It’s summer! Time to take the kids on a well-deserved holiday, or just get out on that long-awaited trip with your partner or friends, time to relax, time to forget about the hustle and bustle and about all the stress at work.
Cabo San Lucas is a great place to unwind and it is known for its many wonderful restaurants, beaches, nightlife, water sports, desert fun activities, and so on. Restaurants offer vegan and vegetarian options, and grocery stores have also opened up a wider array of vegan and vegetarian foods. Vegan shopping in Cabo San Lucas has never been easier.
Get Your Bearings From a Local
Well, I have lived here for about fifteen years, and only eight or ten years ago, things were a little different. I remember those times when I became vegan and there weren’t many vegan alternatives. I didn’t mind, because I love to cook, and I could veganize anything I wanted, sausages, pasta, lasagna, etc.
My biggest problem were chocolates. I am a chocoholic, and I remember walking through the candy isles and staring at the chocolates – all of them had dairy – and really craving it. So, I researched and learned to make my own chocolate, and man, it was good! They were so good that soon people started asking me to make batches for them too 🙂
Now, it’s 2019, and things have changed considerably. I can buy vegan chocolate now (although I still love to make it myself), vegan sausages, ham, burgers, breaded schnitzels, no-chicken tenders, barbecue sticks, mozzarella, cheddar, yogurt, etc. It’s all here, and I am going to tell you where to find it 🙂
Most hotel suites offer kitchenettes and then there are the houses for rent with their own big kitchens, so when I go shopping, I always see a lot of tourists at the grocery stores. Fellow vegans, no need to despair, there is plenty for us too 🙂
Mexican Stores
There is a wide array of large grocery stores which were not here ten years ago. You wouldn’t believe how much Los Cabos has changed. Building projects seem to be ongoing in Cabo San Lucas, San Jose Del Cabo, and on the corridor that connects both towns; and new malls and hotels are springing up everywhere. So, which Mexican stores offer great vegan products?
- La Comer (also known as La Mega)
- Chedraui (foreigners always have a hard time pronouncing that, lol, but I admit, it is a little bit of a tongue twister 😉 )
- Soriana
Grocery Store 1: La Comer
I frequently shop at all three stores, and they have a nice selection. I’ll start with La Comer. That grocery chain recently opened a new store called Fresko La Comer which is a slightly different concept and also a great place for shopping.
At La Comer (which has branches in San Jose Del Cabo and in Cabo San Lucas) there is a selection of soy chorizo, vegan turkey ham, Lightlife smart sausages, vegan cheeses (mozzarella, cheddar, and also Mexican cheeses), tofu, dry soy, vegan yogurt, vegan “milanesa” (breaded meat), seitan BBQ ribs, bean burgers and red beet burgers, teriyaki tempeh sticks, and seitan no chicken tenders.
They all taste delicious, I have tried them all. The red beet burger is soft and fresh, so it needs to fry a little longer to keep it firm, but it tastes really good. I love the mozzarella for quesadillas, and the milanesa was also excellent. You can use the milanesa as part of a meal or fry it and use it for a hearty sandwich with tomatoes, lettuce, and cucumber.
Almond milk, nut, soy, rice, and coconut milk is also available, American and Mexican brands. Those drinks are pretty much in every big grocery store.
Fresko La Comer offers most of the same things, but they also have vegan protein powder, matcha powder, almond flour and many other types of flours and supplements; and in the food-to-go section they also feature some vegan options. The last time I was there I got a quinoa-veggie bowl and they also had a quinoa “meat” ball. I didn’t buy it, but I was tempted 😉
Grocery Store 2: Chedraui
There are two types of stores in this chain: Chedraui and Chedraui Selecto. Chedraui is quite large and it has great prices. They offer tofu, dry soy, soy chorizo, and the vegan milk drinks + a lot of Mexican products, and several snacks that are vegan, such as chips. Which of these are vegan?
- Sabritas, sal (salt)
- Kettle Sea Salt and Vinegar, Kettle Salt and Pepper, Spicy Thai, Sriracha
Chedraui Selecto has a wider array of vegan products. One of them I absolutely love is the vegan, Italian chocolate-hazelnut spread. Oh my goodness, it is so incredibly good! It’s so good that I often just grab a tea spoon and lick it off instead of spreading it on my slice of bread. Then there are a lot canned delicacies such as canned corn, stuffed olives, and Asian sauces; vegan chocolates, and plenty of dark chocolate that has no dairy. Chedraui Selecto also has more vegan chip brands than Chedraui.
