Dairy-Free Newfoundland: The Best Restaurants & Shops by City

Last Update in April 2022! We’ve created this ever-growing guide to restaurants, bakeries, cafes, ice cream shops, and stores in Newfoundland that are friendly to dairy-free diners. It’s a collection based on research and reader recommendations (send yours!) that’s divided into restaurants & shops by city (first) and major chains found throughout the state (second). And we’ve started a section for specialty dairy-free foods produced in this state.

We Update Continuously! You can ignore the original date on this post going forward. We update the information below whenever we’re alerted to a new recommendation, change, or closure.

Photo from Green Kitchen in St. John’s, Newfoundland

Dairy-Free Newfoundland: Recommended Restaurants & Shops

We’ve listed these recommendations alphabetically by city and then by the restaurant or shop name. For large chains with locations throughout the state, see the Major Restaurant & Grocery Chains section below. We have dedicated posts with dairy-free details for many of the big guys.

⭐️ = Restaurant is either dairy-free, has a dairy-free menu, has dairy-free labels on their menu(s), or lists top allergens with menu items. (At the time of our last review.)

Bay Roberts

241 Pizza ⭐️ – They offer a very detailed allergen chart that’s not only broken down by component, but also includes allergen production risk for each item. They have a full plant-based menu, dairy-free mozzarella, vegan sauces, mock meats, and a gluten-free crust. Most of their pizzas can be ordered dairy-free, and they have other options, like wings.

Corner Brook

La Diperie – You’ll have to resist many of their desserts, but you’ll be rewarded with their edible vegan cookie dough. It’s available in four flavours. They often have at least one vegan soft serve flavour and a couple other cool dairy-free treats, too.

Gander

Swiss Chalet – See our Swiss Chalet Dairy-Free Menu Guide for full details.
The Gander Bread Box & Cafe – This is a friendly local spot where they aim to please with dairy-free breads, plus gluten-free and vegan menu options. They also work to avoid cross contamination.

Mount Pearl

Crumb+Pickle – You can find this plant-based stand bi-weekly at the local farmers’ market. They serve handhelds like sandwiches, toasts, and skewers. A favorite is the grilled tomato sando with garlic cashew cream cheese.
JACOBEAN Craft Chocolate ⭐️ – This bean-to-bar chocolatier crafts dairy-free, gluten-free, nut-free, soy-free, and organic chocolates (most are vegan, too). Their collection includes coconut and oat milk bars, drinking chocolates, and even fudgesicles that they sell at the local farmer’s market. Their studio isn’t always open to the public, but they do offer order and pick up.
Rocket – They offer dairy-free and vegan soups daily, along with side salads, and custom order sandwiches on their house-baked bread. And they have almond, coconut, and soymilk for lattes.
Saucy Mouth – They’re located inside Landwash Brewery, and serve a menu of veggie burgers, street fries, rice bowls, and snacks to accompany your brew. Their menu is vegetarian, but includes several vegan options, and they do label which items contain dairy. In the summer, they also typically have vegan soft serve and ice cream sandwiches available.
Swiss Chalet – See our Swiss Chalet Dairy-Free Menu Guide for full details.

Paradise

Nourish Bakery ⭐️ – Their entire bakery is gluten-free and celiac-friendly, and about half of their selection is dairy-free, too. They bake various breads, muffins, cookies, and even vegan cakes.

Petty Harbour

Tinkers Ice Cream Shop – They have a daily flavor of dairy-free Dole Whip, floats, and slushies. But they’ve also started experimenting with creamy, scoopable vegan ice cream made with almond milk. When we looked, they Mint Oreo and Vanilla.

Rocky Harbour

Java Jack’s – Their lunch and dinner menus are labeled with vegan and gluten-free options, and offer a good handful of dishes for everyone. Dairy-free guests can choose between wraps, bowls, soup, salads, and a couple other custom order plates.

