Vegan Taipei | Best Restaurants, Food Tours, Hotels & More

Taipei was probably one of the best cities we visited on our recent trip to Asia for vegan food. The sheer range of options was quite impressive, from cheap, Taiwanese style soups, to higher end dining and everything in between. Because we visited over Chinese New Year, some of the places we wanted to visit were closed and we ran out of time so didn’t quite manage to cover all the options. Of what we tried, this guide gives the highlights of vegan Taipei.

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Taipei Vegan Restaurants

This is the key used in this guide, which appear directly under the name of each establishment mentioned:

Which meals are catered for

  • breakfast: typically 10:00-11:00
  • lunch: typically 11:00-14:00
  • dinner: typically 17:00-21:00

The type of food served

vegetarian / vegan / raw vegan

A rough price range (based on prices of mains)

  • cheap: up to NT$250 (€6.80)
  • moderate: NT$250 (€6.80) – NT$300 (€8)
  • expensive: NT$300+ (€8+)

Mianto 米愛多

lunch, dinner / vegan / moderate

A very cute little restaurant in a largely residential area of Taipei, Mianto is run by an Italian expat and the menu mostly reflects that, though there are also several dishes with an Indian and Taiwanese twist. Portions are tasty if a little small and when busy, food can take a while to arrive.

vegan_taipei_mianto_curry

vegan_taipei_mianto_pasta

Everything is vegan and the cakes are delightful, but rather tiny. They also do a pretty good soy latte, making this a solid spot for coffee and cake as well as a full meal.

vegan_taipei_mianto_cake

Details

Kaya Kaya Café

breakfast, lunch, dinner / vegetarian, vegan / cheap

This vegetarian café marks vegan options on the menu with a little broccoli symbol, and they have a few savoury dishes, but mainly it’s worth coming for the cakes, which usually means one raw cake and a couple of other baked ones, which are decent if not amazing.

vegan_taipei_kaya_chocolate

vegan_taipei_kaya_muffin

They have soy milk for hot drinks, and though Zab said it was slightly lumpy, it tasted fine.

Details

Soul R. Vegan 靈魂餐廳

dinner / vegan / expensive

With a pretty cool vibe and sleek interior, this fully vegan restaurant is a good option for something just a little bit fancy. The menu is mostly western style comfort food including soups, salads, risotto, pasta and their signature soy-based vegan steak dishes. No additives are used and the focus is on offering healthy, hearty fare based on seasonal, organic ingredients.

vegan_taipei_soul_salad

The staff are super friendly and visiting just after Chinese New Year, we were even given a gift! We didn’t get to try them, but they offer waffles as well as a pretty wide range of teas and coffees for afternoon tea.

vegan_taipei_soul_tiramisu

The desserts were pretty amazing though, with the tiramisu standing out by far. The black forest brownie was less of a brownie and more of a cake, but still good, though I found the misleading name slightly disappointing.

vegan_taipei_soul_cake

Details

Green Bakery 綠帶純植物烘焙

lunch, dinner / vegan / moderate

A great vegan bakery, this place has super friendly and informative staff and some amazing baked goods to choose from. There are delightful cupcakes, super moist brownies as well as several kinds of biscuits and other cakes to eat in or take away.

vegan_taipei_green_bakery_cupcake

Everything is handmade on site and the café itself is in a lovely quiet location and beautifully designed with lots of natural light. There are free hot water refills on cups of tea.

Details

Universe.café 宇宙客

breakfast, lunch, dinner / vegan, raw vegan / cheap

vegan_taipei_universe_exterior

Although in a slightly odd location inside Taipei City Hall MRT station 市政府站, this tiny vegan eatery is great for grabbing a quick, healthy raw vegan snack, some beautiful melt-in-the-mouth raw vegan cake or cold pressed juice.

vegan_taipei_universe_cake

Details

Naked Food 裸食私廚

 lunch, dinner / vegan, raw vegan / expensive

A definite highlight of the Taipei vegan scene, this mostly raw food restaurant is a much more upscale option than most others but still with a comfortable, laid back setting.

vegan_taipei_nake_food_interior

Raw and hot drinks are distinguished on the very clear English menu, and the use of onions and garlic is also marked. They do serve some non-vegan wines, but are clear about telling you this is the case. The menu is seasonal, and while predominantly raw, they do serve more cooked dishes during winter.

vegan_taipei_naked_food_cheese

The food is rich, filling and gorgeous and the attention to detail is perfect. The aged vegan cheeses are exquisite and the raw pizzas with such toppings as avocado and beetroot, pumpkin and mushroom and zucchini and tomato are wonderful.

vegan_taipei_naked_food_pizza

vegan_taipei_naked_food_lasagne

The desserts, my favourite thing about raw food, are to die for. We tried the pumpkin cheesecake and the chipotle brownie, which may be some of the best raw desserts we’ve ever tried: served not too cold, but still chilled enough that they weren’t melting and just sweet enough without being sickly.

vegan_taipei_naked_food_cake

Service is attentive but not overwhelming and the space is very welcoming. They also sometimes host private events, such as film screenings and put on cooking classes.

