Many fast-food restaurants are beginning to recognize a growing consumer request for vegan options. Because of this, they are starting to pop up everywhere and people are loving it. For those burger lovers, you might not think about finding vegan-friendly menu items at your local Carl’s Jr. but, you should!
Carl’s Jr. has quite a few vegan-friendly menu options, including the Beyond Famous Star Burger sans cheese and mayo, the green burrito sans meat, cheese, and crema, and sides of hash rounds, Crisscut fries, natural cut fries, chips and guac, and their side salad sans cheese and croutons. You can also build your own Beyond Burger with vegan toppings.
Now that we have an idea of what some of the vegan options available at Carl’s Jr. are, let’s take a deeper look into some tips and tricks for ordering vegan at your local Carl’s Jr. as well as non-vegan foods to avoid and related questions.
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Tips & Tricks for Ordering Vegan at Carl’s Jr.
If you have been following a vegan diet for a while, you are likely no stranger to asking various restaurants and food establishments to make alterations to their menu to fit your dietary needs. Some menu items are easy to alter to fit a vegan diet while others may not be as simple. Below are a few tips and tricks to help you feel more comfortable ordering vegan-friendly meals at your locals Carl’s Jr.
- If you are building your own burger, the following sauces are vegan-friendly: ketchup, mustard, barbeque sauce, hot sauce, special sauce, chili Pequin sauce, and guacamole.
- The sesame seed bun and the Jr. bun are the only hamburger buns that are vegan-friendly, avoid all other buns.
- Carl’s Jr.’s hard taco shells and tortillas are vegan-friendly if you want to make your own vegan burrito or taco.
- If reaching for a side salad, Carl’s Jr. offers a balsamic vinaigrette that is vegan-friendly. Carl’s Jr.’s House dressing is not vegan.
- Note that fryers may be shared with non-vegan items and may result in cross-contamination.
- Although the beyond burger is considered a vegan-friendly alternative to beef burgers at Carl’s Jr., note that it is still not considered 100% vegan as they are cooked on a shared cooking space with non-vegan foods.
- Carl’s Jr. Does not currently have any vegan cheese options. All menu items that come with cheese should be omitted on a vegan diet.
Non-Vegan Foods to Avoid at Carl’s Jr.
As most of us know, Carl’s Jr. was created to cater to those meat lovers. Despite recent changes in their menu to include a wider variety of options for those following a vegan or vegetarian diet, Carl’s Jr. continues to carry its widely popular, carnivore-oriented menu items. Below are a couple of notes on things to avoid if you are following a vegan diet at Carl’s Jr.
Burgers:
- Most menu items available at Carl’s Jr. restaurants contain meat, cheese, egg, or other forms of animal products. At this time, the only way to get a vegan burger is to choose the Beyond Meat patty and remove the cheese, mayo and any other animal product added.
Desserts:
- All of Carl’s Jr.’s desserts are off-limits on a vegan diet at this time as they all contain dairy, including their cinnamon roll, hand-scooped ice cream shakes, chocolate cake, strawberry swirl cheesecake, and chocolate chip cookie.
Sides:
- Any breaded and fried sides are also not vegan-friendly due to the egg in the batter, such as their onion rings and fried zucchini as well as their jalapeño poppers which also contain cream cheese.
Breakfast:
- Carl’s Jr.’s sweet breakfast items and biscuits are not vegan-friendly. Their vegan breakfast options are limited to only their hash browns which are available at select Carl’s Jr. locations.
Vegan Options at Carl’s Jr. Restaurants
Now that we know what should be avoided if on a vegan diet at Carl’s Jr. restaurants, let’s look at some of the vegan options available. Lucky for those vegan burger lovers out there, Carl’s Jr. is one of the few fast-food restaurants that carry the Beyond Meat patties, a 100% plant-based burger alternative.
Vegan Salads
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Side Garden Salad (omit shredded cheese and croutons)
This small side salad is 100% vegan once you remove the shredded cheese and croutons. For a vegan dressing, choose Carl’s Jr. balsamic vinaigrette to go with it. Unfortunately, at this time Carl’s Jr. does not have any vegan-friendly protein add-ons you can enjoy on this salad, and their House dressing is not considered vegan-friendly.
Ingredients:
- Iceberg lettuce
- Red onions
- Tomatoes
- Croutons
Vegan Main Dishes
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Beyond Famous Star Burger (Omit cheese and mayo)
Made with the popular Beyond Meat burger, Carl’s Jr. Beyond Famous Star Burger is a perfect vegan meal once you remove the cheese and the mayo. Luckily their special sauce is considered vegan-friendly.
