Your guide to plant-based dining in Singapore
With such a selection of vegan and vegetarian restaurants popping up around Singapore, it’s never been a better time to go meat-free! From hearty veggie burgers and fine-dining fusion to vegan ice cream and all-raw vegan dishes, here are 20 plant-based places to eat in all corners of the island. #1 Tea Villa Café
This vegetarian café serves up a wide range of cuisines – from Indian, Mexican and Lebanese to Italian and IndianChinese fusion – with vegan, gluten-free, and onion- and garlic-free options available as well. There’s really something for everyone, making it an easy go-to for meat-free meals.
Whether you’re in the mood for pizza and pasta, tacos or garlic fried rice, the menu is vast, so there’s always something new to try. The French fries options alone are overwhelming (in a good way!) with six types to choose from, including a peri peri variety. We’re also really digging the dedicated page of eggless Belgian waffles – the 10 options include bananacaramel, Nutella, Oreo and sizzling waffles with chocolate sauce. You’ll also find a selection of eggless cakes, ice cream and other desserts.
Aside from the delicious food, the restaurant’s got a selection of over 100 teas – everything from fruit to herbal to Indian milk teas with spices.
97 East Coast Road
8518 4250 | facebook.com/teavillacafesingapore
#2 The Living Café
This Bukit Timah-based café is another mainstay on Singapore’s raw vegan scene. The whole idea here is to fully maximise food’s vitamins and minerals by consuming them raw rather than compromising their health-promoting qualities through the cooking process. All dishes are free of dairy, preservatives, artificial additives, refined sugars and red meat. While these guys do serve a small amount of white meat and fish, the majority of menu items are raw vegan. We’d suggest the avocado cucumber soup with chilli and lemon, and the build-your-own taco boats with raw walnut “meat”, guacamole and mango salsa. For dessert, don’t miss the range of raw cheesecakes and chocolates.
779 Bukit Timah Road
6468 4482 | thelivingcafe.com
#3 Whole Earth
This Peranakan-Thai vegetarian spot in Tanjong Pagar is a firm favourite with those who work in or frequent the neighbourhood. Popular dishes include assam pedas vegetables (a “sour and spicy” Peranakan dish), addicting olive rice, and bestseller Sambal King – okra, eggplant and long beans – to name a few.
76 Peck Seah Street
6221 6583 | wholeearth.com.sg
#4 Daehwa
Like its sister restaurant, The Boneless Kitchen in Tai Seng, this recently opened eatery serves meatless Korean fusion cuisine using plant-based ingredients; think kimchi soup, bulgogi mushroom stew, bibimbap made with tofu, and vegetable dumplings – yum!
#01-35 Galaxis Building, 1 Fusionopolis Place 6254 8446 | daehwavegetarian.com
#5 Afterglow by Anglow
This cosy vegan café is one of the original vegan hotspots in town. Its healthy menu features a mix of raw and cooked dishes. Highlights include the raw lasagne – layers of zucchini sheets with walnut minced “meat”, cashew cream cheese, dehydrated cherry tomatoes and herb pesto – the Cuban burger with a three-bean patty, flaxseed, purple cabbage slaw, tomato salsa and guacamole, and the signature avocado kimchi rolls. Dessert fans should definitely try the raw chocolate salted caramel fudge, made with avocado mousse, tahini layer, honey, pressed organic coconut oil, and a medjool date and walnut crust.
24 Keong Saik Road
6224 8921 | afterglow.sg
#6 Café Salivation
This vegetarian café in Little India has been serving up Western (mostly Italian and Mexican) cuisine with subtle Indian influences for over a decade. There’s a vast menu of pizzas (the paneer pizza topped with fresh cottage cheese, tomatoes, olives and raisins sounds interesting!), pastas, burgers and enchiladas, alongside a variety of eggless and gluten-free desserts.
176 Race Course Road
6298 1412 | cafesalivation.com
#7 Project Açaí
Health nuts with a sweet tooth will love this açaí superfood café, which offers low-sugar, gluten-free and vegan açaí bowls and smoothies, packed with flavour and antioxidants. Start with a blended Sambazon açaí base, and layer on all sorts of healthy toppings like fresh fruit, raw cocoa nibs, coconut shavings, goji berries, chia seeds, granola and bee pollen. Pronounced ah-sigh-ee, the superfood, which comes straight from the Amazon rainforest, is packed with antioxidants, fibre and omega 3, 6 and 9, and is known to help prevent heart disease and cancer, increase energy levels and help delay signs of ageing. You can find Project Açaí in Holland Village, VivoCity, Orchard and Katong. project-acai.com
#8 Loving Hut
This East Coast café does vegan versions of popular local dishes – think “three-cup chicken rice” (with vegan chicken meat), sesame “chicken” clay-pot rice, char siew and vegan laksa lemak – as well as vegan burgers, pasta and other Western food.
229 Joo Chiat Road, #01-01
6348 6318 | lovinghut.com.sg
#9 Wholesome Savour
This casual Orchard-based vegan resto specialises in the preparation of nutrient-dense functional food. The menu has been carefully curated by in-house nutritionists, dieticians, TCM doctors and naturopathic doctors to ensure optimal health benefits and nutrient absorption. Each dish is free of gluten, cholesterol, trans fats, additives, dairy, preservatives and pesticides. Among the many dishes to choose from are the burrito bowl – quinoa with cashew sour cream, chipotle black beans, diced mango, avocado, pico de gallo, dehydrated chips and mycoprotein “chicken” – zucchini noodle and spinach carbonara, and fishless otah nasi lemak with mycoprotein “fish”. And, if you don’t want to dine in, Wholesome Savour delivers!
