Looking for Carrabba’s vegetarian options? You have more than you’d guess at a wood-grill Italian place. The pasta half of the menu is where most of it lives. Linguine Positano, Spaghetti Pomodoro, Eggplant Parmesan, a handful of salads, and a basket of warm bread with herbed oil to start. This guide walks the whole menu, marks what’s vegetarian and what’s vegan, and names the few things to ask your server before you order. (We’re the people who keep asking what about the vegetarians.)
A Quick Look at Carrabba’s Italian Grill
Carrabba’s Italian Grill started in 1986 when Johnny Carrabba and his uncle Damian Mandola opened the first restaurant on Kirby Drive in Houston, Texas. They cooked the family’s Sicilian recipes, and the food caught on. Outback Steakhouse’s parent company formed a joint venture with them in 1993 and took national development rights by 1995.
Today the chain runs under Bloomin’ Brands, the same company behind Outback Steakhouse and Bonefish Grill. In 2021 Bloomin’ Brands bought out the founders’ remaining stake, though the Carrabba family kept the two original Houston restaurants. Carrabba’s has roughly 200 locations across the country. Company-owned U.S. restaurants pulled in about $722 million in sales in 2023, which puts it among the larger Italian casual-dining chains in the States.
Carrabba’s Vegetarian Options: What to Order
Here’s the short version. The best Carrabba’s vegetarian options are the tomato-based pastas, the salads built without meat, the wood-grilled vegetables, and the bread course. The kitchen has no separate vegetarian menu, so a few items need a quick question about stock, cheese, or the fryer. The table below sorts the common picks. We mark an item vegan only when it holds up without dairy or egg. The vegan options cluster around the Pomodoro sauce pastas and the vegetable sides.
| Menu Item | Vegetarian | Vegan |
|---|---|---|
| Bread with herbed olive oil | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ Check (bread is often brushed with butter) |
| Tomato Caprese with burrata | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (cheese) |
| Mozzarella Marinara (fried) | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (cheese, shared fryer) |
| House or Italian side salad | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes* (no cheese, oil or balsamic) |
| Caesar salad | ⚠️ Check (anchovy in dressing) | ❌ No (dairy) |
| Minestrone / soup of the day | ⚠️ Check (stock may not be vegetarian) | ⚠️ Check |
| Linguine Positano | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Spaghetti or Penne Pomodoro | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Fettuccine Alfredo | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (cream, cheese) |
| Vegetable Ravioli | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (cheese, egg pasta) |
| Eggplant Parmesan | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (cheese, breaded) |
| Grilled asparagus, broccoli, seasonal vegetables | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Steamed spinach | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes* |
| Garlic mashed potatoes | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (butter, dairy) |
| Tiramisu | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (egg, dairy) |
| Cannoli | ✅ Yes | ❌ No (dairy) |
| Cinnamon Apple Crostata | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ Check (butter) |
Appetizers, Bread, and Salads
Start with the bread. Every table gets warm bread with oil and herbs, a small plate of olive oil and a dried herb blend you stir together yourself. Ask them to skip the butter brush if you want it dairy-free. From there, the Tomato Caprese with burrata is the easy vegetarian appetizer, and the Mozzarella Marinara gives you fried cheese with red sauce if you don’t mind a shared fryer.
On salads, the House side salad and the Italian side salad are both vegetarian, and they turn vegan once you drop the cheese and pick oil and vinegar or the light balsamic dressing. Both build on romaine with garden vegetables and kalamata olives, so they hold up as a light meal. Dress them with olive oil and red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar to keep them plant-based. The Caesar is the one to watch. Most Caesar dressing carries anchovy, so treat it as a question for your server, not a safe default. The Bruschette is vegetarian too, though it leans on cheese and bread.
