Papa John’s: What’s Vegetarian Editorial Review

Papa John’s makes vegetarian ordering simple even without a dedicated meatless pizza anywhere on the menu. The original dough, the pizza sauce, the cheese, and every produce topping all work for a lacto-vegetarian diet, so a cheese pizza or a veggie pizza on the original crust covers most people without any real effort. There’s no need to hunt for a hidden vegetarian section since almost the entire build-your-own menu already qualifies.

What to order at Papa John’s

Build on the Original Hand-Tossed crust with Original Pizza Sauce, then load up on veggie toppings like mushroom, onion, peppers, olives, and spinach. Order it with cheese if you eat dairy, or without cheese if you’re keeping things vegan. Original Breadsticks are vegan, and the BBQ, Buffalo, and pizza dipping sauces all check out too, so you’ve got real options beyond the pizza itself.

What to watch out for

Every premium crust, including Thin Crust, the Gluten-Free crust, Pan Crust, and both stuffed crusts, contains milk or cheese baked right in, so none of them are vegan even though they’re vegetarian. Cheesesticks and garlic-parmesan breadsticks contain milk, and the ranch, blue cheese, and Alfredo dips all carry dairy too. Since about 84% of stores are franchised, double-check the Special Garlic dipping sauce locally, since it’s usually vegan but not guaranteed at every location. Brownie, cookie, and cinnamon pull-apart desserts are vegetarian too, but skip them if you’re avoiding milk and egg.