St. John’s

Bad Bones Ramen – Warm up with one of their house ramens, or enjoy another one of their Asian small plates. They label vegan options on their menu, which include a couple ramens and a couple plates. Many more menu items can be ordered dairy free.
Bernard Stanley Gastropub – They offer vegan buns, so you can ordered a dairy-free burger or vegan burger. They also keep another vegan entree on their main menu, and they have some additional dairy-free options for brunch and dinner, if you ask.
Element Coffee Bar and Lounge – This local cafe offers a few casual dairy-free and vegan menu options, like wraps and chili. They also typically have some vegan baked goods, and dairy-free milk beverages for coffee drinks.
EVOO – Their Mediterranean menu is clearly labeled with vegan options, including small plates, pastas, burgers, pizzas, and even a vegan brownie for dessert. Many more items can be ordered dairy-free. They offer vegan mozzarella and cashew cream as dairy alternatives. They also offer gluten-free options.
Flavours Indian Cuisine – This is a quick serve spot in the Avalon Mall that offers a handful of dairy-free and vegan dishes.
Freshii – This chain serves bowls, salads, wraps, and smoothies. They offer a detailed allergen menu, and each menu category has at least one or two dairy-free options, ordered as is. But most items can be ordered without dairy easily, since all of their bases, proteins, broths, and toppings (aside from cheese) are made without milk (at the time of our review). Just verify the sauces, as a few contain milk-based ingredients.
Georgestown Cafe and Bookshelf – Bring a book, take a book, and enjoy a fair trade, organic tea or coffee with almond or soymilk and a vegan pastry. They offer a few sweet dairy-free items daily, and also have some savory breakfast and lunch items that can be ordered without dairy.
Green Kitchen ⭐️ – This vegan restaurant focuses on from-scratch cooking and comfort food for the whole family. Their dishes range from lasagna to diner-style sandwiches to poutine. They also blend an array of smoothies.
Hungry Heart Cafe – Their petite menu has a healthy focus with a couple vegan options, and some additional dairy-free choices. Almost everything can be made gluten-free. They serve weekday lunch and Saturday brunch.
Jumping Bean Coffee – This is Newfoundland’s local coffee roastery and they run a couple cafes. You can custom order dairy-free sandwiches, bagels with peanut butter, jam, or hummus, and lattes with almond, soy, or coconut milk. And they typically offer a vegan sweet treat, or two.
Kelsey’s Original Roadhouse – Skip the appetizers and jump straight to the wings, burgers, and fish and chips. They have several menu and custom options available in these categories, and also have dairy-free, gluten-free buns available.
Kuma Bento – This is a quick-serve spot for bubble tea, sushi burrito, and bento. They offer almond milk, soy milk, water, and green tea as options for their drinks and smoothies. And much of their sushi and bento menu is naturally dairy-free.
Lemon & Lime Health Shoppe – They carry various hard-to-find natural products, with many dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegan items. Their selection in store includes refrigerated dairy alternatives, healthy breads, baking supplies, and more.
Loong Wah Restaurant – Most of the menu is dairy-free at this Taiwanese restaurant. But they also have many labeled vegan dishes.
Mickey’s Sandwich Company – This local sandwich shop has a unique menu featuring various local items and house breads. They offer gluten-free and vegan options daily for sandwiches and salads, and additional items can be ordered dairy free.
Newfoundland Chocolate Company – Their cafe menu isn’t prolific for dairy-free diners, but they do make various 54% dark chocolate bars and drinking chocolate. They also offer milk alternatives for your latte.
NJ’s Kitchen – Their cuisine is East Indian and they have many dishes on their menu labeled for vegan and gluten-free guests. Several additional items are dairy-free – just ask!
Oliver’s – They are happy to accommodate dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegan guests. They typically have a vegan dish and a few that can be prepared dairy free.
Peaceful Loft ⭐️ – Their menu is vegan at this little local eatery. They focus on Asian-influenced cuisine, and have a menu of classic noodle and rice dishes. But they also prepare some unique specials.
Piatto Pizzeria + Enoteca – They have a vegano pizza on the menu and offer dairy-free cheese alternative, so most of their pizzas can be ordered dairy free.
Pi Gourmet Eatery – They specialize in Neapolitan style pizza, but are friendly toward special diet needs. Their pizza dough is vegan, and they offer dairy-free mozzarella. They have a few dairy-free sauces and a huge range of toppings for customizing your own pizza. They also offer salad and pasta options, and have a dairy-free fudge cake for dessert.
Pita Pit – See our Dairy-Free Pita Pit Menu Guide for full details.
Poyo + the Sprout Takeout – This is a vegetarian Mexican restaurant, but they do offer many vegan options, including tacos and burritos. They also serve a menu of local and Asian dishes.
Quesada – They offer a great allergen and special diet filter online to help plan your order. This is a build-your-own burrito, burrito bowl, or taco spot. At last check, their meats and meat alternatives were dairy free (the fish items contain dairy), as were both types of beans, rice, and all toppings, except cheese and sour cream. All of their salsas, guacamole, and most of their sauces are also dairy-free, and they even have a special vegan sauce.
Rocket – They offer dairy-free and vegan soups daily, along with side salads, and custom order sandwiches on their house-baked bread. And they have almond, coconut, and soymilk for lattes. Interestingly, their cakes are dairy-free, but their frostings are not – so custom order is needed.
Saltwater Creamery – Their cool menu includes dairy-free Rainbow Ice Dippin’ Dots, sorbet, soft serve Dole Whip (in a rotating flavor). They can also make any coffee, tea, or bubble tea with almond or oat milk.
Second Cup Coffee Co. – They offer a dairy-free smoothie on their menu, and you can order other oat milk smoothies without dairy (no whey protein or yogurt). They also have dairy-free, gluten-free breakfast cookies, milk beverages for lattes (like oat milk), and a couple light lunch options.
Seto Kitchen + Bar – This is a dinner and late night spot that “merges Newfoundland products with Chinese, Japanese and Southeast Asian cooking techniques and dishes.” Unlike many Asian-inspired restaurants, their menu is small, and it does use dairy. But the chef is always well aware of dietary needs, and usually has a dairy-free or vegan option or two. Call ahead to find out the current menu selection.
Swiss Chalet – See our Swiss Chalet Dairy-Free Menu Guide for full details.
The Edwardian Tea Room at The Georgestown Inn – They have a set menu for high tea, three days a week. But the menu does include dairy-free, gluten-free, soy-free, and vegan options. Ask about the current choices when making a reservation.
The Gypsy Tea Room ⭐️ – Their menus are labeled for dairy-free, gluten-free, nut-free, and vegan guests, including which menu items can be adapted. They serve lunch and dinner, with a good selection of dairy-free options, including small plates, like calamari and beer-battered onion rings, and entrees, like tuna tataki, Nepalese lamb curry, and vegan Moroccan tajine. Check in advance if you are looking for dessert or brunch – they might have dairy-free options available.
The Nook and Cannery – Their menu changes regularly, but it always has quite a few vegan options throughout. And additional dairy-free items, with eggs and/or meat, are often available. They serve breakfast and lunch (and late night snacks on select days) with unique menu items like Caribbean style touton, Seoul bowls, hawt messy fries, and more.
The Natural Vibe – This local natural food store offers several dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegan products for pantry stocking. They sell snacks, baking items, canned foods, and more. They also have a plant-based juice, smoothie, and coffee bar.
The Parlour – They typically offer at least one creamy dairy-free flavour daily (made with coconut milk) and a unique sorbet flavour, too.
Wok Box – This is a fresh Asian chain in Canada that is special diet friendly. They offer an allergen guide with their nutrition information, and naturally, most of their Asian menu is dairy-free. They also label which items can be made vegan and/or gluten-free.
YellowBelly Brewery – Their staff is reportedly quite accommodating toward special diet guests, with good options for dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegan entrees. They offer dairy-free cheese for pizzas, burgers, and some other entree and street food choices.

