7 Excellent Vegan Restaurants In York You Need To Try

York has so many adorable little restaurants and snugs that are nestled all across the city and finding great vegan food here is a breeze.

I don’t know about you, but when I think of Yorkshire, I immediately think of traditional Sunday roasts and Yorkshire puddings, not the vegan-friendly destination I have just discovered it is.

So here is a list of 7 excellent vegan restaurants in York I urge you to try, starting in my order of preference..

Contents

Döner Summer

Starting off strong with my top pick, is Döner Summer with their unbelievably mouthwatering dishes that might just convince even meat-eaters to enjoy more plant-based food. Whether you’re a ‘vegan junk food’ lover or not, these colourful dishes are not only aesthetically pleasing to the eye – but taste amazing too.

Me holding a vegan doner teller kebab at Doner Summer York

Honestly, it’s not often I order a meal and say ‘oh my god. This is incredible!’ after every mouthful. The Korean bbq 2.0 chicken teller however, made me do just that. I couldn’t get enough of it!

I ordered the döner teller and Jass ordered the korean bbq 2.0 teller; ‘chick’n made from seitan. If like me, you aren’t a fan of smoky flavours, don’t be put off by the word bbq. The Korean gochujang flavours of the buttermylk fried chik’n really stood out and it was insanely tasty. On a bed of fries, topped with gherkins and pickled daikon, this was an 11/10 meal for me.

I already regret not going back here for another meal.

vegan restaurant kebabs Doner Summer York

The döner teller was also fabulous. In comparison to the Korean chick’n maybe marginally less so, but even then it was a 10/10!

Döner ‘meat’ on a bed of fries with pickled red cabbage, cucumber, tomato and spices, it was all kinds of wonderful. My only criticism would be that I couldn’t taste the aioli or scotch bonnet sauce and I’m a spicy sauce kinda girl, so more of both would have simply elevated the dish.

Sadly (for us southerners), they only have branches in the north of England: York, Leeds and inside the Yes Hotel in Manchester. As far as vegan restaurants in York go, this was the best and definitely one I need to add to my list of vegan restaurants in Manchester too!

Location: 40 Gillygate, York YO31 7EQ

The Orchid Vegan Restaurant

Jass and I ordered a feast at The Orchid; a vegan Asian restaurant. I was so excited to be able to order anything I wanted off the menu and even more so to be able to share with Jass, to get a taste of everything.

vegan spicy pork belly strips at The Orchid Vegan restaurant in York

We went for the spicy battered vegan pork belly strips to start. A tad greasy for my liking and the portion is smaller than we expected, given the price, but it was incredibly tasty and full of flavour.

For mains we went for the lemon chicken (I finally got to try a vegan version of this infamous dish), Mongolian style beef stir fry, shiitake mushroom and scrambled tofu fried rice and salt & pepper chips.

vegan lemon chicken at The Orchid Vegan restaurant in York

The Mongolian beef was a top tier choice, so tender and juicy – resembling actual beef apparently. The lemon chicken was nice; I expected it to be sweet so wasn’t disappointed, but the ‘chicken fillet’ itself was a bit boring. It resembled something like a Quorn chicken fillet, which I’m not keen on. It was fine though and nice enough with the sauce.

Location: 16 George Hudson St, York YO1 6LP

Partisan

Partisan was a last minute find on Easter Sunday when most places were either shut or fully booked. We had to queue for around 30 minutes for a table, but their brunch menu certainly did not disappoint!

I ordered the spiced roasted organic cauliflower which was quite literally a wedge of roasted cauliflower, crispy cavolo nero, cashew romesco sauce, chimichurri, pickled onion and cashews. It was beautifully presented and delicious.

My only criticism would be that the cauliflower itself needed a bit more flavour, but some hot sauce drizzled over it did just the trick.

Jass ordered the Huevos Divorciados; two fried eggs, spicy refried beans, avocado, grated cheddar cheese, fresh salsa, sweetcorn + green chilli relish, sour cream, lime and coriander. All served on a warm wheat tortilla, with the optional chorizo on top – and he thoroughly enjoyed it!

This cute independent restaurant, cafe and arts space is one to add to your list for great vegan and non-vegan food alike!

Location: 112 Micklegate, York YO1 6JX

The Botanist

We had a big family lunch here and ordered a selection of dishes to share. Cauliflower wings, salt and pepper onion petals, crispy halloumi hanging kebab (vegetarian), vegan meatball hanging kebab, tenderstem broccoli and fries – pretty much one of every vegan and vegetarian dish on the menu.

The food was lovely; particularly the cauli wings and vegan meatballs. The crispy halloumi was coated in a sweet chilli glaze that was a touch too sweet for my liking, but nice enough.

The broccoli was cooked to perfection though and the whipped tahini and harissa dressing complemented it so well.

infamous hanging kebabs at the botanist in York

While the food was lovely, I was expecting the restaurant to be a bit nicer judging by their website. It is essentially just a very nice pub with pockets of nice seating. As there were 6 of of, we were seated in a bland corner on beer-garden style benches, so it felt a little odd. Nevertheless, the food was good.

Location: 15-19 Stonegate, York YO1 8ZW

Bill’s

I’m not overly keen on chain restaurants, but Bill’s kept coming up top of every ‘vegan breakfast in York’ search and I’d never been, so decided to give it a go.

I can confirm it was a great choice.

vegan and vegetarian breakfast at Bill's York

I ordered the Plant Plate; with THIS Isn’t bacon rashers & THIS Isn’t pork sausage, roasted plum tomatoes, mushrooms, fried potatoes, scrambled OGGS, baked beans, toast and a side of spicy sriracha sauce.

The oggs weren’t for me; they were a bit dough-y and I think the gooey texture resembled actual scrambled eggs a bit too much for my liking. The rest of my meal was incredible, particularly (and surprisingly) the bacon which was delicious (I’m not usually a fan).

Jass ordered the Brunch Shawarma; two poached eggs, feta, avocado, roasted plum tomatoes, chopped salad, labneh, chilli oil & toasted flatbread, which he enjoyed. It looked divine.

Location: 2 Coney St, York YO1 9NA

Ippuku Tea House

We popped in to Ippuku Tea House for a coffee, but I wish we could have squeezed in another meal while we were in York as the sushi sandwiches and other vegan offerings in this spot looked incredible! They serve authentic Japanese food with their donburi bowls or teishoku sets, Japanese katsu curry and many other delicious sides.

It was such a cute little find with homemade soul food.. one to definitely check it out in York!

Location: 15 Blake St, York YO1 8QJ

Zaap Thai Streetfood

Last but not least, we had a quick lunch at Zaap Thai. This is another one that kept popping up on every ‘vegan restaurants in York’ search I did.

Claiming to bring a corner of Bangkok to the streets of York, the decor certainly does just that; it is like no other restaurant. You’d be forgiven for thinking you’d stepped foot right in the middle of a Bangkok street food market; with its neon lights, authentic signs, a real tuk tuk adorning the wall and the wonderful Thai vibe it oozes.

The menu is overwhelmingly extensive with a huge offering of vegetarian and vegan dishes too. I reckon there must be over 100 items to choose from, which is insane!

We weren’t overly hungry when we visited, which is a good thing as we’d have left starving. I ordered the vegan prawn pad kee mao which I stupidly asked to be kept spicy. They weren’t kidding about the spice – it almost blew my head off! While it wasn’t anything special and the portion size was minuscule (the mains were more like starter portions), it was okay and one I might visit again if I’d exhausted all other options.

Location: 7 Lendal, York YO1 8AQ