The movement in recent years towards a vegetarian diet or vegan living has become much more than a mere trend. Millions of Britons no longer eat meat products, with millions more reducing their intake, and as the personal and environmental benefits are increasingly made evident, the numbers continue to multiply.

With greater demand for vegetarian food, of course comes more supply of the stuff. It’s been a slow catch up, but on high streets and in supermarkets the veggie options are finally and rapidly growing. Here in Leeds, it is the independent eateries leading the way, with an influx of vegan and vegetarian offerings from all around. So, with rising choice, we set off in search of the perfect vegetarian menu…

Up early, let’s begin with the most important meal of the day: breakfast. No longer are we forced a token veggie breakie in a bacon-filled caff, now the array of options often outnumber the meat menus. For those still craving a full English, several spots will satisfy; Hyde Park Book Club serve a straight up veggie sausage, toast and tea fulfiller; Wapentake do a cracking Yorkshire fry up with vegetarian ingredients fresh from Kirkgate Market; Roots and Fruits add spinach, nutmeg, tofu and chipotle beans to the more usual mushroom and tomato; and If put haloumi in their veggie version alongside hash browns and eggs how you like em!

Brunch has become quite a thing in this country and has a close relationship with vegetarianism. The omnipresent smashed avocado on toast can be enjoyed at cool cafes like Mrs Atha’s, House of Koko and Fettle; Laynes go beyond by smashing peas and cannellini beans on a menu that  also cooks up shakshuka and Yorkshire rarebit; and Eat Your Greens provides the healthy organic food its name suggests, such as raw and fermented brassica bowls, plus inspired lunchtime hotties including the Eastern European beetroot borscht.

Indeed, as influences begin to travel into other countries, the vegetarian flavours really start to sparkle: classic Mediterranean dishes in the UK, like Greek moussaka, Italian lasagna, and Spanish paella are all available vegetarian style across the city, as are delicacies, from vine leaves and boureki pies, through caper berries and olives, to jalape?o croquettes and aubergine steaks, at respective restaurants such as Amalthea, Salumeria and Ambiente. Few of these cuisines are solely veggie or vegan, but all cater naturally for it.

Distant continents are crossed into too, where vegetarian food is embraced. The Middle East and North Africa are well represented, particularly by the simple joy of hummus, which is showcased in soulful chickpea bowls at Humpit. Vibrant South American flavours are not exclusively veggie but certainly offer a lip smacking variety of options, notably at Mexicans Lupe’s Cantina, Neon Cactus and Pinche Pinche; adventurous plates include hibiscus flower quesadillas, cactus salad, and jackfruit burritos.

Perhaps the menu most compatible of all with a vegetarian or vegan diet is Asian. There is a wide choice of Chinese, Thai, Japanese and Vietnamese restaurants in Leeds, and at places like Home, My Thai, Little Tokyo and Viet Guy there may be plenty of meat dishes, but also equally strong veggie goodness, whether in spring and summer rolls, hot and sour soups, papaya salads, noodle ramens or tofu phos. And the great British favourite the Indian curry excels in vegan deliciousness, unsurprisingly for a country that eats the majority of its food meatless. Leeds is spoilt by Hansa’s, Manjit’s Kitchen and Bundobust, all solely vegetarian joints delivering expert authentic cooking of lentil daals, masala dhosas, paneer bhajis and vada pavs.

Back in Blighty, the conversation continues with a to-ing and fro-ing between natural ingredients and developed replacements. The former can be experienced in heightened form on The Swine That Dines roots to shoots taster menu of seven courses, each showcasing four foods: think Blood Orange, Raddichio, Feta, Wild Garlic. Yum. Nearby two bars The Reliance and The Brunswick also use great veggie produce on cracking Sunday nut roasts. Whereas vegan venues Cantina and Knaves Kitchen prove that vegan can be fun junk and dirty quality all at once, cooking cleverly with natural meat replacements, especially seitan, to make vegan burgers and kebabs full of flavour.

And it doesn’t stop there. Naughty but nice vegan desserts can be scoffed courtesy of That Old Chestnut, a Leeds bakers making a fine range and supplying several city sellers, and Temple, whose sweet vegan donuts are incredibly more-ish. From savoury to sweet, from morning till night, vegan food in Leeds is no longer an afterthought, and vegetarian cuisine of all shapes and sizes might just be pushing the city’s menus into exciting new directions. You’d do well to follow them.