Meat-free travel: vegetarian hits and misses

Here’s our pick of the perfect destinations for the best food without a face – and three for
vegetarians to avoid…

Singapore: heaven

From hectic hawkers’ markets to sophisticated specialist restaurants, the Southeast Asian
island state harbours a huge number of vegetarian eateries – well over 100, according to
www.happycow.net. In Singapore you’ll munch on the best of Asia’s great cuisines –
Malaysian, South Indian, the varied flavours of China – and specifically that blissful blend of
Nyonya (or Peranakan) cooking, rich with lemongrass, tamarind, galangal and coconut milk.
Though the cuisine isn’t specifically vegie, meat-free mains are nigh unbeatable – order a
vegie laksa lemak (spicy coconut noodle soup) to reach Nyonya nirvana.
India: heaven

Two words: thali and dosa – South India’s great gifts to the world. The first is an ubiquitous
all-you-can-eat feast: a thali can range from a few simple of curry, dhal (lentils) and rice on a
banana leaf to a half-dozen-plus chilli-tinged treats in special dimpled trays. The dosa is the
king of southern snacks, a rice-flour-and-lentil pancake that comes in countless varieties:
paper-thin and crispy, laced with onion, packed with spiced veg and dipped in soupy lentil
sambar. In South India, carnivores are the weirdos.

San Francisco: heaven

This is the city that has hosted the World Vegetarian Festival each year for a decade, a
fantastic destination for discerning vegetarians. Partly it’s the result of the embedded
counterculture ethos that’s simmered here for years, and partly the efforts of gastronomic
pioneers such as Alice Waters in promoting respect for fresh produce. What it means for
vegies is that you can tuck into anything from a vast Mission burrito to a five-course vegan
‘Aphrodisiac Dinner’ at stylish, inventive Millennium – all without a whiff of meat.

Morocco: heaven

Wander the narrow alleys of any souk and you’ll realise why Moroccan food is so tongue-
tingling: the carefully shaped, rainbow-hued piles of spices are dazzling. Be warned, however:
not all ‘vegetable’ dishes are necessarily meat-free, and the occasional bland number crops
up, but when it hits the mark dishes such as vegie tajine (fruit-sweetened stew slow-baked in a
conical earthenware pot) or couscous can be sensational. Add spicy harira soup for kick,
olives to snack on and hummus to dip, and you’re almost there. The test of a destination’s
culinary credentials is bread – and in Morocco, khubz is king.

Italy: heaven

Sure, it’s the spiritual home of pizza and pasta, but to discover Italy’s true culinary genius
plan a picnic. First, pick up bread – soft focaccia or thin, crispy Sardinian pane fresa. Market-
stall-hop for antipasto: olives, sun-dried tomatoes, marinated artichokes and peppers. Add a
lump of pecorino, taleggio or dolcelatte cheese, toss in a bottle of local red, and away you go.
And the best bit? Each region boasts divine local specialities – try truffles (black in Umbria,
white in Piedmont), asparagus from the Veneto and Sicilian capers.

Lebanon: heaven

Mezze magic! Why be limited to only one or two dishes when you can load a table with
scores of finger-food portions? This admirable philosophy reaches its apotheosis in Lebanon.
Dips, grains, marinated and cooked vegetables, stuffed leaves, fried pastries and salads…grab
some flat bread and start dunking and scooping. Our pick is baba ghanoush, humble eggplant
roasted and miraculously transformed with tahini, garlic and olive oil – voila: dipping delight.

Thailand: heaven

Like San Francisco, Thailand has a vegetarian festival. Unlike San Francisco, during the
vegetarian festival on Phuket – here called Kin Jay – devotees stick sharp spikes through their
cheeks. Quite what that has to do with vegetarianism is debatable, but the festival is also a
chance for ethnic Chinese Thais (and lucky visitors) to munch a dizzying array of faux-meat
dishes. The rest of the year, specifying that you’d like your meal jay (vegan) or mangasawirat
(vegetarian) gets you your favourite pad thai noodles, red curry or spicy papaya salad sans
animal.

Central Asia: hell

This little-travelled region may represent the global nadir for herbivores. As a rule, dishes on
the Asian steppes and mountains feature mutton or horse. You might happen on Kazakh
manti (steamed dumplings filled with meat), Kyrgyz besh barmak (boiled horsemeat with
noodles), lagman (noodles cooked in meat broth) or regional favourite plov (mutton,
horsemeat or beef fried with rice and carrots – in fat). If you’re vegan, forget it – chances are
if it’s not meat, it’s dairy. Is it worth it? Explore ancient Silk Road cities, roam vast steppes,
trace the Pamir Highway, then make up your own mind.

