Eating Vegan in Playa del Carmen
Today I’m bringing you the ultimate vegan food guide for Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo with 16 awesome restaurants you should definitely check out while in Playa!
Peace & Bowl
Healthy, affordable and delicious! What more could you want? Peace & Bowl is a fully vegan, health food cafe/restaurant located in central Playa del Carmen. This beautiful restaurant is known for its stunning smoothie and açai bowls, salad bowls and power foods.
Peace & Bowl is actually located within the same building as Bajo Cafe (featured further down this list!), and the two restaurants share the same space and menus. Meaning you can devour a Peace & Bowl smoothie bowl whilst also making your way through a Bajo vegan breakfast sandwhich!
Delivery is also available from here via Ubereats and Rappi.
*Image 1, 2 and 4 from Happy Cow - https://www.happycow.net/reviews/peace-and-bowl-playa-del-carmen-143717
Tacos ALV
Despite the name, I didn’t actually eat any tacos here! I know; I would make a terrible Mexican, however, I did stop by here and try both the “Burrito No Pollo” and the “Torta Fajita de Soya Empanizado”.
The food from here definitely isn’t the best in Playa, however, its cheap, simple and in my opinion a little Mexican pick me up for those days you don’t feel like eating clean. I definitely recommend checking this place out at least once on your trip to Playa.
Tacos ALV do also offer delivery via Uber Eats.
Mr Tofu (Shop)
If you’re hanging out in Playa del Carmen for an extended period of time, home cooking options may be on your radar. I honestly found the big supermarkets here to not be so great when it came to finding more specialist vegan food such as meat substitutes and vegan snacks. Mr Tofu came to the rescue however, with a whole range of frozen meat substitutes, including; Gardein, Impossible and Beyond Meat. They also stock a wide range of refrigerated items such as butters, cheeses and yoghurts. Plus, if somewhat healthy snacks are your thing, there are plenty of options here.
Delivery is available via the Mr Tofu website if preferred.
Bio & Natural (Restaurant and Shop)
I’ll be honest, the restaurant side of Bio & Natural isn’t my favourite place on this list. The food is okay but it gets a downvote from me due to the price. There are definitely better value for money places here in Playa. The shop, however, is great and offers loads of hard to find items you’ll struggle to get in the supermarket or at other vegan outlets in the town. I particularly like that they stock Raw Lab ice cream from CDMX!
You’ll find here organic nuts and seeds, juices and drinks, specialist pasta (such as spelt or chickpea pasta), milk alternatives and more. They also stock a good range of personal hygiene products such as soaps, shampoos and deodorants - some of these are also zero waste if you’re trying to be more plastic free!
The Pitted Date
The Pitted Date is definitely one of the best vegan restaurants in Playa del Carmen with an incredibly varied menu and something for every taste. From burgers to bagels and smoothie bowls to breakfast panini’s this small all vegan restaurant offers incredible variety and even better taste.
I recommend visiting here first thing in the morning or during a weekday afternoon as it can get quite busy! They do offer takeaway options but (as far as we can tell) you have to physically visit and order - there is no Ubereats or Rappi option for this restaurant at the time of writing.
Bajo Cafe
As I mentioned earlier, this small food joint is attached to Peace & Bowl. While Peace & Bowl remains a fully vegan eatery, Bajo Cafe does offer both meat and vegetarian/vegan choices.
At Bajo there are some gorgeous taco and enchilada options as well as vegan bagels and vegan breakfast pancakes! I would definitely recommend taking a couple of trips here to try out some of the different options available.
Comet 984
When I first heard about Comet 984 I was incredibly intrigued. This quirky little diner is a 50’s themed American style diner with some seriously impressive interior design and equally notable food to match.
Their menu consists of the typical American junk food we all think of when we think of American fast food diners but the thing that makes Comet 984 stand out is their menu is 100% vegan! Burgers, hot dogs, milkshakes, cheesecakes, Mac & Cheese and more, Comet 984 is a junk food vegans heaven. I strongly recommend checking out the “Ultimate Burger” and loaded fries!
