Berlin Budget Vegan: 10 Places To Get Vegan Meals In Berlin for Less Than €10

In 2013, when we were last in Berlin, there were a couple of good places for a Berlin budget vegan food. Since then, the Berlin budget vegan scene has gone totally insane, in a good way.

There are signs for vegan food wherever you look and it would be a year’s work to try all the options available. As with any food scene that goes trenderiffic (curry wurst, I’m looking at you), bad apples are popping up everywhere, threatening to spoil the bunch.

We made it our mission to find the best vegan cheap eats in Berlin and taste them for you. We also scoured the streets for nearby alternatives, in case your chosen Berlin budget vegan restaurant is mysteriously closed when you get there.

(This happens all the time in Berlin! Plan ahead.)

From least expensive to most, here’s all the Berlin budget vegan food we tried, with honest opinions about each option.

Momos, Mitte

Vegan & Vegetarian
Fehrbelliner Str. 5, U Senefelderplatz

Photo via Momo.

This tiny lunch spot is hidden away on a residential street. It’s popular with office workers on their lunch break, so expect the tables to be busy if you go between noon and 1:30pm. Inspired by a trip they took to Nepal, Marc and Martin serve plates of small dumplings called momos. Veggie-friendly adventurers, our favourite kind of people!

The dumplings come in six flavours (2 veg, 4 vegan) with a choice of three dips and three plate sizes. The piping hot little pockets were tasty and filling; a medium plate of 14 momos made a terrific lunch.

Price for a vegan meal:
Plate of 14 fried momos with dip: €6.90

Did you know? If you like tall, fit German men with friendly smiles, you will want to visit Momo. Trust me.

Nearby: Cold-pressed juices, healthy shakes, and vegan salads are on offer at Daluma, Weinbergsweg 3.

Il Casolare, Kreuzberg

Vegan Options (if you ask), Serves Meat
Grimmstr. 30, Berlin, Kottbusser Brücke

If you have a hankering for a traditional Italian pizza, but the closest you can get to Italy is Berlin, then Il Casolare has your back. Il Casolare is staffed by exceptionally grumpy waitresses, who give the impression that speaking to customers is way below their pay grade. Fortunately, the food makes up for the unpleasantries. It’s not a vegan pizza place and you won’t find anything vegan on the menu, but just order one of their selection of veggie pizzas ohne käseand you’ll be transported straight to Italia with the first bite.

Il Casolare has two sister branches in Berlin. Il Ritrovo in Friedrichshain (Gabriel-Max-Str. 2) and I Due Forni in Prenzlauer Berg (Schönhauser Allee 12).

Price for a vegan meal:
Generous personal pizza: about €7

Did you know? Rumour has it that Quentin Tarantino eats at Il Casolare when he is in Berlin.

Nearby: Just across the river at Erkelenzdamm 49 is Viasko, which will break your budget, but will also fill your belly with vegan delights.

Sushi Cube, Kreuzberg

Vegan Options, Serves Fish
Zossener Str. 18, U Gneisenaustr.

Packed out pretty much every time I’ve been there, Sushi Cube won’t win any awards for swift service or relaxed dining. But, it does have an amazing selection of veggie and vegan sushis on the menu at a terrific price. We found it impossible to ask our busy waitress for a glass of water, let alone to find out if the tempura batter has eggs in it, so ask before you order. If it does, there are lots of options that don’t involve any batter at all.

Did you know? In summer, you can enjoy your sushi out on the sidewalk tables – oh so European.

Price for a vegan meal:
Two filling sushi rolls: around €8

Nearby: Planet Veganus is a small vegan bistro just around the corner on Schenkendorfstrasse 1.

Pêle-Mêle, Neukölln

Vegan
Innstr. 26, Geygerstr.

After failing to eat at Sfizy (randomly closed until some day in February) and Let it Be (doesn’t open until 4pm), I found myself at Pêle-Mêle, a homey little restaurant on a side street in Neukölln. What was going to be just a back-up plan turned into one of the best budget vegan meals I had in Berlin.

The veggie-burger is a homemade green spelt patty topped with fresh, crisp veggies on a sesame bun. And it was damn tasty. After lunch, I treated myself to a slice of hazelnut chocolate cake for dessert, which was iced with a caramel-like peanut butter topping. Yum.

