The Best Starbucks Menu Item For Vegan Foodies

Although the world of vegan menu items is expanding rapidly, eating plant-based on the go can still be a challenge. It's all too common to walk into a coffee shop hoping for the best, only to find the place doesn't have vegan options or only offers foods that seem vegan but aren't. Luckily, Starbucks isn't one of them. Though it's still far from being a vegan hub, the most popular coffee shop in the United States offers 13 vegan-friendly food items that you can snack on. Tasting Table's Brianne Nemiroff reviewed them all and found the best: whole grain oatmeal.

At first glance, this pick might seem strange, since oatmeal has a reputation for being bland or too basic. But Starbucks' approach to it is to treat the oats like a blank canvas — you get to choose the toppings, the sweeteners, and the milk. It's therefore possible to get the oatmeal in a completely vegan version, making it a satisfying plant-based breakfast. So, let's talk toppings. You can upgrade Starbucks' oatmeal with fruity inclusions such as dried and fresh fruit or opt for a mixture of nuts. For the sweeteners, you can go for agave syrup, brown sugar, Starbucks' classic syrup, or even artificial sweeteners like Stevia and Splenda. With all these options at your disposal, there's really no worry that your Starbies oatmeal will turn out bland.

Every Starbucks oatmeal begins with a dry oat mixture and hot water. The oat mixture includes oat flour and guar gum (a binding agent), which help create a creamy consistency. You can get a splash of milk with your oatmeal too, for a richer texture and more substantial flavor. Starbucks' vegan milk options aren't scarce — they include coconut, almond, oat, and soy milk.

Although we think that Starbucks' oatmeal is the best vegan option, it is often met with one chief complaint: The portion is too small. Some customers are disappointed when they get a small, half-empty cup of oats. They note it's not nearly enough for them to feel satiated. It's true that the cups need space for the toppings and that many people will likely order one of the vegan-friendly Starbucks drinks to go along with it, but when you consider the price of oatmeal is close to $5 (with some toppings costing extra), it's easy to understand why people are miffed. One way to bulk up the oatmeal is by ordering extra packets of toppings, but the coffee shop does seem to be a bit stingy with the cup size, so there's only so much you can do. That said, we have to admit that Starbucks is on a good path with its vegan oatmeal if the main complaint is simply that there's not enough of it.