Philadelphia keeps the cheesesteak in the signature mix at 6 venues, ahead of donut and wings at 5 each, but the essentials lean Soul Food and Caribbean with The Nile Cafe and Hibiscus Cafe leading. Triangle Tavern, Grindcore House, and Taco & Ramen round out the picks, with Milk Jawn taking ice cream and Fitz on 4th the burger spot, against 10-deep American and Mexican lineups.
Ranked by overall rating, signature dish strength, and how much reviewers praise the food. If you only have a weekend, start here.
Must go · #2 Try the vegan cheesesteak, especially the spicy version
Must go · #3 Don't miss the vegan buffalo wings, frequently called the best in Philly.
Must go · #4 Try the Grizzli breakfast sandwich with the best vegan biscuit
Must go · #5 Try the vegan tan tan ramen and tofu & eggplant tacos
Must go · #6 Try the vegan breakfast sandwiches, especially with vegan bacon or sausage
Try the herbed chevre cappellacci and savoy cabbage roll stuffed with oyster mushrooms
Must go · #8 Enjoy the wide selection of savory and sweet baked goods
Must go · #9 Try the chocolate chip cookie sandwich and pistachio cardamom bun
Must go · #10 
Must go · #11 
Must go · #12 
Must go · #13 Try the seitan wings, highly praised for texture and flavor
Must go · #14 
Must go · #15 Dishes ranked by how well this city's plant-based venues make them, compared to the other 157 cities we track.
6 places worth stopping for cheesesteak
Try the vegan cheesesteak, praised for flavor and portion size
Don't miss the vegan buffalo wings, frequently called the best in Philly.
Try the vegan cheesesteak, especially the spicy version
Try the vegan Philly cheesesteak sandwich with their vegan milkshake
5 places worth stopping for donut
Check daily social media posts for unique and special flavors
Donuts sell out quickly; arrive early or preorder to ensure availability
Arrive early as the shop often closes once sold out
Note that vegan donuts are fried in the same oil as non-vegan donuts
5 places worth stopping for wings
Don't miss the vegan buffalo wings, frequently called the best in Philly.
Try the seitan wings, highly praised for texture and flavor
Try the Double B burger and sweet potato fries
Try the vegan cheesesteak called "That Philly Jawn"
spinach · Vegan Food Guide All 418 Philadelphia venues on the map. Filter by what's open, save what you'd return for, get walking directions in two taps.
Completely plant-based kitchens. No swaps, no asking, no surprises.
Try the herbed chevre cappellacci and savoy cabbage roll stuffed with oyster mushrooms
Try the jerk drumsticks and BBQ chick'n for signature flavors
Try the Grizzli breakfast sandwich with the best vegan biscuit
Try the pincho sampler plate
Mainstream restaurants where the vegan side of the menu is treated seriously.
Try the vegan cheesesteak, especially the spicy version
Don't miss the vegan buffalo wings, frequently called the best in Philly.
Try the vegan tan tan ramen and tofu & eggplant tacos
Try the Hottie vegan cheesesteak for a flavorful spicy option
Open before 10, good coffee, the kind of place you walk back to on day two.
Try the Grizzli breakfast sandwich with the best vegan biscuit
Try the vegan breakfast sandwiches, especially with vegan bacon or sausage
Enjoy the wide selection of savory and sweet baked goods
Try the Jammed Yam dish, highly recommended
Weekday fuel and weekend stretches.
Try the pincho sampler plate
Try the jerk drumsticks and BBQ chick'n for signature flavors
Try the brown stew "chicken" platter with rice, pigeon peas, plantains, and callaloo
Try the Grizzli breakfast sandwich with the best vegan biscuit
The reason you planned the trip.
Date night. Birthday. Tell them you're celebrating.
Where the coffee is the reason to come.
Try the vegan donuts, get there early for best selection
Try the Celestial bagel with tempeh and non-dairy cream cheese
Try the vegan Philly muffin breakfast sandwich with hummus
Try the Govinda's chicken cheesesteak for a flavorful vegan twist
Ice cream, pastry, and the honest dessert case.
Try the pretzel bagel toasted with garlic chive cream cheese
Try the Earl Grey Honeycomb vegan ice cream
Try the Peanut Butter Honeycomb vegan ice cream flavor
Try the chocolate chip cookie sandwich and pistachio cardamom bun
Wifi, outlets, no judgement for a 3-hour sit.
Busy rooms with tables big enough for eight.
Try the herbed chevre cappellacci and savoy cabbage roll stuffed with oyster mushrooms
Try the pistachio baklava for dessert
Try the Nonna meatballs
Enjoy the vegan shawarma and moussakah
Menus kids recognize, staff who don't flinch at strollers.
Try the Hottie vegan cheesesteak for a flavorful spicy option
Try the vegan cheesesteak called "That Philly Jawn"
Try the vegan strawberry shortcake flavor
Highly recommend the tasting menu with wine pairing for a complete experience
Try the seitan tacos with vegan cheese
Try the customizable vegan grain bowls with tofu or mushroom protein
Try the cheesesteak empanadas with spicy ketchup
Enjoy the broad selection of board games with a helpful game master
Yes — Philadelphia has 418 vegan-ready venues. The top-ranked are The Nile Cafe, Hibiscus Cafe, Triangle Tavern. Spinach ranks them daily on overall rating, signature dish strength, and reviewer praise for the food.
Philadelphia scores 71.0/100 on the Spinach vegan city index. The city has 81 vegan-friendly venues and 104 high-quality restaurants out of 418 analyzed.
Philadelphia has 49 fully vegan restaurants and 8 vegetarian restaurants. 81 venues score B or higher on the Vegan Friendliness grade.
Philadelphia's top signature dishes for vegans are cheesesteak, donut, wings, and the city also does ice cream and salad well. Signature dishes are ranked by how the city's venues score against the other 157 cities we track.
The vegan scene in Philadelphia leans American, Asian, Mexican. American is particularly strong, with 10 venues serving quality plant-based options.
The Nile Cafe is ranked #1 in Philadelphia by the Spinach Essentials algorithm, which weights rating, signature dish performance, and reviewer praise. See all 15 Essentials for the full ranking.
Spinach ranks vegan venues using the same algorithm the mobile app runs: a composite of Google Maps rating, the Spinach Rating (Wilson-confidence scored), dish-quality Wilson scores from extracted review signals, and city-specific signature dish strength. Essentials add a tier weighting; category lists add their own mood/occasion weights. No pay-to-play.
The ranking refreshes daily from Supabase. The last refresh is stamped at the top of this page. Venue data comes from Google Maps, HappyCow, and Spinach's own review-analysis pipeline.
