Golden Lotus — Restaurant in Oakland

Experiences may vary but this one was great! (5/5 green stars) In case you get confused by the “fish,” “chicken,” and “beef” on the menu, the servers helpfully wear T-shirts with the word VEGAN printed on the front in large letters. It probably saves them from having to answer a dozen questions per day along the lines of “is this soy ‘chicken’ really vegan?” We ordered the Spicy Thai Fried Rice and the Thousand Layers Tofu Eggplant and both were exceptionally good – the best Asian food I’ve had so far this year. My pet peeve with fried rice is when it’s barely fried – if I wanted boiled rice that’s pushed around an over-oiled wok for a minute in a desultory fashion and then served as a soggy-greasy mess, I’d order it! Their fried rice was appropriately caramelized and very flavorful, with a good level of spice contrasted with small sweet chunks of pineapple. Eggplant is tricky to cook and I’m hesitant to order it in case it comes out bitter, oily, or undercooked. Everything in their Thousand Layers Eggplant Tofu was delicious, but particularly the eggplant and the sauce (made with black beans, perhaps?). Highly recommend both dishes. Just had water to go with it, so total cost for best Asian meal of the year was $25, including tip.

I’m giving them 4/5 “green stars” for social and environmental impact, based on these reasons: • Their entire menu is vegan as far as I know (not 100% sure about the Thai iced tea - check if you want to make sure you get a vegan version). • I believe they encourage customers to bring their own boxes for take-out. Had full intentions to take some of the large portions to go but we couldn’t resist eating it all! • As far as I know, the restaurant is still owned by spiritual guru Ching Hai, a rather glamorous and self-promoting guru with a hand in many enterprises. Personally, that’s not such a big issue for me – I haven’t come across anything horrific while reading about her. One of her beliefs is “Be Green, Go Veg, Save the Planet,” hence her many vegan restaurants around the world, including the Loving Hut. • I’d like to see more info on whether they use organic ingredients – especially for soy-based items. I’d rather skip it if made from conventional soy, grown from neonic-coated seeds. • Again, more info on the company would be helpful – they have no website.

Interested in writing green star reviews? If so, contact me!...

Their service sucks big time, and can take the fun out of what is a really good vegan food. I would have fired the ahole that 'served' us, if I were the owner. I have come in here in the past and usually order the soups which are excellent, never ordered any of the rice items on the menu. When I walked in few days ago, I ordered a soup and the Royal Fried rice, the latter supposedly has tofu, snow peas, carrots and corn. I have been a vegetarian all my life, so I dont eat rice like its a side dish for meat, and I want my rice to have lots of vegetables. That's why I ordered it and asked for some extra broccoli. The waiter said it will cost extra to put few sprigs of broccoli in it and I was fine with it. They brought us the rice before the soup and it was downright offensive. The 'Royal fried rice' was soy soaked rice tossed in a wok with frozen peas and carrots - no corn, no snow peas and yes the raw broccoli was mixed in!! I have accidentally made better rice when I am drunk. I told my waiter that it doesn't include all the vegetables as their menu says, first he argued with me that corn isn't listed as an ingredient on the menu and then when I showed him, he had the gall to say that I am the only one complaining!! And this when I pay for extra vegetables. He continued to argue saying sometimes they do not use all the items listed under a dish, but do not follow through by striking it off the menu. Because they don't have time to do that. You see that's exactly what he said, but at this point I am not interested in listening to this crap anymore, because my soup is getting cold. I had to tell the guy to go away and let me eat my food. I wouldn't go to this place, because they can make you feel like they are doing you a service by taking your money and throwing food at you. There are a lot of good reviews for this place, and that's because of the food (not rice items) and lot of bad ones on yelp, that's because of the service. Maybe it was unfortunate, may be the waiter was having his weekly ahole fit. I couldn't care less if the waiter is having emotional problems or going through an existential crisis. Just give me my...

Golden Lotus: A Culinary Catastrophe – A Food Critic’s Worst Nightmare

Dining at Golden Lotus was not merely disappointing; it was an exercise in culinary endurance. As a professional food critic, I’ve experienced my fair share of subpar establishments, but this one somehow manages to redefine the bottom of the barrel. If I could give this place negative stars, I would. Zero empathy, zero humility, zero professionalism—Golden Lotus delivers on these counts with remarkable consistency.

Let’s start with the food. Oily is an understatement. Each dish looked like it had been dredged from the depths of a grease pit. The signature entrée I ordered was practically swimming in oil, the sheen of which could’ve doubled as a mirror. The flavor profile? Nonexistent—unless you consider “stale fryer oil” a flavor. The vegetables, allegedly fresh, were soggy beyond recognition, and the proteins were as dry as desert sand, yet somehow still coated in grease.

When I politely voiced my concerns to the staff, I was met with hostility that bordered on performance art. The response to my grievance wasn’t an apology or even a simple acknowledgment; instead, they resorted to thinly veiled mockery, as if customer feedback were a personal affront. I’ve seen better conflict resolution skills from toddlers.

The ambiance didn’t help either. The décor looks like it was last updated during a time when shag carpet was in vogue, and the faint aroma of stale oil lingers in the air like an unwelcome guest. Even the music—a tinny, looping playlist of what sounded like elevator jingles—contributed to the pervasive sense of discomfort.

Golden Lotus isn’t just a bad restaurant—it’s a culinary crime scene. If you value your time, taste buds, and self-respect, steer clear. There are better dining experiences to be had at a gas station microwave.

Beyond that they argued tooth and nail with me instead of comping the unfavorable inedible dish out of frustration I paid for the meal and walked out and they added a tip on my card...