Featured photo: vegan sandwich, courtesy of Not Ya Mama’s Vegan Cafe.
Salem has vegan options for a full day of Haunted Happenings: breakfast sandwiches, loaded pizza, sushi, comfort food, and something sweet before heading home. Start with Not Ya Mama’s for an entirely vegan café, or explore the restaurants below for clearly labeled dishes and vegan substitutions.
A little food planning leaves more room for the fun stuff. We’ve gathered nineteen Salem businesses, mostly downtown, with addresses, menu links, and the ordering details that matter. This guide draws from Salem’s broader dining community; Creative Collective membership and Marketplace participation were not requirements for inclusion. We’ve noted confirmed Creative Collective members below and linked participating Old Town Hall vendors to their Haunted Happenings directory listings.
Seasonal menus, hours, and availability can change, so check directly before visiting in October. “Vegan options” does not mean an entirely vegan kitchen. For allergies, discuss ingredients and preparation with the restaurant.
We do our best to include a wide range of local businesses, but this guide is only a starting point. Salem has many more wonderful options to discover, and we encourage you to keep exploring.
An entirely vegan café
Not Ya Mama’s Vegan Cafe
7 Church Street, Suite 139 · Plant-based comfort food
Put this one on the list when the plan calls for a substantial sandwich. Not Ya Mama’s Salem café is entirely vegan, and its location page features a Reuben, crispy chick’n sandwich, steak-and-cheese, and mac and cheese. That makes it a useful starting point for anyone who would rather choose by appetite than work through a series of substitutions.
Check the Salem location when looking up the menu or hours; the business also has a Worcester café. Visit Not Ya Mama’s Salem page.
Breakfast, bowls, pizza, and dinner
Gulu-Gulu Cafe
247 Essex Street · Breakfast and café food with vegan choices
Gulu-Gulu’s breakfast menu lists a vegan sandwich with tofu or an Impossible patty, spinach, and vegan cheddar. For a later meal, its chipotle sandwich offers plant-based protein and cheese substitutions with vegan chipotle mayo. Specify the vegan version when ordering.
The café sits behind the Samantha statue, making it an easy landmark to find. Its website notes that online ordering can pause during busy periods and on weekends, so leave room in the plan for ordering in person. Browse Gulu-Gulu’s ordering menu and breakfast sandwich listing.
Life Alive Organic Cafe
281 Essex Street · Grain bowls and smoothies
For a vegetable-filled meal between stops, look at Life Alive’s Salem menu. The Green Goddess combines tofu and greens with avocado and rice; Rainbow Harvest brings together vegetables, tofu, rice, and sweet potato. Both appear among the location’s plant-based choices.
Use the Salem page when planning. Some dishes on Life Alive’s broader menu are unavailable here, and the café also serves items containing dairy or eggs. Check the full ingredients when choosing a bowl, smoothie, or extra topping. See Life Alive’s Salem menu highlights and location information.
Flying Saucer Pizza Company
118 Washington Street · Pizza with a dedicated vegan selection
Flying Saucer gives a group plenty to work with, including clearly named vegan pizzas and sides. The current ordering menu lists Vegan Solaris, Vegan Audrey II, and Vegan Nick Fury, along with vegan garlic knots and mac and cheese.
Order using the full vegan item name. Several pizzas also have traditional and vegetarian versions, so “veggie” alone may still mean dairy cheese. The restaurant’s location behind the Bewitched statue puts it in the same immediate area as Gulu-Gulu. Explore Flying Saucer’s current menu.
Koto Asian Fusion
90 Washington Street · Vegan sushi and small plates
Koto’s current ordering menu includes Vegan Dragon Maki, Vegan Tuna Maki, vegan dumplings, and other explicitly labeled choices. It’s a useful option when the group is in the mood for sushi or a few dishes to share.
Pay attention to sauces and the complete dish description. For example, the menu says its vegan-spam bánh mì needs a sauce substitution to be made vegan. Choosing a clearly labeled vegan roll is a more straightforward starting point, and staff can confirm the menu available that day. Browse Koto’s current ordering menu. Find Koto’s address and visitor information.