Argentina: hell

Meat rules across South America, so picking the least veg-friendly country is tricky.
Argentina gets the nod partly because of its prodigious meat consumption – a whopping 70kg
per person each year. In Buenos Aires and larger cities you can dodge the ubiquitous parrillas
(grill houses) and unearth some excellent vegetarian restaurants. But if you want to fall off the
wagon, this is the place for it. Pick a sharp knife, douse your carne de vaca (beef) with
chimichurri (olive oil with parsley and garlic) and get stuck in.

Germany: hell

Eating flesh-free in Europe is easy…in theory. In practice, you’ll need to stay sharp; many
chefs still seem to believe that chicken and ham sprout in vegetable patches. But it really pays
to be alert in Germany. Yes, Berlin boasts a wide selection of excellent vegetarian options in a
range of international cuisines, but all too often that pink dumpling in your soup is, yes,
bacon. Conversely, Teutonic food doesn’t get the acclaim it deserves, and for carnivores it’s a
treat. Wurst isn’t just sausage – it’s 1500 sausages, an almost infinite variety.

Every vegetarian traveller has a horror story to tell - what’s yours? Or do you belong in the ‘if
it moves, eat it’ category, whereby overseas travel frequently involves sampling extreme
cuisine? Go on, spill the beans (or should that be brains?)…

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Comments

1. 27 noiembrie 2009 9:28PM icantfindone Report this comment

 Morocco's bread is fantastic, but Man does not live on bread (and olives) alone. The
reality in Morocco is that a vegetarian will live on salads, french fries, and bread.
Outside of places that see tourists, Morocco is far from a vegetarian's paradise. The
concept is totally foreign. Vegetarian dishes often mean that the bits of meat are
picked out for you.

2. 28 noiembrie 2009 11:23AM giuri Report this comment

I'm not a vegetarian, but I think basically the whole American continent is hell for
them south of the Rio Grande

3. 28 noiembrie 2009 11:59AM martin2008 Report this comment

I agree with the first ones, yes South India is a vegetarian area of the world (whether
Western / Chinese vegetarians like local South Indian depends on their tastes as South
Indian food is sort of like monk food, religious and free from garlic too)

I disagree with Germany being on the Hell list...the reason being I went to Hamburg
and they have a lot more vegetarian snacks in the streets /railwaystration (such as brie
cheese sandwiches and spinach pizza slices) than in most other European countries.
Germany also has quite a few frozen veggie products in their supermarkets compared
with the Scandinavian countries up north of Germany....but of course England is the
Vegetarian strongold of Europe with tons of soya-meat products and ethnic restaurants
hehe

4. 29 noiembrie 2009 6:36AM mj42 Report this comment

Switzerland and Poland both have some very good veggie restaurants, and Spanish
restaurants often do all-you-can-eat buffets with plenty of vegetarian choices. Norway
and Sweden are pretty bad - fish with everything - but the worst of the lot has got to be
France. I know of one very good veggie restaurant there (Poeles de Carottes in
Strasbourg) and one fairly good one (Le Petit Legume in Paris) but it pretty much the
whole of the rest of the country the concept of vegetarianism is completely alien.

Best veggie restaurant I've ever been to, though, is Harmonija in Skopje. It's tucked
away in the basement of a nondescript shopping centre in a quiet side street and if it
hadn't been mentioned in LP I'd never have found it, but it's a fantastic place.

5. 29 noiembrie 2009 10:14AM rlissner Report this comment

Being a vegetarian in Israel is extremely easy and I am surprised it's not on this list
(although Lebanon is close enough). Because of religious reasons, a good chunk of
restaurants serve only meat or no meat at all, make it quite easy to find a strictly
vegetarian restaurant. Plus Levantine food in general (a la Lebanon) is often
vegetarian.

I'd say Iceland is one of the more difficult places to be vegetarian, at least
economically speaking. Since they have to import all of their produce, buying some
vegetarian snacks to compensate for meals still adds up quite quickly. It is possible to
 have a completely vegetarian experience in Reykjavik because there is a surprising
amount of vegetarian places there.

