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What started out as a week of coordinated dining deals in Center City with set menus at a discounted price has since spawned multiple restaurant weeks throughout the year. Neighborhoods like East Passyunk and Manayunk host their own restaurant weeks, as do towns on the Main Line, in Bucks County, and beyond. Earlier this summer, Black Restaurant Week landed in Philly, highlighting black-owned eateries all over the city. And now we can add Philly Vegan Restaurant Week to the list. The first restaurant week highlighting meat-free, dairy-free dishes is September 16 to 22.
The seven-day event is being put together by a three-year-old organization going by the name Philly Vegan Lady Gang. More than 800 members — part of a secret group on Facebook — share restaurant recommendations, alert other members to grocery store finds, announce volunteering opportunities, set up fundraisers for animal welfare groups, and discuss all things vegan.
So far, 19 venues (mostly restaurants, along with a food truck and a pop-up) are signed on to offer a multi-course, prix fixe vegan meal for $35 during the dedicated restaurant week. Only a handful of them are vegan establishments.
You’ll never find meat, dairy, or eggs at participating restaurants Charlie Was a Sinner, Miss Rachel’s Pantry, P.S. & Co., or Honest Tom’s (the West Philly taco shop recently turned vegan). Cantina Dos Segundos, Cantina Los Caballitos, Khyber Pass Pub, Royal Tavern, and Triangle Tavern, all part of the same restaurant group, always include excellent vegan options on their menus, but they’re “omnivore restaurants” serving meat as well.
Also on the vegan restaurant week list: American Sardine Bar, Martha, Tattooed Mom, and Yards Brewing Co., among others. Organizers say they’re excited to see more and more non-vegan restaurants offering plant-based options.
The event has a fundraising component, with the participating restaurants pledging to donate part of the money they bring in from vegan restaurant week to the Peace Advocacy Network.
