Two years after the first vegan beef burger was introduced to the public on a nationwide scale (thank you, Burger King), McDonald’s has finally launched a plant-based burger of its own thanks to a partnership with vegan brand Beyond Meat. The American-born chain says that it’s been working on the McPlant for three years with microscopic testing markets in Europe and Canada. Now, the plant-based-as-is sandwich is rolling out to 250 UK and eight US locations—its largest distribution yet (and first foray in the US). So where can you get it, and is it vegan? Here’s the latest on the McDonald’s McPlant.
@Veegboi/Instagram
McDonald’s vegan options
While certainly the most buzzed-about meatless offering, the McPlant isn’t McDonald’s first foray into plant-based options. The behemoth burger brand has launched a few veggie sandwich items—just not in its home country. The currently discontinued Vegetable Deluxe debuted in Europe and the UK in 2018 and was made with two red pepper pesto goujons (breaded and fried veggie sticks), iceberg lettuce, and sandwich sauce. Depending on the location, the handhold could be vegan—it all came down to the sauce. Some McDonald’s kitchens continued to use a sauce recipe with egg, while others removed it for a completely plant-based, creamy sauce.
In 2019, McDonald’s first showcased the burger currently known as the McPlant in 28 Ontario, Canada locations. Back then, it was called the P.L.T. (Plant, Lettuce, Tomato) and featured a vegan patty formulated for McDonald’s by Beyond Meat. In addition to tomato and lettuce, the beefless burger was accompanied by a slather of mayo-style sauce, mustard, and a slice of processed cheddar cheese. After 12 weeks, the test was complete and the offering was removed from McDonald’s menu. In February 2021, the P.L.T. reemerged in select Swedish and Denmark locations as the McPlant. Still served with cheese- and egg-based mayo, the sandwich was removed from these test locations in April.
Aside from burgers and sandwiches, McDonald’s UK carries a few vegan-friendly menu items to complement the main meal. French fries, hash browns, apple slices, baby carrots, and Veggie Dippers are all fair game for the plant-based crowd. A similar spread (minus the Veggie Dippers) is available in the US with the exclusion of the fries. While stateside Mickey D’s swapped out the beef fat for vegetable frying oil in 1990, the chain added beef flavoring so the McDonald’s fries in the US are not vegetarian or vegan.
McDonald’s
The US McPlant
The McPlant will be available at select US locations beginning November 3. Unlike its British counterpart, the meatless sandwich in the US is only being tested at a very select number of locations—just eight, to start. From November 3 until sold out, you can find the McPlant at these select McDonald’s locations.
Cedar Falls, IA
El Segundo and Manhattan Beach, CA
Irving and Carrollton, TX
Jennings and Lake Charles, LA
Likely due to the pressures of the dairy lobby in the US, the American McPlant is not vegan as-is. The sandwich is made with the same Beyond Meat-formulated patty, but it comes with animal-based mayo and American cheese in addition to the standard lettuce, tomatoes, onions, ketchup, mustard, and pickles. The sesame seed bun is vegan, so plant-based patrons can get a taste of this new offering by ordering without mayo or cheese (note: unlike the UK, the US McPlant shares cooking surfaces with non-vegan items).
@lickyplate/Instagram
A vegan spin in the UK
Following months of hibernation after select test runs across the world, the McPlant has also resurfaced in the UK, but with a vegan facelift. Now being tested in 250 UK locations until January 2022, the Beyond Meat-based burger comes with ketchup, mustard, onions, pickles, tomato, and a slice of vegan cheese on a sesame seed bun. Unlike many fast-food vegan burger options, the McPlant will be prepared with dedicated, vegan-friendly cookware and utensils to avoid animal product cross-contamination.
England and Ireland residents—curious if your local Mickey D’s carries the McPlant? Here are all the locations that serve it … given it hasn’t sold out.
