CoCo Lin Vegetarian House — Restaurant in New York

CoCo Lin offers this quaint Queens neighborhood a dining experience that is common to this and other parts of the city. A floor-to-ceiling glass wall is the only thing that separates the pleasant yet starkly decorated inside of the restaurant from the sidewalk. You're always greeted by Jenny, the co-owner and face of CoCo Lin, and if you're lucky you will be served by one of her two school-aged children/employees. Spend any short amount of time with Jenny, and her unabounded charisma will become apparent and may even be one of the reasons you return to CoCo Lin in the future. Dine here once and you will witness how personable she can be as she greets each her customers by asking about their husbands, their children, or by asking for a report on life in general just to make them feel that they have a friend behind the counter. Don't be surprised if when you return she teases you about how long it's been since you last came!

The vegan fare here at CoCo Lin is consistent in quality and gives us the opportunity to partake in ancient Chinese Buddhist cuisine. Dinner is served with a tall glass of jasmine tea and comes quickly after making your order off of the extensive menu. General Tso's chicken is probably the most commonly ordered item, but Thai-style curries, pineapple fried rice, chicken nuggets, and any number of the entrées and appetizers can entice mildly adventurous restaurant goers like myself. Make sure to ask Jenny if there's a traditional dish being served for whatever Chinese holiday is being celebrated at the moment -- you may be in for a treat!

In closing, I feel compelled, as a frequent guest at CoCo Lin, to address the writers who have left one-star reviews here, as well as to address whoever may find themselves debating over whether to visit or order from this mom-and-pop-shop family establishment due to the influx of below-average testimonies left here: I do not wish you or anyone else to have anything other than an enjoyable dining experience at my favorite vegan Chinese food restaurant. I would hope that you always keep in mind how quickly someone must work in order to meet the requests of the ever-growing clientele and to make sure all of the younger employees get their homework done. Being in a position that requires fast thinking and relentless hard work does not encourage a warm and inviting attitude, and it's the opinion of this reviewer that the friendly and to-the-point customer service you get from Jenny at CoCo Lin is well above what you would expect from most anyone else in...

So I have FINALLY found a Chinese Restaurant that is completely VEGAN friendly! I tried it for the first time this evening and from just the pictures online and walking in and speaking with Jeny at the counter, I could already tell that I would love it.

Jeny was very personable and friendly! I was happy to learn that she is a vegan as well. She had lots of takeout orders but still had a nice conversation with me while working and let me taste their duck sauce which is HOME MADE and seasoned with chili flakes I believe. And WOW, was that good. I made sure to have a takeout cup of that with my meal.

I had my usual order I used to get which was "Fried Bean Curd (Tofu) with Mixed Vegetables in Garlic Sauce with white rice". I could barely wait to get home to dig in and I was not disappointed. It is GREAT CHINESE food PERIOD but it would've fooled me. It tasted exactly the way any other non-vegan friendly Chinese food tastes. This is deff at least a travel on the bus or subway from me but it's worth it. I will only be ordering my Chinese from here from now on!

They offer all your normal Chinese takeout favorites WITHOUT the chicken broth and oyster sauce that unfortunately so many other Chinese places unfortunately add and lose the service of those of us who don't eat animal products.

I was happy to see them offer Vegetable Tempura which many Japanese places will add egg (some don't) and they also offer those tasty crisp nuggets and more portion than the one I'm used to ordering from in Crown Heights (I won't say the name). They don't skimp and I am comfortably full.

For $9.80 I can't complain! I have been charged as much as $15 just for one meal at other vegan spots. At lunch (12-4pm) they offer their food for $6.95 which is a deal you just can't beat.

This is hands down the BEST VEGAN CHINESE restaurant in NYC! Go here, you won't be...

STAY CLEAR OF THIS PLACE!!!! TOTAL FOOD VIOLATIONS, with THE WORST ATTITUDE A RESTAURANT OWNER SHOULD NEVER HAVE!!! First, I noticed a bowl full of dough filling left in the dining area- unwrapped, and let's not forget the plate of dough on the side, all out in the open. Makes me wonder whats going on inside the kitchen?? Second, I ordered my meal with brown rice, and when I told the woman I was served white rice, an instant snide remark came out of her mouth. So when I noticed they also forgot the extra sauce with my order, I kept my mouth shut. However, when the bill came she had charged me $9.25 for an advertised lunch special of $8.25. When I approached to pay, I asked why I was charged a dollar more? She said the menu is over five years old, then proceeded to ask a customer to tell me that she did not manually change the price. My response, ( which I thought was a logical one) was that the customer is not the owner of the establishment, she is. As such should charge the advertised price. She looked at me and said "OK, free!" I replied I didnt have a problem paying for the meal, just charge the advertised price. She made the unwise decision to disrespect me, with another snide remark, in her language. Fed up with this woman's attitude I replied "now, its free!" She exploded, and yelled from the top of her lungs, "get out!!! Not the smartest move from a restaurant owner. Having been in the restaurant business myself, its very apparent this establishment is past due a...