Barrio
41 Lafayette Street · Tacos and bowls
Barrio’s Salem menu includes a named Freakin Vegan taco and a bowl version, built around plant-based chorizo, potatoes, guacamole, vegetables, and salsa. A complete, named vegan order is helpful when everyone at the table is choosing something different.
If building a custom order, check every component. Some shell combinations contain cheese or bacon, and an item with plant-based chorizo can still include dairy. See Barrio’s Salem menu and location information.
All Souls Lounge
282 Derby Street · Grilled cheese and hot dogs with vegan substitutions
All Souls lists vegan cheese and spread for sandwiches, plus vegan franks for its hot dogs. Ask staff to make the whole order vegan, including the bread, sauces, and toppings. Swapping the frank or cheese alone may not cover everything in a specialty combination.
This is also a stop to plan around the group’s ages: All Souls is 21+ after 9 p.m. Seating is first come, first served, and large parties may be difficult to accommodate. Read the All Souls menu and visit policies.
Vegan options at Old Town Hall
32 Derby Square · Meals and sweet crepes at the Marketplace
If your Marketplace route brings you through Derby Square, step inside Old Town Hall for a food stop. Four vendors have confirmed vegan choices with us for the 2026 season:
- Bridges Nepali Cuisine: A selection of vegan dishes; ask the team about the day’s options. Creative Collective member.
- Spitfire Tacos: A vegan rice and beans bowl.
- La Frontera Sabrosa: Vegan empanadas. Creative Collective member.
- Crepe du Jour: Vegan crepe options, mainly sweet. Ask which fillings are available when ordering. Creative Collective member.
Check the Old Town Hall vendor listings for visit details, and ask for the vegan option at the counter. Menus and availability can vary by day.
Make a stop at Pickering Wharf
Make room for Pickering Wharf in your Salem day. Browse the shops, take in the harbor, and stop for pizza or a bag of popcorn to carry on your walk. These two Wharf Street businesses offer vegan choices worth asking for.
Amazing Pizza
62 Wharf Street · Pizza with vegan cheese available
Amazing Pizza’s menu confirms that vegan cheese is available, with vegetable toppings for a custom pie. Tell the team you want the whole pizza made vegan, and confirm the dough, tomato sauce, and toppings when ordering.
The standard menu includes a pecorino Romano finish on several pizzas, so specifically ask to leave that off, too. Browse Amazing Pizza’s menu.
POPPED! Gourmet Popcorn
84 Wharf Street · Sweet and savory vegan popcorn
POPPED! has a dedicated vegan-friendly popcorn collection, including sweet choices such as Caramel, Kettle Corn, and Cookies n Cream. Pick up a snack for the waterfront walk or a bag to bring home.
Ask which vegan flavors are in stock at the Salem shop that day. The confirmation here is for the popcorn collection. Explore POPPED!’s vegan popcorn.
Nearby: Wolf Next Door Coffee
142 Derby Street · Vegan coffee drinks near the waterfront
Creative Collective member · 2026 HH supporting sponsor
Keep exploring along Derby Street with a coffee stop at Wolf Next Door. Its drinks menu explicitly offers oat and soy milk for vegan espresso drinks. For something sweet, the Cows on Strike latte combines soy milk, maple, and vanilla. Specify vegan when ordering and check any extra syrups or toppings. See Wolf Next Door’s drinks menu.
For food, the Veggie Special lists avocado, spinach, tomato, cucumber, and red onion on your choice of bread or bagel. Ask staff which bread and spreads make the whole sandwich vegan; the menu does not label the sandwich itself vegan. Browse the food menu.
Vegan treats and desserts in Salem
A cookie for the walk back, a chocolate to take home, or an ice cream break can be part of the day, too. Along with Crepe du Jour’s sweet options at Old Town Hall and POPPED!’s vegan popcorn on Pickering Wharf, these five businesses have vegan offerings supported by their own websites or direct Marketplace confirmation. Ask about the day’s selection and confirm any toppings or extras separately.
