This blog post includes information about enjoying your Transylvania trip as a veggie or vegan:

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  • Vegan and vegetarian restaurants in Cluj-Napoca, Sighisoara, Brasvo and Sibiu (all in Transylvania)
  • Breakfast and snacking ideas – this was the only time we found getting vegan food tricky
  • A list of vegetarian traditional Romania food to look out for when travelling

Scroll down to whatever is helpful to you!

You might also like: The Best (and Worst!) Travel Destinations for Vegan Travellers

VEGAN & VEGETARIAN RESTAURANTS IN TRANSYLVANIA, ROMANIA

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN FOOD IN CLUJ-NAPOCA

“Samsara Foodhouse” – vegetarian/vegan restaurant

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Samsara Foodhouse had about the most extensive vegetarian menu I’ve ever seen, offering worldwide cuisine and some special vegan treats. See the menu for yourself here: https://www.samsara.ro/

Total cost for a two-course meal for two plus juice: 106 lei, £19.84, $28.20

  • Trio of vegan pates with focaccia – 18 lei for 2
  • Mango and tofu, chickpeas with rice – 24 lei
  • 13 lei for ‘ginger zinger’ juice – 13 lei

“Indigo” was also highly recommended, but we didn’t have time to eat here.

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN FOOD IN SIGHISOARA

“Casa Vlad Dracul” – traditional Romanian food

Sighisoara was the most challenging place to find vegan food, but although we never expected to come to this touristy restaurant it proved a great introduction to the Romanian staples polenta and zacusca. This is actually the birthplace of Vlad Dracula (also known as Vlad the Impaler) so although the building has been rebuilt since his lifetime, don’t come if you’re afraid of vampires!

Total cost for a meal for two: 69 lei, £12.91, $18.36

  • Polenta (mamaliga) to share – 5 lei
  • Bread (‘paine’) – 2 lei
  • Zacusca de vinete – 16 lei
  • Fresh juice – 15 lei

“Alte Post Sighisoara” – vegan options

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Total cost for a meal for two: 73 lei

  • Tofu la grill cu legume ta tigaie (tofu with grilled veggies) – 26 lei
  • Paine – 3 lei
  • Fresh juice – 18 lei

“Café Martini” – vegan options

We were so hungry when we first arrived in Sighișoara and whilst this wasn’t our favourite meal, we were happy to find soup and chips here.

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN FOOD IN BRASOV

“Sup Tampa” – fancy food at great prices

We were so hungry after climbing up Mt Tampa we were disappointed to see no veggie options on the menu… but don’t be fooled! They had two vegetarian-friendly versions of Romanian classics up their sleeves – stuffed cabbage rolls or veggie meat balls. And they even came with pink foam. ‘Sup Tampa?

Bean paste with bread at Sup Tampa – delicious!

“Simone” – loads of vegan and veggie options

We ate here all three nights in Brasov as it was so close to our Airbnb! The staff were super friendly too. I can’t find a menu online but options included pasta, noodles, sumptuous salads and (veggie only) pizza. They do a couple of meat options so a great option for people with carnivorous friends who might be tempted by the extensive veggie options!

Total cost for a meal for two: 99 lei, £18.55, $26.35

Total cost for a two-course meal for two with wine: 121.86, £22.83, $32.44

Simone was great for both healthy food (for my salad-loving friend) and big, filling meals (give me all the carbs)!

“Rawdia” is a vegan restaurant we passed many times. We heard it was good but didn’t have a chance to see for ourselves

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN FOOD IN SIBIU

“Lily’s” – great vegan and veggie options

There were a few veggie options and a couple of lovely vegan options on this menu. Great atmosphere too.

“She’s Green” – raw vegan food

A fully raw vegan restaurant. Not quite my cup of tea (no potatoes), but my travel companion loved her vegan cake. http://www.shesgreen.ro/

  • Main meals average at 25 lei, £4.68, $6.65
  • Smoothies average at 14 lei, £2.62, $3.73

I’ve checked, and you’ll be spoilt for choice as a vegan or veggie in Bucharest too! At breakfast times or when you need to get a snack, things might be a little trickier for vegans, particularly if vegan. Hopefully, the rest of the tips will help.

vegan and vegetarian food in transylvania romania zacusca polenta
Trying zacusca and polenta in Sighisoara! Yummy vegan and vegetarian food in Transylvania.

