Nowadays, your average Toronto cafés, coffee shops and bakeries are practically guaranteed to have a vegan option, even if they're not billed as a vegan café or vegan bakery. You're more likely to find protein-packed faux-meat sandwiches than sad side salads on the menu. A barista won't give you a funny look if you ask for oat milk. Toronto is an increasingly vegan-friendly city; even if you're avoiding eating animals, you can still dine exceptionally well at the best vegan restaurants in Toronto.
Though 2023 saw some closures (we'll miss you, Revelstoke Café), Toronto's vegan cafés and vegan bakeries have been growing in number and quality in recent years. Pioneers like Bunner's Bakeshop and Bloomer's have led the way for new kids on the block like Bad Attitude Bread and Tsuchi Cafe. The goods you'll find at the best vegan cafés and bakeries in Toronto will have you gobsmacked that what you're eating is completely plant-based.
Many of the best vegan cafés and bakeries in Toronto are tranquil hangouts. You'll want to grab a seat and soak in the ambiance. If you're craving a quick treat to-go, these cafés and bakeries serve some of the best doughnuts in Toronto. But if you've got a few hours to kill, there's no better way to spend your weekend than with a dairy-free latte and a vegan treat — so add these spots to your list, stat.
The best vegan cafés and the best vegan bakeries in Toronto
10. Alternity
333 Bloor St. W.
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Part café, part gathering space, Alternity is a two-storey destination in the Annex for all things vegan, spiritual and holistic. The vegan café and community hub is a soothing spot to grab healthy smoothies, tea lattes and cacao-based elixirs, plus soups, salads and desserts. Pay a visit in the evening, and you might stumble upon hosted community events like tarot readings and art classes.
9. Tori's Bakeshop
2188 Queen St. E.
Tori's Bakeshop was Toronto's first vegan café when it opened back in 2012. Now, their home on Queen East is known for gluten-free goodies, too. Organic delights like their fudge dipped, salted dark chocolate doughnut, and decadent Nanaimo bar with a crumbled gingerbread and coconut crust are baked fresh daily and free of refined sugar.
8. Caked Coffee
1651 Bloor St. W.
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We’re still dreaming about the snack-sized cake jars at Caked Coffee. Try the rich, layered Biscoff flavour — you'll thank us later. This Bloor West bakery also takes custom, full-size cake orders for party-pleasing flavours like blueberry lemon, chai vanilla, a birthday-friendly confetti cake and chocolate mocha coffee. On top of a roster of superb desserts, they've got vegan lunches to-go, like personal pizzas, chickpea “tuna” and cold cut sammies.
7. Cinnaholic
Multiple locations
Cinnamon buns get a major glow-up at this vegan bakery with two locations in Toronto — and that’s saying a lot since the classic swirls of cinnamon and vanilla icing are already an addicting bite of heaven. But here they're fully loaded with toppings, like the Caramel Apple Pie with fresh apples, pecans, homemade pie crumble and caramel, and the Campfire S’mores Marshmallow with graham cookies, marshmallows and chocolate sauce. For special occasions (or just a regular Tuesday night, no judgment) they have cookie cakes and Cinnacakes.
6. Bloomer's
Multiple locations
With five locations around the GTA and a trailer for events, Bloomer’s is known far and wide for slinging their specialty doughnuts that are made from scratch daily. From fritters and jelly-filled to over-the-top offerings like chocolate peanut butter drizzle and raspberry cheesecake, you’ll have a field day with the 50 different doughnut flavours that rotate with the season.
But the 100 per cent vegan café and bakery sells more than the circles of joy. Most locations, including Bloor West and Queen West have seating where guests can settle in and enjoy baked goods, pastries and breads, along with coffee, tea and espresso drinks. If you can’t make it into the shop, they offer delivery through Uber Eats and DoorDash.
5. Bunner's Bakeshop
244 Augusta Ave.
Bunner’s makes birthdays and other special occasions easy with their lineup of vegan, gluten-free and nut-free desserts. Their celebration cakes come in a whole host of flavours and colours from Mocha Chocolate Crunch to Rainbow and Galaxy cakes. Don’t let the small diameter fool you — these cakes are tall and super sweet. They also have other treats like pies, cheesecakes, scones, cupcakes and seasonal specialties for Valentine’s, Easter and beyond. Order in advance for pickup or delivery from this Kensington spot.
4. Machino Donuts
1556 Bloor St. W.
This teeny doughnut shop in High Park regularly sees lineups that stretch down Bloor Street West — and for good reason. The doughnuts here are some of the best in the city, vegan or otherwise. Flavours range from pistachio topped with crumbled nuts and chocolate drizzle, to a soft sugar-crusted option filled with ube cream. There's a coconut cream-filled beauty, a glazed almond dolce de leche, an icing-sugar sprinkled cinnamon apple with real apples, a chocolate-topped Ferraro Rocher and a peanut butter cheesecake doughnut. New flavours are announced all the time, so keep an eye on their Instagram.
3. Vegan Danish Bakery
1312 Queen St. W.
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Eating vegan doesn’t have to mean missing out on your favourite treats. This bakery and café, with a location in Parkdale and Thornhill, makes indulgent European-style layered cakes, fruit pies, delicate pastries and much more. We'll say it with our chest — Vegan Danish Bakery has the best vegan croissants in Toronto. (The chocolate-filled ones, paired with an espresso, are divine.)
2. Tsuchi Cafe
688 College St.
Toronto’s first and only vegan Japanese café is a serene hideaway nestled in Little Italy. Tsuchi Cafe’s chef Haruna Makino is a master of fine-tuned flavour and perfect textures. You’ll find fresh loaves of shokupan (Japanese milk bread) neatly wrapped in plastic; crispy curry-filled kare pan, deep-fried to perfection; and katsu sandos with soy cutlets and Japanese mustard. Don’t skip the sweets, too, especially the creamy matcha tiramisu that’s served in a glass jar. Classic café bevvies are made with oat milk, so they’re totally dairy free.
1. Bad Attitude Bread
816 Dundas St. W.
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Logan Dunn bakes like rent is due. Aptly, that’s the slogan of Bad Attitude Bread, his cozy Dundas West bakery. Dunn has managed to achieve a level of quality with plant-based baking that we never thought was possible.
In the Better Than a Big Mac Big Mac Bun, a flaky, yet pillowy loaf is topped with vegan ground beef, pickles, a mix of cheeses and a healthy dollop of mind-blowing ‘special sauce.' On the sweeter side, he slings sugar-crusted chocolate chip scones that taste just like a Tim Hortons muffin. There are creamy cheesecake braids, milk buns and thick butter tarts. Bad Attitude can sell out on weekends, so be sure to check their Instagram for updated info.
