Playa del Carmen has become something of a vegan beach town haven. I first visited in 2021 and there were a few fully vegan offerings, including The Pitted Date, which has since closed. But every time I have returned, the quantity of vegan establishments has steadily increased.
To the extent that you can now enjoy multiple vegan pizza and burger joints, plenty of vegan Mexican food, desserts, Asian food, and much more!
In my opinion, it has become one of the most vegan-friendly beach destinations, far surpassing Da Nang in Vietnam. With a good variety of coffee shops and yoga studios, it is also a hotspot for digital nomads like myself.
Having spent a fair few months in Playa del Carmen, I want to present you with my list of favourite 100% vegan restaurants and cafes. You really won’t miss out as a vegan in Playa del Carmen!
My top picks
- Best vegan tacos: El Bajon Vegano
- Best vegan breakfast: Fresco Habito
- Best vegan pizza: Coral Vegan Pizza
- Best Middle Eastern food: Arcana
- Best vegan waffles: Corazón Contento
- Best vegan coffee: Ressio
- Best milkshakes: Comet 984
- Best vegan Asian food: Salvei
- Best vegan burgers: Nein Buck
- Best desserts: Plantivoros
- Best vegan takeaway: The Vegan Spot
El Bajon Vegano
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Location: Calle 34 Nte entre avenida 20 y 30 norte, Tohoku, Gonzalo Guerrero, 77720 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Tacos de milanesa
El Bajon Vegano is one of my all-time favourite vegan taco spots. I first tried them in 2021 when visiting Tulum and was so happy to revisit them in 2025. I was even more happy to find out they had also since opened up a branch in Playa del Carmen, meaning I could eat their tacos more often.
Their tacos are affordable (25mxn per taco) and tasty. They have a good variety of proteins to choose from, my favourites being the milanesa, el pastor, and chorizo verde. You can choose to have them in a taco, torta, huarache, or tostada. They have a variety of salsas varying in spiciness, plus deliciously pickled red onions!
They also have a few desserts, kombucha, and an agua del dia with 2 refills. The menu is simple which I love, and I believe it is what makes them so good at the food they create!
Fresco Habito
- Cuisine: Mexican & more
- Location: Calle 1 Nte. S/N, Centro, 77710 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Bomblette
Whilst Fresco Habito is a great spot for lunch and dinner, it is most definitely my favourite place for breakfast. They open at 8am (other than Sundays) and have organic coffee and a great variety of delicious breakfast dishes, including my firm favourite, their Bomblette.
The Bomblette (vegan omelette) is made using chickpeas and mung beans. This is filled with greens and topped with avocado and some sort of tangy vegan cream cheese. This is covered in a black bean sauce, doubling up the plant-based protein sources!
Being just a block away from the sea, this is the perfect spot for a pre- or post-swim snack. They also sell a variety of smoothie bowls, which add to the beachy feel of the place.
They do advertise ‘honey’ on their English menu, but the staff assured me everything was vegan. I am aware that the word ‘miel’ (honey in English) gets used for all kinds of syrups, so it could be a translation issue.
Coral Vegan Pizza
- Cuisine: Pizza
- Location: Calle 10 Norte con Avenida 20 Norte Playa, Centro, 77710 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Pizza la de pastor
If you have a craving for pizza then you’ll be happy to know there are a few places you can fulfil this, but my top pick would have to be Coral Vegan Pizza. They have a variety of different vegan cheeses, including homemade cauliflower cheese which is super tasty, and some almond cheeses. None of them are cheap and tacky tasting.
Their pizza toppings are inventive and delicious. I particularly love their pizza la de pastor which comes with a side of limes, onions, and pineapple to add on top, just like you have with pastor. But I also love their more simple pizzas, since everything from the pizza base to the sauce is reallyflavourful.
If you can’t decide what to order, you can choose two flavours for a half and half pizza! They also make delicious empanadas. And all their pizzas and empanadas can be made gluten-free. I tried the gluten-free dough with a friend and it was really impressive.
Arcana
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
- Location: Calle 38 Nte Mz 200-Lt 3, entre calle 1ra y calle flamingos, Gonzalo Guerrero, 77710 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Saffron & tofu rice bowl
If you are looking for something a little different then make sure to check out Arcana, a vegan Middle Eastern restaurant with beach club vibes. They have created a beautiful chilled-out space just moments away from the sea. So it is a great place to grab some breakfast or lunch before hitting the beach.
They create their own plant-based milks, including hemp, oat, and cashew nut. On top of this, they have coffee, smoothies, and juices. Plus a great menu of Middle Eastern inspired food.
For breakfast, you can enjoy overnight oats, smoothie bowls, and waffles. And for lunch, you can choose from pita, rice bowls, and much more. My favourite dish is their saffron rice bowl with tofu, dried fruits, and fresh vegetables.