- The ones I mentioned previously
+
- Terra Original Potato Chips
- The Daily Crave Veggie Chips and Veggie Crisps
- Some vegan popcorn brands
Grocery Store 3: Soriana
Soriana is very Mexican, which means that it has a lot of delicious products. I just love Mexican food! And anything can be veganized. The other advantage of Soriana is that it has – just like Chedraui – good prices. That doesn’t mean that La Comer is expensive, on the contrary, all three have reasonable prices, but I think that Chedraui and Soriana have the best prices.
At Soriana I have found fake dry bacon, tofu, dry soy, and soy chorizo. And in some Soriana stores there are also products from the Follow Your Heart brand.
One More
Last but not least, there is one that I didn’t mention in my introduction, and that is Walmart. That one is, of course, better known, but I wanted to focus on the Mexican stores in this article, since they have so much to offer; and when in Rome, do like the Romans, isn’t that what they say? Try out some of the local stuff.
Nevertheless, Walmart also has a lot of local products and you already know what to find there. It also offers great prices and a large variety of products. As for vegan food staples, I have found tofu, dry soy, soy chorizo, and some vegan chips. Like La Comer, Walmart also offers a big selection of fruits and vegetables.
All four stores that I mentioned, La Comer, Chedraui, Soriana, and Walmart, have branches in both San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas. Fresko La Comer is in San Jose.
Vegan Shopping in Cabo is Easy
Yes, so much easier than it used to be ten years ago. And not to mention the rise of vegan and vegetarian restaurants. That is a topic I will cover in my next post. I will visit a few and let you know my opinion 🙂 And next time, you come to Cabo, you know where to shop 🙂
I’ve noticed an upward trend in vegan offerings, myself. I can attest that in the area in which I live, I never would’ve found vegan options anywhere in the stores, but I would say since 2015, the selection of vegan-based items has risen tremendously. There’s overall demand for the products, and I expect this trend to continue as more get accustomed to and adopt the vegan lifestyle. While I’m not vegan, I do eat a lot of vegan-based foods simply because I find them satisfying, more so than their meat-based counterparts. I’ve never been much of a meat eater, and lately, my dairy intake is slim to none, so vegan alternatives are golden.
Hi Todd, thank you for stopping by. Yes, there is definitely an upward trend in vegan products, and it is especially noticeable when one lives in small towns, isn’t it? 🙂
This is such a helpful article on where to shop for original, nicely priced vegan food in the Cabo San Lucas area. Even though I am not vegan I find this quite resourceful and very detailed. Thank you for taking out time to get out this information for tourists and people who are relocating. What I would give to readily find detailed information on where to shop for what everytime I moved. Meanwhile, I have never heard of vegan Mozzarella,I definitely look forward to trying this one. Do you have a recipe of the vegan chocolate? I would like to try some myself as I have a lot of cocoa available to me at this time.
Hi 🙂 Vegan mozzarella is good, and it melts like dairy cheese. I use it a lot for pasta dishes, quesadillas, and nachos.
The chocolate recipe is pretty easy. You need coconut oil, dry coconut shavings, dark cocoa powder, sugar (I use cane sugar, but you can use any sugar that you like, some sugars though have ground animal bones in them), 1 tea spoon vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. You also need a mold for chocolate pralines.
Mix 1 cup of coconut oil with 3-5 table spoons of cocoa powder. It depends on your taste. I always use a lot of cocoa, so I can’t give you an exact amount. Add a pinch of salt, 2-3 tea spoons of sugar (to taste, depends on how sweet you want it). Mix it well. Add vanilla extract and mix. Add a few tea spoons of coconut shavings, not too many though, because they end up making the mixture too hard.
After that, pour the mixture in your molds and refrigerate. Wait a few hours until the chocolates get hard, and then they’re ready to eat.
I sometimes also add fillings. For example, I fill them with almonds, small pieces of pineapple, peanut butter, or anything else that you like 🙂
Thank you for the article, Christine. It is very informative and I like how you broke down the offerings from the individual stores. I am curious, do you find it easier to adhere to your diet when preparing foods yourself as opposed to eating out? Are there many vegan restaurant options available?
Hi Joseph, there are not many vegan restaurant options yet, but it is definitely growing. There are more options available than last year. I am looking forward to trying them all out for my next article 🙂
I truly enjoyed the way you went into such detail about the markets. It was almost as if I were there.
Thank you! Maybe one day you could really be here 🙂 Los Cabos is beautiful.
