Best known for being the home of Alan Partridge, Delia Smith and Colman’s mustard, it might come as a bit of a surprise to learn that Norwich, nestled on the East cost of the UK, is one of the most vegan-friendly cities in the country!
As part of my series where I travel to different cities around the globe to highlight the vegan options available, I asked people to recommend a city to visit and Norwich was high on the list. Whilst researching the hotspots, it became apparent quite quickly that I wouldn’t be able to get round even a quarter of the vegan-friendly spots in the city in the space of five days so I did lots of research and narrowed it down to fourteen places.
Here’s a map with all of the spots highlighted:
Here’s where I ate and what I thought:
📍 Tipsy Vegan
Sitting proudly on Norwich lanes, this is one of the city’s first vegan restaurants and an adorable little spot focused on small plates and great cocktails. The staff are friendly, welcoming and knowledgeable and make you feel comfortable as soon as you walk through the door. The venue has a quirky feel to it and even at 2pm on a Monday afternoon when I visited, there were a few other guests dining. I tucked into the leek and bacon arancini with maple mustard, the buffalo cauliflower tacos with pickled veg and ranch, the crispy sushi rice cake with an Asian tomato salad, the quesadilla with spiced sweet potato and. black beans with guacamole, the chorizo mac and cheese and the coconut crusted tofu.
Cuisine: Comfort food
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? No
Dog Friendly? Yes but they have a designated area so let them know in advance so they can reserve the appropriate table
Wheelchair Friendly? They have a ramp they can bring out to make the bar area of the restaurant wheelchair accessible but their toilets are up a couple of steps so are not
I recommend: The crispy sushi rice cake, arancini and chorizo mac & cheese
Address: 68-70 St Benedicts St, Norwich NR2 4AR
📍 Namaaste Village
This is another of Norwich’s longest standing veggie establishments, having been around since 2011. The building itself is huge and plays host to the very spacious restaurant, a little shop selling herbs and spices as well as a hotel upstairs – perfect for anyone who eats their bodyweight in food and doesn’t fancy rolling home after. There are colourful lights scattered around the walls and fairy lights hanging from the ceiling. The team showed me the new design plans they have for the restaurant and they’re stunning. It’s going to look amazing by June 2022. It’s also worth mentioning that the team run a charitable initiative where they give meals away to those in need. The menu offers a mix of both Northern and Southern Indian food. I tried a range of dishes including the buffalo cauliflower, chilli garlic lime mogo, prawn koliwada, surti papdi chaat, masala puri, vegan chicken korma, vegan chicken jalfrezi, makhani daal, masala dosa, garlic butter naan and vegetable biryani
Cuisine: Indian
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? No
Dog Friendly? No
Wheelchair Friendly? Yes
I recommend: The prawn koliwada, vegan chicken jalfrezi, garlic butter naan & vegetable biryani
Address: 131-139 Queens Rd, Norwich NR1 3PN
📍Slice & Dice
Marketing itself primarily as a board games cafe, this venue is also 100% plant-based. The staff are super welcoming and friendly and the venue is modern, fresh and airy, if a tiny bit cold when I visited. I visited on Pancake Day so was given a special menu. I only planned on having two dishes but I couldn’t resist ordering a third dish because they all looked so good. I tucked into the ham & cheese galette, the pancake stack topped with maple syrup and bacon and the breakfast burrito. I’m a savoury girl anyway but the burrito stole my heart – the addition of fried potatoes added such a nice texture. Loved it! The pancakes were soft, fluffy and not dry at all., The galette was tasty too but perhaps needed a few more toppings to cover more of the surface as it was a little plain in parts, but this is really a minor criticism. I’d still eat it again!
Cuisine: Cafe food (burritos, pancakes, burgers etc.)
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? No
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? Yes for dining but the toilets are up some stairs
I recommend: The breakfast burrito
Address: 86 St Benedicts St, Norwich NR2 4AB
📍 The Little Shop of Vegans
Imagine a shop where everything was vegan and you could get almost anything you wanted… Well, Norwich has one! They have such a wide range of vegan and eco-friendly products, it’s hard to know where to start! Chocolate, candles, beauty products, cleaning products, vegan meat subs, vegan cheese…. honestly almost anything you could ever want. Well worth a visit!
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Products? Yes
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? No, there are some stairs
Address: 49 St Benedicts St, Norwich NR2 4PG
📍 Erpingham House
Probably one of Norwich’s better known vegan restaurants, Erpingham House made a name of itself when it arrived on the scene in 2018. Situated inside a grade 2 listed building, a lot of effort has gone into the interior design – from a fairy light lit tree to pink chairs and a pink bicycle, The menu is quite varied, offering dishes from different regions around the world – pan con tomate, mushrooms on toast, King oyster mushroom katsu, burgers, fish and chips, truffle pasta and tacos to name a few dishes. I only had the stomach capacity to try one dish so I tried to pick the most unique one I could see on the menu; one that I’d never tried before. I had the lamb & feta with shredded mock lamb, crumbled feta, olives, roasted red peppers, crushed new potatoes and an orange, oregano and mint dressing. It was really unusual and I enjoyed it although it was too oily for my liking. The “lamb” was also quite crispy and light – it could’ve been a bit meatier.
