If you're planning a holiday in France, maybe putting together an itinerary that takes you across the south of France, can I recommend Montpellier? It's a lovely city to spend a few days in - there are enough sights and activities to keep you busy for a long weekend, or come without a plan and just get lost in the gorgeous streets around the city centre.
One of my favourite things to do in Montpellier though is eat! It's a smallish city but it punches way above its weight for great vegan food, with lots of gluten-free options to boot. For our last visit, we were there for three days didn't get round to eating at all the vegan options in the city. I guess there's means I'll just have to come back again!
Here are all the places I got to enjoy in Montpellier.
Joy Healthyfood
Joy Healthyfood is an entirely vegan, entirely gluten-free cafe - vegan coeliacs rejoice, this one's for you! There's a very small but perfectly formed menu, great for a very relaxed breakfast or lunch, and it's part of a yoga studio so it's got some calming vibes going on. The service is friendly too, so there's a lot to like already.
But onto the food. Here are the buckwheat waffles with banana, whipped vegan cream and a pot of chocolate sauce to dunk the whole lot in.
In the background, you can make out a stack of pancakes, which was what I tried on the second visit because the waffles had already run out (whoever had come in before me had made some great choices, clearly!). The pancakes were a tiny bit on the gummy side but the waffles were absolutely great and felt incredibly indulgent for a lazy breakfast or brunch. There are lots of smoothies and fancy coffees to wash it all down with too and, if you come later in the day, there are savoury dishes as well, including very appealing looking open sandwiches, tarts and salads. Definitely one to try when you're in Montpellier.
Les Desmoiselles de Montpellier
Les Demoiselles de Montpellier is the sort of place that makes you glad of a sunny day in the city. The cafe is a lovely airy place to spend your lunchtime, but on a sunny day, you can sit outside and watch the world go by.
Les Demoiselles de Montpellier is open for lunch all week and brunch on a Saturday - think nourishing bowls, open sandwiches, pancakes and French toast. But the real reason to go to Les Demoiselles de Montpellier is for the cakes.
There are comforting slices of cake, fancy gateaux, cookies to nibble on, and lots of other sweet treats. It's all vegan and gluten free as well, so vegans with gluten intolerances get to feast too.
This was the chestnut cake I got to enjoy - it's a flavour I love and was so happy to see it on the menu. I can't think of much I'd rather do than settle in at Les Demoiselles de Montpellier with a big slice of cake, a strong coffee, and a book, and pass a very happy hour or two.
Les Demoiselles de Montpellier
2 Rue de la Carbonnerie, 34000 Montpellier, France
+33 4 99 65 56 43
Vegorilla (formerly Green Gorilla)
Vegorilla - which used to be called Green Gorilla, in case your search results are a bit confusing - is the sort of burger place that all burger places should aspire to be. Let me show you my working out for how I came to this conclusion.
Firstly, the food is all vegan.
Secondly, the food is all delicious. The menu is just a few different burgers, with the odd seasonal special, along with all the sides you'd like to see - fries (sweet potato and standard), nuggets, all the good stuff. And there a few interesting desserts if you need one, but I was too full to need one (a rarity, I promise!).
Thirdly, there are gluten free options and the staff were both knowledgable and accommodating! This was my gluten-free Green Burger - a burger patty along with vegan cheese, caramelised onions, rocket, mushrooms and gherkins. A great big sloppy mess of a burger and very, very good. Just make sure you've got some spare serviettes when you tuck in.
Fourthly, the staff are lovely (see above).
Fifthly (is that a word?), its opening hours mean that if you're struggling to find somewhere to eat a fully-vegan meal, chances are Vegorilla can sort you out.
Sixthly - surely you don't need any more reasons? Umm, the building it's in is very old and very cool?
Seventhly, just go there and thank me later.
Vegorilla
6 Rue du Puits des Esquilles, 34000 Montpellier, France
+33 4 67 66 60 37
Sensible
If you're looking for a more fancy type of dining option, you can always head to Sensible. It's an almost all-vegan place (I think there are bee products on the menu maybe?), and one that makes vegetables the stars, not the second billing, on the menu. There's an a la carte menu for lunch, and dinners are set menus of four or six courses. And you can only visit the restaurant with a reservation, so make sure to book in advance (at least that's what the website says!)
We got a table on a Tuesday evening and settled down for four courses. I've added a few pictures below, but somehow managed to only take photos of three courses! Oops. I guess we'll have to imagine the fourth one... I asked for a gluten free menu and what came out was very similar to my dining partner's non-gluten-free option, but the staff talked me through the couple of changes they were going to make. The only real difference I saw was a different type of bread.
Before you get into the, there's some bread, vegan butter, and a couple of mushroomy morsels on the side.
The next course was cauliflower and kiw, with hazelnuts and a creamy sauce. An interesting pairing for sure. The second course - sadly missing from my camera roll - involved mashed potatoes with fennel and orange.
I think the most interesting course of the night was the one below - squash, red rice, and a coffee cream sauce. It's been a few weeks since I was at Sensible and this is the dish that has stayed with me the most - I ate it all and I couldn't decide if I enjoyed it or not. The savoury red rice alongside a sauce that reminded me of a latte seemed an interesting pairing, I just can't decide if it's interesting in a good way or interesting in a bad way.
With each course, there's a tiny test tube of flavoured water - each course has a different flavour that recalls the dish you've just eaten. For the plate above, the water had a touch of coffee in it, for others, it was fruit or herbs, a tiny refresher after each course.
The dessert was this peanut panna cotta, offest with some persimmon and just the right wobble.
I really liked the inventiveness of the food - I'm so impressed by the cleverness of pulling together combinations of ingredients that aren't normally destined to be on the same plate. I appreciated all the effort to include seasonal ingredients and all the cooking itself was clearly massively skillful. But having come back to writing this up a few weeks after my visit, I can't really remember any of the dishes being so outstandingly good that I wanted to rush back and order them all over again. It was a good meal, just not a life-changingly good one.
Restaurant Sensible
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