Where to eat Vegan in Venice

Eating Vegan in Venice

As I sip on my homemade carrot and butternut squash soup and I put the finishing touches to my upcoming book on Cicchetti, ready to be handed over to the editor in the next few days, I am pondering on how much the food scene has changed in Venice, not just in the last 15/20 years, but even in the last 2/3 years.

It is not anymore only about sarde in saor e baccalà mantecato, or bigoli in salsa and spaghetti alla busara.

No, the food in Venice has changed, a lot, and I have to say, on my part, I am actually quite happy about it. The history of Venetian cuisine is built on change, on influences from all over the world, on spices coming from the east, on integrating recipes from all the different people the merchants got in contact with, so it is pretty natural that even now, at a time when the word globalization is on everybody’s mouth and agenda, Venetian food undergoes changes.

Let’s take veganism, for example.

Vegan nutrition is the food trend of 2022 and in large Italian cities, the vegan proposal is now increasingly present, organized and multifaceted. Once it was a niche (and much contested) choice, now it is the food trend of the future, thanks also to numerous VIPs and influencers who have embraced the cause.

In Venice we are a bit lagging behind, but we are slowly getting there, even if it is pretty easy to get vegan gelato and cheese less pizza virtually anywhere in the city.

But if your idea of vegan food is pureed veggies with an unattractive appearance or boiled peas and carrots and tasteless tofu, well – let me tell you – you got it all wrong!

So whether you are vegetarian, vegan or simply want a green lunch or dinner, here is a collection of Vegan food places for you.

A series of restaurant and food shops where fruit and vegetables are transformed into vegetarian great cuisine and are able to change the minds even of the most convinced and immovable carnivore.

Vegan restaurants & food places in Venice

Vegan food in Venice

La Tecia Vegana

Vegan Burger at La Tecia Vegana

The first and only true totally vegan restaurant in Venice, La Tecia Vegana is located in the Santa Marta area, a little away from the tourist spots, in a nice quiet area of Dorsoduro.

The restaurant is family-run and offers traditional Venetian dishes like zucchini in saor, stuffed ravioli, as well as roast seitann, eggplant lasagna, lentil burger, chickpea omelette, panzanella and daily soups, revisited in a vegan way.  The dessert selection includes their vegan Tiramisu and different cakes.

Vegan chocolate Cake at La Tecia Vegana in Venice

I got to try the Vegan burger and it was simply delicious. And a particular note to their Vegan Chocolate cake: probably one of the best I have ever tasted!

La Tecia Vegana, Calle Remorchianti 2104, 30123 Dorsoduro

La Zucca

Photo by La Zucca in Venice

La Zucca is not a vegetarian restaurant, but it manages to satisfy people looking for a restaurant in Venice where to eat vegetarian and vegan dishes. The menu varies with the seasons, there are flans and asparagus flans with fondue, hummus and friggitelli, cream of pumpkin and carrots. Superb their homemade desserts such as the pear ginger cake or the spiced tartlets with red wine and raspberries.

La Zucca, Cslle Dello Spezier 1762,  30135, Santa Croce

Ristorante Libanese Gibran

Vegan meal at Gibran in Venice

Lebanese restaurant, Gibran is one of my favourite spots for vegetarian food. The Lebanese cuisine, despite containing a lot of meat, is quite vegan friendly, indeed I can safely say that the appetizers are vegan without any need for changes. Best falafel ever. Try their hummus and the courgette cream as well as the fattoush and the stuffed grape leaves. Small but very nice and clean place.

Best Falafel in Venice at Gibran

You will need to bring your own wine, since they do not serve alcoholic drinks.

Ristorante Libanese Gibran, Calle del Cafetier, 6645, 30122 Castello

Sulla Luna

Photo by Sulla Luna Venice

This is small bistro near the Jewish Ghetto. But not only a Bistro: in addition to having a bite to eat or a drink, you can also buy books of all kinds. The cuisine is vegetarian / vegan, simple but tasty. Their specialities are crostini but they also offer other things like hummus with vegetables, pizza with olive salad, splendid with chicory and hummus.

