Plant-based food used to be elusive in Sydney, with just a few vegan chefs championing the lean green movement. But that’s no longer the case: Veganism is a full-fledged way of life for many Sydneysiders—and a part-time pursuit for others.
In a city renowned for its multicultural food scene, it’s no surprise that Sydney’s best vegan restaurants, ranging from plant-based Thai dishes to dairy-free pasta bowls, are just as varied.
Read on for a guide to Sydney’s best vegan and vegan-friendly restaurants to book right now on OpenTable.
The best vegan restaurants in Sydney to book ASAP – read on for a guide.
For an all-vegan Thai menu – visit Little Turtle in Enmore
The Thai flavour trifecta—sweet-sour-salty—fuels every dish on Little Turtle’s all-vegan menu. The restaurant, known for being one of the best vegan restaurants in Sydney, is the brainchild of Vinita Chumsri, who takes cues from her parents’ home country but ditches traditional standbys such as fish sauce and shrimp paste for her fully plant-based dishes. Highlights include chewy poh pias (fresh spring rolls) filled with mushrooms and vermicelli noodles, sticky sesame wings made from battered and fried cauliflower, and caramelised eggplant in Panang curry, the house specialty. Enjoy one of Enmore’s most colourful vegan spreads in an industrial-chic dining room decked with recycled timber furniture and dark green subway tiles.
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For Mediterranean food at one of the best vegan restaurants in Sydney- don’t miss Alibi Bar & Dining in Woolloomooloo
Alibi Bar & Dining is helmed by plant-based pioneer Shannon Martinez and known for top-notch vegan Mediterranean food. Crowds come for the cracking good drinks list by Andrea Gualdi, who led Sydney hotspot Maybe Sammy’s to secure the title of best bar in Australasia on the World’s 50 Best Bars list, among other accolades. The slick space sits in vegetarian trailblazer Ovolo Hotel and spotlights dishes inspired by the chef’s Spanish heritage. Martinez is a pro at the meat replacement game, deftly swapping beef slices for rice paper and offering an herbivore-friendly riff on slow-braised meatballs. The result is a one-of-a-kind meal that confirms Martinez is shaking up Sydney’s plant-based scene.
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For a stellar Indonesian vegan restaurant in Sydney – book at Salt & Palm in Glebe
Credit: Salt & Palm
This modern Indonesian-inspired diner brings tropical Balinese flair to Glebe via timber tables, house plants, and a lush courtyard. Though Salt & Palm’s selection caters to vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores, the vegan set dinner menu is the star of the show. Expect standouts including grilled broccolini with vegan oyster sauce and plant-based mutton slow-cooked with aromatics such as candlenut and cinnamon. Wash it all down with a rum and coconut water cocktail (served in a whole young coconut), a local tapped brew, or a natural sparkling wine from Eden Valley. Bonus points for the attentive servers, who are poised to answer any questions about Indonesian ingredients and spice levels.
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For a meat-free Mediterranean dinner – visit Barzaari in Marrickville
Take a temporary trip to the Mediterranean via Marrickville, where neighbourhood favourite Barzaari has served transportive meals since 2016. Food from Cyprus and its neighbouring countries dominates the meat-free menu, which includes MVPs such as smoked eggplant and pickles, mushroom kibbeh, and sweet-fried cauliflower with tahini, dukkah, and tart date molasses. Classic Cypriot tools in the kitchen, including a wood-fired oven and a sand-filled pot for coffee roasting, ensure your meal is prepared the traditional way. Even though the dining room is adorned with charming Old World touches—namely, a mural of faces to represent the four seasons—the space channels a converted warehouse, which is quintessentially Marrickville.
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For a cosy date night at a vegan-friendly cocktail bar – visit Dead Ringer in Surry Hills
Most of the dishes at this trendy globally accented bar and restaurant can be prepared in vegan, vegetarian, or gluten-free versions. Winners include creamed almonds with pickled beetroots on charred sourdough and spiced charcoal leeks with breadcrumbs. Founded by cocktail maestros Tim Philips and Rob Sloan of Bulletin Place and David Hobbs (London’s Milk & Honey), Dead Ringer is famous for its daily happy hour where punters come to sample a trio of delicious martinis. They also come for the bar’s exclusively Australian wine list, known for supporting boutique producers who focus on sustainability and minimal intervention. Dead Ringer might be a playful inner-city bar, but it takes being inclusive very seriously.