Trinity

Twine Loft Dining – This fine dining spot has set menus, which change, but can accommodate special diets with advance notice upon your reservation. This includes dairy-free and vegan needs.

Photo from Crumb+Pickle in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland

Restaurant & Grocery Chains found throughout Newfoundland

Some recommended restaurant and store chains are getting too big for our city listing britches. They have many locations, or are rapidly growing, and you might stumble across them in a number of towns in this state. Click on them for more dairy-free details.

Thus far, we’ve been able to add all chains to their respective cities above!

Photo from Piatto Pizzeria + Enoteca in St. John’s, Newfoundland

Local Dairy-Free Food & Drink Producers in Newfoundland

These dairy-free friendly companies don’t have their own retail location, but are in Newfoundland. So you have a good chance of finding their products at grocery stores, restaurants, and/or other shops in this state. Keep an eye out!

Gingerly Bakery – This is Newfoundland’s first all-vegan bakery. They don’t have a storefront, but supply restaurants and shops in St. John’s and beyond. See their feed to find their goodies.
Markland Cottage Winery – This is Newfoundland’s first winery, and they are known for fruit wines and liqueurs. In the past, they have been kosher pareve, and now they are certified vegan. Yes, wine can contain dairy.

Photo from Nourish Baker in Paradise, Newfoundland

This Guide is Continuously Updated with Recommendations

We welcome you to recommend other dairy-free friendly restaurants. Leave a comment or contact us and tell us why you like a certain restaurant. Restaurant owners and employees are also invited to reach out and let us know how you welcome dairy-free customers.

Please kindly let us know in the comments if any of these restaurants close. We want to keep this list current for you, but aren’t always notified when a restaurant closes. Let us know and we will quickly update!

This Guide is for Informational Purposes Only

Menus, ingredients, kitchen procedures, management, and restaurants are subject to change at any time. Always read the menu and discuss your dietary needs with the staff before ordering. Make sure that they can accommodate your situation.

There is always a risk for potential cross-contamination of allergens in any commercial kitchen. If cross-contamination is an issue for you, always speak with the manager to ensure that your meal can be safely prepared. Listings here do not guarantee that a restaurant is safe enough for your individual needs. Only you can make that decision.

Newfoundland: A Friendly Island Toward Dairy-Free & Vegan Diners