*Image 1, 2 & 3 taken from Happy Cow - https://www.happycow.net/reviews/comet-984-playa-del-carmen-72764
Chez Celine
Chez Celine is probably the most popular patisserie in Playa del Carmen and I can see why! Their cakes and pastry’s look incredible but unfortunately most aren’t vegan. So why is Chez Celine on this guide you ask? Well despite there not being a whole host of vegan options from this French bakery, the few options they do offer are delicious.
I recommend trying out the Buddha bowl and their vegan chocolate tart. The avocado toast is also worth a try! Or if you fancy just stopping by for a coffee they do provide milk alternatives such as coconut and almond milk - just ask your server upon ordering. They also have a vegan coffee and banana smoothie which I wasn’t too sure about but I’ll let you decide for yourself!
They also offer some delicious vegan bread loaves here which are definitely worth a try.
Delivery is available via Rappi.
Eat Bar
EatBar is a Mediterranean style restaurant aiming to provide healthy and balanced food choices. While not completely vegan they do offer some yummy vegan choices including hummus and pitta bread, a pitta bread falafel and a vegan special every Wednesday.
Delivery is available via Rappi.
Piola
If you love a good, traditional Italian thin-crust pizza, Piola is for you. Piola specialise in brick-oven thin-crust pizza and traditional pasta dishes. They offer a separate vegan menu with a few different pizza choices; I went for a traditional cheese and tomato pizza (I believe they use Daiya cheese) which was delicious! It came with loads of fresh juicy cherry tomatoes on top and some sun dried tomatoes - my favourite!
Delivery is available via Ubereats.
Lara&Luca
After an incredible day touring some of the most beautiful cenotes I have ever seen, a dinner stop at Lara&Luca was definitely much needed. This cute restaurant is a little “out of the way” just south of the airport but is definitely worth a visit. They have a couple of vegan options including this gorgeous salad (see below). The staff are knowledgeable about what dishes are vegan/can be made vegan - just ask.
Panneria
Would this be a Naturally by Chloe vegan food guide if I hadn’t hunted down the best vegan cake in town? Cake is my weakness and honestly I should be annoyed I found Panneria because my wallet is now significantly lighter and my body significantly heavier!
This small but incredible bakery offers a fantastic range of vegan, keto and gluten free products including cakes, breads, pastry’s and cookies. I recommend visiting late afternoon when the bread and pastry products have been made (after 4pm is best) to grab yourself some goodies.
Aloha Raw Bar
Aloha Raw Bar is a cute little cafe tucked away from the hustle and bustle of the main streets but still within easy walking distance from 5th avenue. They specialise in healthy (and affordable) food with a fantastic choice of smoothie bowls, smoothies and drinks. I had a delicious açai cacao bowl and coconut milk latte on one of my first mornings in Playa del Carmen.
Head to Aloha Raw Bar for breakfast as I believe they close early afternoon.
Affamato
I found this place on Ubereats the night I arrived in Playa and it was one of the only vegan places open by the time I’d arrived! I order 2 double patty burgers (yes, I was hungry!) and was overall quite impressed. It’s definitely not the best vegan food available in Playa but it was good for a late night emergency meal.
Flama
I would have walked straight past Flama without even realising it was there if it weren’t for some new found friends suggesting we go here for dinner. Flama is an Italian restaurant specialising in traditional wood fired cuisine. The thing I really liked about this place is that they have a “make your own” menu allowing you to choose what toppings you want on your pizza. While they don’t offer any vegan cheese (at the time of writing) you can create a super delicious vegan cheeseless pizza with the veggies from the “make you own” option. I went for tomatoes, olives, local roasted squash and onion and I did check with the chef before ordering that the bases are vegan so nothing to worry about there!
Jonny Como Pizza
Jonny Como Pizza has a great range of vegan pizza options with some set vegan pizza choices or you can choose a margarita and then add toppings to “create your own”. I ordered from here via Uber Eats; with easy, clear ordering and super fast delivery. I went for a mushroom pizza with vegan cheese and added some olives as a little extra!
