change when he stumbled upon Aujourd’hui Demain.

Aujourd’hui Demain: Vegan paradise in Paris

YouTube/DayneshThe vegan donner nachos were a good start to a great vegan meal, including Juicy Marbles steak and a vegan croque monsieur

Tucked away in the 11th arrondissement, a borough that holds three of the city’s most famous squares, was Aujourd’hui Demain. The business is both a restaurant and a concept store, and for Marton, it was the turning point of the trip. “We could not have picked a better spot,” he says.

The meal started with doner nachos loaded with soy chunks and creamy vegan cheese, then escalated quickly. “This meal was one of the best meals I’ve ever had in my life,” Marton says. The croque monsieur was “amazing,” the plant-based ham and cheese tasted disturbingly real, and the potatoes “were cooked to perfection.”

Even the mushroom dish, which he admits he “didn’t really understand,” impressed him with its “super cheesy” flavour. But the showstopper was the Juicy Marbles vegan steak. “That’s crazy. Yeah, that’s disturbingly close,” he says.

Dessert sealed the deal: a pretzel-crusted, salty-sweet creation so good they immediately ordered another. “Not even kidding. One of the best desserts I’ve ever had. Crunchy, salty, sweet, pretzly, creamy. Unbelievable.”

By the time they left, the restaurant was packed. “If you want to come here, make sure you reserve,” he warns. “We almost missed out on an amazing opportunity.”

Daynesh described his meal at the plant-based Parisian restaurant Aujourd'hui Demain as one of the best of his life - Media Credit: YouTube/DayneshCheese and baguettesThe vegan éclair proved impossible to track down, but Marton ended his 50-hour mission strong. At Aujourd’hui Demain’s market section, he found an impressive range of French vegan cheeses, including the beloved brand Jay & Joy. “Someone working there was kind enough to help us pick out some good ones,” he says.Back home, tasting the cheeses was the grand finale. “This was absolutely outstanding cheese on a completely different level,” Marton says. “That plus the meal at Aujourd’hui Demain gave me the kind of feeling that makes you think, damn, this is how good vegan food can be.”He discovered that most baguettes in Paris are naturally vegan, a small victory that rounded off his quest with a touch of irony.As Marton puts it, Paris may not yet be the easiest city for plant-based eaters, but “when it hits, it hits.” And after 50 hours of croissants, cheese, and unexpected finds, he proved that the French capital’s vegan future looks bright and delicious.Find more vegan travel content on Marton’s YouTube channel.https://plantbasednews.org/lifestyle/travel/i-spent-50-hours-in-paris-looking-for-amazing-vegan-food/

Vegan Dining in Paris: How Restaurateur Alice Tuyet Is Transforming French Cuisine

From guide.michelin.com

At Faubourg Daimant, a lively vegan bistro tucked in Paris’ 10th arrondissement, the energy feels more like a fete than a weekday lunch. It’s the kind of place where hand-selected vegetables sit artfully with condiments and sauces, conversations ripple across tables and everyone — omnivore or otherwise — feels welcome. That sense of warmth and celebration is exactly what owner Alice Tuyet set out to create. “I want people to unplug, have fun and rediscover pleasure through plant-based cooking,” she says.

When Tuyet opened Faubourg Daimant in 2022, her goal wasn’t to convert diners to veganism but to celebrate the sensuality of French cuisine through a new lens. The restaurant’s signature croquettes cochonnes — crispy, creamy and unapologetically indulgent — embody her philosophy. “Vegan food doesn’t have to be pale or polite,” she says. “It can be bold, silky and utterly irresistible.”

That exuberant approach has since expanded into a trio of plant-based ventures. Plan D, her first and smallest outpost, is known for its gourmet sandwiches, while Daimant Saint-Honoré, the latest opening, caters to the fashion crowd with rotisserie-style cooking and seasonal plates like roasted squash agnolotti in a luscious orange sauce. Across each location, Tuyet’s vision remains consistent: “We revisit France’s culinary heritage to build the cuisine of tomorrow.”

Her passion for restaurants runs deep. A former ballet dancer trained at the Opéra de Paris, Tuyet later studied business before finding her calling in gastronomy — a love story that began at home. Her father, an avid fan of The MICHELIN Guide, introduced her to fine dining by saving up for special meals to mark family milestones. “He’d buy multiple copies of every edition the day it came out,” she recalls. “For each birthday, we’d choose a restaurant from The Guide. I still remember crying with joy at my first meal at L’Ambroisie.”

                                                                                                         © Léo Kharfan

That early exposure to French gastronomy shaped Tuyet’s culinary identity. When Faubourg Daimant appeared in The MICHELIN Guide two months before her father’s passing, the recognition felt deeply symbolic. “He was proud, even if he didn’t quite understand vegan cooking,” she says with a smile. “In his culture, meat symbolized success. But I think he’d be happy to see that I’m carrying on his love of food — just in my own way.”

