Our local food scene is as vibrant as ever, so it’s no surprise there are a slew of local chefs serving up fresh, vegetarian bites across town. From vegetarian burgers to scrumptious vegan ramen, here are some restaurants serving up meat-free fare in Indianapolis.
🥕 100% plant-based
10th Street Diner, 3301 E. 10th St. | This delicious diner offers all the classics, minus the meat. Order from a rotating list of specials, plus grab brunch food and plenty of dessert choices.
Burgeezy, 335 W. 9th St., Ste. D. | Inside of the AMP at 16 Tech is this vegan burger spot, serving up Beyond and Impossible patties, plus sides like seitan or cauliflower wings. Bonus: Grab breakfast Friday + Saturday mornings.
🍊 The brunch bunch
Soulshine Vegan Café, 6516 Ferguson St. | Kickstart your morning with the all-vegan loaded burrito and a specialty latte. It also has rotating chia seed puddings that will keep you coming back for more.
Cafe Patachou, multiple locations | Voted one of Bon Appetit’s Ten Best Places for Breakfast in the Country, this spot has several vegan options on its brunch menu. We recommend the vegan omelette made with a garbanzo flour “crepe,” hummus, and cashew ricotta.
🌮 Food trucks
Good Vegan, Bad Vegan, 2401 N. Harding St. | This food truck will hit the spot. If we were to order for you, we’d get the raw tacos made with a spicy kale salad.
Nacho Mama’s Food Truck | This truck has all your cravings — vegan nachos and tacos as well as vegetarian options like the Holy Guacamole Nachos, made with queso blanco and Spanish rice.
Black Leaf Vegan | This family-owned restaurant that specializes in plant-based products has food truck roots. Its vegan loaded nachos are a fan favorite.
🍔 For the vegan carnivore
Abyssinia Ethiopian Restaurant, 5352 W. 38th St. | This spot was the “2021 Vegan Best of Indy Winner” at Indy VegFest. You can’t go wrong with a combination plate.
Shoyu Shop, inside Strangebird, 128 S. Audubon Rd. | The Japanese-inspired comfort food from Shoyu is served up at Strangebird Wed.-Sat. from 5-10 p.m., with vegan options available for most menu choices. So. Much. Ramen.
Tlaolli, 2830 E. Washington St. | Vegan items include jackfruit tacos, Hibiscus flower tacos, and the NoNoNo taco (no meat, no dairy, no gluten). Tamales fans can also find the NoNoNo tamal.
Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, 1340 E. 86 St. | Falafel + portobello mushrooms are offered as protein choices to make stuffed pita, salads, and rice bowls.
🍄 Bring it home
Mrs. Murry’s Naturals, 2432 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St. | If you want to maximize your time together at home, consider stopping by Cleo’s Bodega and Café to pick up a Cinnabomb cake or some chili.
4 Birds Bakery, 1058 Virginia Ave. | Granola, crackers, and cookies are just a few 4 Birds’ products sold all over town, at its storefront in Fountain Square, or available for online order.
Cluster Truck, delivery only | The to-go kitchen offers vegetarian mains like the spiced chickpea bowl, Mediterranean wrap, and chickpea wrap. Bonus: The Cluster Truck menu will tell you what’s vegan and what’s vegetarian.
Brewer Bakes, 2442 Central Ave. | Get vegan cookies delivered in flavors like snickerdoodle, sunbutter and carob chip.
🍽️ Chef it up at home
Check out our favorite tips and tricks for serving veggie-focused fare from your own kitchen:
- To make zucchini, carrot, or beet noodles, try a veggie spiralizer that magically turns vegetables into noodles.
- Tired of wasting money on spices you use once? Broth Bomb combines all the spices you need for a flavorful meal.
- Harness the power of fresh and high-quality spices from James Beard Award-winning chef Meherwan Irani.
- A tofu press draws out water and can help tofu firm and crisp up once you cook it — the one linked here is dishwasher safe + works in twenty minutes.
- If your least favorite part about veggie prep is chopping, this all-in-one vegetable chopper can minimize prep time.
- Use a sprouting jar kit to grow microgreens and sprouted beans at home.
- If you’re making fresh bread, this Sourhouse starter jar was designed to be the easiest-to-clean sourdough starter jar in the world.
- For the ultimate veggie food prep, this glass storage container set keeps lunches and leftovers organized.
- Need some good recipes? Browse cookbooks “Inspiralized: Turn Vegetables into Healthy, Creative, Satisfying Meals” for veggie spiral recipes, “The Blue Zones Kitchen: 100 Recipes to Live to 100” for plant-based ideas, or “The Complete Plant-Based Cookbook” from America’s Test Kitchen
Pro tip: Indy VegFest has a whole map dedicated to plant-based meals around the city — check it out here.