And since you singled out San Francisco, I'd definitely say to consider Toronto. The
cuisine is as diverse as imaginable and there is an annual vegetarian festival, too. You
can easily get Singaporean, Thai, Moroccan, Indian, Italian, and Lebanese food here
with no problem.

6. 29 noiembrie 2009 12:04PM mia_in_london Report this comment

I'd list Thailand as 'hell' unless you're ok with fish sauce in everything.

You can get amazing shojin ryori meals in Japan - two of the best (vegetarian) meals
of my life were in Tokyo. People may prepare special meals for you - but remind them
not to garnish the dish with fish as the habit is hard to break.

Vietnam is brilliant for vegetarians. Laos was also surprisingly good. I've only spent a
few days in Cambodia but it was a bit meh.

Germany - well, I've eaten an awful lot of Italian, Turkish and Indian meals in
Germany. East African restaurants are also good. To be fair, most of Europe can be
pretty hard going for vegetarians.

I found Morocco quite frustrating. It's really difficult to be sure that a dish doesn't
contain meat, and options are so limited that I quickly got bored.

Azerbaijan restaurants can be a lifesaver in places like Russia, with super tasty
vegetarian options.

I think Melbourne and Sydney are at least as good as San Francisco for vegetarians.

7. 29 noiembrie 2009 1:55PM yukitan Report this comment

Another vote against Morocco, the "veggie" tajine is often prepared with bones as a
base for the stock.

Cambodia had quite a few veg options and some of the best green curry I've ever had.

Do be careful in Japan, besides the ever present bonito flakes, you should specify that
your food be prepared with no meat or fish stock (dashi) as well as list the varieties of
meat you'd like to do without. Bacon is often considered a garnish, not a meat.

8. 30 noiembrie 2009 6:27AM talesfromthehaolife Report this comment

Trying to find vegetarian food in airports in the USA is by far the worst time I've had
as a veggie on the go. Even in places like L.A., where veggie food abounds in the city,
the airport was a sea of meat-products.

9. 30 noiembrie 2009 12:40PM emmamcm Report this comment

 Outback Australia: Hell Unless you know bushtucker plants and/or can survive on
chips alone. Chiko Roll anyone?

10. 1 decembrie 2009 5:26AM bd081098 Report this comment

I traveled to Spain last year and it was a challenge. Noticed a lot of restaurants
advertising jamon (ham). I've been a vegan for over nine years but had to conceded to
eating things I'm pretty sure were not when there. I didn't eat meat, dairy or eggs per
se; but did eat things like croissants that most likely had some dairy. This probably
explains why I returned to the U.S. a few pounds lighter. I did find an actual salad bar
in Madrid but the vegetables were a bit on the wilted side.

11. 1 decembrie 2009 11:45AM rose_m Report this comment

Spain is really hard. Jamon with everything. I spent weeks surviving on chips and
asparagus. When I got to Barcelona I went to the Mercat de la Bouqeria and there was
a stall heaped with fresh rocket and I almost fell on my knees in front of it.

12. 3 decembrie 2009 4:08AM hercules Report this comment

Who comes up with these lists? They must not be vegetarian. I nearly starved to death
in Thailand, they are NOT veg friendly, apart from the once yearly festival mentioned.
Cambodia was much easier.

Argentina was extremely easy to find veg food, as is Germany (as long as you stay in
the cities). Spain isn't that easy, nor is Italy. Unless you know for certain that the
cheese they use is rennet-free, then pizza, etc. is useless. For those of you not in the
know, rennet is a by-product they use in cheese, which comes from animal stomachs.
Unless the cheese specifically states that they use microbial (vegetarian) rennet, then
you are eating corpse.

13. 7 decembrie 2009 4:41AM owerram Report this comment

If anyone visits Trivandrum, Kerala you should visit the Arya Nivas near to the
railway station for super Masala Dosha, you will love it.

14. 8 decembrie 2009 11:57PM colino Report this comment

At home I am a strict vegetarian but on my travels I have to admit to letting my

standards slip. I don't transform into a carnivorous beast stuffing the first bacon buttie
that passes my radar, it's just that I have to be a little bit pragmatic about the food and
its veggie credentials.

At first I used to get stressed out about finding 100% veggie restaurants in the middle
of nowhere. I now relax a lot more and will eat some thing that is "meat-free" without
interrogating the poor waiter about its hidden ingredients.

Whilst it works most of the time the mishaps do happen. For example the delicious
tomato soup we had in Cambrils, Spain where lurking in the bottom like a deep sea
 creature was a lump of Black Pudding (or Blood Pudding). I obviously stopped eating
and politely left it saying I was full.

