We went to South America!!! Not only did we go to South America, we went to Argentina. And not only did we go to Argentina, we went to Argentina during the world cup final and celebrated the country’s win in the streets!!! It was an epic, amazing moment that we will never forget and, because of that, Ushuaia will always have a very, very special place in my heart.

Now why we were in the small Argentinean city of Ushuaia of all places? Well, great question. We were taking a boat to Antarctica from there! I know, crazy, right?

Cue the Tik Tok sound: “And my life…. is kinda crazy.”

Anyway, we fell in love with the beautiful city of Ushuaia and thought we share all the vegan options we found in the small little downtown area – spoiler alert, there were surprisingly a lot!!

1. Isla Vegana

I shit you not, there was literally an ALL-VEGAN cafe/pastry shop/local store in the middle of town. How freaking dope is that?? It served the most delicious sandwiches (the fried seitan cheese one is chef’s kiss), gnocchi, flatbreads, pizzas, and the most INCREDIBLE vegan pastries we’ve literally ever had. They had vegan alfajores (these little moon-cake-like dulce de leche desserts), lemon meringue pie, and a brownie covered in salted caramel and more meringue. That meringue was legit HEAVEN on earth. Even our non-vegan friend Rebecca said it was the best meringue she’s ever had. If you’re vegan and in this small city, you must RUN – not walk – to this place. I wish I could have every dessert of my life covered in that whipped meringue. 

2. Ana Y Juana

Ana Y Juana was this adorable, trendy little coffee shop with plenty of vegan desserts and dairy-free kinds of milk for beverages. Also, the staff was so freaking nice. Love them #mommy. 

No, but for real, we got a dairy-free cappuccino, dairy-free matcha, and the most delicious, fudgy vegan brownie. As you can see in the below pics, they also had vegan cookies, blondies, and other yummies. If you’re looking for an afternoon pick-me-up (or if you are a little sloot for caffeine and chocolate like we are), this is your spot!!

3. Marcopolo

This restaurant will always have such a special place in my cold little heart because it’s where we watched the world cup final!!! Such a crazy few hours and I will never forget it. While this restaurant isn’t all vegan like Isla Vegana, they do have a wide selection of vegan food and dessert items and even (allegedly) “all-vegan Wednesdays.” Sad I wasn’t there on a Wednesday, but I’ll take my world cup experience over that, no offense. 

Anyway, in terms of food-food, they had a vegan burger, a vegan salad, and vegan veggie soup and maybe some other options I don’t remember. The veggie soup was actually delicious and came with some crusty yummy bread. And, y’all, idk if you know this, but Argentina is known for its bread because it’s so damn good. 

In terms of desserts, I will give this review a caveat: some of their signage is really confusing. AKA, some of their desserts are labeled with a label that says vegan, but they aren’t actually vegan. It’s really confusing and they tried explaining that the signs mean “vegan or not vegan” but just so you all know, the desserts are only vegan if they have the “VEGAN” sticker as well. So we tried a vegan frosted lemon cake and it was really good! The lemons in Argentina are also pretty lit. (We also accidentally ate a delicious non-vegan dessert after being told it was vegan, but ya live and you learn). 

Also, also, also, this place also has really great fresh juices and smothies. I got a carrot orange juice one day and a passion fruit/red tea shake another and both were epic. Anyway, check this place out for sure, but you’ve been warned re: the signage errors lol. 

4. Arakur Hotel & Spa

This is where we stayed before embarking on our grand Antarctic adventure! The hotel was seriously so gorgeous and all of the staff was super helpful and kind. Unfortunately, there weren’t a ton of vegan options in the hotel restaurants, but they did try their best to accommodate us and I always appreciate that. For one meal we had rice and this really fancy/yummy veggie stirfry. And then at the breakfast buffet, we had fruit, toast, and jam. Please don’t kill me, but I didn’t ask what was in the bread so there’s a chance it may have not been vegan. I needed food and went for the safest option. I’m sorry if you don’t like that. Traveling abroad is hard and I can only do my best, ok!?!

Regardless, Argentinian bread is OUT OF THIS WORLD. I had no idea that the country had such a major Italian influence. It’s so good. I definitely recommend it (Argentina, yes, but I was specifically referring to the bread lol). Also, I’d be remiss not to give an epic shout-out to our waiter who was always coming in clutch with the vegan accommodations and vegan lattes in the morning, without us even having to ask. Wish I remembered his name, ugh! Regardless, he was the GOAT.

5. Argentina Starbucks

Thank God they had a Starbucks at the airport after our 10-hour flight because, if not, I would have had a white girl meltdown. (That was a joke for all you judgy fuckers). No, but actually, I love going to Starbucks in different countries because they all offer different vegan options and this one was no exception.

They had a vegan croissant bagel called “the bageluna” (iconic) that my sister got with an avocado spread and loved. They also had a vegan chocolate chip cookie at check out, as well as vegan granola bars. All of them were delicious. It always shocks me how much more vegan-friendly chain restaurants are outside of the US. Like !? BFFR. Be fucking for real. 

6. Ushuaia Supermarket

Although it was a bit of a trek to find the supermarket in the downtown area, with grit and determination, we finally arrived. It was a pretty small supermarket but was surprisingly well-stocked with vegan items. We were just looking for snacks for the Antarctica boat trip so that’s all we got, but they did have vegan perishable items like yogurts and such. However, here are picks of some of the vegan snackies we got, including caramel chocolate bars, Ritz-cracker-knock-offs, chocolate chip cookies, and more. Almost all of them were labeled vegan too (the cow symbol seemed to be the most prevalent in this shop), which was epic and super unexpected. Go Ushuaia! 

7. Aerolineas Argentina

Honorable mention to the airline we took to Argentina and back. We were able to message them via FB (they’re so millennial lol – but so am I) telling them we were vegan. We got two vegan meals on each of the 10-hour flights and they were pretty decent! Obviously, it’s plane food, so not very gourmet, but still filling and full of variety. I tried to take a pic, but my phone like flipped a shit, so here’s my best photo lmao. 

Anyway, Ushuaia is a beautiful little city with great vegan food, kind people, and memories I will cherish for a lifetime! Check it out!