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Abbey Centre |
London Camberwell |
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Abbey Lane |
London Camden |
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Anniesland |
London Canning Town - Hallsville Quarter |
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Antrim - The Junction Retail Park |
London Catford 2 |
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Asda Longbenton |
London Chancery Lane |
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Asda Morley |
London Chelsea Kings Road |
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Asda Norwich |
London City Road |
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Barton Mills |
London Clapham |
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Beaumont Leys |
London Clapham Junction |
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Beccles |
London Commercial Road |
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Bedminster |
London Dalston |
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Belfast - Boucher Road |
London Deptford |
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Belfast - Mckinstry Road |
London Earls Court |
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Belfast Knocknagoney Road |
London Edgware Road |
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Belfast Shore Road |
London Eltham |
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Birmingham - Chelmsley Wood |
London Fulham |
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Birmingham - Small Heath |
London Hackney |
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Birmingham - Temple Row |
London Hammersmith 2 Broadway Centre |
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Birmingham Bristol Rd |
London Highbury Corner |
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Birmingham Fort |
London Highway Shadwell |
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Birstall |
London Holborn |
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Black Cat Southampton |
London Holloway Road |
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Boongate Peterborough |
London Islington |
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Bordesley Green |
London Kensington |
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Bourges Boulevard |
London Kentish Town |
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Bow - Payne Road |
London Kilburn |
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Braehead |
London Killingbeck |
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Brampton Hut - Huntingdon |
London Kings Cross |
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Bristol |
London Kings Cross - Ex Wendys |
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Bristol Bedminster |
London Leicester Square |
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Bristol Brislington |
London Lewisham |
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Bristol Cribbs |
London Liverpool Street |
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Bristol Filton |
London London Bridge |
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Bristol Fishponds |
London Maryhill |
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Bristol Hengrove |
London Notting Hill Gate |
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Bristol Horsefair |
London Nuneaton |
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Bristol Longwell Green |
London Old Kent Road Dt |
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Bristol Patchway |
London Oxford Street 1 |
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Broadlands |
London Peckham+C44 |
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Bury St.Edmunds |
London Pollokshaws |
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Byker |
London Putney |
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Cambridge |
London Queensway |
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Cambridge - Newmarket Road |
London Road Edinburgh |
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Cambridge Circus |
London Seven Sisters |
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Cambridge Services |
London Shaftesbury Avenue - 2 |
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Campbells Meadow Kings Lynn |
London Shepherds Bush |
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Capitol Shopping Park - Cardiff |
London Springburn |
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Cardiff - Excelsior Road |
London St Martins Lane |
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Cardiff - Ty Glas Avenue |
London St Pauls |
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Cardiff 1 |
London Strand |
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Cardiff Bay |
London Stratford The Mall |
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Cardiff Culverhouse Cross |
London Streatham Place |
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Cardiff Longwood Drive |
London Swiss Cottage |
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Cardiff Newport Rd |
London Victoria |
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Cardiff St Marys Street |
London Victoria Place |
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Caxton Gibbet |
London Victoria Station |
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Chesterton |
London Walworth Rd |
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Coast Road, Newcastle |
London Wandsworth |
|
Conswater |
London Wandsworth Drive-thru |
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Cosham |
London Wandsworth Road |
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Coventry Alvis |
London Warren Street |