Did you know?
Pêle-Mêle does an organic vegan gourmet brunch every Sunday from 10am to 3pm. This is a must-eat on my list for next time we’re in Berlin.

Price for a vegan meal:
Veggie burger: €6.50
Side of potato wedges: €2.50

Nearby:
The pizza at all-vegan Sfizy is supposed to be great. Next time we’re in Berlin, maybe I’ll have an update for you.

Tianfuzius, Schöneberg

Vegan & Vegetarian
10777 Berlin, U Viktoria-Luise-Platz

There was a time, about three months into our cycling trip through China, that I thought I would never be able to eat Chinese food again. That time has passed, so I was excited to find out about Tianfuzius, a vegetarian Chinese restaurant in upmarket Schöneberg. Tianfuzius is decked out to impress the well-to-do locals, with a modern, chic take on an ancient Chinese villa. You could easily spend €50 per person on a splash-out meal here.

But, just like the upscale vegetarian restaurants in China, the dim sum section of the menu offers affordable filling options on a budget. They have a range of dumplings including Xiao Long Bao, Bao Zi, and Jiao Zi for less than €5 a plate. While my order of Bao didn’t compare to the fluffy cloud-like buns of perfection that came from street vendors in remote villages in China, they were pretty good. At least I could be sure I wasn’t going to bite into a bun full of pig!

If you want to splurge, come and try the Mapo Tofu and Green Beans with Mountains of Chilis (my name for them) that we so fondly remember from our time in China.

Did you know? Tianfuzius also offers a lunch box special (Japanese Bento style) for less than €10.

Price for a vegan meal:
Soup plus an order of dumplings: €9

Nearby:
It’s a bit of a trek, but Chay Village on Eisenacher Str. 40 does veggie and vegan Vietnamese food and is the closest good option in the area.

Cat Tuong, Prenzlauerberg

Vegan
Kastanienallee 89, Schwedter Str.

Our meal at Cat Tuong was easily the best we had in Berlin. We were excited to have the chance to sample some Vietnamese delights without having to pick through our food for random bits of pork or tiny dried shrimp! The menu made us want to come back multiple times, because there was so much we wanted to try.

The crispy Banh Xeo pancake was as tasty as we remember from the market in Ha Noi and our main courses were rich and flavourful, while being completely different from each other. The best part about Cat Tuong’s meals is how they use thin slices of seitan and mushroom to recreate the delicate pieces of pork (or chicken or dog) so prevalent in Vietnamese cooking.

Price for a vegan meal:
One main dish: €9

Did you know?
Cat Tuong is a famous Vietnamese actress (but the word also means something like “Fortune”).

Nearby:
Fill up on vegan salads, wraps, and scrumptious fries at Fast Rabbit on Eberswalder Str. 1.

Bonus Listing: Vegan Grocery Store Veganz

Vegan
Locations in Kreuzberg, Friedrichshain, and Prenzlauer Berg

As proof that Berlin has been possessed by vegan insanity (hooray), there is a chain of vegan grocery stores in the city. Yes, you heard that right. A CHAIN of VEGAN grocery stores. Anyway, they sell every vegan product you’ve ever heard of but can’t get in your town back home.

Gardein? Yup, with more varieties than we could ever find in Canada, where the stuff is made! Beyond Meat? You betcha? Veganaise? Yes, again with more different kinds than I knew existed. Plus, there are oodles of types of Europeanvegan cheese slices and yogurts which are actually good!

While there is a minor snobbery among Berlin’s vegan populace about vegan

 “products” (yes, yes, we should all eat raw beans and kale the whole time) for travellers with access to a kitchen, Veganz is tha bomb! Combine some of their non-meat products with a plate full of veggies from the Turkish market and you have a tasty, nutritious vegan meal for well under €10.

Want even more budget vegan

 Berlin?

There are about 476 (give or take) budget vegan places we didn’t get to try in

 Berlin, not to mention all the high-end vegan restaurants in Berlin.

Check out these blogs for even more Berlin budget vegan restaurants (plus some fancier ones for splurge nights):

13 FANTASTISCH Vegan Restaurants in Berlin Not To Miss
The 10 Best Places to Eat in Berlin for Vegetarians & Vegans
Berlin Vegan Guide

♥  Happy adventures (in vegan eating), Stephen & Jane

http://www.myfiveacres.com/

Berlin Restaurants Awarded 26 Michelin Stars

New Michelin Guide gives high scores to Berlin restaurants / 26 stars total awarded to 20 eateries / Five new additions to German capital’s star gastronomy.

