10 Places for Vegan Food in Bucharest in 2024

Sometimes you go to a new city and with every step you find one vegan option after another, like Krakow, but my search for vegan food in Bucharest was not quite like this.

It is possible to find vegan food in Bucharest, there is quite a lot actually, but you’ve got to know where to look.

There were three main problems I stumbled upon in my search for vegan food in Bucharest:

• The first was actually finding menus – so many places don’t display their menu outside, so I needed to go inside and ask about vegan food.
• The second was that there was simply no vegan food on the menu – when I did find menus most of them had little to no vegan food on them.
• The third was a dangerous one…was the vegan food actually vegan? I came across several menus that offered ‘vegan options’ that included cheese and other non-vegan items. So, I got the impression that the word vegan had more than one interpretation.

Please don’t let this put you off visiting Bucharest, if you’re a vegan visiting the city you will definitely have enough places to stop off and enjoy plant-based food as you explore the city.

My trip to Bucharest was short but my vegan food-searching skills didn’t let me down and I managed to enjoy some of the best vegan food Bucharest has to offer. Let’s get into it. 

After walking around the Old Town, looking at the menus, and seeing pretty much nothing, I knew it was time for some investigation. I sat down with a drink and began the search for vegan restaurants in Bucharest.

• Location: Level Up on Google Maps
• How far: A 10-minute walk from the Old Town
• What you can eat there: Great for traditional Romanian food, pizzas, burgers and desserts

My first find was Level Up, a fully vegan restaurant in Bucharest. It’s about a 10-minute walk from the centre of the Old Town. Not only was it one of the few fully vegan restaurants in Bucharest it also sold vegan versions of traditional Romanian food. 

It’s small and cosy with most of its seating downstairs. Even though they sell it, I don’t think most people go here for the traditional food because they also offer a wide selection of vegan pizzas and burgers and that’s what the other customers were eating. 

But I just can’t turn up the opportunity to try local food, as a vegan this doesn’t happen all that often. 

We ordered the Sarmale Ultra Romanesti and the VegFriprura Spare The Lamb and they were both wholesome meals. We didn’t know what to expect because we’d never tried Romanian food before but that’s the benefit of it all being vegan, you can just give it a go. Take a look at Level Up’s menu. 

Find Level Up on Google Maps

• Location: Efendi Doner on Google Maps.
• How Far: In the Old Town
• What you can eat there: Great for vegan kebabs

We had eaten our dinner fairly early so after some more exploring and a few bar stops we had an eye open for a little something to bring back to the hotel with us. That’s when we came across Efendi Doner- a kebab shop in the middle of the Old Town selling vegan kebabs!

A kebab was probably more food than I was looking for, but that’s never stopped me before. Their menu also differentiated between vegetarian and vegan and I was delighted to see this because, as I mentioned above, it seems some places don’t know the difference.

You can sit inside, outside or take it away. They have loads of vegan options including wraps, toasties, and pita/burger-style bread, all filled with falafel, fresh salad, chips and delicious sauces.

We grabbed ourselves a kebab wrap each and some chips, they were so good, and the portions were very generous so we had some left for breakfast in the morning. 

Find Efendi Doner on Google Maps.

• Location: Sublimmme on Google Maps. 
• How far: A 5-minute walk from the Old Town
• What you can eat there: Great for delicious and well-presented vegan food. 

This place has a bright and fresh feel inside and is fully vegan! The menu offers a lovely range of different types of food and they also meet so many different dietary requirements, so they must choose their ingredients with a lot of care. 

For two of us, we ordered the soup of the day, avocado on toast and a burger with chips. And after we tried a cake from the amazing selection they offer – Take a look at their menu. 

The food took a while to come but the effort that went into the presentation was second to none! And I enjoyed every bite!

The food was wonderful and the place itself was clean and relaxing, but the only downside was the staff, I do think the slightest bit of warmth while engaging with customers would go a long way.

Find Sublimmme on Google Maps. 

• Location: Nomad Skybar on Google Maps. 
• How far: In the Old Town
• What you can eat there: Great for vegan snacks and a cocktail.

It’s a bit strange for Nomad Skybar to make my list of vegan food in Bucharest because they don’t actually have much vegan food. But hear me out…

In a city where finding vegan options on a regular menu is tough, it’s nice to head somewhere a little fancier and less like a ‘vegan restaurant’, and be able to grab a few vegan snacks. 

This bar has a really cool vibe, you go up in an elevator and arrive inside the bar. With our cocktails, we had a few vegan snacks; hummus with pita, spicy and salty edamame and roasted and spiced almonds. All really tasty vegan snacks.

So, if you’re after a full vegan meal this is definitely not the spot, but if you’re looking for something with a fancy feel and just a few snacks then head to Nomad Skybar. 