The beautiful thing about this little place is that it is located along Fondamenta Della Misericordia and you can just sit at a table by the canal enjoying the passing boats, while sipping on a glass of good wine.

Sulla Luna, Fondamenta Misericordia, 2535, 30121 Cannaregio

PokeScuse

Vegan Poke Bowl Salad at Poke Scuse in Venice

A brand new Poke Bar on the main road that brings you from Strada Nova to Rialto. Their poke salads are very tasty, with a large selection of vegan ingredients and they even got their own signature vegan salad bowl. The ingredients are of very high quality. Of course this a take away place, with only a couple of stand in tables outside.  Perfect for a quick snack.

PokeScuse, Campiello Riccardo Selvatico 5666, 30121 Cannaregio

Birroteca H2no

ph by H2no

H2no is a typical bàcaro right in Campo San Silvestro which offers a large variety of vegan cicchetti, also gluten free. The vegan cicchetti selection changes every day, but they are super delicious. Try their zucchini with tofu, wasabi, hummus and aubergine. Great selection of wines and artisan beers. And to top it all, Mari, the owner, is a little volcano of energy and fun!

The are also inserted in my book dedicated to Cicchetti in Venice, Andar per Bacari!

Birroteca H2no, Campo S.Silvestro, 1105, 30125 San Polo

Orient Experience

Vegan meal at Orient Experience in Venice

With two locations, one in Campo Santa Margherita e one in Cannaregio, just outside the Jewish Ghetto, these are vegan friendly restaurants, which specify vegan dishes with a white dot on the menu.

Vegan Panna Cotta at Orient Experience in Venice

The cuisine is mainly from Afghan, but you can also find Pakistani dishes with Turkish influences or Iraqi dishes with traces of Greece. The idea behind Orient Experience is one of ethnic solidarity restaurants, aimed to help the refugees who arrive in Italy allowing them to tell their life and stories through their cuisine.

Vegan dish at Orient Experience in Venice

I love it because it is truly homemade style cuisine and pretty cheap!

Orient Experience, Rio Terà Farsetti, 1847, 30121 Cannaregio

Orient Experience 2, Campo Santa Margherita 2920, 30123 Dorsoduro

Frary’s

Photo by Frarys’ in Venice

Restaurant right in front of the Frari church with Arabic and Greek specialties, many dishes for vegetarians, vegans and celiacs, the cuisine is not strictly vegan, but the menu also includes in this case many specialties without animal derivatives. The place is nice and well furnished, and the dishes are excellent! Try the hummus, the tabbouleh with pomegranate, the babaganoush, the very spicy bean salad and the soups. All spiced with lots of cinnamon!

Frary’s, Fondamenta Frari, 2558, 30-125 San Polo

Wine Bar TeAmo

Photo by Wine bar Teamo in Venice

A well-kept and welcoming wine bar that combines warmth and modernity near Palazzo Fortuni and Campo Sant’Angelo. They offer a vegan and a gluten free menu. They make great vegan lasagna and vegan burgers! Great selection of Italian wines too.

Wine Bar TeAmo, Rio Terrà de la Mandola, 3795, 30100 San Marco

Punta Conterie Vetri

Vegan fine dining at Vetri Restaurant Punta Conterie in Murano

Located in the artistic hub of Punta Conterie in Murano, Vetri restaurant is a fine dining location offering a whole vegan menu of high quality! On the first floor of Punta Conterie, it offers a modern environment and a stunning panoramic terrace surrounded by water (at the crossroads between two canals) and two rooms for guests, one characterized by an antique fireplace, for a total of about 60 seats. Eclectic cuisine sitting among works of art, flowers, murrine and a breath-taking view of the Lagoon!

Vetri Ristorante Punta Conterie, Fondamenta Marco Giustinian, 1, 30141 Murano

I hope this will be a useful list for all vegan and non vegan visitors to Venice!