Looking for Allsup’s vegetarian options? This West Texas and New Mexico convenience chain built its whole identity on a deep-fried beef and bean burrito. Meat is the default at almost every hot case. One real meat-free burrito does exist, though, if you know its name, and the packaged shelf covers the rest. Here’s what about the vegetarians can actually order at Allsup’s.
A Quick Look at Allsup’s
Lonnie and Barbara Allsup bought a small drive-in grocery in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1956 and renamed it Lonnie’s Drive-In Grocery. The store stayed open late seven days a week, stocking milk, bread, and produce for travelers on the highway. A customer suggested adding gas pumps, and that idea became one of the chain’s lasting claims. Allsup’s says it was the first company to install self-serve gas pumps.
The chain’s signature item came from an accident. An employee named Bob Pitcock was working the Clovis, New Mexico store on September 7, 1974, and got stuck with a batch of baked beef and bean burritos that weren’t selling. He fried them in the store’s doughnut fryer to move them faster. The golden, crispy burritos sold out within minutes. Lonnie Allsup heard about it and installed a vent hood at that location, and the deep-fried Allsup’s burrito became the chain’s calling card. Company materials now call it the World Famous Burrito. Allsup’s says it sells around 27 million of them a year, a figure it gave out for the burrito’s 50th anniversary in 2024.
Yesway, a convenience-store operator backed by Boston’s Brookwood Financial Partners, bought Allsup’s in November 2019. The combined company moved its headquarters from Clovis to Fort Worth, Texas, in 2020. Yesway went public on the Nasdaq under the ticker YSWY in April 2026, with Brookwood’s Thomas Trkla as chairman and CEO. Allsup’s itself runs more than 430 stores across New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma today. Yesway’s combined Yesway-and-Allsup’s footprint has grown past 450 stores in nine states, and roughly 130 more are planned to open in 2026.
The burrito itself has become local folklore along the way. Allsup’s marked its 40th anniversary in 2014 and its 50th in 2024, both times with New Mexico press retelling the same Clovis fryer story. Few convenience-store foods get that kind of staying power. It’s part of why people compare Allsup’s to a fast-food chain more than to a typical gas station, even though the vegetarian side of the menu never grew to match the fame of the beef version.
Allsup’s Vegetarian Options: What to Order
Allsup’s doesn’t publish a company-wide allergen chart, and individual stores stock up to 70 items depending on the local market. Treat this table of Allsup’s vegetarian options as a starting point and confirm with the register before you order.
| Menu Item | Vegetarian | Vegan |
|---|---|---|
| Chile Relleno-Style Hatch Green Chile Burrito | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (cheese) |
| Beef & Bean Burrito | ❌ No (beef) | ❌ No |
| Shredded Beef Green Chile & Cheese Burrito | ❌ No (beef) | ❌ No |
| Steak, Egg and Cheese Burrito | ❌ No (steak) | ❌ No |
| Sausage, Egg and Cheese Burrito | ❌ No (sausage) | ❌ No |
| Ham, Egg and Cheese Burrito | ❌ No (ham) | ❌ No |
| Bacon, Egg & Cheese Burrito | ❌ No (bacon) | ❌ No |
| Buffalo Chicken Burrito | ❌ No (chicken) | ❌ No |
| Pepperoni Pizza Burrito | ❌ No (pepperoni) | ❌ No |
| Chimichangas (chicken, beef, beef & cheese) | ❌ No (meat) | ❌ No |
| Nachos with cheese sauce and jalapeños | ⚠ Check (cheese sauce rennet unconfirmed) | ❌ No |
| Hatch Green Chile Salsa | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Hatch Green Chile Tortilla Chips | ✅ Yes | ⚠ Check (seasoning) |
| Allsup’s Famous Taco Sauce (bottled) | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Beef & Bean Burrito Flavor Tortilla Chips | ❌ No (beef flavoring) | ❌ No |
| Packaged candy, cookies, and pastries | ⚠ Check (varies by item) | ⚠ Check |
| Fountain drinks, coffee, and frozen drinks | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
The One Real Vegetarian Burrito at Allsup’s
The Chile Relleno-Style Hatch Green Chile Burrito is the only Allsup’s burrito made without meat. Roasted Hatch green chile and cheese fill it, and it’s fried the same way as every other burrito on the menu. Ask for it by its full name. Allsup’s also sells a Shredded Beef Green Chile & Cheese Burrito with the same chile flavor plus beef added in, so the name alone won’t tell you which one you’re getting. Read the wrapper, or just ask, before you buy.
