Portugal has been on everyone's mind lately, and we recently wrote about our experience living as digital nomads in Lisbon for two months.
During those two months, our main focus was to hunt down the best vegan food in Lisbon. We ended up eating at as many restaurants as we possibly could and even stumbled upon one of the best vegan cakes we've ever eaten! No lie.
Vegan Lisbon: Here Are The Best Vegan Restaurants in Lisbon
- Ao 26 Vegan Food Project
- Sama Sama
- Veganeats Caffe
- Primo Basilico
- Amorino
- Sagarmatha Momo Restaurant
What we came to realize is that even though the Portuguese are known for their meaty cuisine and custard tarts, Lisbon boasts plenty of options for the vegan traveler which is why it ended up on our list of the best digital nomad cities for vegans.
We tried many vegan restaurants in Lisbon, but these were the spots that really blew us away.
1. Ao 26 Vegan Food Project - All Vegan Restaurant in Lisbon
Ao 26 Vegan Food Project is one of the only all-vegan restaurants in Lisbon that offers a full menu. The restaurant is cozy with big beautiful archways and an open kitchen where you can watch the chefs at work. It is also immensely popular and always packed.
A0 26 might actually be one of the most popular restaurants in Lisbon - once we had to wait three days just to get a dinner reservation!
The menu is varied with vegan cheese boards, burgers, seitan steaks, and one or two local dishes, as well as a few desserts. They also serve locally produced wine and craft beers.
For the most part, the food is really good at Ao 26. The portions are also extremely generous. However, there were a few dishes from the menu that we did find a bit bland such as the cheese board.
Their desserts do deserve to be mentioned because they are both really well-made and filling, especially the Oreo cake!
What's cool with the owners of Ao 26 is that they're spearheading the vegan movement in Lisbon, and they are doing it well. Hopefully, they will inspire others to turn vegan and motivate more locals to open vegan restaurants in Lisbon.
Price range: €5.5 - €9 for appetizers and lunch, €9-€16 for dinner.
2. Sama Sama - Vegetarian Creperie Serving Vegan Food in Lisbon
Sama Sama is a new and welcome addition to the vegetarian and vegan food in Lisbon. This vegetarian creperie and juice bar got it names from the Indonesian phrase "you're welcome" or "same same."
Sama Sama serves food with an emphasis on organic and local produce, and although the place is vegetarian, there are plenty of vegan options. The batter used to make the crepes at Sama Sama is vegan which means you can choose from several sweet and savory crepes. Sama Sama also offers juices, craft beer, and they even have vegan cheese!
Unfortunately, Sama Sama is a tiny place so they don't have seating. But don't let that deter you, because Sama Sama is a must when eating vegan in Lisbon. We took our crepes to the nearby park and enjoyed them on a beautiful sunny day in Lisbon.
Price range: €8 - €10
3. Veganeats Caffe - Vegan Bakery and Coffee Shop
One of the best things we ate during our two months in Lisbon was the vegan chocolate cake from Veganeats Caffe. It is literally one of the best chocolate cakes we have ever eaten. It is moist and chocolaty with a layer of salted peanuts on top that takes the flavor to a new dimension.
In fact, the cake is so good that we ordered a full cake (12+ slices) to take home on more than one occation. No shame.
Veganeats Caffe also serves a few light breakfast and lunch options, including a tasty quiche with salad. The lady that runs the restaurant is very sweet and the girl that helps out in the kitchen is a true cake-magician.
Trust us, the cake is really that amazing and Veganeats also make other delicious desserts!
This little vegan restaurant in Lisbon can be quite hard to find. It is located on a small side street close to the Arroios metro station. Check their Facebook page or HappyCow for exact directions.
Price range: €4 for lunch and €18 for a chocolate cake.
4. Primo Basilico - Vegan Pizza in Lisbon
Vegan pizza by the slice. Served like in Italy. Do we need to say more?
This tiny little pizzeria in Alfama is run by Italians and their pizzas are great! They are not all-vegan but every time we visited they had a least 5 ready-made vegan options and there was always more cooking in the oven.
Primo Basilico typically serves 1-2 vegan pizzas with tomato sauce as a base and 2-4 white pizzas with tofu cheese.
All the vegan options are clearly marked but we recommend that you ask them if they're preparing anything else since you might be able to get fresh pizza straight from the oven. Sometimes they even have miniature vegan calzones!
The white pizzas are made with a combination of silk tofu and thinly sliced zucchini. The simple mix really mimics the texture of melted cheese and is delicious!
Primo Basilico is very small and they only have a few tables with plastic chairs next door where you can sit. Just don't expect table service or to linger for long - the place is popular and seats are in high demand. We recommend that you stop by for a few slices for lunch or a quick dinner.
Bonus tip: they serve Peroni which is a nice escape from Lisbon's somewhat limited alcohol selection. Is there a better way to enjoy an Italian slice of pizza than with an ice cold Italian beer? Don't think so.
Price range: €2-€3 for a slice or $1-€1.50 for a half slice.
5. Amorino - Vegan Ice Cream in Lisbon
You might have heard about Amorino before. They operate a few dozen shops spread out across Europe, North America, Asia, the Pacific Islands, and Africa. You could call them a modern day Gelato Empire!
Amorino is not fully vegan but have enough vegan options to suit anyone. Firstly, all of their fruit sorbets are vegan. In addition, they also make a vegan hazelnut gelato, a vegan chocolate gelato, a coconut gelato, and sometimes vegan versions of local flavors. Also, all of their cones are vegan. As you can see, the gelato is served in the shape of a rose which creates some perfect photo opportunities.
We tried to stop by as often as we could which wasn't so hard considering they have three separate locations in Lisbon alone!
Price range: €3.50 for a small, €4.50 for a medium, and €5.50 for a large.
6. Sagarmatha Momo Restaurant
Who would have ever thought that we would find some of the most authentic Nepalese momos outside of Nepal in Lisbon? We sure didn’t. The truth is that we didn’t just find one place that served good vegan momos in Lisbon, we found several of them.
When we first walked into Sagarmatha Momo Restaurant it felt like we had traveled right back to Nepal. Everything from the incense burning at the entrance to the pictures overlooking the Himalayas on the walls, the tiny tables with the tiny chairs, the smells, the sounds... everything was just like in Nepal.
It was a small dose of South Asia in the most unlikely place.
The food was great and incredibly authentic as well. Sagarmatha serves several combinations of momos along with samosas, curries, and naans.
The best part was that it was both cheap and located about a 10-minute walk from our apartment. It usually took us 20 minutes to get back due to the hill we had to climb and because of all the food we’d eaten that was slowing us down.
Price range: €3 for veg momos and €4.50 for chili momos.
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