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For plant-based versions of Japanese classics – book at O’Uchi in Sydney CBD
Vegans are spoiled for choice at O’Uchi, a sake bar and eatery known for rare plant-based versions of Japanese classics. There are gluten-free gyozas stuffed with shiitake mushrooms and tofu and delicately fried agedashi tofu cubes in shiitake soy broth. But the unicorn at this CBD spot are the vegan ramen options featuring a citrusy yuzu chilli oil ramen packed with vegetables and a meat-free take on tantan ramen studded with shiitake and sesame mince instead of the traditional ground pork. It’s all enough to make you lift a glass of naturally fermented sake and shout “kanpai!”
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China Diner (Tramsheds, Double Bay and Bondi)
Credit: China Diner
China Diner’s contemporary Cantonese menu was made for sharing. And luckily it’s a crowd pleaser, thanks to many plant-based a la carte options (plus a vegan set menu). Dig into a procession of dishes including vegetarian lettuce wraps, steamed silken tofu doused in a black vinegar dressing, chilli, and sesame seeds, and bowls of rice topped with mixed mushroom stir fry and garlicky market greens. Dine in a dimly lit space that exudes Sydney-meets-1930s-Shanghai vibes. Or pick a perch on an al fresco terrace that overlooks the grass for one very memorable meal.
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For the best vegan pizza in Sydney – try Verace Pizzeria at Macquarie Park
Verace Pizzeria claimed the gold medal for Australia’s Best Pizza from 2015 to 2019, and it’s one of only four Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana-accredited joints in NSW. The pizzaiolos follow strict guidelines to protect that Old World accreditation, but they also sling some of the tastiest, most progressive plant-based pies in town. Pizzas such as the tomato-based Lord Byron (eggplant, mushroom, vegan cheese, and peppery rocket) or the white Kondalilla (broccolini, roast potato, vegan cheese, garlic, and chilli) come out of a wood-fired oven at an incredible pace, resulting in traditional slices that refuse to hold their shape—but that’s part of the charm at this award-winning icon.
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For the best vegan tapas-style banquet in town – book at Rubyos Restaurant in Newtown
Credit: Rubyos
Rubyos Restaurant has ruled over King Street since 2005, when owner Badrul Haider began experimenting with global tapas. The restaurant’s vegan menu is full of grazing options that expertly weave flavours from around the world. Charred eggplant involtini comes with fire-roasted capsicum, baked sweet potatoes are mixed with blue lentil and mesclun greens, and fried tofu is marinated in chilli paste with Moroccan chickpea and date tagine. Weekly specials, including a boozy Saturday lunch (six plant-based courses and bottomless drinks) and a Thursday to Saturday happy hour, keep Sydneysiders returning to this swish modern spot.
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For one of the best vegan-friendly Indian restaurants in Sydney – try The Grand Palace Indian Restaurant Fine Dining in Sydney CBD
A guide of the best vegan restaurants in Sydney wouldn’t be complete without the vegan-friendly fare of The Grand Palace Indian Restaurant Fine Dining. This subterranean dining room is designed to resemble an opulent Rajasthani home, and come Wednesdays, it’s especially welcoming to plant-based eaters. A weekly all-vegan feast features an exclusively plant-based spread that celebrates fresh Australian produce and aromatic Indian spices, including palak patta chaat (fried spinach leaves), peas and mushrooms cooked in a tangy onion gravy, and tofu simmered with capsicum and onions. Though the regular weekday menu is adored for solid South Asian standbys such as butter chicken and mutton kebabs, expect plenty of vegetarian go-tos such as pumpkin dal, stuffed eggplant curry, and more.
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OTTO Sydney (Woolloomooloo)
Spectacular Finger Wharf views aren’t all that dazzle at OTTO Sydney, a Woolloomooloo institution. The Italian stalwart is helmed by MasterChef Australia alum Richard Ptacnik, who serves up famous housemade pasta and a dedicated vegan menu including plant-based ravioli with cashew nut cream and aged risotto with mushrooms and hazelnut thyme crumb. On a sunny day, ask for a table outside and cap off your meal with vegan meringue with pineapple and passionfruit sorbet and an equally delicious waterfront vista.
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Missony Restaurant (Newtown)
Newtown’s South King Street is an unofficial vegan hub, but North King is catching up, thanks to stellar venues such as Missony. The chic spot is decked with velvet seats and chandeliers and churns out delicacies from Lebanon and its neighbours. While many dishes from the region are naturally plant-based, Missony goes the extra mile with a separate all-day vegan and vegetarian menu. Snack on superb versions of the usual suspects including crisp falafels and an assortment of vegetable dips, plus Lebanese bread for scooping and dipping. Or try koshary, Egyptian lentil rice mixed with chickpeas, pasta, sweet fried onions, and a zingy tomato sauce for a heartier vegan meal.
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