I spent 10 months in South America but it didn't occur to me to visit Brazil at that time. I recently got the chance to visit São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and was pleasantly surprised, and wondered why I hadn't thought about these cities before. Both were very vegan friendly, and Rio is stunningly beautiful with pristine beaches, impressive mountains and jungle right there in the city.
Rio de Janeiro Vegan Restaurants
This is the key to rough opening times and prices for the guide, which will appear below the name of each restaurant or café mentioned.
Which meals are catered for
- breakfast: typically 09:00-11:00
- lunch: typically 12:00-15:00
- dinner: typically 19:00-23:00
A rough price range (based on prices of mains)
- cheap: up to R$25 (€5.50)
- moderate: R$25 – R$35 (€5.50 – €7.80)
- expensive: R$35+ (€7.80+)
Here is my vegan Rio guide with the highlights from my recent trip.
Yasai Natural Sushi
vegan / lunch & dinner / expensive
Serving sushi, maki, salads, soups and bowls as well as a small range of sweet snacks to take away, this cute place in a row of eateries is popular with office workers in the area, but is also right between Ipanema Beach and the Lagoon, making it an ideal stop off point on a sightseeing tour of this part of Rio.
Service is friendly and helpful, though staff didn't speak much English when I visited, though the menu is written in Portuguese and English making this quite easy.
Details
South Ferro
serves meat / lunch & dinner / expensive
We found this place by asking next door where we could get a vegan meal. They told us this place had the best vegan ramen in the neighbourhood and they weren't wrong! Though it's not a vegan restaurant, the handful of vegan options they had totally made the visit worthwhile.
The interior is carefully designed and curated in a Japanese influenced style, making for a lovely, relaxing space, and staff were super helpful pointing out what was vegan and spoke English. We ate there quite early, but later in the evening, a reservation would be a good idea.
Details
Teva
vegan / lunch & dinner / expensive
This restaurant and bar is perfect for treating yourself to a fancy night out. It's not big, so arrive early or make a reservation, but it's so worth it! The menu is interesting and diverse with a range of Mexican, European and Asian flavours, but what really makes it worthwhile are the incredible desserts!
The staff are super friendly, speak good English and they also have some innovative alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails worth trying. The setting is modern, lively and just slightly upscale without being pretentious.
Details
- Address: Avenida Henrique Dumont 110 ,Loja B, Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro, 22410-060
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Vegetariano Social Clube
vegan / lunch & dinner / cheap
I visited this place out of convenience, and it certainly was that: convenient. The food was not the most inspiring, but it was totally fine and satisfying. Dishes are mostly European style, with several fried things, carb-heavy and comfort foods on the menu. Staff were friendly but didn't speak much English.
Details
- Address: Avenida Henrique Dumont 110 ,Loja B, Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro, 22410-060
Anna Café
vegan / breakfast, lunch & dinner / moderate
This vegan cafe and attached ice cream parlour with super hipster interior are a cool place to hang out no matter the time of day. The cafe serves breakfast on weekends and light meals and snacks the rest of the week, including some delicious cakes, but what's really worth coming here for is the incredible selection of vegan ice cream.
Details
Dona Vegana
vegan / lunch & dinner / moderate
A buffet where you pay by weight, this place is simple and not at all flashy but makes up for it in the delicious food. Nothing is labelled, but everything is vegan, and dishes are a mix of hot and cold with some salad and plenty of dressings to choose from. Staff were super friendly and spoke English.
Details
Vida Bistrô
vegan / breakfast, lunch & dinner / expensive
With a focus on healthy food but still serving tasty dishes, this place has a nice range of pastas and pizzas as well as salads and sweet treats, with plenty of gluten free options. The atmosphere is casual and there are a few things to buy to take away as snacks too. Staff are very helpful and welcoming and speak English.
Details
Some other vegan places we didn’t get a chance to visit include Prana, Vegan Vegan, Refeitório Orgânico, Spazziano, Açougue Vegano and Restaurante Vegetariano Tempeh.
Here’s a map of all the places listed in this guide.
Rio de Janeiro is a big city with many distinct neighbourhoods. Popular areas to stay are Copacabana and Ipanema which are very convenient for the beaches, but are quite touristy and don't have many other sights. Other neighbourhoods worth considering are Botafogo (definitely the new hipster hotspot close to a lot of the sights), Urca (a somewhat exclusive residential area at the bottom of the Sugarloaf Mountain) and Santa Teresa (a colonial and now somewhat new-age hilly neighbourhood close to Downtown).
Apartments
There are many sites for apartment rentals in Rio de Janeiro, with AirBnB probably being one of the most popular. Prices are generally comparable to budget hotels, especially if you’re willing to get a room in a shared apartment. Book AirBnB →
