Vegan Taipei — Restaurant in New Taipei

Not a great first experience, sadly.

I'm always on the lookout for vegetarian places and like to support them whenever possible, but ultimately the food and service have to be adequate to begin with, and I don't think that's a lot to ask - especially when there's a lot of competition in Taipei amongst vegetarian restaurants.

So, I heard this new place had opened and I and my wife, along with two others went there for lunch. We ordered a few things - veg curry some drinks and a veg pizza. The owner took our order without writing it down - first mistake! We never got the pizza! He seemed to have totally forgotten, which wouldn't happen if he'd done it correctly.

Oh well. Back to the food we did get. First off I ordered a cappuccino, which being a vegan place would use soy milk instead of real milk. Have to say it was pretty awful. Some things just can't be substituted and I'm afraid soy milk in coffee does not do it for me.

We finally got the curries we'd ordered, and without putting too fine a point on it, it tasted very amateurish. Quite watery, with a palid taste, almost as if generic curry powder was tossed in some water for a while. I regularly make my own curries at home for the family and while I'm not one to claim to be an expert, mine taste way better. I was quite shocked to be honest.

The service was nothing to shout about, but the server was not impolite, but strangely a bit pushy, which really put us all off. I thought it was just me until my wife said the same thing.

Finally when we'd eaten our meal, and after waiting in vain for the pizza that never arrived, we had to do our best to get someones attention to pay - even though the place was actually empty of other customers.

I'm always willing to give places another go, but the strange attitude really put me off from the start unfortunately, so I won't...

Great food! I love the deserts there, which so far always have had the perfect texture (something often lacking in other vegan bakeries that I've tried). I like that this is a very D.I.Y. / independant restaurant. The owner creates his own recipes and always experiments with new dishes. To me, this feels more like entering someone's kitchen than a restaurant proper, and I mean that in the best way possible. Honestly, I don't get the complaints about the look or cleanliness of the place. Personnally, I like the simplicity of the place. With only a small staff, they handle the double-duty of a bakery (ready-to-eat food) and a restaurant (cooking from scratch) so I'm ready to give them a break if they make some mistakes in the service. They are humans as well, and your mom also touched food with her bare hands when she cooked for you as a child. Who cares if the building is outdated? After all, it is food that we buy there.

What you get here that most restaurants lack is genuine human interactions with the staff. The owner has a strong personnality and a tongue-in-cheek sense of humor, which might throw some people off. Personnally, I quickly got a good vibe from this guy and he has since made me try several dishes for free. He's obviously very passionate and proud of what he does and has asked me and other customers extensive advice and opinions about his upcoming dishes and ideas. I don't usually care for restaurants, but these features persuaded me to come back and ultimately write this review. All in all, I think the place is unique and it has become my go-to place for deserts in Taipei. Try the lemon cake or the...

During my time (3 months) spent living in Taipei, I had visited a lot of different vegan restaurants, but the one that stood out to me was the 'Vegan Taipei' restaurant.

I became well acquainted with the owners, who were very warm, friendly, and welcoming. Having visited many times during my stay, I was fortunate to try many items on their menu and was always left impressed.

They have a huge range of assortments from cakes, to smoothies, and many other delicacies that are all freshly prepared in store for your taste-bud pleasure.

I would order a vegan beef pizza (that comes loaded with vegan cheese and toppings) one day, and enjoy a tasty chimi-changa (burrito/ enchilada) the next. You get the idea ;)

There really is something for everyone and you will not leave disappointed. The portions are very generous, and the prices are too. If you are a student then you also get a discount!

Each day of the week they prepare a special dish that gets transported to the Taipei Main Station and served to the homeless taking refuge there.

Everything is freshly prepped and served the same day so the homeless have something fresh (and warm) to eat and drink. I would make donations and show up to help Ravi serve food and drinks. You are welcome to help out anyway you can whether that be making a donation of your own or helping to serve out the food.

I cannot rate this place high enough for the contributions they continue to make for those less fortunate than themselves. You owe it to yourselves to visit this amazing place and enjoy some of the tastiest vegan food you will find.

Jack...