Cuisine: Varied
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? No
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? No
I recommend: I only tried one dish! I did enjoy it and would eat it again but woulmd prefer it to be less oily.
Address: 22 Tombland, Norwich NR3 1RF
📍 Blue Joanna
Of all the continents in the world, Asia’s food is my favourite so any time I get a chance to try it, I will. Blue Joanna is set a little way out of the centre of the city. I visited in the evening when it was dimly lit and bustling with customers so it had a really nice atmosphere. They have a record player and they encourage people to pick a song to play. The staff were friendly and the venue had a good buzz about it. A few people recommended Blue Joanna to me and I was super excited to give it a go. Unfortunately, I wasn’t blown away by the food. It was fine but I felt it could have been much stronger. The tofu bites had a lovely texture (almost cheese-like) but really needed a stronger flavour, I wasn’t a fan of the aubergine being sliced as it didn’t allow for the texture to melt in your mouth like other aubergine dishes I’ve had. The sauce was also a bit overpowering. The corn was okay although a bit too sweet for my liking. The special vegan fried rice was probably the strongest dish.
Cuisine: Asian inspired street food
Vegan-friendly
Gluten Free Options? Yes – 100% GF menu
Outdoor Dining? Yes
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? Yes
I recommend: The special vegetable fried rice
Address: 103 Unthank Rd, Norwich NR2 2PE
📍 Cafe 33
This adorable little spot on Exchange street is everything you could want from a breakfast cafe. Their vegan menu is also huge and it’s nice to see that they’ve made an attempt to replicate all of their non-vegan dishes so that no one feels like they’re missing out. I knew this place was popular but was surprised, when I left, to see a ten person long queue out the door. It’s definitely worthy of a queue though, I was really impressed by my breakfast. The sausages were really flavoursome, the tomatoes were cooked perfectly, the bubble and squeak was dreamy (and also, how nice to have two different forms of potato as there was a hash brown too), there was a really good measure of vegan feta on there (not overpowering) and the homemade hummus had a lovely garlic flavour to it. Really enjoyed this breakfast and would recommend this spot to anyone. Cute decor, welcoming staff and a really buzzy atmosphere.
Cuisine: Cafe style food – I visited for their breakfast menu
Vegan-friendly
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? No
Dog Friendly? Unsure
Wheelchair Friendly? Unsure
I recommend: The vegan breakfast
Address: 31, 33 Exchange St, Norwich NR2 1DP
📍 Norwich Market – Lucy’s Chips & Bun Box
Norwich’s outdoor market plays host to a variety of different stalls. Lucy’s Chips and Bun Box were both mentioned to me as the best places to go for vegan food. Lucy’s actually serves vegan fish but at this point in the trip, I was too full so I didn’t get a chance to try it BUT I will say that the chips were banging. So banging that they attracted the whole seagull population of Norwich. Bun Box specialises in bao and that day they had a special tofu bao which caught my eye. I really liked it – it tasted a bit like a chicken sandwich!
Cuisine: Varied
Lots of vegan friendly stalls
Gluten Free Options? Unsure
Outdoor Dining? Yes – it’s all grab and go style
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? Yes
I recommend: Lucy’s and Bun Box
Address: 1 Market Pl, Norwich NR2 1ND
📍Moorish Falafel
Falafel is one of those foods that gets a hard time because for so long, it was the only vegan option available at most restaurants. Also, when it’s done badly, it can be truly terrible. However, a decent, freshly cooked falafel can be truly glorious and I really enjoyed these wraps from Moorish. I went for the classic which came with salad and coleslaw which actually worked well. The venue itself isn’t a restaurant as such although they do have some seating. I’d say it’s more of a grab and go spot but I did enjoy sitting in the sun and eating mine while I people-watched.
Cuisine: Falafel – boxes, wraps, salads
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? Yes
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? No, steps at entrance
I recommend: The classic falafel wrap
Address: 17 Lower Goat Ln, Norwich NR2 1EL
📍Benedicts
This is one of the fancier spots in Norwich, boasting a spot in the Michelin guide and offering tasting menus including a vegan one. I went for the five course over the eight course and was really impressed by the creativity. I was served fried butternut squash, turnip & apple, smoked nuts, bread and butter, soft baked celeriac with a truffle and hazlenut dressing, roast vegetable terrine, rice pudding mousse, caramelised apple tart with raspberry sorbet and also the dish pictured was give to me as a bonus dish as it’s their signature dish – rice cracker with sherry mousse. The venue was really busy throughout the time I was there but the service was constantly great and the venue itself had a nice feel to it. My feedback on the vegan tasting menu is that it was creative, unique and delicious but I’d love to see some more protein in there.
