The Plant Gallery offers raw vegan food with a Peruvian slant. Photo: Supplied

The myth that a vegan diet is a rotation of joyless salads has been busted by the wealth of Sydney eateries that have emerged to cater to the animal-product-free diet. Here are some of our favourite experiences.



BEST VEGAN ...

Gateway meal

Gigi Pizzeria, gigipizzeria.com.au, or Soul Burger, soulburger.com.au

The puffy, charred slices, the ingredient-stacked burgers, the fat herbed chips, the coconut shakes – any combo of this will make a good pro-vegan-dining case.

Gigi's vegan fig pizza with dairy-free blue cheese. Photo: Jessica Matino Toastie

The vegan cheese and shiitake bacon toastie from Mister Toast, instagram.com/mistertoast

You'll devour it faster than you can think "how on earth do they make this messy, brilliant thing?" Order two if you can.

Snack

Coconut bacon from Kinda Bacon, kindabacon.com These smoky, salt-bomb crisps taste inescapably like coconut – but they're an addictive, rock'n'roll version of #cleaneating's pin-up ingredient.

"Meat"

Suzy Spoon's Vegetarian Butcher, ssvb.com.au Even mock-meat sceptics should consider the polenta, sun-dried tomato and basil sausages (or the rosemary and garlic patties).


Place for something different

The Plant Gallery, Bondi, theplantgallery.com.au

A raw Peruvian vegan restaurant? Don't question it, just order the smoky gazpacho shot.



Full vegan experience

Otto, Woollomooloo, ottoristorante.com.au

Settle in for top dishes (such as the fantastic coconut pavlova made from chickpea brine instead of egg whites) and match it with vegan cheeses and wines, if you like.

Special-occasion meal

Quay, quay.com.au

From asparagus congee to the roasted eggplant with koji, take advantage of the three-hatted restaurant's vegan menu (and its inventive matching juices).

All-time dessert

Whipped coconut with coconut sorbet at Yellow, yellowsydney.com.au It's topped with coconut shards that are sweetened with carrot juice – it's a fantastic jackpot of crunchy, fruity and silken flavours.

Restriction-busting dessert

The 'GED' peach and nectarine flaxseed cake, served with lemon sorbet at Rockpool, rockpool.com It's gluten, dairy and egg free – and brilliant. The genius behind this is chef Byoung Hoon Kim.

Suburbs

Newtown has a vegan fish and chips store, gelateria, raw organic cafe, pizzeria and sushi joint; Bondi has a vegan "milk" bar, specialty coffee roaster, raw Peruvian restaurant and the second Sadhana Kitchen. Battle it out in both.