15 Things Vegans Absolutely Have to Eat in Leeds

100% meat and dairy free, 100% delicious and on a menu near you!

Whether you’re new to veganism, you’re just trying it out or you’ve been plant-based for years, chances are there’s something on this list you haven’t tried yet. You’ve got plant-based chippy teas (battered sausage and all), warming vegan curries, stacks of fluffy, American pancakes and more for you to try. It’s time to start eating your way through the list!

Raghda Pethis at Bundobust

One of Leeds’ favourite vegan dishes, the Raghda Pethis from Bundobust is a little bowl of happiness. It’s a potato cake cooked on a hot plate, plunged in a Bundo-spiced gravy of mushy marrowfat peas. On top, they’re generous with the crispy sev, chopped red onion, tomato and sour tamarind chutney. Dive straight in and break through all the layers, then soak up the gravy with a couple of okra fries.

Bundobust, 6 Mill Hill, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 5DQ.

Harissa Roast Cauliflower at Banyan

One of the vegan highlights of Banyan’s wide-ranging menu is their Harissa Roast Cauliflower. A bed of herb-strewn couscous is loaded high and wide with generously sized cauliflower steaks that have been chargrilled to perfection in a fragrant harissa seasoning. This is a flavour explosion that’s only just getting started – the steaks are blanketed in a warming Moroccan spiced tomato sauce, topped with minted yoghurt, toasted almonds and pomegranate.

Banyan, 2 City Square, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 2ES & 62 Street Lane, Roundhay, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS8 2DQ.

Voner Kebab at I Am Doner

The humble kebab gets a vegan makeover at I Am Doner. They stuff their homemade flatbreads with all sorts of yumminess, including delicious seitan doner meat – and it’s really close to the real thing. You can customise it too. Roast veg? Check. Hot as hell chilli sauce? Hot-as-hell yes! No coriander? Eat on without the offending soap-tasting herbs. Add in the falafel for a kebab that can barely contain itself.

I am Doner, 14a Infirmary Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 2JP & I am Doner, 23 Otley Road, Headingley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS6 3AA.

Texas Jack Hot Dog at Fat Annie’s

Fat Annie’s is a 100% plant-based street food kitchen, serving American-style grub like mouth-watering hot dogs, piled-high burgers and creamy milkshakes, but it’s The Texas Jack you have to try. It starts with an organic tofu frankfurter that’s been given a deliciously smoky flavour with beech wood. It’s popped into a soft bun and topped with spicy jackfruit chilli, gooey vegan cheese and crumbled-up nachos.

Fat Annie’s, Street Food Kitchen, Leeds Kirkgate Market, 34 George Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS2 7HY.

What’s The Quack? Pizza at Dough Boys

If you ever thought a crispy duck pancake would be better with a bit of cheese, the plant-based What’s The Quack? Pizza from Dough Boys should be on your list of things to eat in Leeds. The base is stretched by hand on the day, before being decorated with mock duck, vegan mozzarella and pickled cucumber. All this is generously drizzled with hoisin sauce, spring onion and toasted sesame seeds.

Dough Boys, Belgrave Music Hall, 1-1A Cross Belgrave Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS2 8JP.

Green Ramen at House Of Fu

The Green Ramen at House of Fu is practically luminescent. Luckily, it tastes as good as it looks. The broth is made from shiitake dashi mixed with sesame and spinach tare, making it bright green. Soaking it all in, you’ll find Tokyo noodles, chashu-cooked kohlrabi (a type of turnip), crunchy enoki mushroom, roast tomato and leafy pak choi. A dash of burnt garlic oil and a sprinkling of spring onions finishes it off perfectly.

House of Fu, 15-19 The Headrow, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6PU.

Sunday Lunch at Ilkley Moor Vaults

There’s nothing like a roast to cure those back-to-work blues and the vegan Sunday lunch at Ilkley Moor Vaults is one of the best. They pile your plate high with a delicious root vegetable nut roast and all the trimmings. We’re talking tenderstem broccoli, roast potatoes, root veg puree and savoy cabbage. They even have the holy grail – a homemade, vegan Yorkshire pudding. The only thing that’s left is lashings of gravy!

Ilkley Moor Vaults, Stockeld Road, Ilkley, West Yorkshire, LS29 9HD.