Berlin remains Germany’s capital of haute cuisine. 20 top Berlin restaurants earned a record number of 26 Michelin stars; six more than in the previous year. This was announced yesterday in Berlin at the release of Michelin’s new 2016 guide for Germany.

Six new stars for Berlin’s gastronomy

Chef Sebastian Frank of restaurant Horváth in Kreuzberg district earned his second star, while five restaurants could retain their two stars: Facil, Fischers Fritz, Lorenz Adlon Esszimmer, Reinstoff and Tim Raue.

Five Berlin restaurants were awarded their first star, including the recently opened Nobelhart & Schmutzig in Kreuzberg, where 28-year old chef Micha Schäfer exclusively works with local produce. Another Kreuzberg restaurant, Richard, as well as Semmler and Bieberbau, both in Wilmersdorf district, and Bandol sur Mer in Berlin-Mitte received their first star. A total of 14 top restaurants received one star.

2 Star-Restaurants in Berlin

1. Newly awarded 2nd star: Horváth www.restaurant-horvath.de
2. Facil: www.facil.de
3. Fischers Fritz: www.fischersfritzberlin.com
4. Lorenz Adlon Esszimmer: www.lorenzadlon-esszimmer.de
5. Reinstoff: www.reinstoff.eu
6. Tim Raue: www.tim-raue.com

1 Star-Restaurants in Berlin

1. New star: Bandol sur Mer www.bandolsurmer.de
2. New star: Bieberbau www.bieberbau-berlin.de
3. New star: Nobelhart & Schmutzig  www.nobelhartundschmutzig.com
4. New star: Richard www.restaurant-richard.de
5. New star: Semmler www.kochkunst-ereignisse.de
6. 5 – Cinco by Paco Pérez: www.5-cinco.com
7. First Floor: www.firstfloor.palace.de
8. Frühsammers Restaurant: fruehsammers-restaurant.jimdo.com
9. Hugos: www.hugos-restaurant.de
10. Les Solistes by Pierre Gagnaire: www.waldorfastoriaberlin.com/deu/Restaurants-Lounges/Les-Solistes
11. Pauly Saal: paulysaal.com/
12. Skykitchen: www.skykitchen.berlin/home.html
13. VAU: www.vau-berlin.de
14. Weinbar Rutz: www.weinbar-rutz.de

In recent years, Berlin has earned a high reputation as a top culinary destination. In addition to the 26 Michelin stars, Berlin has captured the epicurean zeitgeist by earning top marks as Europe’s vegan capital, boasting 36 purely vegan restaurants.

From street food to burger mania, traditional cooking to new trends, Berlin’s young and creative culinary scene is a foodie paradise.

Information of travel to Berlin at www.visitBerlin.com.

Germany’s Vegan Paradise + Tips From Expert World Travelers

Kristin | 

This is a guest post by Capri.

In April of 2014, my husband and I embarked on a two week adventure to Germany. We chose to spend the bulk of our trip in Berlin after hearing about the amazing vegan scene. Berlin is also full of fabulous street art, museums, and history all wrapped up in a vibrant European city with excellent public transportation. Before departing I read up on the many great Berlin offerings on the informative English site, The ExBerliner. I highly recommend utilizing the site, and the print magazine (available for purchase in many spots in Berlin) to get in touch with events, dining, shopping, nightlife, music, and culture.

I always travel with is my Happycow iPhone App, which is a guide to vegetarian, vegan and veg friendly dining and shopping around the world. Over the years, I have used it or the website, in all seven continents. (As you guessed there aren’t any listings in Antarctica).

Europe’s Vegan Grocery Store Chain + Abundant Vegan Eats

After landing in Frankfurt, we settled into our hotel and immediately searched out Veganz, the all vegan grocery store chain. Veganz has several stores across Europe stocking every vegan grocery item imaginable including an extensive offering of vegan candy/chocolate, vegan cheese, fruits and vegetable, frozen items, personal care items, household cleaners, books etc.They also stock my two favorite vegan cheeses, Vegusto, fragrant sharp cheeses, and CreamyRisellathe luscious soft cheese. It was refreshing to be able to purchase anything without scrutinizing labels for hidden animals ingredients. Fearing poor selection at the train station, we selected some snacks and treats for our train trip the next day. We had a nice lunch of pizza buns at the attached Sesamo vegan cafe. The cafe serves smoothies, sandwiches, pastas dishes, deserts etc. Frankfurt also has a funky vegan bakery, Edelkiosk, which offers sweet and savoury items including cakes, pizza buns, and chocolate bars. We enjoyed a lovely dinner at the vegan Wondergood restaurant.

