When we’re home, we try to eat whole food, plant-based as much as possible: no animal products and very little processed food (which means avoiding white flours, added sugar, and oil). When we’re traveling, we have to be a little more flexible. We aren’t flexible about animal products, and we’ll go for the healthier options when they’re available (whole grains, fruits, and vegetables), but if our only options have some added oil and sugar, we’re not going to stress about it. For us, we’d rather let go of the added stress of food complications, both for us and for the restaurants, particularly since it’s very occasional.
A couple of weeks ago, we were at a hotel (which was not close to a town or restaurant options) and the restaurant had no vegan options for breakfast or dinner. But we told the servers in each case we were vegan (for us, using “vegan” makes communicating “no animal products” easier) and they were able to put together great options for us. For breakfast, we had potatoes (cooked in oil), whole grain toast (no butter), oatmeal (skip the brown sugar and milk, but with added fruit).
For dinner, they created a green salad for us with tons of vegetables (the restaurant had two salads on the menu, but neither was vegan) and we had that with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. They also made up a great pasta with vegetables (a pasta in a cream sauce was on the menu, so we asked if they could toss it with olive oil instead; you could also ask for pasta with white wine.) The server told us the pasta chef was excited to be able to use her creativity to come up with something for us.
During another hotel stay, we created a room service breakfast tacos by asking for corn tortillas, breakfast potatoes, salsa, sliced avocado, sauteed vegetables, and black beans. (We read through the menu to see what they had in the kitchen.)
When we take road trips, we try to pack some back up food. Below are a bunch of ideas for snacks and meals and for items you can pick up at a grocery store along the way. Sometimes, you might end up eating from a chain or fast food restaurant too. The end of this post has links to vegan options for just about every place you might come across in your travels.
Apps/sites:
Equipment ideas:
- Car coolers
- Cutting board and knife
- Ziplock (or similar) bags
- Utensils, napkins, wet wipes
- Collapsible bowls
- Travel blender (if you want to make smoothies on the road)
- Travel kettle
Items for cooler:
- Plant-based milks (in shelf-stable boxes, keep in cooler just to keep cool)
- Bread or pita to make sandwiches:
- Nut butters
- Chickpea salad
- Eggless salad
- Hummus and veggies (carrots, cucumber, bell pepper, lettuce, onions…)
- Avocado, cucumber, and tomato (chopped)
- Condiments (mustard)
- Vegan packaged food (deli and cheese slices)
- Tortillas to make wraps filled with salads:
- Avocado, endive, pistachio
- Lentil and brussels sprouts
- Cucumber quinoa
- Mediterranean quinoa (omit feta or use vegan version)
- Lebanese lentil
- Thai noodle
- Dijon-lime quinoa
- Buffalo chickpea wraps
- Curried chickpea
- Salsa and canned beans with pop up tops (the latter doesn’t need a cooler)
- For smoothies:
- nut milk
- protein powder
- fruit (strawberries, blueberries…)
- greens
- ice
Items that don’t need a cooler:
- Carrot cake cupcakes
- Banana walnut muffins
- Protein energy bars
- Cereals and oats (add fruit and milk) and spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, date syrup…)
- Granola
- Fruits (bananas, apples, pears)
- Veggies (tomatoes, cucumbers
- Nuts (almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios)
- Canned beans with pop up tops and shelf-stable rice (from the Asian food aisle) – add canned tomatoes or salsa and other veggies (could add canned green beans, for instance)
- Precooked rice packets and canned tomatoes (can eat room temperature or heat by putting rice packet in hot water; the liquid from the tomatoes will loosen up the rice; can add salsa, beans, etc.)
- Dried fruit
- Trail mix
- Cookies:
- Smoothie packets:
- Popcorn
- McDougall’s soups (just add hot water)
- Starbucks Via (not really related to plants)
See also:
Vegan on the Road: How I’ve Eaten Healthier than Ever While Driving Across the Country
Road Trip Food: Eating Healthy in the Car without Pulling Over
Vegan ROAD TRIP! (Whole Food, Plant-based & Oil-free)
How the Mind Body Green Founders Travel With Their Baby
Fast food with vegan options:
Try These Vegan Fast Food and Chain Restaurant Options on the Go
20 Meatless and All-Vegan Options You Can Find at Popular Fast Food Chains
Fast Food Menu Hacks for Vegans
What to Order at Fast Food Restaurants if You’re Vegan
- Taco Bell
- Chipotle
- Del Taco
- Baja Fresh
- Moe’s Southwestern Grill
- On the Border
- Qdoba
- El Pollo Loco
- Pancheros Mexican Grill
- Taco Time
- Domino’s Pizza
- Papa John’s Pizza
- Pizza Hut
- Little Caesar’s Pizza
- Mellow Mushroom
- Subway
- Quizno’s
- Blimpie
- White Castle
- Johnny Rockets
- Brugger’s Bagels
- Panera
- Au Bon Pain
- Boston Market
- Jason’s Deli
- Mimi’s Cafe
- Olive Garden
- California Pizza Kitchen
- Macaroni Grill
- Red Robin
- Noodles and Company
- PF Chang’s
- IHOP
- Denny’s
- Cheesecake Factory
- Baskin-Robbins
- Bennigan’s
- BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse
- Blaze Pizza
- Claim Jumper
- Cracker Barrel
- The Daily Grill
- Chili’s
- Iron Skillet
- Kona Grill
- Starbucks
- World Wrapps
- Pita Pit
- Yard House
- Old Spaghetti Factory
- Buca di Beppo
- Wendy’s
- TGI Fridays
- Outback Steakhouse
Limited Options:
- Burger King – veggie burger isn’t vegan; fries are
- Hardee’s/Carl’s Jr – most buns aren’t vegan (although veggie burgers are), but you could do a lettuce wrap; fries are vegan
- Jack in the Box – no veggie burgers or buns; potato options and black beans are vegan
- Chick-Fil-A – only salads can be made vegan
- Ruby Tuesday – can find vegan options at the salad bar
- Buffalo Wild Wings – veggie burger isn’t vegan; salads can be made vegan
- Dairy Queen – only salad and drinks
- Dickey’s BBQ – only sides
- Applebees – salad only
- KFC – sides only
- In n Out – fries only
- Five Guys – fries only
- Jimmy Johns – bread is not vegan
- McDonalds
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