Panko Aubergine Bao at Little Bao Boy

Little Bao Boy hang out at North Brewing Co. Tap Room, serving vegan (and non-vegan) bao buns. Out of the four plant-based options, the Panko Aubergine Bao is a must-eat. They slice aubergine, dredge it in vegan buttermilk and deep fry it in a panko and sesame crumb. Once crispy, they stuff it in a fluffy bao along with iceberg lettuce, sriracha sauce and spring onion. It’s soft, doughy, stuck-in-your-teeth-but-who-cares perfection.

Little Bao Boy, North Brewing Co. Tap Room, 3 Sovereign Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 4BA & Springwell, Buslingthorpe Lane, Meanwood, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS7 2DF.

Sweet Tamarind Tofu Balls at Tattu

Tattu is known for it’s refined take on Chinese classics, and these Sweet Tamarind Tofu Balls are a knock-out. They combine tofu with winter melon (more like a cucumber than a melon), and marinate it in mirin and soy sauce. They’re battered with tempura and deep fried to perfection. Once on your plate, the tofu balls are given a douse of candied chilli and mint sauce. It’s like a party in your mouth.

Tattu, 29 East Parade, Minerva House, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 5PS.

Donuts at Doboy Donuts

With a weekly changing menu that always includes several vegan options, Doboy Donuts is a real treat. You could be munching on the Biscoff donut – a ball donut filled with whipped Biscoff cream and topped with vanilla fudge icing and a biscuit crumb. Or, how about the Lemon Frost, a ring donut dipped in lemon buttercream, dusted with sprinkles and finished with a smattering of lemon drizzle?

Doboy Donuts, Cardigan Mills, Lennox Road, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS4 2BL.

Cauli bites at Cantina

As one of the first all-vegan eateries in Leeds, you can always rely on Cantina for top notch plant based goodness. And trust us when we say that no one does vegan bar snacks like them. Their cauli bites are the stuff of legend. These pocket-sized morsels are marinated, wrapped in a cosy case of breadcrumbs and deep-fried to give you an epic crunch. They’re famously moreish, so you’ll definitely want to go large.

Cantina, The Old Red Bus Station, 101 Vicar Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS2 7NL.

Leafeater Burger at Patty Smiths

There are many vegan burgers in Leeds, but the Leafeater from Patty Smiths is up there with the best of ‘em. It starts with a delicious spiced beetroot, fennel and cannellini bean patty, and packs in the flavour with tomato jam, pickled red cabbage and beetroot. Then there’s the usual suspects – yummy vine tomatoes, crunchy lettuce and silky garlic mayo. All of this is stuffed into a vegan brioche, ready to be crammed into your mouth.

Patty Smith’s, Belgrave Music Hall, 1-1A Cross Belgrave Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS2 8JP. 

Pancakes at The Greenhouse

Looking for a dish to start your day right? The pancakes at The Greenhouse in Horsforth are the way to do it. Think fluffy, American style pancakes, stacked on top of one another. They’re adorned with a generous dollop of vegan yogurt and a handful of fresh strawberries, then sprinkled with crunchy granola, a drizzling of tart berry compote and a touch of sweet maple syrup. You might even find an edible flower on yours.

The Greenhouse, 85e Town Street, Horsforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS18 5BP.

Vegan Club Sandwich at Water Lane Boathouse

Imagine this. It’s sunny, you’re sat by the canal, you’ve got a pint in one hand and a vegan club sandwich in the other. Water Lane Boathouse can make all your dreams come true. Their vegan club sandwich begins with a crispy spring green bhaji, layered on floury sourdough bread with creamy avocado. It’s packed with crunchy pickles, soft tomatoes and fresh baby gem lettuce too, all slathered with garlic aioli. Yum!

Water Lane Boathouse, Canal Wharf, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS11 5PS.

Chick’n Parm Teller at Döner Summer

If it’s a craving only junk food will satisfy, the Chick’n Parm Teller from Döner Summer is your saviour. The tray starts with a bed of fries and their signature buttermylk fried chick’n. Garlic butter, Philly cheese sauce, tomato relish and dill pickle mayo is slathered on top, and the whole delicious mess is finished off with a sprinkling of pink cabbage, spring onion and vegan hard cheese. It’s exactly what you need!

Döner Summer, 10-12 Call Lane, Leeds, West Yorkshire, LS1 6DN.

Cover image credit: © Copyright Leeds-List 2022 by Ellie Hodgson.