Details

Herban Kitchen & Bar 二本餐廳

lunch, dinner / vegetarian, vegan / expensive

A pretty cool restaurant, café and bar rolled into one, this place serves vegetarian food and marks vegan options, which make up a large portion of the menu, but only one of the desserts. The generous smoothies also make for a healthy but filling and satisfying snack.

vegan_taipei_herban_smoothie

Take away is available and they also have an extensive brunch menu as well as wifi, making this the perfect place to work over brunch or just hang out with friends in a casual but intimate setting. Note there is no 10% service charge on Mondays!

vegan_taipei_herban

Details

Comma Space Coffee 逗號慢活空間

lunch, dinner / vegetarian, vegan / moderate

This place only advertises itself from the outside with its Chinese name. It’s a cosy little café, decent for working in (there is free wifi) as well as hanging out and relaxing in on one of comfy sofas. They serve vegetarian and vegan paninis and their wide selection of cakes are entirely vegan.

vegan_taipei_commaspace_panini

I found the smoothies to have too much ice and sugar, but otherwise, the cakes were fluffy and delicious and the setting is calm and inviting.

vegan_taipei_commaspace_cake

Details

  • Address: 中正區辛亥路一段31號(羅斯福路口)
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Ooh Cha Cha 自然食

breakfast, lunch, dinner / vegan, raw vegan / cheap

This super cute and compact place serves some fantastically healthy and tasty food. Everything is vegan, and there is a nice range of salads, sandwiches, rolls, burgers, smoothies and raw desserts.

vegan_taipei_oohchacha_plate

The option for no onion or garlic is available on most dishes that contain them, and there are several interesting add-ons such as eggplant bacon, ginger kim chi or lemongrass tofu that can be ordered to customise your meal.

vegan_taipei_oohchacha_sandwich

There is a decent selection of tea, coffee (available with vegan creamer) and even some vegan beers and wines. If you’re planning on coming for lunch, get there earlier as it fills up quickly.

vegan_taipei_oohchacha_drinks

The focus is on plant-based vegan food, so don’t expect processed junk food, instead they are committed to using whole foods without using refined flour or sugar, for example. It’s a great spot for a light snack, a filling and nutritious meal or just some afternoon coffee and cake.

vegan_taipei_oohchacha_cake

Details

Vege Creek 蔬河

 lunch, dinner / vegan / cheap

Fancy custom making your own Taiwanese style soup? This is the place to come. With several branches around Taipei, the idea behind Vege Creek is so simply but so genius.

vegan_taipei_vege_creek_soup

You browse the ingredients available and pick what you want in your soup, place it in your basket and take it to the counter where you pay and they’ll cook it into a soup right there in front of you.

vegan_taipei_vege_creek_interior

The ingredients are all pretty simple (sliced vegetables, marinated tofu and noodles) but the way it’s cooked makes whatever you choose into a delicious, comforting and satisfying soup, perfect for a chilly day. You’ll also get the option to have it topped with flaked seaweed and there are several condiments on the table you can add yourself.

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It may also be one of the only overtly queer-friendly places we encountered in Taipei with a “legalise gay marriage sticker” on the wall, which was nice to see.

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Details

Vegan Heaven 純素天堂

lunch / vegan / moderate

An exceptional vegan bakery, this place is run by the loveliest Taiwanese lady who has a great passion for making gorgeous vegan baked goods of all kinds including cookies, cakes, tarts, tiramisu and even macaroons!

vegan_taipei_vegan_heaven_tiramisu

There is unfortunately no seating, so come to grab something to take away along with a nice soy latte. The tiramisu may be the best we’ve ever eaten and the macaroons are simply miraculous: so good in fact, we forgot to take a picture!

vegan_taipei_vegan_heaven_pineapple_cake

With nine years experience as a vegan baker, the owner has had plenty of time to experiment and perfect her recipes, and this definitely shows. A really excellent find.

Details

  • Address: 台北市中正區武昌街一段23號
  • Facebook

Some places we didn’t manage to make it to but would love to try out next time we’re in Taipei were About Animals, Fresh, Green Room, VegeTable, Joy Bar and Yummy Vegan House.

Apartments

There are many sites for apartment rentals including Airbnb and Vrbo. Prices are generally comparable to budget hotels, especially if you’re willing to get a room in a shared apartment.

Search Apartments on Vrbo

Many thanks to Prish, Leiven, Mai, Lee-Kai and Li-Ting for inviting us and helping make this guide complete.

10 Comments on “Vegan Taipei | Best Restaurants, Food Tours, Hotels & More”

  1. Amelia says:

    Don’t know why I haven’t read this before now! Several of these places are new and have opened since I left. I miss Taipei and the easy to find vegan food so much! Especially veggie creek, their mock meats were incredible. It’s a shame you didn’t get to Fresh or BioPeace, or About Animals which overtakes Veggie Creek by miles for activism posters!

    1. Sam Wood says:

      Yea, I know we missed quite a lot, but that was due to the fact that we were there over Chinese New Year (bad planning on our part!) and so lots of places were closed. Boo! Next time, right?!

  2. Ganesh says:

    Wow great post !! Am planning on a business cum personal trip to Taipei and a vegetarian too :D. This blog has helped me 🙂 . Thanks for such a detailed presentation.

    1. Sam Wood says:

      Oh, that’s great! Glad this was helpful, Ganesh!

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