Greens Vegetarian Restaurant — Restaurant in Toronto

Toronto is full of culinary surprises — some delightful, others traumatic. Unfortunately, this experience fell squarely into the latter.

I visited this restaurant twice with friends. That’s right — twice. We genuinely wanted to give it another chance, thinking perhaps we were too critical the first time. In hindsight, we were too kind.

We ordered several dishes, including Pad Thai, a rice-based dish, and vegetable dumplings. The dumplings were thick, doughy, and chewy — more like purses than the delicate parcels they should be. A Chinese friend who joined us rated them a generous C-. The vegetable fried rice was limp, lifeless, and undercooked, with raw-tasting vegetables that left little to enjoy.

The Pad Thai was perhaps the most baffling of all — bright neon pink, syrupy sweet, and buried in crushed peanuts. When we asked the waiter about it, his response was unexpectedly rude: “This is our style. If you want savoury, go to a Thai place.” Noted. And never again.

On the first visit, the mock chicken rice with faux fish was equally disappointing — rubbery, bland, and completely joyless. To be fair, a secondary waitress on our second visit was kind and polite, though clearly ineffective in resolving our concerns.

As someone who travels frequently and genuinely appreciates good food, I often offer constructive feedback and suggestions. I come from a culture where such input is welcomed, but here, it seemed to be taken personally. Even something as simple as asking to keep the menu a bit longer was met with arrogance, as the same dismissive waiter snatched it away.

Despite reading many positive reviews, I feel obligated to share our honest experience. Future visitors should not accept substandard food and service simply because a place markets itself well. If you’re vegan, desperate, and out of options — yes, this is technically food. But otherwise, do yourself a favor and look elsewhere. We were ripped...

We ate in for the first time last night and it was a great experience. Saturday night. A large party across from us. A family to one side and a few two tops filling the rest of the space. Not too loud despite this. I don't remember music playing but I am sure there was. A TV playing that news/weather/ads channel that rotates headlines while other news is playing with in a screen within the screen. Volume off of course. When we sat we were set up with plates, napkin, chopsticks and tea cups. Then a pot of tea followed. We ordered three dishes. A noodle dish (spicy noodles with mushrooms and mock meat. It also had small bits of tofu along with the mock beef). Large mock duck. Chinese broccoli and black mushroom. They confirmed if we wanted it spicy (we did). At the last minute we added a spring roll each. Everything was great! Portions have great value and match the price more than most restaurants. Taste was just right. Not too salty. Not too greasy. Perfect spice. Our tea pot lasted the entire meal. Perfect accompaniment to the meal. It was alot of food and we were able to pack it to go with ease and we will happily eat it over the next couple of days. I normally get a bit of a salt/grease hangover from eating out and even with less sleep than normal last night, I feel great this morning. I have a very sensitive stomach and I was able to sit through an over 2 hour movie afterwards. Service was attentive without being overly so. Only thing I could say on the "room for improvement" side (but wasn't overly bothersome in the end) was the lighting. Just a tad dimmer or warmer. Very small detail that was outshone by the rest of the experience. We will be returning and encouraging others to join us. Thank...

This is the best establishment EVER. We've been to restaurants in NYC, Montreal, Philly, Tokyo, DC, and none of them match up to the quality we had today at Greens. To say that Greens impressed us is an understatement. The textures, flavors, atmosphere, and service provided a meal that will ultimately make us move to Canada, just to be close enough to come here every day. The food came out quickly, and we enjoyed some jasmine tea during the short wait.

Get #53, the noodles with mock duck & veggies. A wonderful nest of egg noodles will invite you to indulge in a duet of crisps and velvet graced with a flavorful sauce. Colorful and complementary bok choy, carrots, and broccoli add depth and delight to the symphony of gustatory sensations. When your dish is so carefully presented to you by their lovely staff, the most perfect slices greet you atop the aforementioned components. One bite of the mock duck will have you wondering what you were doing all this time bothering with other restaurants. The only word you will be able to utter is "wow". Be wary of a life-changing experience.

Why are you still reading this review instead of placing your order???? Pick up the phone right now, walk, bike, scoot, or pony express yourself over to Dundas Street right now. If they're closed, camp outside and wait for them to open. Bring your appetite, bag, or an extra friend because portions are big and prices are very reasonable. Don't make the worst decision of your life by missing...