McDonald’s: What’s Vegetarian Editorial Review

McDonald’s doesn’t sell a vegetarian or vegan main dish in the US, so a meat-free order here means working the edges of the menu instead of picking something off the board. The French fries are the biggest trap: they’re cooked with natural beef flavor, so they aren’t vegetarian at all, despite what a lot of people assume.

What to order at McDonald’s

Your best bet is a build-your-own sandwich: order a bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, ketchup, and mustard, with no patty and no cheese. The same trick works on a Big Mac, though the Big Mac sauce contains egg, so that build is vegetarian, not vegan. Beyond that, you’re looking at apple slices, a side salad, fountain drinks, and the Fruit and Maple Oatmeal made without cream, which is genuinely vegan.

What to watch out for

Skip the fries and the hash browns entirely, since both use beef flavoring, and the standard oatmeal isn’t vegan because of the cream mixed in. Some locations butter the buns or grill bread on shared surfaces, so say “no butter” out loud if that matters to you. The McPlant burger tested here in 2021 and 2022 was pulled and isn’t coming back to US menus, so don’t expect a plant-based patty at your local McDonald’s, and rely on customization and drinks instead.