Find Nomad Skybar on Google Maps. 

• Location: Scovergăria Micăi on Google. 
• How far: In the Old Town
• What you can eat there: Traditional Romanian pancakes – vegan scovardăs.

Please do yourself a favour and go here!! Breakfast can be a tough meal for a travelling vegan. Well, this place has you sorted for vegan breakfast in Bucharest. They sell traditional ‘pancakes’ called scovardă – they are to die for! I use the word pancake because it’s the closest word that comes to mind, but they are even better.

We went for the simple one, which just has sugar added. They also have other vegan scovardăs with jam, peanut butter, garlic sauce, olives and stewed cabbage.

The simple one is just 6.95 lei that’s about £1.25. It’s a little shop on the corner that has some tiny tables but they are mostly for takeaway. Go grab one and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! 

Find Scovergăria Micăi on Google.

Location: Bistro Raw Vegan on Google Maps. 

How far: A 25 minutes from the Old Town

What you can eat here: So much! A fully vegan restaurant with a huge menu.

I loved this place! Everything was fab and if I lived locally I’d go here all the time because it’s simple, well-priced and has lots of options to choose from.

It’s a bit further from the Old Town, about a 25-minute walk, but as long as you’re feeling fit and able, I think it’s good to get out and explore the streets. And the street Bistro Raw Vegan is on is called Strada Transilvaniei and looking at the spooky old buildings nearby will certainly put you in the mindset of Bram Stoker while he was writing Dracula. 

Anyway, there’s nothing old and spooky about Bistro Raw Vegan, just fresh, clean homemade food. We ordered spaghetti bolognese with Beyond Meat and stir-fried vegetables with rice. Take a look at their menu. The portions were pretty small but packed with delicious flavour.

The staff were super busy but still friendly. I can’t recommend this place enough for a really tasty but simple vegan meal. 

Find Bistro Raw Vegan on Google Maps. 

• Location: Sara Green on Google Maps
• How far: 35 minutes from the Old Town
• What you can eat there: A fully vegan restaurant specialising in burgers and wraps.

Sara Green, another fully vegan restaurant, was our last vegan food stop before the airport. It’s a 35-minute walk from the Old Town so we walked out to it and got a taxi to the airport from there. 

They mostly sell burgers, wraps and a few salads. We ordered the cheeseburger and the BBQ jackfruit burger with one portion of chips to share. The favours of the burgers were really tasty but unfortunately, they were a little cold in the middle. We finished our food feeling pretty full and said goodbye to all the wonderful vegan food we had tried in Bucharest. 

Find Sara Green on Google Maps

After trying all the places listed above, if you’re still looking for more vegan food in Bucharest here are a few places that I wanted to try but didn’t get around to it on this trip. 

Verv Kitchen is a fully vegan restaurant located centrally in Bucharest. It’s a great spot to go to for vegan breakfast in Bucharest. They offer a fab range of options such as all-day brunch, salads, pasta, soups and desserts.

Find Verv Kitchen on Google Maps.

VanFruct is a small coffee shop with reviews that talk about their amazing vegan waffles. It’s only a 10-minute walk from the Old Town. 

Find VanFruct on Google Maps. 

Ergo is a restaurant that sells meat, vegetarian food and vegan food and is a 15-minute walk from the Old Town. The good news is that their menu clearly labels everything so you know what’s vegan. They have options such as salads, soup, little sharing plates, a mushroom dish with soy cream and polenta puree, a vegan sandwich and even a dessert. 

Find Ergo on Google Maps

So that’s my guide to the best vegan food in Bucharest. Can you believe all this was done in only a few days? I can!! 

My opinion on vegan food in Bucharest is that you can find it if you have a good look, but it’s definitely not as easy to find as in most European capitals or even big cities. If you’re looking for a super duper incredible vegan-friendly spot in Europe then Krakow is a great option – Vegan food in Krakow – 7 places for cracking vegan food in Krakow! This city truly has little gems on every corner.

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Meet the Author

Meet Sinead O’Carroll: Vegan explorer, sustainability advocate and the founder of The Wondering Wandering Vegan. Embracing veganism since 2018 and vegetarianism since 2005, Sinead is armed with a Vegan Health, Nutrition and Lifestyle qualification, and is on a mission to share her passion for cruelty-free living. 

With a taste for adventure and a heart for eco-conscious choices, she’s here to prove that vegans never miss out on flavour, fun or style. Join her in enjoying the delights of a vegan-friendly world! 🌱✈️🌍
Want to know more? Check out Sinead’s About page here.

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Follow me on Instagram to see all the delicious vegan food I find, the vegan and cruelty-free products I use and what I get up to as a travelling vegan.

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