Corazon Contento
- Cuisine: Mixed
- Location: Calle 22 Nte entre 30 y 25 avenida, Gonzalo Guerrero, 77710 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Salty waffles
Corazón Contento is a cute vegan cafe located between a coffee shop serving only plant-based milk (mentioned below) and a beautiful yoga studio. It comes with its own resident cat who likes to watch over the cafe.
This cafe is a little more pricey than most other places selling Mexican dishes like tacos and quesabirrias, but the quality of the ingredients and cooking is obvious. Everything is cooked well and the dishes are well-flavoured.
You can see the chef puts a lot of effort into the food, with homemade vegan croissants and delicious waffles. I particularly enjoy their breakfast dishes and can happily spend a morning here eating their Salty Waffles whilst reading my book.
Ressio
- Cuisine: Coffee
- Location: Calle 22 Nte LB, Gonzalo Guerrero, 77720 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Oat flat white or iced latte
Located just in front of Corazón Contento is Ressio, a coffee shop serving only plant-based milk. Their default milk is soya, which works perfectly in an iced latte, but they also offer Oatly Barista which I prefer in my hot coffees, like flat whites.
They don’t sell food, but you can order some vegan bites from Corazón Contento (mentioned above) to enjoy at the same time. You can sit in either space with both your coffee and food. Just know that you will be given two separate bills.
The baristas at Ressio know how to make a good coffee and their oat flat whites are the best I’ve had in Playa del Carmen.
Comet 984
- Cuisine: American diner food
- Location: 77710 Calle 8 Norte LB Entre avenida 20 y 25, Centro, 77710 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Snickers milkshake
Comet 984 is a vegan diner selling burgers, hot dogs, fries, and delicious milkshakes. The interior of the diner is quirky and fun, giving off the American diner feel.
They offer a variety of burgers including homemade patties, packed full of plant-based proteins like lentils and chickpeas, and fake meats from Beyond Meat. I find all of their food to be tasty but my favourite thing about Comet 984 is their milkshakes. Make sure to try their snickers milkshake!
Every time I go there it can be a bit quiet, even with music on in the background. So I don’t always find the atmosphere that comfortable.
Salvei
- Cuisine: Mixed – Asian & Mexican
- Location: 5 Av. between 42, and 44 street, Zazil-ha, 77720 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Pad thai
Located on the calmer side of 5th Avenue are two vegan restaurants right next door to each other, Salvei and Tierra Verde. I have tried both and can’t say I was too keen on Tierra Verde, the coffee was watery and the panini was rock hard and lacked flavour. Salvei on the other hand was delicious!
They have a menu of Mexican, Italian, and Asian cuisine, including ramen, pad thai, pasta bolognese, and tacos. They also serve cocktails, wine and beer, perfect for an evening out.
I really enjoyed their pad thai, which was packed full of flavour and fresh vegetables. The only downside is that I had to add tofu as an extra, so that it contained some protein.
Nein Buck
- Cuisine: Burgers
- Location: CTM y 5 ave 8, Av. CTM, 77710 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: BBQ jackfruit burger
Nein Buck is another vegan burger spot located on CTM, just off 5th Avenue. Their menu is super simple, they have a cheeseburger and BBQ jackfruit, which you can have as a burger, with or without fries. They also offer a few different tacos and sides.
The burgers are really tasty. I enjoyed both the jackfruit and the cheeseburger. Plus their fries are perfectly fried and crispy. I really enjoyed having mine with an alcohol-free beer after visiting the beach.
They are also available on Rappi for that much-needed junk food night in!
Plantivoros
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Location: Calle 14 Nte bis entre Av 35 y 40, 35 Av. Nte 1457, Gonzalo Guerrero, 77710 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Coffee cake
Plantivoros used to be one of the only vegan establishments in Playa del Carmen, including Pitted Date (now closed). Thankfully they have stood the test of time and have even moved to a nicer space.
They offer a variety of vegan Mexican foods, including tortas, tacos, and burritos. They also sell a few different desserts, including their coffee cake which is essentially a tiramisu, but probably one of the best vegan ones I’ve had!
Their savoury foods are packed full of healthy and wholesome ingredients, including sprouts and fresh vegetables.
The Vegan Spot
- Cuisine: Pizza
- Location: Plaza Public Market, Av. CTM, 77714 Playa del Carmen, Q.R.
- Recommendation: Pizza Mexicana
The Vegan Spot is a little far away from the main hustle and bustle of Playa del Carmen, but thankfully they are available on Uber Eats every day. Their pizza saved me a few times, like when I arrived super late into Playa del Carmen after a long flight.
Their pizzas are huge. On the few ocassions I ordered from them I was never able to finish, but the slices did keep well in the fridge ready for reheating the next day.
The toppings are flavourful and my favourites had to be the Pastor and the Mexicana. They send their pizzas with a few hot sauces which are delicious but definitely blew my mouth off.
If you don’t fancy pizza, they also sell burgers, tacos, and a few desserts.
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