Is Vietnamese coconut coffee suitable for vegans?
- Oct 31, 2025
- 2 min read
This famous drink may sound vegan-friendly but it contains some sneaky ingredients that may catch you out. Find out here why Vietnamese Coconut Coffee isn’t always suitable for vegans and I’ll give you some tips on how you can still try out this delicious drink.
The article explains how the popular Vietnamese coconut coffee (“cà phê dừa”) is not always vegan because of condensed milk, and offers tips for ordering a vegan version.
Answer:
What is Vietnamese coconut coffee?
This delightfully creamy coconut coffee, called Cà Phê Dừa in Vietnamese, is a very popular drink in Vietnam. It consists of a sweet coconut ice slushy which you pour a shot of hot strong coffee over the top of.
Think of it like a coconut coffee frappe.
You can mix the coffee in slightly to the coconut ice mix and then drink straight away.
It is perfect for a hot summers day, when you are looking for a caffeine kick as well as a cooling refreshment. Which makes it the perfect drink for Vietnam, particularly in the summertime or if you are in the South (where it is hot all year round).
Is coconut coffee vegan-friendly?
I’m afraid that Vietnamese Coconut Coffee isn’t suitable for vegans. This popular drink may sound like a vegan’s dream, but it is actually made using non-vegan ingredients.
It has nearly caught me out a few times, since coconut is often used to make vegan-friendly coffees back in the UK and other Western countries. But in this instance, this isn’t a vegan-friendly drink option.
Having spent quite a lot of time in Vietnam, I decided to ask the wait staff in a coffee shop what the ingredients were in a coconut coffee and the answer did not at all surprise me. So, let me now take you through the ingredients in this drink and why they aren’t suitable for vegans.
Comments