What I Ate In Munich (with non-vegan friends)

Last weekend, I took a quick trip to Munich with some friends. We explored the city a bit, drank lots of beer, and ate at restaurants not known for being very vegan-friendly. I was prepared for this, and brought many snacks for times that I couldn’t find anything good on the menu. I was able to find a couple of good meals, and figured I’d share for anyone who finds themself in Munich with non-vegan company, and doesn’t have the time or patience to drag them to vegan restaurants across the city.

Hofbräuhaus

This was our first stop on the trip. I’m not the biggest fan of beer, but I wanted to enjoy a drink in a big beer stein, so I opted for a radler, which is a mix of beer and lemonade. It was much better than just drinking a beer in my opinion, and became my go-to drink while in Munich. There didn't seem to be any vegan options on the menu, so I just went for a pretzel. It was pretty good, but I left feeling hungry. I would recommend coming here for a snack, beer, and the history, but don't expect to enjoy a full meal.

Schneider Bräuhaus

My dad told me that this was his favorite spot in Munich, so it was a must for my group. We went straight from Hofbräuhaus, so most of the group wasn’t very hungry. Everyone ordered beers (I had another radler), and nobody ordered food. There was a vegan cabbage soup on the menu which was cool to see, but I wasn’t really in the mood for that. I ended up sneakily eating a protein bar while sipping my beer. If you’re into cabbage soup, this is not a bad option, and you can always order pretzels as well.

Ratskeller

This place is conveniently located right in the main Marienplatz square, and upon seeing it, I had a vague memory of visiting this restaurant with my family during our 2014 trip across Europe. I was not vegan at that time, but remembered enjoying the food as well as the ambiance and decor inside of the place. My friends and I decided to stop there for lunch, and I was pleasantly surprised to see a vegetarian and vegan section of the menu. There were two vegan options: the polenta & fungi (pictured to the left), and a wok vegetable dish with rice. Before my meal came, I enjoyed a pretzel with tons of mustard, which was pretty much the same as all of the other pretzels on the trip. I was stunned when my food arrived because it was so beautiful, and was the first real meal I had. It was good, but definitely not the best meal I’ve had. It was a bit bland and oily, and they only seasoning I could taste was salt. I can’t really complain though because at least I was able to order a real meal with vegetables that was filling.

Augustiner-Keller

My brother Joey raved about this place to me, but warned me that there may not be anything vegan on the menu. I decided we should all still go, even if I couldn’t order anything, because Joey loved it so much. To my surprise, there was a vegan vegetable curry on the menu! Before ordering food, I ordered another radler (I think they called it shandy here, but it’s the same thing). This was my favorite drink out of all that I tired on the trip, I even ordered a second. Most of the group also agreed that the beer here was the best they’d had on the trip. I then ordered the curry (pictured to the right), but wasn’t expecting much, as the restaurant is known for meat. I was so pleasantly surprised when I tasted the curry. It was so good!! This was without a doubt the best meal I had on the trip, and if you are to go anywhere I’ve mentioned this needs to be the place. There were cute lights and a fire pit outside, and the inside was absolutely stunning. The main beer hall featured classic long tables as well as a stage where people could be seated. The stage area featured a beautiful mural, and the ceilings were intricately designed. There were also some other rooms with cool decor and booths. If you go in the summer, there is an outdoor beer garden that is said to be great as well. Joey was so right, this place is a gem!

Starbucks

During a long day spent walking around the city in the cold, I stopped at Starbucks to warm up with a hot chocolate. I ordered a vegan hummus and falafel wrap as well as a hot chocolate with soy milk and no whipped cream like I normally do in the US. The barista told me that their hot chocolate still had a tiny bit of lactose in it, and asked if that was okay. I explained that it wasn’t, and he kindly offered to make me a vegan hot chocolate, not using their usual mix that contains milk. I was very thankful for this barista, and warmed up right away with my venti hot chocolate. If you stop at a German Starbucks, make sure your drink is actually free of dairy, as they use some different recipes from the US. There were some other vegan food options as well, such as a vegan hot box and a vegan apple pie.

Snacks from London

As mentioned before, I stocked up on snacks before heading to Munich. I went to Waitrose, simply because it is the closest supermarket to my flat in South Kensington. I bought a cocoa oat protein Trek Bar (so good!), peach fizz and sour watermelon Candy Kittens (obviously amazing, my new addiction), Deliciously Ella raspberry & peanut butter bites (I honestly did not like these at all), Livia’s Kitchen salted date caramel millionaire bite (pretty good, would buy again), and an Ombar Coco Mylk bar (delicious). These snacks came in handy, and were all eaten (other than the Deliciously Ella bites I couldn’t bring myself to finish). I highly recommend planning some snacks out before your trip if you ever do go to Munich (or anywhere), as you may find yourself hungry if you can only find pretzels to eat.

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