Hawaii – Big Island Vegan Eats!
While circling the Big Island of Hawaii, I found it delightful to find vegan eats in each of the cities and towns. There seems to be an understanding of what veganism is on the island, and I was pleasantly surprised by the number of entirely vegan restaurants on the island! The vegan-dedicated restaurants tended to be in the Kona and Hilo areas, which was never that far of a drive from where we stayed, but we also found little gems in the smaller towns.
A couple of things to keep in mind while planning a Big Island vegan eats adventure is the cost of food and restaurant hours. Check the “Cost of Food in Hawaii” section below for more info. As for the restaurant hours, a recurring issue we encountered was not accessing the restaurants we had hoped to visit. In part due to the pandemic, many restaurants restricted their hours and are not open every day. Some were even permanently closed due to the lack of business. Reduced hours made it tricky while driving around the island and only in particular areas on certain days. Double-check open hours and days.
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Big Island Vegan Eats – Kilauea-Kona
Kona was a hub for vegan and vegetarian restaurants. When searching for vegan options while traveling, I usually utilize at least two tools. The first is going to the new area on Google Maps and searching “vegan.” This method is simple and generally effective but not always thorough as some restaurants do not list on Google. Happy Cow is a website that lists all the vegan-friendly options with reviews and photos. It tends to be a bit more thorough with reviews to help you determine what dish to get.
- Journey to Good Health Cafe: My travel partner deemed this the best vegan option in Kona. The flavors were immaculate – nuanced and layered. We also loved how it was in a small, unassuming location in Kona. Check the open hours because we only were able to eat here once!
- Ice Cream Shop next to Journey: Next to Journey, there is a vegan ice cream shop. It seems related to Journey, but I have difficulty finding more information about the little shop. My travel partner picked up a customized vegan creation while I was night snorkeling with Manta Rays and said it was the quality of any other top-tier vegan dessert that he’s had. It was a bit melted when I got to try it, but I discovered fun toppings over a creamy, delicious base.
- Herbivores: I am so happy that Herbivores exists. We went here while starving on our first night on the Island and were a tiny bit disappointed with our choices. We opted for a BLT and Ceasar Salad, but we think that their pizzas would have been more filling and delicious.
Grocery Stores
- Island Naturals Grocery Store: So many delicious vegan treats! We grabbed a great breakfast of coffee, cinnamon roll, and warm breakfast burrito. But as soon as we saw the variety of vegan options, we came back to pick up lunch and a few groceries to make a meal throughout the week. There is also a location in Hilo.
- Plant-Based Food: Over by Costco, there is a little shop of entirely vegan grocery products! Amazing! Pair with Costco for a well-rounded grocery run.
- Costco: This is the only location where the food prices are comparable to the mainland, making it a popular place for locals. With an increasing amount of vegan options, Costco is an excellent place to stop by if you are planning to cook during the week. We picked up a few snacks that lasted the week.
Big Island Vegan Eats – Hilo
The other vegan hub on the Big Island is Hilo. Check out these vegan and vegetarian restaurants:
- Vibe: This is a great vegan/vegetarian restaurant! We ended up going here twice – once for dinner and again the next day for lunch. For dinner, we had the Vegan Eggs Benedict and Vegan Beet “Poke” Bowl – both had incredible flavors. Just watch out for that wasabi dressing in the Poke Bowl. For lunch, we had the Vegan Teriyaki Sandwich and Vegan Loco Moco. The sandwich was STACKED with delicious marinated seitan. I didn’t have high expectations, so this was amazing. The Loco Moco was a super filling classic that we had to have while in Hawaii. Although adorable decor, consider getting takeout from Vibe. Perhaps amplified during the pandemic, but both times we went by, there were questionable folks hanging around.
- Sweet Cane Cafe: This is a vegetarian restaurant that we didn’t end up eating at but seemed to have some great vegan options. We stopped by to check it out, so I wanted to mention it.
Big Island Vegan Eats – Hawi & Waimea
In the other towns, there is a chance you will find other hidden gems.
- Roots Alchemy: In Hawi, I was sad to see the vegetarian restaurant called Sweet Potato had permanently closed. Luckily, right behind the building was a mini smoothie bar with a vegan and vegetarian restaurant. We had their BLT tempeh sandwich, salad, and a super smoothie. I recommend getting two sandwiches because they come with fresh salads! The owner was delightful to talk to, and I recommend stopping by to get something while in town.
- Foodland in Waimea: No shade to the Natural Foods store next to Foodland in Waimea, but there was a great selection of vegan options at Foodland! We grocery-shopped here while staying in Waimea.
Cost of Food in Hawaii
Although I knew it was going to be high, the cost of food in Hawaii still shocked me. High prices were across the board and not particular to vegan food. My travel partner and I spent more during our 8-day trip to Hawaii than our 12-day trip to New Zealand! It felt like we were barely skating by with food in Hawaii, whereas we were constantly picking up snacks, desserts, chai lattes, and more in New Zealand. Here’s what you can do to keep things in check:
- Budget and mentally prepare for double what you usually pay at home. It’s probably not double, but if you have extra money, then you won’t feel bad about getting that extra smoothie with lunch or whatever your heart truly desires.
- Get accommodations with a kitchen to make some of your meals. We cooked about half of the nights in our Airbnb locations and packed a lunch occasionally.
- Bring a couple of packets of coconut oil from Trader Joe’s, so you do not need to buy an entire jar of oil when cooking.
- Bring the sauce part of your favorite Mac & Cheese, then buy noodles and proteins while there.
- Have more tips for cooking while traveling?? Leave a comment, so I can check it out!
Vegan vs. Vegetarian Eats
Why am I not always writing about vegan food? I write vegan or vegetarian posts based on my travel partner during any given trip. I am a vegetarian who is not dependent on dairy or eggs, so if I travel with someone who is vegan, then I will primarily eat vegan on the trip. Two of my main travel partners are vegan! We seek out and eat at vegan or particularly vegan-friendly establishments. Whereas when I travel with someone who eats everything, I will focus on what I ate as a vegetarian. Here are my other vegan and vegetarian posts:
- Norway – Vegetarian Eats
- Peru – Vegan Eats
- Iceland – Vegan Eats
- Belize – Vegetarian Eats
- New Zealand – Vegan Eats
Overall Thoughts
I was pleasantly surprised to find vegan restaurants in nearly every city on the Big Island. It makes sense that most options are in the bigger towns of Kona and Hilo, but also little places like Roots Alchemy with options in smaller areas. If you do the proper preparation: budget, research, and pick accommodations with a kitchen (if you plan on cooking), then I’m sure you will have a delightfully vegan experience on the Big Island
Don’t forget to check out my other blog posts about the Big Island:
- Exploring Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
- Kilauea Iki Crater Hike
- Pololu Valley Hike
- Coffee Tasting at Buddha’s Cup Coffee
- Snorkeling with Manta Rays
Do you have any other vegan or veggie restaurants you would recommend on the Big Island?? I believe there were a couple more that I was unable to visit due to the timing and hours. Leave a comment for me to visit in the future or other readers to know what’s out there.
Happy Travels,
Hanna
