VEGAN BRNO: Where to find the best vegan food in Brno, Czech Republic

Brno is the second largest city in the Czech Republic and the former capital of the historic region of Moravia. Steeped in medieval and industrial history, it’s only two hours away from Prague, yet a totally underrated tourist destination! The city is now a lively university town, known for being the country’s cultural and scientific hub. But more importantly for my vegan travellers – Brno has a FAB vegan foodie scene! You definitely need to “czech” out this exciting city for yourself. 😉 Here’s your guide to vegan Brno!

Forky’s – 100% Plant-based Bistro

Forky’s is THE place to get vegan food in Brno! I couldn’t believe that such a large vegan bistro (part of a big Czech vegan restaurant chain no less!) was located smack bang in the middle of Brno’s city centre.

To tell you that on day one of my trip that I was absolutely thrilled to find this place was an understatement. I loved the food here so much that I came back twice over the course of my five day trip to Brno!

One of the great things about Forky’s is that you don’t need to worry about getting a table or booking in advance. The restaurant is always busy so it has a great social atmosphere but there is always space to just drop in and eat.

I would describe it as a very high-end fast food restaurant – with high ceilings, marble decoration and a rather impressive glitzy chandelier.

It seems more like an upmarket hotel at first glance before you make your way to the till counter.

Forky’s is 100% plant-based and offers diners a wide range of vegan specialties from all over the world.

They have four core menus for burgers, street food, super bowls and specialities, each with between three to eight different options.

I’ve never seen so much choice or variety of vegan food at a fast food restaurant anywhere! Here are some examples:

burger menu:

Forky’s Burger – Forky’s burger with tomatoes, red onion, pickles, salad and BBQ sauce
Cheez Burger – Forky’s burger with a slice of plant-based cheddar
Chick’n Burger – Chick’n schnitzel with crispy salad, cucumber, red onion and fresh mayo
Spicy Burger – Forky’s burger with tomatoes, red onion, jalapeño peppers and spicy sauce
Nofish Burger – fried fish fillet with lemon dill remoulade, baby spinach and cucumber
Queen Burger – grilled juicy 220g patty with salad, organic ketchup, cucumber, mustard, onion and Forky’s plant bacon

On my first visit I opted for the Queen burger as I was eager to try their plant-based bacon. Their burgers are thick and juicy but not greasy – which I loved!

There’s nothing worse than a super greasy burger with all the dressing and sauce inside the bun slipping about when you’re trying to eat and talk to your travel bud at the same time!

The buns also have a cute charcoaled Forky’s logo stamp on them. The skin on fries were lovely and crispy but not greasy, the same as the burger, which made them very moreish!

Forky's burger with red onion and lettuce and chips with a side of ketchup

Forky’s also has a great selection of street food from the UK, Middle East and Asia.

streetfood menu:

Nofish and Chips – fried plant-based fish fillet with mayo, pea puree and fries
Chick’n Nuggets – fried plant-based nuggets, fries and dip
Lentil Rolls – lentil-rice rolls with potato salad or french fries and dip
Shawarma – Middle Eastern shawarma with pickles, light garlic sauce in pita bread or fries
Strips Wrap – fried strips in a wrap with tomatoes, salad, red onion and light garlic sauce
Kebab Wrap – authentically marinated seitan, kebab, tomato, cucumber, red onion, red cabbage, sage and Satureja sauce

Every day Forky’s has a different, “special of the day”, and on my second visit they were offering a Thai green curry with coconut rice, which I just had to try!

I was delighted to have a hearty meal option that was healthy and filling but tasty too!

The tempeh worked really well with the coconut sauce and fresh vegetables, giving the curry a lovely smoky taste.

Green Thai curry with seitan and an extra bowl of rice at Forky's Brno

As well as a wide range of food, Forky’s also offers a variety of desserts (if you have room!).

Desserts vary from day-to-day but when I visited they had a raw vegan banoffee pie, chocolate sponge cake, two different cheesecakes and macaroons.

I loved their raw vegan desserts in particular because they are so rare to find even in vegan restaurants. Their raw vegan banoffee pie was amazing. It was like having all the enjoyment of dessert but without the guilt!

If you’re looking for a great vegan Brno experience when you land in the Czech Republic, I would definitely start with Forky’s!

Raw desserts fridge at Forky's in Brno with rows of puddings

Fryends – vegan burger takeaway

Fryends is a great little vegan fast food take out which is almost a hidden secret in Brno!

It has a very unusual set up with just one tiny window based in the city centre. There’s no seated area or inside restaurant – it’s just a simple fast food window.

The take out offers a range of burgers which are all homemade. These include: seitan cheese burgers, meatball patties with beetroot and balsamic vinegar and raw burgers with an eggless omelette.

They also offer a small selection of baguette sandwiches with similar fillings.

Mel smiling outside the takeaway window of Fryends in Brno city centre with a burger neon light

I didn’t end up taking pictures of any of the food I ordered unfortunately. I was attending a travel blogger conference whilst I was in Brno and went to Fryends during a short lunch.

By the time I got my food back to the apartment to sit down and eat – it was all over the take out bag!

