Asociación Cultural Gastronómica Vegana La Mandrágora — Restaurant in Valencia

First things first: if you're an easily offended tourist, then this is really not the place for you. Don't even bother coming, it's not for you, and it's especially not for you if you're offended by the slogan "Tourist go home". Just - do the association and everyone else a favour and stay away. Go eat bad food from chain restaurants, go talk loudly about how it's just "so great in Europe" and stay in your overpriced party Airbnb where you yell at your friends at 4am when the neighbours are trying to sleep.

Reading the reviews here, it's clear that many of the entitled tourists have absolutely no idea about the place itself. The comments about "you need to know Spanish to eat here" are hilarious when there are so many things written in the Valencian language, but it really shows that 'those' tourists should stay away if they don't even know the difference between Spanish and Valencian.

Secondly: don't bother coming if you're going to be one of those people who makes jokes about dead animals and how you love nothing more than to eat a large piece of cow. This place is not for you, no matter the fact that you think the bathroom is "so instagrammable".

About the food: it is absolutely fantastic. I'm not a vegan, but I absolutely enjoyed everything served. It's this kind of experience that makes me seriously consider becoming a vegan, because I enjoyed everything so much. I'm certainly going to try and cook more vegan meals after being inspired by my meal here. I can't say a single bad word about the food, only that I could happily stayed and eaten another full meal because this one was so delicious!

About the service/atmosphere. I found it incredibly pleasant and laid back, and guests are encouraged to drink water. I didn't feel unwelcome, quite the opposite! It's a great place to go for an informal meal, and I'd be happy to take anyone here.

If you've read this far - "Tourist go home" - there are QR codes which explain the statement in different languages. It is a powerful statement that isn't racist or exclusionary, but rather reflects the situation that many people have found themselves in. If you take the time to read the statement, you'll understand that places like this are in danger. Without local people, without this sort of association, Valencia will turn into yet another destroyed city where tourists run around naked while screaming for more beers.

If you actually read the statement to the end, you can see that they have no problems with tourists, but that they encourage sustainable and responsible tourism. Stay with friends, stay in hotels, and don't destroy the fabric of the city. Is this a bad thing? Absolutely not!

Gràcies pel menjar, l'hospitalitat i...

Quite the interesting experience over all. They had a sign saying tourist not welcome, yet there I was - a tourist in the establishment. I was not there to make a statement or judge, except for the food.

This was my first ever visit to a fully vegan restaurant, and as an avid meat eater I was quite excited. Vegan and vegetarian restaurants typically have to be more creative, so my past experiences with vegetarian restaurants has manly been positive.

There is no set menu, and it changes everyday. All the food is seasonal and locally sourced. We had five dishes, starting with hummus, gazpacho, pakora, potato and chocolate cake.

The hummus was great, although the bread that accompanied the humus was a bit on the drier side, but that seems to be the norm here in the south. The gazpacho was amazing. Lots of flavor and the crispy onion on top was a beautiful crunchy touch. The pakora was 10/10. Beautifully seasoned and the cilantro dip it came with was equally amazing.

From here on onwards it went a bit downhill unfortunately. We were served just a potato, accompanied by a vinegary sauce. The sauce was absolutely amazing, and the potato was cooked to perfection, but the dish lacked some creativity. The bar was set so high after the first three dishes, and then being served just a potato with the sauce was a bit underwhelming. Then, we had a chocolate cake for dessert which was rather heavy and and a bit dry.

The two last dishes brings it down on four stars, but overall I will say it’s a good experience. Regarding service you’re basically helping yourself for everything except for the food, and that’s okay. Regarding the atmosphere, as others have stated as well you don’t necessarily feel welcome, but I am a foodie and I don’t really care as long as they can cook. Which they can, but I might have been there on a bad day regarding the last two dishes.

I’d definitely come back to try another menu another time, but for now I am happy with the...

I honestly wish I could just leave a comment without a star review because I just want to expres a personal opinion regarding the limited experience I had in this place. It is not my intention to downgrade something I didnt't experience. I do not want to dowgrade anything regarding food or service, because I actually did not end up having anything in this place. I was having a most wonderful walk on the streets of Valencia, my legs got tired and I was thristy and I happened to be just in front of this place. I read the name and the outside information and it caught my attention. I wanted to enjoy something healthy, served by people who care abour our planet and support them in a way, but just as I walked in, few posters on the bar caught my eye: "Turists are not welcomed" it said in Spanish. "Turism is ruining the planet". In Spanish as well. Luckly I understand the langugae. I wouldn't have liked to sit in a place where I am not welcomed, as a turist. Ok. Fair enough. I took notice and I left without ordering. I am not staying where I am not welcomed. It would be fair to put this message outside in all languages guys, just so everyone knows your...