At Faubourg Daimant, that legacy lives on in every dish: playful, precise and undeniably French — proof that plant-based cuisine can be as decadent and joyful as any feast.

                        Vegan restaurant Faubourg Daimant in Paris and its signature "croquettes cochonnes". © Léo Kharfan

What was the last restaurant you went to with a real wow factor?

I don’t go out much, but I adored La Joie, an unpretentious Sri Lankan spot in the 11th district, so much that I’ve been back there twice. It’s a joint venture by restaurateur Florent Ciccoli and Minod Dilakshan, one of his former chefs who’s from Sri Lanka. I’ve tried two of their curries, both of which were fantastic — packed with flavor, impact and spot-on spices. Also, affordable yet welcoming is mắm from Hanoi, an authentic Vietnamese restaurant with a killer tofu bún bò.

On the more upscale side, the last gourmet restaurant that genuinely impressed me was Arnaud Lallement’s Assiette Champenoise, located outside Paris, where I tried the veggie menu. I consider myself a traveling vegetarian: I eat 95% vegan and 5% non-vegan because I don’t want it to be a social barrier or stop me from trying new things.

When I know it’s well-sourced, I go for it. Lallement is a master at making sauces, and that really came through; he just blew me away, again and again. The next Starred restaurant on my list is Arnaud Donckele’s Plénitude at the Cheval Blanc Paris hotel.

As a former dancer, where do you go if you want some groove with your food?

That’s easy, head to Tekés by Chef Assaf Granit, whose food is in a similar vein to what we do here and is also all about emotions. They’re Israeli, so being festive is part of their art de vivre. I’ll also sometimes pop into Déviant after work, where there is always great music that makes you want to let your hair down. Allan, the maitre de salle, is a dance champion who actually takes part in competitions over the weekend, and he’s incredible on his feet. Since the restaurant overlooks the street, he often performs his show right there. I’m not kidding. Allan is amazing!

Where do we go if we’re craving a sweet vegan treat after all that dancing?

Boneshaker Donuts, where everything is handmade and delicious. I like my donut pared-back, just regular glaze, no cream, no sugar. Respect is also due to Pierre Hermé who has put a great deal of work into his vegan patisseries, including an all-chocolate cake with red berries and blueberries. It’s wonderful! He isn’t vegan, but he is open to the idea and curious, thinking, “The future will be plant-based, so we have to get on with the program.” I actually don’t have a massive sweet tooth. I’m more of a bread fiend who can devour an entire loaf of sourdough by myself, without any fixings.

Impressive. What’s your go-to for your carb fix?

My girlfriends at Mamiche, of course! They have a wide selection of these big, handsome hunks of bread. For the restaurants, we really wanted to work with people who use organic flour, so we get our loaves from the Marais boulangerie Dupain.

The decor at Faubourg Daimant is a pastiche of 1900s brasseries, with lots of pots and pans plastered across the walls. Where do you get your cookware?

It’s a classic pick, but I can spend hours milling around E. Dehillerin in les Halles, checking out the pots and pans or the Victorinox stainless steel knives, even though I already have thousands. They sell just the right tongs or pipettes you need for plating. I also love the fact that their retail assistants are decked out in these spiffy white coats. Also, a big shoutout to the staff at Merci Beaumarchais, who saved my life last spring! The candle holders that we’d ordered for the new restaurant didn’t arrive in the right size, so I sped over to Merci to buy up all their candle holders hours before we opened that evening. They must have thought I was nuts.

Finally, what does Paris taste like?

Like butter. Not old-school butter, mind — the reinvented no-butter butter we do at Daimant. The recipe? Emulsified high-quality vegetable oils. It’s served all light and fluffy, smoked with a bit of beech wood.

Alice’s Address Book:

L’Ambroisie, 9 Place des Vosges, 75004
mắm from Hanoï, 39 Rue de Cléry, 75002
Plénitude, 8 Quai du Louvre, 75001
Tekés, 4 bis Rue Saint-Sauveur, 75002
La Joie, 117 Rue du Chemin Vert, 75011
Déviant, 39 Rue des Petites Ecuries, 75010
Boneshaker Donuts, 86 Rue d’Aboukir, 75002
Pierre Hermé, various locations
Mamiche, 45 Rue Condorcet, 75009
Dupain, 20 Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire, 75011
E. Dehillerin, 18-20 Rue Coquillière, 75001
Merci, 111 Boulevard Beaumarchais, 75003
Outside Paris - Assiette Champenoise, 40 Avenue Paul-Vaillant Couturier, 51430 Tinqueux

https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/article/travel/vegan-dining-in-paris-how-alice-tuyet-is-transforming-french-cuisine

Vegan in Paris: Is It Really That Hard? A Food Vlog Breakdown

From plantbasednews.org

Eating vegan in Paris is easier than you think, if you know where to look... 

