This is meat-and-dairy country by culinary tradition, Cumberland sausage, Wensleydale cheese, Yorkshire pudding, so eating vegan here means leaning on the pubs and cafes that have actually built a real vegan menu rather than looking for a heritage dish. Enough of them have: Grasmere, Kirkby Stephen, Reeth and Richmond each have at least one place doing proper vegan food rather than a token salad, and they fall at useful points across the walk's three regions (Lakes, Dales, Moors). The quieter stretches, Ennerdale to Grasmere, and the Vale of Mowbray towards the Moors, have thin pickings, so the practical approach is to treat Kendal, Kirkby Stephen and Richmond as the towns to stock up properly in. Kendal Mint Cake, the trail's signature snack, is accidentally vegan in every variety except the white-chocolate one, which is a genuinely useful thing to know before buying a case of it for the walk.
This is meat-and-dairy country by culinary tradition, Cumberland sausage, Wensleydale cheese, Yorkshire pudding, so eating vegan here means leaning on the pubs and cafes that have actually built a real vegan menu rather than looking for a heritage dish. Enough of them have: Grasmere, Kirkby Stephen, Reeth and Richmond each have at least one place doing proper vegan food rather than a token salad, and they fall at useful points across the walk's three regions (Lakes, Dales, Moors). The quieter stretches, Ennerdale to Grasmere, and the Vale of Mowbray towards the Moors, have thin pickings, so the practical approach is to treat Kendal, Kirkby Stephen and Richmond as the towns to stock up properly in. Kendal Mint Cake, the trail's signature snack, is accidentally vegan in every variety except the white-chocolate one, which is a genuinely useful thing to know before buying a case of it for the walk.
Practical vegan planning
Local food worth trying
The traditional dishes here aren't vegan and don't pretend to be, Cumberland sausage, Yorkshire pudding batter (egg and milk) and Wensleydale cheese are the local identity. What's worth ordering instead is what route-side pubs do with a proper vegan kitchen: Green's in Grasmere does a vegan shepherd's pie and chilli non carne, and the Kings Arms in Reeth runs a genuine vegetarian menu (curry, lasagne, risotto) with vegan options. A vegan Sunday roast with a vegan Yorkshire pudding and nut roast, where a pub bothers to do one properly, is the dish to seek out rather than assume.
What to buy
The same UK-wide own-brand ranges apply here as elsewhere on these trails (Tesco Plant Chef, Co-op GRO, Sainsbury's Plant Pioneers). The regional find worth knowing is Kendal Mint Cake: every bar except the white-chocolate-coated one is vegan (the plain chocolate coating is soya-based, not milk), and it's sold from outdoor shops in Kendal to village post offices the length of the trail, a proper high-energy trail food, not a compromise snack.
Good places on the trail
Grasmere: Green's (vegan shepherd's pie, chilli non carne, Buddha Bowl). Keswick, a short bus or taxi detour from the Borrowdale stage: Café Bar 26 (100% plant-based) and Kat's Kitchen. Kirkby Stephen: The White Hare Cafe. Reeth: Two Dales Bakery (vegan options in the cafe) and the Kings Arms. Richmond: Alessandro's Sicilian, which makes vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free dishes to order. Ambleside, a detour from the Patterdale/Grasmere stage: Zeffirellis and Lucy's On A Plate.
Trail treats
Kendal Mint Cake is the classic Lakeland trail treat and it happens to be vegan. Kat's Kitchen in Keswick does dairy-free ice cream alongside its vegan burgers and bagels. The Garden Café at Kendal's Quaker Tapestry Museum is a dedicated vegan café for cake and soup if a rest day or transport link takes you through Kendal.
Where to restock
Kendal and Kirkby Stephen are the two largest towns with proper supermarkets on the Cumbrian half of the walk. Stock up in one before the run of small Dales villages towards Reeth. Richmond is the last sizeable town with a full supermarket before the quieter Vale of Mowbray and North York Moors stretch to Robin Hood's Bay, so it's worth buying more than one night's food there.
Things that may not be vegan
Yorkshire chip shops are more likely than those further south to fry in beef dripping rather than vegetable oil. Plain chips are a common vegetarian assumption that doesn't hold here, so ask before ordering even well inland. Wensleydale cheese, heavily promoted through the Dales section, turns up folded into things that otherwise read as a vegetable dish, such as a Wensleydale-and-onion tart or a cheese-topped soup.
Sources and research notes · 6 sources
macsadventure.comregional food identity (Cumberland sausage, Yorkshire pudding, Wensleydale cheese) and named establishments in St Bees, Grasmere, Shap, Richmond, Robin Hood's BayChecked 29 Jul 2026
veganfoodandliving.comnamed vegan/vegan-friendly venues in Grasmere, Keswick, Ambleside, Kendal with specific dishes and addressesChecked 29 Jul 2026
swaleview.comnamed vegan-friendly venues in Reeth (Two Dales Bakery) and Richmond (Alessandro's Sicilian), Swaledale areaChecked 29 Jul 2026
kendalmint.co.ukofficial confirmation that all Kendal Mint Cake bars except the white-chocolate-coated variety are veganChecked 29 Jul 2026
tripadvisor.co.ukfirst-hand report that a North Yorkshire chip shop fries in beef dripping, not suitable for vegans/vegetariansChecked 29 Jul 2026
happycow.netconfirms this HappyCow listing covers Richmond, North Yorkshire (nearby areas: Catterick Garrison, Leyburn, Reeth) rather than London, and that the dedicated vegan directory for the town is thinChecked 29 Jul 2026