Vegan Restaurants in Sunderland | Food & Brunch Guide

Tyne and Wear · England

Find your next vegan meal in Sunderland

Looking for vegan restaurants in Sunderland? Start with a café meal at The Good Apple, compare a curry or burger at The Engine Room, explore Persian vegetable dishes at Shandiz or choose a vegan burger at Port of Call. These four profiles help you plan where to eat vegan in Sunderland, with menu links, addresses and practical visiting notes.

The Good Apple is the vegan café in this selection. The other three venues have mixed menus with identified vegan choices, rather than entirely plant-based kitchens. This shortlist focuses on city-centre addresses; the Roker-inspired title illustration does not mean the restaurants are on the seafront.

Researched 28 September 20264 restaurant and café profilesCafé mornings, Persian dishes & casual dining

Vegan and vegan-friendly restaurants in Sunderland

Decide whether you need a daytime café, a sit-down restaurant or a straightforward burger meal before comparing the route. The profiles distinguish published vegan dishes from vegetarian alternatives and explain what still needs checking. This is an editorial shortlist based on desk research, not a numerical ranking or a claim of personal restaurant visits.

For a vegan café stop

The Good Apple Café is the starting point for a plant-based daytime meal, a drink and something sweet. Confirm the day's breakfast service before setting off.

For a seated lunch or dinner

Compare the VG-labelled choices at The Engine Room with the explicitly vegan dishes at Shandiz.

For a casual burger meal

Port of Call lists a vegan chicken-style burger. Keep the bun, sauce, sides and any extras vegan together.

Restaurants and cafés in this guide

Editorial selection · not a ranking

The Good Apple Café

Derwent Street · Sunderland city centre

Vegan caféDaytime mealsCakes & plant-milk drinks

Make room for a café meal rather than just a coffee.

The Good Apple's own description on My Vegan Town identifies it as a 100% vegan café. It describes breakfast, soup, wraps and bagels alongside homemade cakes and plant-milk drinks. Sunderland BID also identifies the café's food as vegan. Choose it for a daytime stop when you would rather compare plant-based dishes than request several substitutions on a conventional menu.

Before you visit The operator's main website could not be retrieved and published opening times differ. Check the current day, breakfast availability and kitchen cutoff directly. The food formats above are supported by the linked descriptions, not a promise of a particular daily special.

Information	Details
Vegan status	Vegan café, identified as fully vegan in its business description and the Sunderland BID guide.
Address	18 Derwent Street Sunderland SR1 3NU
Service check	Listed as a Tuesday–Saturday daytime café. Confirm the current opening and food-service times; listings do not agree on a complete timetable.
Listed contact	0191 564 1763 or [email protected].

Sources: Business description, address and contact · Sunderland BID's café profile · Operator website. Direct website retrieval was unavailable during this check.

The Engine Room

High Street West · Sunderland

VG-labelled dishesCurry & burgersBookable dining

A mixed-menu table with clearly identified vegan choices.

The Engine Room's main menu marks its Thai-style sweet potato curry and vegan burger VG. The curry pairs a coconut-based sauce with rice, while the burger uses plant-based cheese. Vegan starters and a chocolate-orange dessert provide ways to build a longer meal. The restaurant serves a mixed menu, so follow VG rather than the vegetarian V when choosing your food.

Before you book Choose the vegan dishes without animal-based additions and check current availability. The operator recommends booking, with walk-ins offered the next available table. Ask about kitchen last orders before a performance or a late visit; the opening times below are venue hours.

Information	Details
Vegan status	Mixed restaurant with vegan starters, mains and dessert identified on the menu.
Address	9 High Street West Sunderland SR1 3HA
Published hours	Monday–Thursday 11:30am–11pm; Friday–Saturday 11:30am–midnight; Sunday noon–10pm.
Contact	0191 594 7244. Confirm food-service times and reservations directly.

Official sources: Address, opening times and reservations · Current linked menu and dietary key.

Shandiz

Vine Place · Sunderland city centre

Vegan-labelled dishesPersian diningRestaurant & takeaway

Build a Persian meal from the explicitly vegan choices.

Shandiz's menu identifies its mixed vegetable stew and okra-and-potato stew as vegetarian and vegan. Falafel and stuffed vine leaves provide other explicitly labelled options. The operator offers dining in as well as collection and delivery, making this the Persian restaurant format in the shortlist rather than another burger or café stop.

Before you order Several aubergine and spinach mezes contain yoghurt or egg, and the halloumi salad contains cheese. Use the vegan descriptions, then confirm the sauce, rice or bread served with your meal. A complete current dine-in timetable was not retrievable; call before a time-sensitive visit.

