The Vegan Chef Sandton — Restaurant in Gauteng

This restaurant is a fraud. I have to give this review context, as I am a lifelong vegan of over 30 years, and I've eaten in hundreds of vegans establishments all over the world. I want vegan restaurants to win. In fact, it is crucial that vegan restaurants excel more than any other kind of restaurant because we need the world to go vegan. This review has been about 6 months in the making, wanting this place to get its act togther, to have one decent thing to eat on the menu in Joburg or Umhlanga. Well, it has never happened and today I decided I have to write a review. 6 months ago I ate at TVC in Sandton for the first time. Had a Beyond Burger and chips. The burger came on a dry bun with old wilted lettuce and zero flavor. The chips looked like they were totally raw, had been quickly dunked in some hot oil, and plopped on the plate sogging with hot oil and uncooked. They were inedible. The whole meal was revolting. Today I went to the TVC in Umlanga after seeing a thing on tiktok where this woman was eating this huge thick "chicken" burger saying she got it at TVC in Umhlanga. I thought ok I will give them one more try. The reason I say this place is a fraud is because they are simply pedaling full blown fake advertising. The photos they post on their social media are not of things they actually have on the menu. This lady on Tik tok was not eating anything that remotely resembled anything on the menu, it's a fraud to get people in there and then serve the most stale, tough, disgusting things that I don't even think you can call food. If you read the google reviews it's got to be their family and friends writing the positive reviews as they are just lies. I ordered the spicy chicken sandwich as lauded by the woman on Tiktok, some chips. I asked for mayo with my chips and the woman taking my order argued for 5 minutes in a barely comprehensible accent that they don't have any mayo. I pointed out that they have a chicken mayo sandwich on the menu so how can it be they have no mayo, she went around in circles for 5 minutes saying they had no mayo. There are only two tables at this place, they are outside in the walkway to the mall, and the place where they make the food is a little shoe closet behind the glass. Finally the woman from the back comes out and says oh yes they do have mayo. They bring the sandwich out 20 minutes later, I'm the only one there. There is a piece of breaded SHOE LEATHER, I kid you not, it's a square shaped piece of breaded shoe leather that was supposed to be a chicken patty, and it's pounded to 2mm depth. I pull it out (see photos below) and I ask the woman from the back what is this. She says it's the chicken patty. I show her the photo in her own window of the actual sandwich they are advertising. (photo below) she says oh well call the head office they ship us the stuff we have nothing else. Just look at the photos. Their alleged chicken sandwich is shown in the photo on the right in their store window - it says Starbucks because they are next door to Starbucks that the sign reflects in their window. Compare that to what they actually put in the sandwich. On the third photo you can see it's a sqaure sheet of breaded shoe leather. This is ouright fraud, the positive reviews talking about what a great ambience - you're literally sitting at one of two tables in the walkway of the mall. They have a dead plant with ripped up leaves on each table. But the food is simply disgusting. To the owner of this place: you are failing and you are giving vegans a bad name. Your food is unpalatable. If you think this is good food you need to close your shops and go learn what good vegan food is. There is a reason no one is in the place, your food is revolting. Again, your chips are white and uncooked. You use an air fryer they said so they can't turn golden brown. Your photos on your social media are fraudulent. You have no business running a vegan restaurant. People please do not go here, this is not what good vegan food tastes like. Stop having your friends write...

Surprisingly, they had very little understanding of plant-based foods. The food was dry, flavorless, and sub-standard for food that should have a minimum standard to be served in a restaurant. The oils were stale and rancid and when asking the owner why everything was so tasteless, she explained that what I didn’t understand as a vegan chef from the United States is that South African style food is less tasteful than other countries’ cooking. So, its lack of flavors was due to a chronic problem with the whole of Mzansi. I would have to disagree and I’ve had quite tasty South African dishes and wouldn’t blame the whole country for lackluster foods and why I’d easily find tasty foods anywhere else. They didn’t even know what Maple Syrup is or ever experienced it in their lifetimes. They brought out something clearly nothing like maple syrup not even close and did not know it was NOT maple syrup or that true maple syrup comes from Maple trees. No wonder the whole world doesn’t become vegan when the food here may be what they might mistakenly believe to be vegan food. God told us to eat the fruit of the vine. Please find a place where they know how to prepare the Bounty God has Given for our...

Review of VeganChef at DSTV Delicious Festival: absolute disaster. I ordered plain chips — nothing fancy, just fried chips — and waited over an hour and a half to get them. The shocking part wasn’t even the delay, but the attitude. Sue, the owner, was completely nonchalant, dismissive, and downright rude. When I politely asked about my order, her response was along the lines of “my darling, you’re not the only one waiting” — as if that excused the chaos. Meanwhile, people who ordered long after me were served before me. The whole experience screamed poor management, disorganization, and a stinking attitude from both ChefSue and the kitchen staff. Honestly, when the service is this appalling, it doesn’t matter what the food tastes like — the disrespect leaves a far worse aftertaste. Based on my experience (and, judging by other online reviews, I’m not alone), I cannot recommend this place to anyone. If Sue’s blasé arrogance is the standard, then it’s no surprise they’re racking up...