Every other burrito flavor comes with meat built in: Beef & Bean, Steak Egg and Cheese, Sausage Egg and Cheese, Ham Egg and Cheese, Bacon Egg & Cheese, Buffalo Chicken, and the Pepperoni Pizza Burrito Allsup’s added for the original burrito’s 50th anniversary in 2024. Chicken, beef, and beef and cheese chimichangas are all meat too. Everything on this list, meat or not, gets fried in the same equipment. Shared fryer oil is a dealbreaker for some vegetarians, so factor that in. Buying online doesn’t help either. Allsup’s online shop currently sells frozen multi-packs of just two items, the Beef & Bean Burrito and the Shredded Beef Chimichanga, and skips the vegetarian option entirely.
One more thing trips people up: Allsup’s burritos and chimichangas come pre-made and go straight from a warmer or a fryer to the register. Nobody’s cooking to order, so you can’t get a beef burrito with the meat left out. What you see wrapped and labeled on the shelf, or listed on the hot case sign, is what you get. Knowing the Chile Relleno-Style Hatch Green Chile Burrito’s full name matters more here than it would at a build-your-own chain.
Snacks, Salsa, and the Packaged Shelf
Allsup’s vegetarian options widen once you leave the hot case. Hatch Green Chile Salsa, Hatch Green Chile Tortilla Chips, and bottled Famous Taco Sauce are all meat-free. Nachos with cheese sauce and jalapeños count too, as long as the cheese sauce skips animal rennet, something Allsup’s doesn’t disclose either way. Skip the Beef & Bean Burrito Flavor Tortilla Chips, though. Despite being a bagged chip, its seasoning is built around beef flavoring. Packaged candy, cookies, and pastries fill out the shelf, but check labels item by item since some marshmallow-filled snacks use gelatin. Allsup’s doesn’t post ingredient lists in-store to help you sort that out.
What’s Vegan at Allsup’s?
Vegan options at Allsup’s are limited to the packaged shelf and the drink machines. Skip any shredded cheese offered alongside the Hatch Green Chile Salsa, Hatch Green Chile Tortilla Chips, and Famous Taco Sauce, and all three are vegan. Black coffee, fountain soda, and frozen drinks are vegan too. Nothing hot on the menu, no burrito, chimichanga, or fried item, is vegan.
Special Dietary Requirements and Allergies
Allsup’s doesn’t publish a company-wide allergen or ingredient chart, unlike most national chains this size. Dairy, gluten, and cross-contact questions come down to asking the person behind the counter. A few things worth knowing going in: the fried items share fryer oil, cheese sauces and shredded cheese may use animal rennet, and marshmallow or gelatin-based candy is common on convenience-store shelves without a vegetarian label. Don’t rely on a menu board if you have a diagnosed allergy. Confirm with staff or skip the item instead. Bigger convenience chains like 7-Eleven and Casey’s already publish ingredient and allergen information for their food programs. A regional chain this size simply hasn’t built that system yet.
Tips for Vegetarians at Allsup’s
A few habits make finding Allsup’s vegetarian options easier on a road trip:
- Ask for the Chile Relleno-Style Hatch Green Chile Burrito by its full name. “Green chile burrito” alone might get you the beef version.
- Check the wrapper before you bite. Allsup’s sells a beef version of the same chile flavor.
- Skip the Beef & Bean Burrito Flavor Tortilla Chips even though it’s a bag of chips, not a burrito.
- Remember that menus vary by store. A location near you might not carry the vegetarian burrito at all.
- Fall back on the packaged shelf, salsa, chips, and drinks, if the hot case looks thin that day.
- Ask before ordering nachos if you avoid animal rennet in cheese.
Conclusion
Allsup’s isn’t built for vegetarians, and it doesn’t pretend otherwise. The Chile Relleno-Style Hatch Green Chile Burrito is a real, meat-free find if your local store carries it. Salsa, chips, and drinks fill in the gaps on a road trip through New Mexico, West Texas, or Oklahoma. Read our guide to eating vegetarian and vegan at restaurants for more on eating meat-free on the road, browse our full list of restaurant guides, or check what’s vegetarian at 7-Eleven and QuikTrip for other convenience-store stops.
