Popular U.S. movie theater chain Alamo Drafthouse unveiled a vegan menu for its New York City location this week in response to “extremely high demand” from customers, the company said. The Brooklyn Alamo Drafthouse location opened in 2016, but despite the borough’s strong vegan food scene, it lacked the vegan options available at other locations.
Now, downtown Brooklyn Alamo Drafthouse vegan options include the Beyond Burger served with lettuce, tomato, onion, and dairy-free ranch, Avocado Toast topped with charred corn, basil, and arugula on ciabatta, Crispy Buffalo Cauliflower with celery and vegan ranch, and healthier meal bowl options like the Roasted Vegetable Quinoa Bowl, served with sweet potato, cauliflower, spiced cashews, broccolini, and roasted peppers tossed with baby kale and quinoa.
Though small, Alamo Drafthouse theaters are well-known for enforcing strict policies against talking and texting during screenings as well as a system that allows theater-goers to order food and drink while the film is playing.
Alamo Drafthouse popcorn is vegan by default and the chain has consistently offered a variety of “accidentally vegan” options like Sour Patch Kids candy and soft pretzels with mustard (hold the cheese dip). Options for those looking to order a plant-based meal, however, have been limited. Plant-based options, like the vegan Beyond Burger, are at Alamo Drafthouse locations in Austin and a few other select locations across the nation, such as Denver, Colorado and Springfield, Missouri.
Alamo Drafthouse vegan options have previously been recognized by animal rights organization PETA, which ranked it among the five most vegan-friendly movie theater chains in the U.S. in 2016. The chain also serves a variety of vegan beer and wine. Though it is not marked on the menu, patrons of the theater can check an alcoholic beverage’s vegan-friendliness on Barnivore, a resource for beer, wine, and liquor made without animal products.
Now, the New York City Alamo Drafthouse vegan options are on par with the plant-based menu served at some of the chain’s other locations. Currently, no plans to roll out the vegan menu at the chain’s other locations across the country have been announced, but the company has shown that it is responsive to consumer demand.
Image Credit: Alamo Drafthouse