A&J King Artisan Bakers
48 Central Street · A vegan baked treat, with a preorder option
A&J King’s current pastry collection includes a Vegan Apple Cinnamon Muffin made with local apples and a vegan crumb topping. It’s a seasonal choice to keep in mind for a morning coffee stop or an afternoon snack.
The confirmed listing is in the bakery’s advance-order shop, where orders are due by noon two days before pickup. Select the downtown Central Street café when arranging pickup, or check with the bakery about walk-in availability. See the vegan muffin and ordering instructions.
Kakawa Chocolate House
173 Essex Street · Vegan chocolate confections
Kakawa confirms that its chocolate selection includes vegan confections, and its Salem shop is beside the Peabody Essex Museum. It’s a stop to consider for a small sweet or a chocolate gift to bring home.
Ask staff to identify the vegan pieces in the current Salem selection. The company makes both vegan and nonvegan chocolates, and its website does not provide live inventory for the Salem case. Read about Kakawa’s vegan offerings and find the Salem shop.
Melt Homemade Ice Cream
60 Washington Street · Rotating vegan frozen treats
Melt’s rotating flavor list included vegan coconut, vegan matcha, and a vegan Bellini sorbet when we checked. Treat those as examples of the selection, with the day’s flavor board deciding the actual order.
Ask which cones and toppings are vegan, too, or keep it simple with a cup. Check Melt’s current flavors.
Goodnight Fatty
1 Washington Square West · Vegan cookies and chocolate soft serve near Salem Common
Goodnight Fatty’s chocolate soft serve is coconut-based and vegan. For cookies, its website describes a new vegan flavor on the first weekend of each month, plus an off-menu Vegan Oreo Pudding Fatty available beyond that monthly rotation. Ask for the vegan cookie specifically and confirm what’s available during your visit.
That gives Salem Common visitors a dessert stop to keep in mind before heading to the next part of the evening. Read about the cookies and vegan chocolate soft serve.
Holy Cow Ice Cream Cafe at Charlotte Forten Park
Charlotte Forten Park · Vegan Coconut Oreo at the Marketplace
Creative Collective member · 2026 Marketplace vendor
Here’s a sweet stop to build into your Marketplace visit: Holy Cow has confirmed vegan Coconut Oreo for its Charlotte Forten Park offering. Take an ice cream break while exploring the market, and check the day’s selection when you arrive.
Heading to Salem Willows, too? Holy Cow’s shop at 181 Fort Avenue separately lists vegan Coconut Oreo, Cookie Butter, and Purple Haze pints. Those are shop menu listings; Coconut Oreo is the confirmed vegan flavor for Charlotte Forten Park. Check directly for the Willows shop’s scoop selection and seasonal hours. See Holy Cow’s Salem Willows menu.
Fit a meal into your Salem day
Choose a first stop and a backup before heading out. These address groupings can help keep the search close to the part of downtown you’re exploring:
- Essex and Washington streets: Gulu-Gulu, Life Alive, Flying Saucer, Koto, Kakawa, and Melt.
- Church Street: Not Ya Mama’s.
- Central Street: A&J King’s downtown café.
- Derby Street and Lafayette Street: All Souls and Barrio.
- Salem Common: Goodnight Fatty on Washington Square West.
- Old Town Hall, Derby Square: Bridges Nepali Cuisine, Spitfire Tacos, La Frontera Sabrosa, and Crepe du Jour.
- Pickering Wharf: Amazing Pizza and POPPED!; continue along Derby Street for Wolf Next Door Coffee.
- Charlotte Forten Park: Holy Cow’s confirmed vegan Coconut Oreo at the Marketplace.
Holy Cow’s additional Salem Willows shop is outside the downtown cluster; allow extra travel time if heading that way.
Build in time to eat before a timed tour or performance, and check kitchen hours as well as business hours. A restaurant may remain open for drinks after food service ends. When ordering a modified dish, say “vegan” at the start so the whole order can be checked together.
Then leave some time for the makers, shops, and people who make a Salem visit worth returning for. Use the 2026 events calendar to plan the rest of the day, and our visitor FAQ for Marketplace logistics.