Palais Renaissance 390 Orchard Road, #B1-06A
6736 0288 | wsavour.com
#10 Joie by Dozo Restaurant
Located on the rooftop garden at Orchard Central, Joie (“Joy”) by Dozo Restaurant offers modern meatless fine dining. Choose from an elaborate six-course lunch ($39.80) or seven-course set dinner ($69.80) consisting of contemporary dishes with Japanese-European flavours.
#12-01 Orchard Central, 181 Orchard Road
6838 6966 | joierestaurant.com.sg
#11 Genesis Vegan Restaurant
You likely wouldn’t stumble upon this place, as it’s tucked deep inside the basement of a rather empty mall. But it’s worth seeking out if you’re looking for Western and Chinese specialties done in vegan form. Don’t miss ordering the dumplings – they’re delish! Other firm favourites include the “chicken” rice and Nonya laksa.
Havelock II #B1-01, 2 Havelock Road
6438 7118 | facebook.com/genesisvegan
#12 Real Food
Apart from serving vegetarian dishes, Real Food – which has outlets at Orchard Central, Oasia Hotel Novena and 26 South Beach Road – makes a point of avoiding processed ingredients, artificial preservatives and trans fats. Fan favourites include the beet burger, steamed dumplings, and spicy tom yam soup with tofu, eggplant, mushrooms and pineapple, to name a few. For kids, they’ve got mini sourdough pumpkin pancakes, crispy veggie nuggets and a mushroom burger. realfoodgrocer.com
#13 Elemen
This veg restaurant chain offers a modern interpretation of meatless cuisine with Chinese, Japanese and Western influences from lasagne and quinoa salad to Asian curry with crispy roti and a wild mushroom and truffle pizza. Don’t miss the five-course set for $26.80, or the eight-course set for $32.80! There are outlets at HarbourFront Centre, Millenia Walk and Paya Lebar Quarter, plus a new Elemen Classic outlet at Great World City, which offers a selection of Elemen’s most popular dishes. elemen.com.sg
#14 NomVnom
This vegan fast-food chain offers over 20 different vegan burgers with patties made from soy, tempeh, jackfruit, potato or vegetables; the Beetroot Hummus burger has a mushroom patty, for instance, and the Terrific Light burger is cauliflower-based. It’s also got vegan soups, sides and a range of desserts including six- and eight-inch vegan cakes for purchase. If you can’t make it to the Clarke Quay or Tai Seng locations, you can order online – they deliver island-wide! nomvnom.com
#15 Veganburg
Meat-free burgers can be tasty too! This is especially true at Veganburg, where they come in flavours like char-grilled satay, featuring rich Asian peanut sauce drizzled over a grilled soy patty, and smoky barbecue, which comes with a delish mushroom patty. Go with a bun, or get your burger in a lettuce wrap instead. Visiting with friends? Order a side of creamy garlic fries or spinach pops with ranch dressing to share. 44 Jalan Eunos
6844 6868 | veganburg.com
#16 Original Sin
This long-time favourite in Holland Village is known for its vegetarian Middle Eastern and Italian cuisine, and for good reason. Everything here is fantastic – from the mezze platter with hummus, pumpkin and carrot dip, beetroot and almond dip, falafel, tzatziki and pita, to the moussaka – baked layers of eggplant, potato, tomato and lentils with Middle Eastern spices. We also love the Principessa salad with pumpkin, avocado, asparagus, mushroom, French beans, bocconcini and balsamic, and – one of our personal favourites – the Kashmir pizza with bocconcini, mozzarella, hummus, onion, asparagus, tofu, cherry tomatoes and tandoori sauce. #01-62 Chip Bee Gardens, 43 Jalan Merah Saga
6475 5605 | originalsin.com.sg
#17 Smoocht
We’ll take ice cream any way it comes, including its vegan incarnation at Smoocht (previously called Brownrice Italian Vegan Ice Cream & Kitchen). Here, the ice cream is made from organic brown rice milk and evaporated cane juice. The shop serves flavours like hazelnut, Nutella, Earl Grey and French chocolate, mint, coconut and matcha, among others ($3.50 per scoop) – we’d recommend getting yours on a waffle!
• #01-03 Sin Ming Centre, 8 Sin Ming Road
• 319 Jurong East Street, #01-58 smoocht.com
#18 Sufood
Hailing from Taiwan, this vegetarian chain offers a selection of pasta, pizza, rice and salad dishes. For lunch, there are fourcourse ($25.80), six-course ($31.80) and eight-course ($36.80) set meals available, though you can order à la carte, too. Popular picks include the five-grain rice with black truffles and mushrooms, avocado and macadamia salad, and wild mushroom charcoal tagliatelle.
#02-19 Raffles City Shopping Centre, 252 North Bridge Road
6333 5338 | sufood.com.sg
#19 Teng Bespoke
If you like Japanese food but want to go meatless, not to worry! This place serves vegan sashimi (prawn, salmon, squid, scallop and tuna) that looks just like the real thing. They’ve also got maki rolls to satisfy your sushi cravings, with the avocado maki considered a firm favourite. The menu’s also got salads, noodle dishes, hand rolls and more.
91 Bencoolen Street tengbespoke.com
#20 Soul ALife
This eatery serves a fully plant-based menu that’s free of cholesterol, trans fats, MSG and palm oil. In addition to all-day brunch items like avocado toast with tofu feta and tofu scramble on toast, popular mains include the teriyaki burger made with a mushroom patty and accompanied by sweet potato fries, and the Buddha Bowl with roasted veggies, quinoa, edamame, chickpeas, purple slaw, tomatoes, turmeric cauliflower, marinated tofu and beetroot hummus.
#02-40 Changi City Point, 5 Changi Business Park, Central 1 soulalifesg.com