Sonic Drive-In is a popular fast-food restaurant that has been loved by Americans for nearly 67 years. There are around 3,500 Sonic Drive-Ins in 46 U.S. states. Though Sonic offers a variety of fast-food items, the vegan options at Sonic are limited.
The vegan options at Sonic are mostly their side dishes. These include onion rings, French fries, tater tots, and a soft pretzel twist. Some of Sonic’s sauces and soft drinks are vegan as well. You can also ask for custom vegan sandwiches.
So, if you are a vegan, check out the following vegan items the next time you come across Sonic. The below vegan menu is put together after consulting Sonic’s allergen information on their website.
Table of Contents
Onion Rings
Onion rings are the favorite side dish at Sonic Drive-In. You will rarely find vegan onion rings at fast-food chains. However, the onion rings at Sonic are vegan. At Sonic, vegetable oil is used for frying onion rings. It does not use animal lard like many other restaurants.
Onion rings generally have milk in their composition. The frozen varieties also include milk. Despite this, Sonic makes its onion rings vegan comes as a welcome surprise. You can also dip these vegan onion rings into one of the vegan sauces of Sonic.
However, the onion rings may be cooked in the fryer Sonic uses for its fried meat variants. If you strongly oppose cross-contamination, you may avoid these onion rings.
Tater Tots
Tater tots are the much-loved vegan options at Sonic. These tater tots are fried in vegetable oil alone. Sonic does not use animal lard for frying any of its menu options.
You can relish your tater tots with any one of the multiple vegan sauces of Sonic. You can also try Sonic’s sweet potato tater tots. These are vegan too.
Sonic’s tater tots are likely fried in the fryer used for frying non-vegan options. If you are against cross-contamination, you may skip tater tots.
French Fries
French fries are another favorite side dish in many fast-food chains and restaurants. The French fries at Sonic are also a vegan option. These French fries go well with one of the many vegan sauces of Sonic Drive-In.
Unfortunately, their fried French toast sticks are not vegan.
Soft Pretzel Twist
Sonic’s big soft pretzel twist is completely vegan. However, these usually come with one nacho-cheese sauce dip. This cheese dip is not vegan.
You can ask for this dip to be switched with other vegan options instead. A popular alternative sauce that you can swap with is Sonic’s marinara sauce dip.
You can also choose BBQ sauce or Asian sweet chili sauce dip. Both of these dips are vegan options.
Applesauce
You can have applesauce as a side at Sonic. It usually comes in a packet or pouch. One of these weighs only 3.2 ounces. So you do not have to worry about the extra calories. Moreover, it makes a great vegan side.
You can also ask for apple slices. Though it isn’t available on their website, some Sonic locations may have them.
If it comes with caramel, you can skip it.
Custom Vegan Sandwiches and Wraps
Not every Sonic location offers a veggie burger. The ones that do offer may not be completely vegan. However, many Sonic Drive-In locations are happy to create a vegan sandwich for you.
Sonic doesn’t have a separate vegan sandwich option on its menu. Nevertheless, you can have your own customized vegan sandwich with all the vegan ingredients available at Sonic.
The selection of these vegan ingredients may vary from one Sonic location to another. It is because all of Sonic’s bread comes from local bakeries. The ingredients may be different at different locations.
The following are some of the vegan options available at most Sonic Drive-Ins to make your customized vegan sandwiches or wraps:
Vegan Buns and Bread
- Hot dog bun
- Hamburger bun
- Tortilla
- Texas toast
- Philly roll
- Bagel
Sonic says their hot dog buns, hamburger buns, tortillas, and Texas toast may contain eggs and milk.
The statement “may contain eggs and milk” generally indicates that the products could likely be made in facilities that use eggs and milk for their other products. So, there may be a tiny possibility of cross-contamination. Additionally, it is a disclaimer of allergies.
While most vegans consider these options vegan, some may choose to avoid them. You can always confirm with your Sonic Drive-In if the bread is free of eggs and dairy.
