In the last few years, takeaway joints, cafes and coffee shops around the country have been popping out options for their vegan clientele like hotcakes.
It makes sense. In the last two years, the number of vegan and vegetarian Kiwis has increased by a whopping 20 percent to 250,000 across the country.
And as a vegetarian friend told me, there's only so many times you can "enjoy" a mushroom or potato-filled meal.
But often vegan options can be needlessly expensive - seemingly unnecessarily so, when meat is surely more costly to produce.
So, where are the best places to grab a quick eat for those that live that plant-based life? We've got you covered!
Subway
Probably a past haunt before you gave up the meat, vegan sammy lovers rejoice, you can return to Subway! The chain has finally developed their first ever vegan menu item: The smashed falafel. Made from chickpeas (obviously), and a Mediterranean spice blend, the smashed falafel can be served hot on subs, salads or wraps.
To wrap (sorry) your head around the impact: Leader Products will supply 11 tonnes of falafel to Subway this year, and to keep up with demand they now have 180 employees to help produce the smashed falafel to Subway.
That can only add up to a lot of happy vegan mouths!
Burger Fuel
The new Burger Fuel 'Beyond Beleaf' burger is so bloody convincing, it tastes as if it's been tricked into thinking it is real beef. (See that here). It tastes so close to the real thing it's hard to believe its 100 percent vegan, right down to the aioli.
For those that don't like the taste of meat, Burger Fuel also has some other great options: The V8 Vegan is a regular fave, as is the Combustion Tofu. Add vegan cheese to both for extra yum factor.
Hell's Pizza
Hell Pizza have a vegan pizza option on the menu (no cheese), but also have Angel Food vegan cheese to swap out dairy cheese on veggie pizzas or create your own. One member of the Auckland Vegans page called it their "go to for lazy food" - can't get a better recommendation than that.
Poke Poke
Poke has probably popped up on your Instagram feeds as more and more spots pop up around the city. While traditionally containing raw fish and crab (thanks to its island origins), many places can whip you up a vegan bowl easily, considering the base of grains and fresh vegetables. We've heard through the grapevine Poke Poke in Takapuna is worth jumping across the bridge for.
The Butcher's Son and Gorilla Kitchen
For those times you want to dine in rather than take away, The Butcher's Son along with Gorilla Kitchen are two Auckland restaurants where you won't be scouring the menu for something other than chips - because the whole menu is vegan.
At Butcher's Son, give the crispy tofu a go, and Gorilla Kitchen has what I would say are the best vegan nachos in town, which are worthy of a weekly lunch trip for me.
A fun game might be to take your non-vegan mates and don't tell them about the plant-based nature of the menu - I'm sure there will be almost no complaints.
Wise Boys
You've probably seen the Wise Boys food truck hooning around the North Island at different events the last few years, dishing out vegan burgers, fries and their famous aioli as fast as you can order it.
Now the Burrows boys behind the burgers are stepping up to feed the people of Auckland from a fixed Grey Lynn location! Go have dinner there, then pop across the road for dessert from Tart Bakery.
My first order will be that Crispy Fried Chick - be still my beating (but maybe slightly healthier after this feature) heart.
Newshub.