Cuisine: Modern British
Vegan friendly
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? No
Dog Friendly? No
Wheelchair Friendly? No
I recommend: The vegan tasting menu. My favourite dishes were the fried butternut squash, roast vegetable terrine, rice cracker with sherry mousse and the caramelised apple tart with sorbet
Address: 9 St Benedicts St, Norwich NR2 4PE
📍 Tofurei
This is a very small cafe style venue serving locally sourced tofu dishes, desserts and coffees. I was a little disappointed to see that the food menu is quite small – I was expecting it to be more of a restaurant but the dishes they did have all sounded appealing. I wanted a pasty but unfortunately they’d sold out so I went for the tofu sandwich with applewood cheese and chutney. It was simple but tasty – a good lunchtime snack. The cafe is quite small but the staff were friendly and it’s a good place to watch people walk by. I’d love to try some more of the tofu they create themselves as I’ve heard great things!
Cuisine: Cafe style food
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Unsure
Outdoor Dining? Yes
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? Unsure
I recommend: The tofu and cheese sandwich
Address: 10 St Gregorys Alley, Norwich NR2 1ER
📍 The Gatherers
I absolutely adored this place. It’s set up in an old country style pub but it’s now purely a bar / restaurant. I was sat in front of the fire which was so cosy! The menu isn’t massive but there’s a good mix of options. I went for the “crab” and tomato starter made from banana blossom and mayonnaise and thenmeaty wellington with roast potatoes and a red wine jus. The starter wasn’t hugely similar to crab – it was quite sharp and vinegary but I did enjoy it in its own way. The wellington dish was really nice and one of my faves from the whole trip! There was a good amount of roast potatoes, a very generous amount of beautifully flavoured, thick jus, really nice hints of horseradish & mustard coming from the wellington. The vegan meat used was excellent and really gave the dish some bite which, although I love mushrooms, can sometimes be missing from a shroom wellington, The pastry was also great. I’d definitely order this again!
Cuisine: Various European cuisines
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Yes
Outdoor Dining? Yes
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? No
I recommend: The wellington
Address: 2 Muspole St, Norwich NR3 1DJ
📍 Ancestors Coffee
This was my final spot of my Norwich tour and I was extremely full of food at this point. So, naturally I decided to order a giant smoothie, a big breakfast sandwich and a s’mores cookie… The big breakfast sandwich was really tasty and so filling. The smoothie was tasty too and surprisingly filling but the cookie didn’t really do it for me, It’s a cute spot filled with locals. The staff were friendly and it’s a nice spot to sit and work for a few hours.
Cuisine: Cafe style food
100% Vegan
Gluten Free Options? Not sure
Outdoor Dining? No
Dog Friendly? Yes
Wheelchair Friendly? Not sure
I recommend: The big breakfast sandwich
Address: 27 Magdalen St, Norwich NR3 1LE
Here are some of the other spots which were recommended to me but which I didn’t get a chance to visit:
Random buns of kindness
Doner Bei Tante Anne
Haggle
Loving Hut
The Green Eatery
Re Source
Great Wall
Deerly Beloved Bakery
Benoli
Artel
Green Grocers
Dhaba at Fifteen
Vegan Wok Norwich
The Georgian Townhouse
Frank’s Bar
Falafel & Friends
The Bicycle Shop
The Workshop
River Green Cafe
Temple Bar
I also really wanted to visit Wild Thyme and KindaKafe but they’re sadly closed down now!
Accommodation
If you’re looking for a cute Airbnb to stay in, I stayed at this venue and it was perfect for the week – close to all of the local, independent restaurants and central enough that you can travel across the city easily. I walked everywhere! It’s comfortable, modern and has a nice roof terrace. It was sometimes a little noisy at night from people / bin lorries outside but nothing too bothersome. I’ve added the airbnb to my google map at the top of this page so you can see where it is in proximity to the other restaurants.
I hope that this guide has helped you understand the vegan scene in Norwich a little better. Thanks to everyone who sent in recommendations!
These are just the places I had time to visit. Obviously there are more places offering vegan options and hopefully the options will keep getting better and better!
Norwich is a really pretty, quaint city with tonnes of pubs and churches and I’d definitely recommend it for a long weekend or a few days away.
If you want any tips or just want to have a chat about any of the places we visited, head over to my Instagram page: @thelittlelondonvegan.
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