How to eat vegan or vegetarian in China

01

How to find vegetarian restaurants near your hotel

Search 素食餐厅 (vegetarian restaurant) or 素食 (vegetarian food) in Amap or Dianping. For a buffet, try 素食自助. Add the neighborhood or landmark if the results spread across the whole city. Save the Chinese name, branch and entrance on your map before setting out.

HappyCow is useful for English-language reviews. Xiaohongshu adds recent meal photos and local suggestions: search the city name with 素食 or 纯素, then check when the post was published. Use both to make a shortlist, and confirm opening hours in the restaurant’s current listing.

Look for a menu with several tofu, mushroom and bean dishes so you have enough choice for a full meal. Save a second place nearby, especially for your first evening or a late arrival.

02

What to check when a restaurant says “vegetarian”

Some restaurants listed under 素食 use eggs or milk. 纯素 and 全素 are more specific search terms for vegan food; still explain the ingredients you avoid when ordering. If you eat eggs and dairy, say so too—it gives the kitchen more options.

Buddhist vegetarian restaurants and temple canteens can be good places to look. Check whether the canteen serves visitors, when it opens and which dishes fit your diet. Cakes, drinks and prepared mock meats deserve the same ingredient check as anywhere else.

Vegan food excludes animal ingredients, including eggs, dairy and honey. It does not mean free from peanuts, sesame, soy or wheat. If you also have a food allergy, make a separate request about that allergen and food preparation.

03

Check the broth, sauce and cooking fat

A dish’s name usually describes its main ingredients, not everything in the wok. Greens can be seasoned with oyster sauce; a tofu dish can include minced pork; dumpling fillings can contain egg or dried shrimp. Ask staff to check the recipe with the kitchen, including the stock and seasoning.

Explain the full request before the food is prepared. Leaving out a topping is straightforward when it is added at the end; removing meat from an already-made soup or filling does not change the other ingredients. A different dish is often easier than adapting a premixed one.

04

What to order at a restaurant that also serves meat

A practical starting order is rice, a tofu or bean dish, and a vegetable dish. Ask which versions the kitchen can make with vegetable oil and without meat stock or animal-based sauces. Tofu with mushrooms, garlic greens and stir-fried potato strips give you a few concrete options to ask about.

For vegetarians who eat eggs, tomato and egg is another option to ask about. For vegans, a vegetable dumpling or bun needs a filling check: “vegetable” can include egg. Mock duck and mock chicken at a vegetarian restaurant are worth trying, but ask what they are made from if you avoid soy or wheat.

If you are sharing a meal with people who eat meat, order the vegetarian dishes together and keep serving utensils with each plate. Tell staff which dishes need the changes so the request reaches the right part of the order.

05

How to order vegan hotpot or malatang

At malatang shops, you choose ingredients for a soup that staff cook for you. Ask whether the broth contains meat stock, animal fat or dairy. Tomato and mushroom describe flavors, not a complete ingredient list. At malatang shops, check whether a separate vegetable broth or plain-water preparation is available before you fill a bowl.

For hotpot, a separate pot makes it easier to keep your meal apart from meat and seafood. Add tofu, mushrooms, leafy greens and noodles after checking their ingredients. A divider in a communal pot does not prevent broth splashing or other diners dipping utensils into both sides.

At the sauce counter, ask what is in the pastes and prepared mixes. Soy sauce, sesame paste, garlic and vinegar can form a vegan dip when their ingredients fit your diet; seafood sauces and mixed condiments need a closer look.

06

Plan breakfast and meals on travel days

For breakfast, look for plain congee (rice porridge), steamed sweet potatoes, corn, soy milk or buns with a confirmed vegan filling. Savory congee and soy-milk toppings vary, so check the version being served. At cafés, a plant-milk swap does not change dairy in whipped toppings or a premixed drink base.

For a long train journey or a late check-in, buy food before leaving a neighborhood where you have choices. A supermarket gives you time to read labels; the train’s meal trolley gives you fewer options. Pack a meal from a restaurant you have already checked, along with snacks that suit your diet.

With delivery, contact the restaurant about ingredients before paying if you need changes. The order-notes box is useful for recording an agreed request, but it is a poor place to begin a conversation about an unfamiliar ingredient.