Select locations also carry a Beyond Fiery Famous Star burger which is essentially the same burger but with pepper jack cheese, fiery sauce, and pickled jalapeños. Ask for it without the cheese and fiery sauce and you have yourself a spicy vegan treat.
Beyond Famous Star Burger Ingredients:
- 100% plant-based Beyond Burger patty
- Lettuce
- Tomato
- Sliced onions
- Dill pickles
- Special sauce
- Sesame seed bun
Beyond Fiery Famous Star Burger Ingredients:
- 100% plant-based Beyond Burger patty
- Lettuce
- Tomato
- Sliced onions
- Dill pickles
- Jalapeños
- Sesame seed bun
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Green burrito (Omit meat, cheese, crema, and green sauce)
Another widely popular Carl’s Jr. menu item is their Green Burrito. Although you must omit the shredded cheese and meat on the inside and the cream, Cotija, and green sauce on the outside, once you do it’s a vegan delight wrapped up in a warm fluffy tortilla.
Ingredients:
- Cilantro lime rice
- Pinto beans
- Chili Pequin hot sauce
- Pico de Gallo
- Grilled tortilla
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Build Your Own Burger
Did you know you could also build your own burger at Carl’s Jr. to include all your vegan favorites? Simple choose a Beyond Meat patty and either a sesame seed or Jr. bun and add your favorite condiments and toppings.
- Choose your vegan-friendly sauces: ketchup, mustard, barbeque sauce, hot sauce, special sauce, chili Pequin sauce, and/or guacamole.
- Choose your vegan-friendly toppings: onions, tomatoes, pickles, lettuce, and/or jalapeños.
- Carl’s Jr.’s tortillas and hard taco shells are also considered vegan-friendly if you prefer to make your own burrito or taco with vegan fillings, such as pinto beans, guac, Pico de Gallo, and more.
Vegan Sides
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Crisscut fries
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Natural cut fries
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Tortilla chips
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Guacamole
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Cilantro lime rice
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Pinto beans
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Hash browns
Vegan Toppings
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Lettuce
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Tomato
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Onions
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Jalapeños
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Guacamole
Vegan Beverages
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Bottled water
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Hot coffee
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Simply orange juice
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Coca-Cola soft drinks
Find a Carl’s Jr. Near You
If you have never been to a Carl’s Jr. or are looking for one in an area near you, we got your back. To find a Carl’s Jr. location near you, click here.
Similar Restaurants to Carl’s Jr.
If you are looking for a similar restaurant to Carl’s Jr. there are a few options to choose from. McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s are their three main competitors. All these restaurants provide fast-food-style burgers that include plant-based options similar to Carl’s Jr.
Related Questions
Is Fried Zucchini from Carl’s Jr. Vegan?
None of the deep-fried items at Carl’s Jr. are currently vegan-friendly. Carl’s Jr. fried zucchini is made using a batter that contains egg which is an animal byproduct. However, Carl’s Jr. Crisscut and natural cut fries are vegan-friendly, but they do share a fryer with other, non-vegan products and are potentially cross-contaminated with animal products.
Does Carl’s Jr. Have Vegan Meat?
Currently, the only vegan meat alternative available at Carl’s Jr. locations is the Beyond Burger meat patties. They had the Beyond Sausage meat for their Beyond Sausage Burrito that came out in 2019. However, this option may only be available at select Carl’s Jr. locations. Although many vegan forums rave about this breakfast option, when searching Carl’s Jr.’s menu online, it is devoid of this raved-about menu item.
Does Carl’s Jr. Have Vegan Breakfast Options?
Since the Beyond Sausage has since been removed from Carl’s Jr.’s menu and it’s yet to make its return, the only vegan-friendly breakfast items would be a vegan breakfast burrito with hash browns, lettuce, Pico de Gallo, and guac, however, only some locations carry the hash browns. None of Carl’s Jr.’s sweet breakfast items are vegan-friendly, nor are their biscuits. Once you remove the sausage and cheese, you are only left with tortillas and vegan toppings such as guac, hash-browns, Pico de Gallo, lettuce, and tomato.
Does Hardee’s Have the Beyond Burger and Beyond Sausage?
Hardee’s is the East Coast equivalent of Carl’s Jr. Their menu is almost completely identical with the main difference being the name. Carl’s Jr. can be found in the West Coast states while Hardee’s can be found on the East Coast. Hardee’s also carries the Beyond Burger patties as well as the Beyond Sausage meat at select locations. You can use the above menu items and tips and tricks shared at Hardee’s locations as well.