Nicole Whittle, known for her plant-based YouTube channel, recently shared a video on what it’s like to eat vegan in Paris as a tourist. In the vlog, she documents her experiences navigating plant-based options in a city best known for its buttery croissants, cheese-heavy cuisine, and classic meat dishes. The video tackles a familiar assumption – “It must be so hard to be vegan in Paris” – and offers a nuanced answer: yes and no.

Whittle, a long-time vegan and digital content creator, has built a following by offering honest and practical advice on plant-based living. In this vlog, she walks viewers through the reality of finding vegan meals near major tourist sites like the Eiffel Tower, shares her experience at a vegan-friendly juice bar, and discusses how the city’s food culture impacts those trying to avoid animal products. The video serves as both a food diary and a guide for fellow vegans navigating Paris.

Traditional French cuisine isn’t built for vegans

Whittle opens by addressing the elephant in the room – that traditional French food is steeped in meat, dairy, and eggs. From broths and stocks to sauces and pastries, even seemingly vegan-friendly dishes often contain hidden animal ingredients. “It’s hard, other than bread and oil and ratatouille, to think of a classic French dish that is accidentally vegan,” she explains.

For those trying to eat out at typical Parisian restaurants, this can pose a serious challenge. Even if a menu item looks promising, there’s often a catch. Vegan-friendly substitutions aren’t widely available in non-vegan establishments, and many restaurants simply aren’t used to accommodating plant-based diets.

                                Nicole Whittle recently visited Paris to check out the vegan spots - Media Credit: YouTube/Nicole Whittle

Vegan tourism is thriving

Despite the limitations of traditional French cuisine, Whittle notes that the city’s vegan scene is tourist-friendly. Dedicated vegan cafés and restaurants are usually located near major landmarks, and most staff speak English.

She visits Love Juice Bar near the Eiffel Tower and orders a peanut butter toast and smoothie combo. It’s light and nourishing, but far from a sit-down meal.

The trend across Paris, according to Whittle, is toward health food-oriented vegan fare – think goji berries, raw snacks, and smoothie bowls. While she finds these options refreshing, they don’t always match the heartier, comfort food vibe one might expect in France.

Another issue is the opening hours. Many places close on Sundays and Mondays or operate on rigid lunch and dinner schedules. This makes spontaneity tricky, particularly for tourists trying to fit meals around sightseeing. Whittle shares how she returned to the same spot two days in a row simply because other places weren’t open.

It’s doable – with the right tools

Ultimately, Whittle makes it clear that eating vegan in Paris is possible – with planning. She emphasizes the importance of using apps like Google Maps and HappyCow to locate vegan spots in advance, and encourages viewers to save locations before heading out.

You can find more plant-based tips on Nicole Whittle’s YouTube channel.

https://plantbasednews.org/lifestyle/travel/vegan-paris-food-vlog/

Natalie Portman Discusses Her Favourite Vegan Foods And Restaurants

From plantbasednews.org/news

Portman has been vegan since 2011 

Natalie Portman recently appeared on the Dish Podcast, where she spoke about her go-to vegan food options in Paris and her favourite plant-based restaurants in London.

Portman is an actor and activist who described going vegan as “basic empathy” earlier this year. The Dish Podcast is a food-focused, Waitrose-backed show hosted by presenter and author Nick Grimshaw and Michelin star chef and restaurant owner Angela Hartnett.

Grimshaw noted that the team received an email brief from Portman’s team ahead of her appearance that said “Natalie loves to eat,” and listed tacos, pasta, and Middle Eastern food as some of her favourites. It added that she “loves to go out and try new vegan dishes.”

Portman, who currently lives in Paris, also said that she tends to opt for non-French cuisine as it is more vegan-friendly. “A French restaurant is still challenging,” explained Portman. “But […] a lot of the newer, younger chefs are doing more vegetable-forward dishes.”

She also noted that there are “some leaders in that field,” including the Michelin-star chef Alain Passard, who has been working primarily with vegetarian ingredients since 2001.

“But really, my day-to-day if I go out is getting Moroccan food, or Lebanese food, or Thai food, or Indian food. There’s just more options for me in non-French restaurants,” said Portman.

                                                 Natalie Portman talked vegan food with the hosts of the Dish Podcast - Media Credit:

Natalie Portman’s favourite vegan restaurants in London

When asked if she had tried Plates, the UK’s first Michelin-starred vegan restaurant, Portman said she had and described chef-patron Kirk Haworth’s food as “so delicious.” She told Grimshaw and Hartnett that she had been to Gauthier, which is also located in London, and described its seasonal, bistro-adjacent menu as “delicious, vegan, haute cuisine.”

