You’re on the road. You found a rest stop, finally. And there’s a gas station. If you’re a vegan and feeling anxious about finding a snack, here are some things to look for. (Don’t worry, you won’t end up with an overripe banana and a bottle of water.)

   When it comes to road trips for new vegans, the idea of trying to find some sustenance at a roadside establishment can seem daunting. Like anyone, we look for familiar things that we know we enjoy, but with new vegans especially, you may not have found your dependable vegan snacks. If this is you (maybe you’re at a gas station right now) we’ve got you covered.

Drinks

   Drinks are probably not so hard for you to navigate, since they are mostly self-explanatory and no different from shopping at home. But two things to look out for are milk and red colored drinks. If you’re looking for a caffeine hit and can’t find a coffee with nondairy milk, go for the black coffee option or perhaps an energy drink like Monster (just not the java ones) or Red Bull. You may need it if you’re driving for long hours. 

   As far as red or pink flavored drinks go, some of them are dyed that color with carmine or cochineal (the same ingredient, but a different name)– a red dye derived from the dried and then crushed up bodies of insects (named cochineal beetles, although they’re not technically beetles). It may also be listed at Natural Red 4 on some ingredient lists. Red 40, however, is a red food coloring that is vegan.

Sweet stuff

   While there are increasingly more products coming out for vegans, I find that gas stations aren’t the places they show up at first. So we stick with the basics. Cliff bars are easy to find at most gas stations (in the USA, at least), along with some other granola bars like Kind bars or nature valley’s crunchy peanut butter bar (which is a delight to eat at the rest stop, but can get pretty messy in a car). 

   You’ve also got unfrosted pop tarts, should you be able to find them, and some snack cookies. Oreos, Fig Newtons, Nutter Butters, and Lorna Doones are all vegan and great choices, if you ask me.

Savory

   As far as savory snacks go, I have a few go-tos. Obviously, potato chips. Or heck, corn or tortilla chips, if you can find them. And recently, Doritos came out with a vegan flavor–Spicy Sweet Chili. These are something even my nonvegan friends and family like, so you won’t feel like you’re missing out on the fun.

 Also, popcorn. Some do have milk or whey in the flavoring, but not all– it’s worth a look to see what selection is there. And I highly recommend Chex Mix, original flavor. It’s savory and just nuanced enough to keep things interesting, while at the same time being easy to find, and it’s a big brand name so you won’t get any weird looks.

   But I would be remiss to not point out the tried and true savory snack option–seeds. You can often find bags of sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds at the gas station. Look out for milk-based flavorings like ranch and you’re good to go. 

Candy

   Okay, so nobody actually needs candy. And it obviously isn’t a good go-to when you’re hungry. But on a road trip, it’s time to live a little, and for some of us, that involves candy. (Not that it’s that much more unhealthy than the other snacks you’d find at a gas station, vegan or otherwise.)

   So for some vegan sugar rushes, pick up some Swedish Fish or Sour Patch. Twizzlers are also vegan, with some different flavors to try if you’re not a candy traditionalist. And as far as the classics go, we can’t forget about Skittles (my favorite are the wild berry flavor, but I enjoy the other varieties too).

   In fact, a lot of your old favorites are vegan, especially the more fruity kinds of candy like DOTS, Jolly Ranchers, Pixy Stix, Airheads and Laffy Taffy. You can also find a lot of different hard candies like rootbeer barrels, butterscotch, mint and cinnamon candies. 

What to look out for with candy

   The easiest way to find vegan candies is by first asking, does it have chocolate, caramel or nougat? If it’s milk chocolate, obviously, there’s milk in it. If it’s dark chocolate, it may also have milk solids, whey, or other dairy. And caramel will usually have dairy too from milk, butter, or cream. Nougat tends to have egg in it, like in the case of Salted nut rolls. (Which is such a disappointment, because doesn’t a salted nut roll seem like it should be vegan? Maybe someday Pearson’s will come up with something. Same with York Peppermint Patties- c’mon, Hershey!)

   But if you’re looking at a candy with no chocolate, nougat or caramel, then the two most likely ingredients that would make it nonvegan would be beewax or gelatin. (Of course there’s also that dang red bug dye, listed as cochineal or carmine on the label.) So unfortunately that rules out Starbursts and most Jelly Beans. But fear not, you’ve still got Smarties, Fun Dip and Mary Jane candies.

   So remember, gas stations don’t have to send you into a panic. There are things you can have, as long as you know where to look for them.