Frankfurt Veganz

Edelkiosk cupcake

Wondergood walnut stuffed ravioli

Wondergood Seitan medallians

We spent the night in Frankfurt and headed by train to Berlin in the morning. We easily accessed the train station via the metro and were pleasantly surprised to see several vegan options labelled at the different train station establishments. We ended up having a vegan burrito fromBurrito Bande. The train was about four hours and very comfortable, and gave us a chance to see the German countryside as well.

We chose our Berlin accommodations via the vacation rental site, AirBnB. We found a fantastic, affordable, flat in the central neighbourhood of Kruezberg. The location was perfect, close to metro stops and an easy train ride or walk to the Veganz vegan grocery store, with two locations in Berlin. Our flat had a kitchen which we though might come in handy but we found the food so amazing in Berlin that we only ever ate breakfast at home before heading out for a full day of adventure. Berlin is really a vegan paradise and we attempted to check out as many vegan spots as possible.

Sometimes we didn’t even eat breakfast at home! Our favourite breakfast was the expansive weekend brunch buffet at the vegan Miomatto, the lovely Italian style eatery above the Veganz grocery store, and next door to the Avesu vegan shoe store. We enjoyed both sweet and savoury items including a bread basket, vegan cheese platter, vegan deli slices, assorted salads and hot dishes, plus desserts. We thought it was a fair price for the selection too. Miomatto became a favourite place for us where we ate many memorable lunches and dinners. There is also a good review of Mio Matto on The Exberliner; “Mio Matto: Easy Vegan.” Check out some of my photos below:

Mio Matto

Gnocchi

Potato Soup

Bread Basket

Brownie and mousse

There are a variety of vegan and vegetarian dining establishments including bakeries, fast food, and fine dining. A favorite bakery was Ohlala Vegan French Bakery. The desserts were very decadent! (Be forewarned that it is closed Mondays, which is why the photo shows a closed up shop).

Ohlala Bakery

Bakery counter

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pyramid

And what about vegan crepes? We had some tasty ones at Let It Be Vegan Creperie. They offered both sweet and savoury crepes.

For fast food my all time favorite was the vegetarian Yellow Sunshine diner. They have a separate vegan menu which includes the amazing breaded chickin’ burger with yummy fries. They also had desserts including vegan mousse, cake and tiramisu (selection varied day to day). They were just around the corner from us so we visited a few times.

Vegan chickin’ burger and fries

We also checked out Voner the vegan doner and kebab spot. It had a rotating spit of seitan which was sliced up and loaded into a sandwich with lots of topping and sauce options, including vegan mayo for the fries. We had a wonderful time at the all vegan pizzeria, Sfizy Veg. The pizza dough was cooked to perfection and topped with amazing vegan “gorgonzola” cheese.

Sfizy Veg storefront

Sfizy Veg pizza

As mentioned above we adored Mio Matto for more upscale dining, but it was edged out only slightly byKopps Bar and Restaurant. We had amazing meals there in the fresh and bright atmosphere. They recommend reservations as it can get very busy later at night. However, we generally arrived for dinner when they opened at 5:30 and never had a problem with immediately getting a table with no reservation. Check out the delightful offerings:

Bread Basket with faux egg salad

Savoury Strudel

Potato Skewer

Pumpkin pannacotta

Chocolate lava cake

Berlin also offers unique vegan shopping including two different locations of the Avesu vegan shoe store. As mentioned earlier, one of the Avesu shops is located next to Mio Matto restaurant and Veganz grocery. The other one is on the ‘vegan avenue’ located next to the other Veganz and the DearGoodsvegan clothing store. Avesu offers a large selection of casual, athletic and dressy shoes, shoe care products, and bags. DearGoods had unique and beautiful clothing for both men and women.

Avesu

DearGoods

After the shopping is done and you are feeling stuffed from all this delectable food, check out the recently opened, all vegan gym, Berlin Strength. After all Patrik Baboumian, Germany’s Strongest Man is also vegan.