At the end of the day life's too short to worry about it. We can only do our best.

We didn't have to try too hard in India though. It's certainly the Number One
Vegetarian Heaven.

15. 30 decembrie 2009 4:43PM reviewers10 Report this comment

indian vegan food is much much more than only south indian dishes, for eg : the sheer
inventiveness of bengali/marathi/rajasthani/gujrati ( and i am sure elsewhere in the
country) vegan food is a revelation if only you know what to look for ....vegan food is
linked to our religion and other ancient traditions and isnt a life style fad therefore its
long and enduring and very evolved and not limited to any specific region only....

16. 2 ianuarie 2010 6:16PM fuzzyturtle11 Report this comment

I am surprised that Indonesia did not make this list. Tofu, tempeh, and veggie dishes
were some of the cheapest and most delicious i've had. Since i usually cooked my
dinner at hostels while i was traveling in europe, i was pleasantly surprised by the
amount of organic, non-gmo soya products available in grocery stores in south-west
germany, northern italy, and slovakia (bratislava specifically). If i did eat at a
restaurant, most 'vegetarian' options consisted of cheese or were totally drowning in
cheese. I am usually vegan at home, but my european diet was basically cheese, bread,
fruit, yogourt, and chocolate. I am going to have to agree with Colino; if you are
veggie/vegan you might want to relax your standards a little bit and not obsess about
every hidden animal product in order to have a more pleasant holiday. I should also
add that vancouver is an excellent veggie city and restaurants are very accomodating
to vegan requests!

17. 27 ianuarie 2010 4:09PM ore0cookies Report this comment

Philippines is very hard for veggies, the staple is bbq meat (oh yes) and white rice.
There are a couple of gems (check out happycow.com) and a fantastic vegan kebab
with spicy roast potatoes in Dumaguete's "Boston Cafe". These places however, are
few and very far between.

If you can find accommodation with a kitchen (Citadel Alona Inn in Pangloa is a
brilliant cheap, clean option) stock up on fresh veg from the market or local "surry
surry" store and get cooking - it really is the best way to eat in Philippines (even the
bread here has lard in it!).

Alternatively stay with a Philippino family...we've enjoyed a multitude of vegan

delights the past couple of days..."adobo" made with green beans and "magic meat"
(Philippino TVP/Soya chunks), "lumpia" spring rolls and "puncit" fried noodles . Eat
this stuff anywhere else without doubt you'll find bits of meat and fish lurking around
especially as most local meals are pre-cooked.

18. 31 ianuarie 2010 4:09PM namyangjubadger Report this comment

 South Korea = hell

There is no word for vegetarian in the Korean language. All dishes center around
meat. Try to order something without meat and it will show up with some other kind
of meat in it. I've also ordered a veggie dish and had a waitress refuse to serve it to me
b/c she didn't think it was any good and gave me a pot of beef instead.

Absolute veggie hell. Perhaps the few Buddhist restaurants saved it from this list.

19. 2 februarie 2010 9:30PM cianjb Report this comment

Ethiopia is heaven for veggies. For Ethiopian Christians (about half the population,
depending on who you ask) fasting means abstaining from animal products, and
Wednesday, Friday and a whole host of feast days are all compulsory fasting days. For
vegetarians, just say you're fasting every time you order - they'll be impressed at your
devoutness, and you'll be stuffed!

20. 2 februarie 2010 11:23PM durvasi Report this comment

Morocco is certainly not a vegetarian's paradise! I was eating bread and olives,
tomatoes and avocado most of the time. Cous-cous is always cooked with meat, even
if they don't put the meat in your plate.There are certain traditional soups without meat
but they are difficult to come across in the little eateries you find when travelling.
Curiously, in an expensive restaurant in Fes they served a lot of delicious vegetarian
dishes as an aperitif before the meal but they were not part of the menu.

21. 3 februarie 2010 12:04AM rlissner Report this comment

Being a vegetarian in Morocco, Spain, and Buenos Aires is a joke.

When I travelled in Morocco, I drank orange juice and ate about five types of bread on
a daily basis. The only time I had a satisfying vegetarian meal (as in a meal and not a
hodgepodge of foods) was when I stayed at someone's house and they prepared a
vegetarian tajine for me.

Barcelona and Buenos Aires has ham in everything and it is definitely a challenge to
find a good vegetarian meal. I went to one vegetarian restaurant in Barcelona and was
so disappointed.

