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The Best Places for a Quick and Dirty Vegetarian or Vegan Meal

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Vegetarian food doesn’t always have to coincide with clean-eating. In fact, most vegetarians will likely tell you the same thing. They love a greasy burger after a night of drinking, they wouldn’t say no to 3 a.m. pizza delivery, and they’ve certainly had their fair share of late night poutine.

While quick and dirty vegetarian food often gets overlooked by whole grain, hemp, and quinoa-based fare — but sometimes it’s nice to just dig into a greasy plate. Here are some of the best spots to pick up a satisfying, meat-free meal to line your stomach, arranged by geography (not ranked).

Looking for a general, non-fast food guide to vegetarian and vegan eating? That map is over here.

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Eater maps are curated by editors and aim to reflect a diversity of neighborhoods, cuisines, and prices. Learn more about our editorial process.

Lafleur

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Most inner-city Lafleur locations are open until 4 a.m (there’s around ten spread across the island), which is convenient as heck when all you want is a greasy poutine before crawling into bed after a round of drinks. Unlike many other inexpensive fast food joints, Lafleur uses fresh curds and even fresher hand-cut potatoes. They also offer a veggie burger and tofu steamés.

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La Banquise

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This Plateau mainstay is a late-night staple — even when all the tourists in bed, line-ups are still known to occur at 4 a.m. You just can’t fight tradition. Even so, they were one of the first venues to introduce vegan poutine -- or as they call it, La Veganomane. Game changer.

Vegan poutine
La Banquise

L'Gros Luxe 100% Végé

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By now, L’Gros Luxe is a Montreal cheap eats hit, known for affordable plates and unique decor, which have propelled their expansion around the city. The original Plateau location is now home to an all-vegetarian version of the mini-chain, doing everything from vegan poutine to crispy “chicken” burgers.

Pitarifique

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Often overshadowed by some of the greasy spoon mainstays in the surrounding area, Pitarifique does a mean poutine and an even better veggie burger. Tip: ask for tzatziki instead of mayo on your veggie burger for a truly euphoric experience.

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Schlouppe Bistrot Nakamichi

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Montreal already isn’t a huge ramen city, so finding vegan ramen can feel akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. If the broth doesn’t have pork, it’ll have fish, and 9 times out of 10 that hard-to-find vegan broth will taste of little more than water. However, at Nakamichi, they pride themselves on a selection of flavourful vegan bowls.

Gibeau Orange Julep

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Everyone knows that this Montreal institution boasts some of the best recipe-unknown orange “shake-like” drinks in town. But Orange Julep is one of the few places to get a vegetarian pogo, too.

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Pizza Pizza

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OK, yes, seriously, hear this one out: decent vegetarian pizza is widespread enough, but Pizza Pizza is one of the only pizza delivery services to offer vegan cheese — and it’s not run-of-the-mill grocery store Daiya, either. Pizza Pizza actually imports Violife, a brand of vegan cheese from Greece, and it’s just about as close to the real thing as you can get. (Note that any Pizza Pizza location should be good for Violife cheese, not just this one.)

Le Kitchen

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Made even more accessible by their new Atwater Market location, much of Le Kitchen’s fare is health-conscious, but they’re also known for their Lil Mak — a vegan rendition of the iconic McDonald's sandwich that tastes way better than the real thing. Also of note: their peanut butter brownies are not to be missed.

Crèmerie Dalla Rose

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Dalla Rose offers a variety of unique, locally sourced  ice cream flavours -- ranging from Quebec corn to vegan brownie, and they always have at least two vegan flavours on tap. Come winter, Dalla Rose turns into Ramen 9000, a ramen pop up with vegan broth (though omnivores can add pork belly or egg upon request).

Vegan brownie ice cream
Dalla Rose

Pizzeria Adamo

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One of the best places in the city for a slice, come here before a night of drinking to truly appreciate the depth of flavour that a slice of Adamo has to offer, with interesting vegetarian toppings like ricotta and Italian rapini.

Vegan Rapide

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NDG’s Vegan Rapide is the plant-based answer to your typical greasy spoon delivery service. These folks make a great “cheese” burger — best when paired with their delightfully greasy vegan poutine.

Lafleur

Most inner-city Lafleur locations are open until 4 a.m (there’s around ten spread across the island), which is convenient as heck when all you want is a greasy poutine before crawling into bed after a round of drinks. Unlike many other inexpensive fast food joints, Lafleur uses fresh curds and even fresher hand-cut potatoes. They also offer a veggie burger and tofu steamés.

A post shared by ELIE ╳ DUQUET (@elieduq) on

La Banquise

This Plateau mainstay is a late-night staple — even when all the tourists in bed, line-ups are still known to occur at 4 a.m. You just can’t fight tradition. Even so, they were one of the first venues to introduce vegan poutine -- or as they call it, La Veganomane. Game changer.

Vegan poutine
La Banquise

L'Gros Luxe 100% Végé

By now, L’Gros Luxe is a Montreal cheap eats hit, known for affordable plates and unique decor, which have propelled their expansion around the city. The original Plateau location is now home to an all-vegetarian version of the mini-chain, doing everything from vegan poutine to crispy “chicken” burgers.

Pitarifique

Often overshadowed by some of the greasy spoon mainstays in the surrounding area, Pitarifique does a mean poutine and an even better veggie burger. Tip: ask for tzatziki instead of mayo on your veggie burger for a truly euphoric experience.

A post shared by hirotechnics (@hirotechnics) on

Schlouppe Bistrot Nakamichi

Montreal already isn’t a huge ramen city, so finding vegan ramen can feel akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. If the broth doesn’t have pork, it’ll have fish, and 9 times out of 10 that hard-to-find vegan broth will taste of little more than water. However, at Nakamichi, they pride themselves on a selection of flavourful vegan bowls.

Gibeau Orange Julep

Everyone knows that this Montreal institution boasts some of the best recipe-unknown orange “shake-like” drinks in town. But Orange Julep is one of the few places to get a vegetarian pogo, too.

A post shared by Laureline (@laure_on_line) on

Pizza Pizza

OK, yes, seriously, hear this one out: decent vegetarian pizza is widespread enough, but Pizza Pizza is one of the only pizza delivery services to offer vegan cheese — and it’s not run-of-the-mill grocery store Daiya, either. Pizza Pizza actually imports Violife, a brand of vegan cheese from Greece, and it’s just about as close to the real thing as you can get. (Note that any Pizza Pizza location should be good for Violife cheese, not just this one.)

Le Kitchen

Made even more accessible by their new Atwater Market location, much of Le Kitchen’s fare is health-conscious, but they’re also known for their Lil Mak — a vegan rendition of the iconic McDonald's sandwich that tastes way better than the real thing. Also of note: their peanut butter brownies are not to be missed.

Crèmerie Dalla Rose

Dalla Rose offers a variety of unique, locally sourced  ice cream flavours -- ranging from Quebec corn to vegan brownie, and they always have at least two vegan flavours on tap. Come winter, Dalla Rose turns into Ramen 9000, a ramen pop up with vegan broth (though omnivores can add pork belly or egg upon request).

Vegan brownie ice cream
Dalla Rose

Pizzeria Adamo

One of the best places in the city for a slice, come here before a night of drinking to truly appreciate the depth of flavour that a slice of Adamo has to offer, with interesting vegetarian toppings like ricotta and Italian rapini.

Vegan Rapide

NDG’s Vegan Rapide is the plant-based answer to your typical greasy spoon delivery service. These folks make a great “cheese” burger — best when paired with their delightfully greasy vegan poutine.