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Coventry Canley |
London West One Shopping Centre |
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Coventry Walsgrave |
London Westfield Stratford City |
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Coventry-Binley |
London Woolwich |
|
Cross Cheaping |
Lowestoft Kirley |
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Crow Road |
Lowestoft Pakefield |
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Crystal Peaks |
Manchester Oxford Road |
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Dereham |
Manchester Piccadilly Gardens |
|
Donegal Place |
Meadowhal 2 |
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Drakehouse |
Meadowhall |
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Dublin, Grafton St |
Milngavie |
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Dublin, Ilac Centre |
New Oscott |
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Dublin, Mary Street |
Newcastle - Grainger Street |
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Dublin, O’Connell Br. |
Newcastle-Under-Lyme |
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Dublin, O’Connell St |
Newport IOW |
|
Dublin, Temple-Bar |
Northfield |
|
Dundonald |
Norwich - Chapelfields |
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Edinburgh |
Norwich - Hay Hill |
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Edinburgh - Corstorphine |
Norwich - Thickthorn |
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Edinburgh - Newbridge |
Norwich Boundary Road |
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Edinburgh - Straiton |
Norwich Longwater |
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Felixstowe |
Norwich Tuckswood |
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Finnieston |
Nuneaton - Asda |
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Fosse Park |
Nuneaton DT |
|
Gallagher Retail Park |
Parkhead |
|
Gapton Hall |
Port Glasgow - Retail Park |
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Glasgow - Great Western Retail Park |
Portsmouth |
|
Glasgow - Kirkintilloch |
Portsmouth - Fratton |
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Glasgow - London Road |
Portsmouth - Fratton Del. Kitchen |
|
Glasgow - Silverburn |
Portsmouth - North Harbour |
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Glasgow – Easterhouse |
Portsmouth Ocean Retail Park |
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Glasgow Fort - Morrisons |
Princes Street |
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Glengormley |
Queensgate Peterborough |
|
Gorgie Road |
Ryde IOW |
|
Gosforth Park |
Saintfield Road |
|
Great Yarmouth |
Sauchiehall Street |
|
Great Yarmouth 3 |
Seafield Road |
|
Greenwich-Cutty Sark |
Sheffield - Archer Road |
|
Hagley Rd |
Sheffield - Darnall Road |
|
Havant |
Sheffield - Farm Road |
|
Hedge End |
Sheffield 2 |
|
Helen St |
Sheffield Handsworth |
|
Hillsborough |
Shirley Road Southampton |
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Hinckley - Dodwells Road |
Snetterton A11 |
|
Hinckley DT |
South Andrew Street |
|
Hunslet |
Southampton - Millbrook |
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Huntingdon - Tower Field |
Southampton - West Quay |
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Ipswich - Ravenswood |
Southampton Esplanade |
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Ipswich Cardinal Park |
St Enoch Centre |
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Ipswich Ranelagh Rd |
Stamfordham Road |
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Ipswich Tavern Street |
Star City |
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Ipswich Whitehouse |
Stechford |
|
Killingworth Centre |
Swaffham |
|
Kings Lynn |
Swansea |
|
Kings Norton |
Swansea - Cwmdu |
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Kingston Park |
Swansea - Fabian Way |
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Kinnaird Park |
Swansea M4 Junction 47 |
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Kitts Green |
Swansea Morriston |
|
Leeds - Colton Mill |
Tankersley |
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Leeds - Elland Road |
Telford Road |
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Leeds - Kirkstall |
Thetford - Forest Retail Park |
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Leeds - Oakwood |
Thornliebank |
|
Leeds 1 |
Thurmaston |
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Leeds 2 |
Tooton |
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Leeds-Central Station |
Trongate |
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Leeds, Bond Street |
Waverley Market |
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Leicester - Meridian Way |
West Bromwich 3 |
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Leicester - Monks Rest (Hamiliton) |
West Lynn |
|
Leicester Eastgates |
West Orchards |
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Leicester Market Street |
Westwood |
|
London 185-187 Oxford Street |
White Rose Centre |
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London 291 Oxford St |
Whittlesford |
|
London Argyle St |
Wigston |
|
London Baker Street |
Woolwich - Church Street |
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London Balham |
Wroxham |
|
London Bethnal Green |
Yardley |
|
London Bham - Stephenson Place |
Yardley Wood |
|
London Brixton |
Yorkshire Grey |
|
London Brompton Rd |
For more on vegan fast-food burgers, read:Fatburger Expands Vegan Cheeseburger to All Locations
The Vegan Guide to Plant-Based Eating at Burger King
The Ultimate Vegan Guide to Carl’s Jr.
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Tanya Flink is a Digital Editor at VegNews as well as a writer and runner living in Orange County, CA.
