Just because you're trying to live a healthier lifestyle by not eating meat doesn't mean you should have to give up going to your favorite chain restaurants as long as they have vegetarian fast food items! Being a vegetarian has become a lot more popular in recent years, which has forced a lot of chains to consider meatless alternative menu items. This is great because if you need some food on the go, you don't have to feel as limited in your choices! To help you figure out where to go, here is a list of 7 vegetarian fast food options that you may not have known about!
Burger King truly lives up to their slogan "have it your way" by offering a vegetarian fast food burger! The veggie patty they use is actually a MorningStar Farms Garden Veggie Burger and it can be ordered to substitute for any burger on the menu. So feel free to ask for a Whopper made with the veggie patty instead! Then of course, their fries are vegetarian friendly, so feel free to pig out on those if the occasion calls for it. If you're trying to stay on the lighter side, swap the fries for a side salad!
Most items on the Taco Bell menu can have the meat swapped out for beans or rice! This leaves you with almost endless options as to what you can eat. You can get a soft taco with beans instead of beef, a meatless nachos supreme with beans, or even a taco salad without the meat. There's even a taco that is made out of crispy potatoes that you can try! Plus, just about all of Taco Bell's sides are vegetarian, whether it be their Cheesy Fiesta Potatoes, Caramel Apple Empanada, or Cinnamon Twists!
Subway is one of the best fast food restaurants for vegetarians as they have more than one kind of vegetarian entrée item to choose from! First, there's the Subway veggie delight, which is great because it's part of their $5 foot long menu! You can pick whatever bread, veggies, cheese, and dressing you want to make a delicious vegetarian sandwich. If you'd rather something more substantial, they offer a veggie patty as well! Then there's the newest vegetarian item on the list, the eggplant Parmesan! Make it a meal with either cookies or some chips and you've got the perfect vegetarian lunch!
Moe's definitely takes first prize for the best vegetarian fast food Mexican chain. Any item on their menu can be filled with marinated tofu instead of meat! Their tofu is so well-seasoned and nicely textured that it doesn't feel like you're missing out on much by not having meat in your meal! Then, you can load up your meal with beans, rice, guacamole, and assorted vegetables! It's any vegetarian's Mexican oasis! If you're not a fan of tofu, you can go without it and just have beans and rice. I am not a fan of tofu, but I do like the tofu at Moe's if that says something.
You may be surprised by how many cruelty-free, healthy items Panera Bread has on their menu! So if you do eat meat, you may not feel as bad eating at this chain over the others. But, they do have plenty of vegetarian (and even vegan) soups, salads, and sandwiches! My personal favorite is getting the "You Pick Two" with their vegetarian creamy tomato soup and a half of the tomato & mozzarella panini. If you can't tell, I love tomatoes!
Olive Garden is probably one of the easiest places to be a vegetarian. That's because their unlimited salad and bread sticks are probably the most delicious things on the menu! I can actually go to Olive Garden, JUST have their salad and bread sticks, and feel completely satisfied. If you're stopping by Olive Garden for lunch, their soup and salad lunch special is perfect if you order the vegetarian minestrone. Then of course there's a large variety of pastas to choose from!
There aren't a ton of options out there for vegetarian or vegan lunches that you can grab and go with. However, Starbucks sells a Sesame Noodles Bistro Box that's 100 percent vegan! It has Asian style noodles, marinated tofu, and a small cucumber mini salad. Then of course there's oatmeal, fresh fruit, and the plain and multigrain bagels, which are also all vegan. All of Starbucks drinks can also be made vegan by substituting soy milk for cow's milk.
When out with your friends or family, make sure not to push your vegetarian lifestyle on them. Thus, if they try to push their meat eating lifestyle on you, remind them that it's not fair of them to make fun of you based on what you've decided to eat as you don't do it to them. Also, don't be afraid to talk to your server and ask for some vegetarian suggestions or if they can make a swap for you. As long as you're nice, they will try to help you out as best they can. Trust me, I was a server! What is your favorite vegetarian chain restaurant option?