The food was good though. I think I would have chosen something different if I’d had the time to translate the full menu and decide.

I was under time pressure and there was a language barrier with staff so I panicked and just pointed at something that ended up being the raw burger. The crispy homemade roast potatoes that came with it though were excellent.

I recommend trying Fryends if you’re looking for a quick vegan lunch whilst you’re exploring Brno’s city centre.

It’s conveniently located around some of the best sight seeing spots in the city and it’s quick to order.

Pizza Punk – Vegan Pizza Parlour

Pizza Punk is a 100% vegan pizzeria located just walking distance from Brno’s city centre.

It’s a very cool, underground pizza place that similar to Fryends, if you didn’t know it was there, you would totally walk past it without knowing!

It’s a very small place with only two tables and one member of staff taking the orders and making all the pizzas.

So, if you’re looking for a bustling atmosphere, this ain’t it! But if you’re looking for a quiet, intimate, pizza date with great vegan pizza – Pizza Punk is the place to be!

Inside Pizza Punks in Brno, an underground bar

All the pizzas are made right in front of you with fresh ingredients and homemade cashew cream cheese.

I opted for a basic b*tch margherita pizza with piquillo peppers but it was great!

Other options included:

Beet base with peppers, smoked tofu, vegan mozzarella and red onion
Tomato base with vegan mozzarella and yellow tomatoes
Tomato base with vegan mozzarella, mushrooms and oregano
Tomato base with vegan mozzarella, mushrooms and olives

The only downside is they don’t offer desserts.

The great thing about Pizza Punks is that it’s open until late and is super affordable. with pizzas only costing the equivalent of £6.

You would barely get a decent frozen pizza in a supermarket for that price in the UK and Pizza Punk make everything fresh!

PILGRIM – veganised traditional Czech food

Pilgrim is one of my favourite vegan restaurants in Brno as you are able to get a taste of true Czech food culture.

The restaurant offers veganised traditional Czech food for incredible prices and is only a 15 minute walk away from Brno city centre in a lovely residential area with no other tourists to be seen.

It’s also a great place to get some proper home cooking.

Traditionally the Czech Republic has a very meat-and-potatoes cuisine, with dishes heavy on gravies and root vegetables as well as a lot of hearty stews and soups in the winter. And of course their famous dumplings! All of which can be thankfully veganised.

Pilgrim offers two different main choices for each day of the week. The menus don’t have an English translation but staff are more than happy to translate and are super nice.

On the day that I visited, Pilgrim offered a sweet potato cream soup with a dash of chilli and cauliflower quinoa “meatballs” with mashed potato.

I couldn’t decide between them and I was pretty hungry, so I decided to have the soup as a starter and the meatballs for a main!

Traditional czech bits with mash potato and garnish in Pilgrim, Brno

For dessert they offered a marvellous light and creamy vegan tiramisu with a lotus biscuit.

It was just the one choice for dessert but luckily for me I love tiramisu so it’s what I would have chosen anyway!

Lotus biscuit tiramisu dessert in Pilgrim, Brno

Pilgrim also offers a variety of Czech lemonades in classic soda glass bottles.

I don’t know about you, but I always prefer fizzy drinks from glass bottles – they just taste better some how don’t they?

On other days of the week, Pilgrim offer a variety of different dishes. These included: casseroles, burgers, noodles and sweet and sour jacket potatoes.

I also read some excellent reviews from other diners afterwards who said they did amazing seitan dumplings too!

I would highly recommend Pilgrim if you’re looking for great vegan restaurants in Brno.

Not only do you get to try some authentic Czech food but it is lovingly homemade and delicious. You’ll feel right at home!

Avokádo – vegan restaurant with an avocado focus

Whilst writing this vegan Brno guide, I was gutted to find out the vegan cafe, Avokádo I visited had closed.

It ended up being one of my favourite vegan restaurants in Brno. They did the most amazing dishes – all avocado themed (of course!).

Avokádo was a really beautiful space that looked more like a yoga retreat in Bali than a cafe in the centre of a bustling city centre.

It made for the perfect lunch spot during a busy day whilst attending a conference.

I really enjoyed the zen vibe of the cafe and the dishes looked more like art than food – all of which were delicious!

I had the avocado toast and what I thought was an avocado poke bowl. Instead this incredible avocado, cake-like masterpiece arrived – almost like a deconstructed poke bowl if you will!

It was the best poke bowl I have ever had hands down. With vegan ‘salmon’, mango slices, edamame beans, seaweed and rice with a delicious sriracha mayo sauce.

It looked like it had been constructed in instagram food heaven!

Avocado salad cake as Avocado restaurant in Brno

To the lovely staff who may end up reading this review, I just want to say a big thank you for being so kind and helpful when I visited.

Your food was amazing and I’m so sad to hear about your wonderful cafe closing.

I wanted to include Avokádo in this guide to vegan Brno as its closure is a reminder of how important it is to support small local vegan restaurants when we travel.

This pandemic has led to so many small businesses closing that we need to support them as much as we can. ❤️

VEGAN BRNO: Where to find the best vegan food in Brno, Czech Republic