Hi Christine! Great article! To add, in Los Cabos there are also lots of vegan products at California Ranch Market, Santa Carmela and Green Goddess. And Costco has vegan ice cream! 🙂
Very true. That could be another article 🙂
Hi Christine, great article I am not vegan but I would like to eat more vegan foods, I tried a vegan hamburger a few years ago and thought it tasted like sawdust. But judging from your article it seems that a lot of improvement has been made in off the shelves vegan foods, I will certainly look into it. And perhaps in your next blog, you could give us some recipes,
Hello!
Yes, like with most products, some companies offer better ones than others. Vegan meat substitutes have definitely improved and keep getting better. You should try Beyond Meat burgers and sausages; that brand has received excellent reviews.
Hi Christine,
Thank you for this incredibly informative post. I love how you can give your readers very specific tips on how to navigate their food shopping since you’ve been a local for a long time.
I’m not a big fan of spicy food but I have had some Mexican food I’ve enjoyed!
I might have to try vegan protein powder sometime. Love my shakes. 🙂
It does make sense that it’s easier to do vegan shopping there, given the rise of the vegan lifestyle that I have noticed online.
Have fun,
Ben
Hi Ben, not all Mexican food is spicy and there are some amazing flavors. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Christine! I have found your post very helpful! Yeah, it’s summer and it’s time for holidays! And I was expecting it would be a bit more difficult to find vegan alternatives in Cabo San Lucas. I’ll sure check out these 3 stores you have mentioned. I speak Spanish fluently and Chedraui is really a bit of a tongue twister! 🙂
Hi Henry, I’m glad this article was helpful 🙂
There are a few more (smaller) stores with vegan produce which I will also cover in an upcoming article 🙂
Wow, I was so busy reading this I almost forgot I was reading a review for commenting!
Vegan this and that? I would love to know how to make a vegan chocolate… The pity is that I suffer from sickle cell trait and also B12 deficiency. I have tried to go raw vegan, but my mind and body do not really like it long term. I have a fast metabolism and tend to lose weight easily.
On a raw vegan lifestyle I get to 9 stone which is too bony for me. Mexico sounds like a vibrant place to live in and South America is a bustling place with street sounds and music. I am sure the people are the same too.
Thanks for sharing!
Hi Stella, I also have a fast metabolism and I lose weight easily. I am no nutritionist, but have you tried combining raw vegan meals with vegan bread, burgers, and other foods rich in protein and with B12? It’s just an idea, of course 🙂
I must apologize. I happened to notice that you shared a homemade vegan chocolate recipe in a comment with someone else. It sounded so yummy that it distracted me. (I would much rather think about chocolate rather than ordinary meals.) It sounds delicious and easier than I expected. Yum, yum.
I like the idea of shopping and doing my own cooking for as many meals as possible when I am on vacation. I would rather eat as much fresh natural food as possible.
It is nice to see there is enough selection of stores in San Cabos that would not be too difficult to prepare a vegan meal.
Thanks for the shopping tips. Now I’ve got to write your recipe down.want to I can try it.
Hi Sondra, I love those chocolates! I didn’t remember the exact amounts of coconut oil and coconut shavings, but I always taste while I make it. That always works to get the right results 🙂
I hear about Cabo San Lucas from a friend, he always wanted to visit it again and always told me and asked me to go with him there. I want to visit it soon, and I am lucky that I found this article!!!! FOOD and PLEASURE that’s the best anyone can get!
These stores seem nice and great to visit and buy vegan food from and I think I found your favourite between them! I bet it’s Soriana since you started with this “Soriana is very Mexican, which means that it has a lot of delicious products. I just love Mexican food!” hahaha
This is another great post to read, and I happy to always find good articles on this website to read and discover cool stuff! Thankies!
Hello ?
Haha, yes, Soriana is a great store. Lots of people go there.
I hope you and your friend can come to Cabo soon. You will love it, it’s such a beautiful place!
Thank you for this article. My husband and I just arrived in Cabo yesterday evening. I’ve been so worried about finding vegan dining options as we just started a vegan diet and we don’t want to get off track. We stumbled on to Make Vegan and Veggie Restaurant last night. Wonderful. Looking forward to shopping and making some meals in our resort. I want mangoes! Thanks again.
Hi Debbie,
That’s wonderful! Make is a great restaurant! I love it there. I should go back there soon 🙂
You can buy mangoes at the local stores. Thank you for visiting my website! Enjoy your stay in Cabo, it’s such a beautiful place 🙂