Pasta and Main Dishes
This is the heart of the vegetarian options at Carrabba’s. Linguine Positano is the standout, a light sauce of crushed tomatoes, garlic, basil, and olive oil that’s vegan as served. Spaghetti or Penne Pomodoro gives you a richer Pomodoro sauce, a slow-cooked tomato sauce that’s also plant-based. You can order either pasta with Pomodoro over the gluten-free Casarecce pasta or the whole grain pasta if that fits your diet, and the swap keeps the dish vegetarian.
Want something heavier? Fettuccine Alfredo, Vegetable Ravioli, and Eggplant Parmesan are all vegetarian, and all three lean on cheese and cream, so none are vegan. Strict vegetarians should know Italian kitchens sometimes use Parmesan made with animal rennet, so ask if that matters to you. Skip the meat-sauce and seafood pastas, and tell your server to hold the chicken or shrimp on any dish you customize.
Sides and Vegetables
The wood grill is your friend here. Grilled asparagus, steamed broccoli, and the grilled seasonal vegetables are all vegan, cooked with olive oil, garlic, and a little salt. The broccoli, steamed or sauteed, stays plant-based either way, and steamed spinach is another clean pick. Garlic mashed potatoes taste great but carry butter and dairy, so they stay vegetarian, not vegan. Two or three of these sides plus the bread can make a full meal on their own.
Desserts
Dessert is vegetarian across the board but not vegan. The Tiramisu uses egg and mascarpone, the Cannoli is full of sweet ricotta, and the Cinnamon Apple Crostata bakes with butter. If you’re vegan, there’s no real sweet option here, so plan to grab something elsewhere. For lacto-ovo vegetarians, the Tiramisu is the classic choice and the one most people split.
What’s Vegan at Carrabba’s?
Vegan options at Carrabba’s are real if you stick to the pasta and vegetable side of the menu. The vegan options include Linguine Positano, Spaghetti or Penne Pomodoro, the grilled and sauteed vegetables, steamed broccoli, steamed spinach, and a house side salad with oil and vinegar. The bread with oil and herbs works once you skip the butter brush. The gaps are dessert and most soups, so build your meal around pasta, vegetables, and salad and you’ll leave full.
Special Dietary Requirements and Allergies
A few honest caveats before you order. The Caesar dressing typically contains anchovy, so it’s not a safe vegetarian default. Soups change often, and the stock may not be vegetarian, so the minestrone and soup of the day are both worth a direct question. Parmesan and other hard cheeses can be made with animal rennet, which matters to strict vegetarians. Fried items like the Mozzarella Marinara may share a fryer with meat or seafood. And every dish is made in one kitchen, so cross-contact is possible. Carrabba’s does publish allergen guidance, so ask for it and tell your server about any allergy up front.
Tips for Vegetarians at Carrabba’s
- Build the meal around the tomato pastas. Linguine Positano and Pomodoro are the most reliable Carrabba’s vegetarian options on the menu.
- Ask for no butter on the bread if you want it vegan, since the crust is often brushed before serving.
- Treat the Caesar as a question, not a given. The dressing usually has anchovy.
- Skip the soups unless your server confirms a vegetarian stock that day.
- Order two or three grilled or sauteed vegetable sides to round out a pasta into a full plate.
- Tell them to hold the chicken, shrimp, or sausage on any pasta you customize, and ask about Parmesan rennet if you’re strict.
- Save dessert for the Tiramisu or Cannoli if you eat dairy and egg, and plan elsewhere if you’re vegan.
Conclusion
Carrabba’s vegetarian options are better than the steakhouse sign suggests, as long as you steer toward the pasta and the wood-grilled vegetables. Lead with Linguine Positano or a Pomodoro, add a vegetable side and the bread, and ask about soups, the Caesar, and the fryer before you commit. For the full playbook on ordering meat-free anywhere, see our guide to eating vegetarian and vegan at restaurants, and browse more chains in our restaurant guides. If you like Italian, check what’s vegetarian at Olive Garden, Fazoli’s, and Villa Italian Kitchen next.