Here in Buenos Aires, there are a handful of vegetarian restaurants, which I am so, so
thankful for, but vegetarian meals at non-veggie restaurants are pretty miserable.
While I can't vouch for the Argentine meat, I have to admit that the rest of the food
here is pretty insipid. The ice cream, however, is by far the best on this side of the
world.

22. 3 februarie 2010 3:59PM aleerak14 Report this comment

"Who comes up with these lists? They must not be vegetarian. I nearly starved to
death in Thailand, they are NOT veg friendly" from Hercules
 Not true! I have been to Thailand many, many times and have no problem eating
vegetarian there.

My tip is to get a local to write in Thai: "I am a vegetarian. I don't eat meat. I don't eat
fish. No fish sauce. No shrimp paste." on a piece of paper and show it to the staff at
the restaurant you are at. They are usually very accommodating...

There are many vegetarian/veggo friendly restaurants in Thailand. Cabbages and

Condoms in Bangkok is one of my favourites and I visit it every time I'm in Bangkok.
There's also a street vendor in Soi Rambutri (near Khao San Road) that does a vast
array of vegetarian meals for 30 baht. My last day there I tried 3 different dishes that
were all vegetarian and tasted delicious!

23. 4 februarie 2010 11:57PM 1cinnamon Report this comment

France = Hell, Germany = Heaven

France is clearly hell, especially for non-French speakers seeking vegetarian food in
this non-veg paradise. With the exception of Asian/African quarters (such as the one
close to the Paris Gare du Nord), it is almost impossible to get anything vegetarian.
The haute cuisine restaurants are of course out of the question as they will dismiss you
with their suave french.. searching for a veggie sandwich will bring you as much
success in France as on the moon. Even at the Pizza joints, you get no deal, unless you
find an Italian (boss or worker), who can sympathize with your dietary limitation.

Germany, in comparison is heaven. There's tonnes of Turkish joints (not to mention

the pizza places and asian eateries) and it appears that even the (trendy) locals don't
mind going veggie occasionally.. also, most city-centre places sport a veggie dish on
the menu cards.

24. 2 aprilie 2010 7:01PM wanppin Report this comment

Do you have further information for vegan?

I found it is easy to find vegetarian food, but very difficult to find vegan food when I
went travelling in Italy. They mix eggs with flour when making pasta and pizza. And
they use cuttlefish or other animal products to die their pasta.

25. 13 august 2010 3:16AM helenatm Report this comment

France = hell Germany= heaven

Totally agreein. It was horrible to get nice vegan food even in Paris. In Germany you
get everywhere something pretty good.

26. 10 decembrie 2010 9:21PM dismeri Report this comment

In fact, i'm spanish and it's not so hard being a vegan here. (I've been living in
different places in Spain). There are lots of veggie restaurants, and there are also lots
of "tapas" that are vegetarian. (The speciality almost everywhere is not "jamón", but
 "papas bravas" (spicy potatos) or spanish omelet or mushrooms... Of course if you go
to touristic places it will be "jamón" everywhere, that's true... But in Madrid I eat out a
lot and you can go for example to a vegan chinese "eat all you can" or other very
different vegetarian places. Just one tip: try to walk a little so you can get to a less
touristic zone...

*Well, maybe on the north-west of Spain is harder to get good veggie meals...

27. 23 decembrie 2010 1:37AM leslietravel Report this comment

I disagree with your classification of Argentina as a vegetarian's "hell." I'm a

vegetarian and lived there for a year without major problems. There are pizza and
empanada places on every single block, and there are almost always vegetarian salads
or "diet" options on the menu. The supermarkets are ultra modern and well stocked
with vegetarian staples (including soy milanesa). I'd add Laos to the "hell" category,
since outside of tourist towns like Van Vieng vegetarianism seems to be a foreign
concept. Few people speak English, so it's hard to communicate dietary needs.

28. 23 decembrie 2010 6:46AM santafetraveler Report this comment

Gere is a list of vegetarian restaurants in Argentina.

http://www.happycow.net/south_america/argentina/buenos_aires/

29. 22 ianuarie 2011 10:39AM d6ams Report this comment

I have spent a lot of time in Germany over the last ten years and have experienced the
huge plate of boiled veggies on occasion. More often, however, I have been pleasantly
surprised by the most excellent veggie food available. And in asparagus and
mushroom season, there are few places better.