Zhu Vegan — Restaurant in Arlington

Service: The hostess had a "why are you bothering me" type scowl/attitude. Our servers was nice but was being berated by the hostess I think, because she looked like she just listened to a recording of her dog getting run over. Poor girl looked about 3 seconds away from crying the whole time, although she was attentive.

Appetizers: Both our appetizers were great, I had the crispy soy nugget, which was amazing, probably one of the best appetizers I have ever had. You get a star for that.

Main Dishes: Meh. I had some sort of dish that ended up tasting like poorly made kimchi. It was actually pretty boring. Just not good. At all. My partners dish was equally bland, although they enjoyed it more than I did. I couldn't even bring myself to steal bites of it when she wasn't looking, which is rare.

Dessert: Tried rice pudding and I think a cake or something they had special, I can't remember the 2nd dessert exactly. The rice pudding was...bland. Like no taste. The cake was clearly one of those ones you get in the fridge case at a supermarket, only warmed in a microwave.

Atmosphere: Noisy millennials shouting at each other. I don't know if everyone between the ages of 20 and 33 has hearing loss from a life of wearing ear-buds or what. But really, there's no need to excitedly shout your boring stories about your boring pointless lives. You're not making up for lack of personality or character by amplifying the volume at which you render your mundane milquetoast recollections of some awful craft-beer you had. Even the older people that were there were shouting constantly. This one lady pulls out her phone, puts it on speaker at full blast and starts having a conversation with what was apparently her partners. I kept whispering "dump her" at an elevated volume to try and plant the seed in the other person's subconscious. After that riff-raff cleared out, it was actually decent inside; tables were cleanish, artwork on the walls was nice, etc.

Bathroom: The toilet was leaking all over the place. Which is gross enough on its' own, but here's the issue: Since my last review some time ago I have become incredibly wealthy. You know when people find those half-unfrozen mammoth or mastodon carcasses in the tundra? I pay to have a chunk carved off from whatever mega-fauna is thawing out and ship it to my cobbler. On this particular day I was wearing my mastodon leather shoes. Which were subsequently coated in the spewings of the toilet. I'm going to have to fly on my private jet to a desert island you've never even heard of just to get them to dry out. Not good times. Really though, the toilet leaked from the bowl when flushed. Gross gross gross.

Overall: It wasn't terrible, but other than that amazing appetizer this was nothing I saw here that even reached the bar of 'average'. I would probably go back again and order completely different things, and also wear cheap shoes in case the crapper is...

Popped into Zhu Vegan after a day outdoors at the Fells Reservation. Tucked away on Massachusetts Ave, Arlington, this quiet spot proved a comfortable and inviting hangout.

Overall: 4/5 - Food: 3.5/5 - Service: 4/5 - Ambiance: 4.5/5 - Cleanliness: 4/5

We started with their Autumn Rolls ($9). They're full of mixed veggies, enoki mushrooms, and bamboo shoots, wrapped in soybean sheets and deep-fried. Add a splash of the hot sauce they serve on the side, and you've got yourself a nice start.

We also tried their Seitan Strips ($17); it looks like a vegan version of Cantonese BBQ pork served on long string beans. The portion was generous, but the flavor could be better, more complex. The Soy Cutlet Sizzling Platter ($17) was a visual and audible treat, still didn't quite hit the mark taste-wise - the sauce was alright the cutlet is somewhat flat in taste.

I also ordered the Mimosa - the sparkling wine tasted a bit stale.

Our experience with the service was good, and the vibe is laid-back and welcoming. Plus, the place was clean and well-kept.

Areas of Improvement: (1) Zhu Vegan has a lot of potential for growth, especially in their food. The world of vegan cuisine is vast and varied. They could draw inspiration from the rich traditions of East Asian vegan dishes to push the envelope a bit more. They could experiment with the Seitan Strips - maybe serve them in a vegan wonton noodle soup or as filling for steamed bao sliders. (2) As for the Soy Cutlet, making the breading thinner and less oily could really amp up this dish. (3) And as for the Mimosa, using fresher sparkling wine would certainly lift the drink.

And who knows, with more patrons and support, Zhu Vegan might have more chances to improve, reimagine and expand their menu. We're looking forward to seeing what they come...

I'm not a devoted vegan (or even vegetarian) so that's not what brought me to this restaurant. I do happen to like vegetables and, for my health and the health of the planet, I've been trying to reduce my intake of animal protein. When my lunch companion arrived and looked at the menu, he was briefly indignant that it was vegan but didn't propose that we go elsewhere.

I ordered L11 Eggplant String Bean and my companion ordered L14 Singapore Style Rice Noodle and, to my relief and his surprise, we both enjoyed our dishes (and each others' dishes.) I will definitely go here again and wouldn't hesitate to try anything on the menu, even the seitan or soy protein dishes, which in another restaurant I might be suspicious of. The food was very flavorful and it was cooked the way I think vegetables should be - still with some structural integrity and fresh-looking color. The sauce might have been a little sweeter that I would have made it but it was probably authentic the way they served it.

My friend and I had a computer-related project we wanted to work on and, when I requested it, the waitstaff seated us at a large table close to an electrical outlet, where we stayed for about a half hour after we finished eating. Their WI-Fi is free and fast.

Good place....