FINDING VEGAN/VEGGIE BREAKFAST AND SNACKS IN ROMANIA

BREAKFAST:

If you really struggle to find a vegan breakfast, some fruit may be an option. Whilst we tended to avoid the Starbucks, they did have a vegan peanut bar. Toast and jam is also a good option at any cafe. In a traditional café you can also try Zacusca (vegetable/aubergine paste), which can be spread on bread. It is easy to find veggie breakfast, as pancakes and pastries are abundant.

VEGAN SNACKS:

  • oranges
  • bananas
  • oreos
  • pom bears

JUICES AND SMOOTHIES:

Freshly squeezed orange, grapefruit juice or combined orange and grapefruit juice was everywhere we went. Fresh smoothies were also abundant and equally delicious. Strangely, often the juice was almost expensive as the main meal, but it was always fresh and tasty.

  • Fresh de portocale – orange juice
  • Fresh de grapefruit – use your deduction skills and see if you can work out what this means 🙂
sour vegetable soup - vegan vegetarian food transylvania romania
Trying ‘sour’ vegetable soup at Café Martini in Sighisoara… not our favourite Romanian cuisine but easy to find in every town!

TRADITIONAL VEGETARIAN ROMANIAN FOOD

A list of Romanian vegetarian food for you to try… mulțumesc to my Romanian colleague Teo for helping me with this list!

  • Ciorba Taraneasca – a vegetable ‘sour’ soup. There are many restaurants with English menus that just say ‘vegetable soup’. We tried it with ‘potato bread’ too

  • Bean soup – ciorba de fasole – a traditional Romanian dish

  • ‘soup with bread’ (where the bowl is made of bread)

  • Zacusca – vegetable paste/dip – we had this with bread and it was yummy!

  • Polenta is everywhere! We saw ‘mamaliguta’ listed on many menus, which is polenta with cheese and sour cream

  • Vegetarian stuffed cabbage rolls (sarmale) – we saw these listed at a few excellent restaurants but didn’t have a chance to try them. Asking for “Sarmala de post” will ensure they’re meat-free.

Tip: we were told mentioning ‘de post’ in rural areas where there are no vegan options helps as it roughly translates to ‘fasting food’ – although we never had to use this!

  • Bean paste – we tried this with bread and it was tasty! (You may see this on a menu as ‘fasule batuta’)

  • Aubergine dishes – salads (salade), grilled or fried aubergines

  • Stews – such as mushroom stew, green pea stew (mancare de mazare), cabage stew (varza calita) and potato stew (mancare de cartofi)

  • Mushroom dishes – look for the word ‘ciuperci’

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VEGETARIAN OPTIONS IN ROMANIAN BAKERIES

  • covrigi – pretzels
  • gogosi – these are a bit like doughnuts
  • Kurtoskalacs – chimney cake made with cinnamon and sugar. Yes, they look like a chimney! We saw these at street vendors everywhere we went, always with queues of locals
  • sweet breads and potato bread
  • Waffles and pancakes, yum!

Off to Romania soon? More Transylvania travel blogs here:

One Week Transylvania Itinerary + costs and advice for your trip to Romania!

How to Get Around Romania – Transylvania Travel Tips

Further travel around the Balkans:

11 Things to do in Ohrid, North Macedonia

How to spend one day in Sarajevo (Bosnia & Herzegovina)

The Balkans Guide. What to know before you go + car rental vs public transport

Let’s finish the post with a fabulous photo shoot I had with some pink foam! Perhaps not exactly what you expected from vegan and vegetarian food in Romania… but woohoo, foam that is PINK!

Vegan & Vegetarian Romanian food + costs and where to eat in Transylvania.
Vegan & Vegetarian Romanian food + costs and where to eat in Transylvania.

Written by

Cassie

Hi, I'm Cassie, and I've been solo travelling the globe since May 2018. In this time, I've backpacked around Southeast Asia, Japan and The Balkans, alongside living in New Zealand and Australia. Current location? Mexico