The Philly roll and bagels of Sonic do not contain milk or eggs.
Veggies and Toppings
You can add these vegetables and toppings to your sandwich or wrap. You may not find them all at every Sonic location. However, most Sonic locations have the following veggies and toppings:
- Jalapenos
- Avocado
- Lettuce
- Dill pickle spears
- Diced onion
- Sport peppers
- Dill pickle chips
- Sauerkraut
- Hatch green chiles
- Tomato
- Sweet pickle relish
Vegan Sauces, Condiments, and Dips
Sonic has one of the best assortments of vegan sauces, condiments, and dips.
These vegan options at sonic make a great combination with their vegan French fries and onion rings. You can also have them with your custom sandwiches and wraps.
The vegan sauces, condiments, and dips available at most Sonic Drive-Ins are:
- Mustard
- Ketchup
- Asian sweet chili sauce
- Hickory BBQ sauce
- Pepper/salt blend
- Celery salt
- Marinara sauce
- Sweet relish
- Salsa de Sonic
- Sweet and sour sauce
- Grape jelly
- Strawberry jam
- Maple-flavored syrup
Note that tartar sauce, signature sauce, and Buffalo sauce contain eggs.
Vegan Frozen Drinks
Sonic is famous for its slushes. Most of their slushes are vegan.
- Blue raspberry slush
- Grape slush
- Cherry slush
- Powerade mountain berry blast slush
- Blue coconut slush
- Cherry limeade slush (contains real fruit)
- Strawberry real fruit slush
- Lemonade slush (contains real fruit)
- Cranberry slush
- Limeade slush (contains real fruit)
Vegan Beverages and Soft Drinks
Sonic offers several vegan soft drinks and beverages. These include:
- Diet Coke
- Coca-Cola
- Coke Zero
- Diet Dr. Pepper
- Dr. Pepper
- Sprite
- Barq’s root beer
- Sprite Zero
- Fanta Orange
- Hi-C fruit punch
- Ocean water
- Powerade Mountain berry blast drink
- 100% apple juice
- Sweet green iced tea
- Sweet iced tea
- Green mountain coffee
- Unsweetened iced tea
- All limeade and lemonade varieties
Vegan Toppings for Your Ice Cream
Sonic, unfortunately, doesn’t offer vegan ice creams. However, they have various vegan ice cream toppings.
If you want to indulge in ice cream, you can bring your dairy-free ice cream. You can then add vegan toppings. These include:
- Lemon
- Fresh bananas
- Maraschino cherries
- Lime
- Peanut butter
- Pieces of Oreo cookies
- Strawberries
- Pecans
- Cone
Will There Be More Vegan Options at Sonic in the Future?
Sonic Drive-in doesn’t offer much variety for vegans. There are only a few vegan options at Sonic. These include side dishes, sauces, and drinks. Their popular burgers do not have a vegan variant.
Some Sonic locations offer veggie burgers. However, it is unclear if these are entirely vegan. Many vegans are calling out Sonic. They are urging Sonic to add vegan-friendly options to their menus.
There is a PETA petition that is popularly circulating online. It is a petition for Sonic to add vegan burgers and vegan ice creams to the menu. This petition on the PETA website has 96,588 signatures so far. There is now high public demand for vegan options. Moreover, there is an increasing availability of dairy-free alternatives. It may be time for Sonic to consider including these vegan options.
However, Sonic has not commented on this petition nor stated of making any changes to the menu so far.
Wrap Up
Sonic offers very little for vegans. As a vegan, you may be unable to have a full meal since vegan options at Sonic are very restricted. However, you can indulge in some vegan snacks. Sonic has a variety of side dishes, custom sandwiches, sauces, and drinks to offer.
PETA and many vegans are encouraging Sonic to start its vegan menu options. It will be beneficial for fast-food chains like Sonic to incorporate vegan options into their menu with the growing vegan lifestyle.