Information	Details
Vegan status	Mixed Persian restaurant with dishes explicitly described as vegan.
Address	22 Vine Place Sunderland SR1 3NA
Service check	Dining in, collection and delivery are advertised. Confirm the current restaurant timetable and kitchen cutoff directly.
Contact	0191 565 8885. Ask about your intended meal and any additional dietary requirements.

Official sources: Dining formats · Vegan dishes and ingredient descriptions · Address and telephone.

Port of Call

Park Lane · Sunderland

Named vegan burgerBar & grillCheck sides & extras

Order the whole burger meal as vegan.

Port of Call's linked main menu includes a vegan chicken-style burger with a vegan bun and harissa mayonnaise. It is marked VG, unlike the halloumi dishes marked vegetarian. This is a mixed bar-and-grill option for a casual meal, not a fully vegan restaurant or a promise of a large permanent plant-based selection.

Before you order Ask staff to confirm vegan slaw, salad dressing and sides, and do not add ordinary cheese. The menu lists general accompaniments across several dishes, so the burger label alone should not settle every extra. Check the current menu and kitchen timetable directly; a social-media special is not guaranteed to remain available.

Information	Details
Vegan status	Mixed bar and grill with a specifically labelled vegan burger.
Address	1–3 Park Lane Sunderland SR1 3NX
Service check	Main and Sunday menus are published separately. Confirm current food hours and vegan availability for your chosen day.
Contact	0191 5145408. The linked main menu asks diners to order at the bar.

Official sources: Menu links, address and contact · Linked main menu, vegan burger and dietary key. The PDF's text was readable; its visual preview was unavailable.

Vegan breakfast and brunch in Sunderland

Begin with a café enquiry

The Good Apple is the morning-food lead here, but check its current breakfast menu and opening time before building your day around it. A café's published food description does not establish that every dish will be available at every hour.

Keep later meals in their own slot

The restaurant profiles are included for their vegan dining options rather than as guaranteed early-breakfast stops. For a late start, decide whether you want breakfast or lunch and check the actual menu window instead of relying on the word brunch.

Plan your Sunderland vegan dining

Separate the coast from the meal address

Save the street and postcode of your chosen restaurant. When combining a beach visit with a city-centre meal, check the journey and return route rather than assuming the title picture identifies the restaurant's location.

Allow time before a performance

Tell the restaurant when you need to leave and leave room for ordering and preparation. An evening venue closing time does not necessarily show when the kitchen accepts its last food order.

Read the whole menu description

Vegetable dishes can contain yoghurt, cheese, egg or butter. Ask about sauces, bread, sides and drinks as part of the vegan request, and discuss allergies separately from dietary preferences.

Use direct confirmation for uncertain details

Check current menus, prices and reservation conditions with the operator. When published hours differ or a special is time-limited, a quick enquiry is more useful than carrying an old menu screenshot.

More England dining guides: Newcastle upon Tyne, Leeds, Hull and Norwich.

Sunderland vegan dining FAQ

Are all four restaurants fully vegan?

No. The Good Apple is the vegan café in the selection. The other venues have mixed menus, so use the classifications and ordering notes on each card.

Does the coastal title image mean these restaurants are in Roker?

No. The illustration sets the city scene; the four profiles have city-centre addresses. Use the individual restaurant map and postcode to plan your journey.

Can I assume a vegetarian Persian meze is vegan?

No. Choose dishes explicitly identified as vegan and ask about dips and accompaniments. Several vegetarian mezes on the linked menu contain dairy or egg.

Are all opening times fully verified?

No. The café listings differ and complete kitchen timetables were not retrievable for every venue. Each profile states what is published and what needs a direct enquiry.

Why might the Google photos and maps be hidden?

The external panels load after Google Maps consent in the privacy settings. Text and ordinary links remain usable without consent, and photo availability depends on Google. Pictured food is not necessarily vegan.

Research notes

Researched 28 September 2026. Operator menus and contact pages were prioritised. The identified café description and Sunderland BID listing support The Good Apple's profile where direct website access was unavailable. This is desk research, not a personal taste test or kitchen inspection. Check current dishes, kitchen hours, access requirements and reservations directly before travelling.

The title image is an original AI-generated Sunderland travel illustration, not a photograph of a recommended restaurant.

Optional Google photos and mini-maps load only after Google Maps consent in the central privacy settings. Food in third-party photographs is not necessarily vegan. Ordinary text and links remain available without consent. Privacy settings.