“The thing that I have to say that’s incredible about Plates and Gauthier is that they’re both really delicious, filling, satisfying vegan food,” said Portman. “Both of those places have very rich, filling, delicious food, which is a delight.”

Later in the show, Portman said that she tried koshari, Egypt’s national dish, while filming her new movie, Fountain of Youth (2025), in Cairo. “It’s like pasta, and rice, and chickpeas put together. I think it has fried onions on top, but it is a vegan national dish.”

‘I feel like I’m a good intuitive cook’

Portman is also known for her vegan home cooking, and when asked to describe a “Natalie classic” dish, she said, “I love cooking. I’m not super skilled, technically, but I feel like I’m a good intuitive cook. I have been making green curry often recently, I love a veg green curry. I do a lot of Middle Eastern stuff too, I definitely go heavy on tahini, veggies, salads.”

To conclude the episode of Dish, Grimshaw and Hartnett give Portman a “fast food quiz: vegan edition.” Portman listed “very good falafel” as her favourite sandwich filling, French fries as her favourite form of potato, dill as her favourite herb, and fennel as her favourite salad ingredient. She also highlighted her Mum’s spiced, baked tofu, and chopped Middle Eastern salad.

https://plantbasednews.org/news/celebrities/natalie-portman-vegan-restaurants/

These are the most vegan-friendly cities in the world

From cntraveller.in

London holds steady, Amsterdam slips, and Ho Chi Minh City rockets up the rankings in HappyCow’s latest list of vegan-friendly cities

Something about cardboard burgers or undressed salads, and you have yourself a perfectly serviceable vegan joke. But for plant-based eaters, travelling truly does come in tow with all those things, turning what was supposed to be a stress-free vacation into a tedious hunt for something (anything) to eat. In 1999, HappyCow began as a public service platform to assist vegans and vegetarians in finding real food on the road and now, with 25 years and 210 countries' worth of plant-based intel under its belt, it just released its annual list of the 25 most vegan-friendly cities.

The ranking goes beyond restaurants to include food trucks, cafés, bakeries, grocery shops, and B&Bs. Each city is evaluated for the number of these vegan establishments, their density per capita, the growth of listings since last year. These numbers go hand in hand with a qualitative assessment to consider how easy it is to eat vegan and how well it is understood locally. At a quick glance, though it is clear that the vegan restaurant count has dipped in some places, the broader picture shows a sharp uptick in cities offering vegan options that are far from the sad plate of lettuce that typically comes to mind.

London remains at the top of the list, smug as ever, with 154 fully vegan restaurants in the city centre alone, not to mention 3,620 total vegan-friendly listings across its sprawl. That’s more than enough to support an entire lifestyle of alt cheese and cashew aioli, plus a few vegan B&Bs for good measure. Veganism here is no longer subculture, it’s just lunch.

Further down in the top 10s, Lisbon, Barcelona, and Portland continue to hold their ground, even as some former favourites (Paris and Amsterdam among them) slid down the ranks. Amsterdam lost 21 vegan restaurants but remains in the conversation at 4th place unlike Paris which dropped out of the top 10 entirely. On the rise: Los Angeles clawed its way back into the top 3, shoring up its wellness-world credibility with 2515 vegan venues, while New York City and Mexico City broke into the top 10 this year, the latter for the first time ever.

Ho Chi Minh City, most notably, has arrived. The Vietnamese city made its first-ever appearance, landing in the top ten with the kind of numbers that suggest this isn’t a fluke: a 33% increase in fully vegan restaurants, and a 41% rise in vegan businesses overall. This makes it the fastest-growing vegan city of the moment, and the only Asian city to crack the top 10. However, others are not too far behind: Tokyo came in at 12, Bangkok at 14, Taipei at 18, and Singapore at 19, each with steadily growing options, even if the shift toward dedicated vegan venues is more incremental.

The most vegan-friendly cities, based on HappyCow’s data.

1. London, UK
2. Berlin, Germany
3. Los Angeles, USA
4. Portland, USA
5. Lisbon, Portugal
6. Barcelona, Spain
7. Amsterdam, The Netherlands
8. Mexico City, Mexico
9. New York City, USA
10. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
11. Warsaw, Poland
12. Tokyo, Japan
13. Porto, Portugal
14. Bangkok, Thailand
15. Prague, Czech Republic
16. Paris, France
17. San Francisco, USA
18. Taipei, Taiwan
19. Singapore, Singapore
20. Copenhagen, Denmark
21. Hamburg, Germany
22. Madrid, Spain
23. Vienna, Austria
24. Sao Paulo, Brazil
25. Munich, Germany

https://www.cntraveller.in/story/these-are-the-most-vegan-friendly-cities-in-the-world/