Blossoming Lotus — Restaurant in Portland

Update: Sadly they closed restaurant at the NE Pdx location.

Update: 10/25 I just visited the NW Quimby location which is nothing like the NE 15th Ave restaurant that sadly closed. This is a small cafe set inside a health and wellness store. I had the tikka masala and it was a satisfying and modest serving. I also had a matcha smoothie which was tasty. For folks who used to visit the NE Pdx location, this experience is completely different. You may order at the counter. Parking is metered.

In a word --- WOW! I love this restaurant. The best all vegan I've experienced so far. They have plentiful dishes to try. And, although I've just been here twice (so far), I've got 5 dishes plus 2 desserts under my belt so that I can safely say that this place rocks! Okay, so on my first visit a few weeks ago, I tried the Vegan Salad Sandwich (made of chickpeas and other vegan goodies with a delicious sauce) and soup (it was chili that day) and the relative had the BBQ bowl. We sampled each other's plates. The sandwich was super delicious and was served on French baguette, just the right amount of flavor and it was so satisfying. Her BBQ plate was yummy, the soy curl BBQ 'meat' was tender and tasty, same for the black beans and slaw. I am not a fan of their Mac n cheese but my relative liked it. The Mac n cheese was just a smidge bland for my taste (for exp. I like to make mine with a sharp cheddar and jalapeño jack, I like it flavorful) so I wouldn't order the Mac n cheese on my future visits but the noodles were nice! My next trip I had the Yakisoba noodles which have become a favorite they are so delicious and tasty. I do wish they'd add more veggies but that's ok, bc the portion was enough so that I had to take a to-go bag. We also split a Buffalo Ranch Salad which I highly recommend. The flavors coming off of those fresh delicious veggies was so satisfying and their dressing was to so yummy! We also ordered a Thai wrap which was good. Lots of fresh tasty crunchy veggies including a little mint which was a nice tough. For dessert, I had an apple crisp with coconut whip which was so darn good that I came back the next day to have another one of those! I'll be trying their brunch out in the next couple of weeks and am really looking forward to sharing that experience with a visitor from out of town. They are in for a treat!! Really good service here too. Parking is a little tricky it's all on the street but it is free, so there's that. 5 stars all the way!

UPDATE 3/19/24: Tried 1/2 order of the RAW NACHOS and they are beyond! Why haven’t I had these before? They are delicious, healthy, nutritious and raw! Omg so good! Special shout out today for QUENTON who held the place down single-handedly! He’s a great host and server always but today handled literally all orders and customers on his own with grace and finesse! Go Quenton! 5 stars...

Beware of intolerant militant veganism.

I'll preface this review by noting that I am an omnivore who respects vegans generally and has no issues with eating vegan meals from time to time. I am in a relationship with a vegan and between the two of us we have 3 children between the ages of 4 and 8 who are also omnivores.

I've dined at this place approximately 10 times but I will not return due to the discrimination and cruelty the owners exhibited today.

For the last 3 months, my partner and I would bring our 3 children and dog to this restaurant and sit outside. We would bring Happy Meals for the children and order vegan meals for ourselves - the kids' palates aren't quite refined enough for vegan cuisine at this juncture.

On this day however, an employee came out and said we could not be served because of the happy meals being on the table - she seemed apprehensive as she was mumbling and barely audible. She said the meat from the chicken nuggets could not be on the dishes of the restaurant. When I pointed out that the nuggets were actually on cardboard, and that we'd been doing this for months, she seemed flummoxed and declared she was part owner and it was policy. She left the table and we sat there wondering if we'd be served at all, feeling quite confused and taken aback.

After about 15 minutes of nothing, no menus, no employees, another person came out and reiterated what was said earlier. I explained that we had been insulted and the person said it wasn't their intention, however for us this was an empty apology. The option was given to order but it was explained we could never bring chicken nuggets to the outdoor table again, we felt too uncomfortable to eat at this militant and intolerable establishment so we cleaned the table and left.

Militant veganism is a nice ideal but it's actually hurtful to real people who live in the real world. I'll never spend money here again due to the harsh treatment and disrespectful conduct I witnessed here today, and I'll be telling everyone I know in the Portland vegan community about...

I'm so glad we stumbled upon this place during our weekend in Portland. It's so nice to have the option of a full vegan menu. The food was all so delicious. I had the pasta with a parsnip lemon pepper sauce and sunchokes and kale with panko crusted squash slices on top. I'm totally going to try to replicate the parsnip sauce! My husband ordered the walnut lentil burger with roasted fingerling potatoes that came with a tangy "buttermilk" ranch. I don't know how they did that but I want to find out. The burger patty was well formed and wonderfully spiced. Their chef is a matter of flavor. We started with the tandoori cauliflower that was so much more than spiced roasted cauliflower like most places do. It had carrots and squash and pepitas too, as well as a cilantro mint sauce that paired perfectly with the tandoori spices. Lastly, because it's my birthday, we requested the banana chocolate raw "cheesecake". It. Was. DIVINE. I will be dreaming about that for a long time. The atmosphere was pleasant, the service was great, even at the end of our meal when it got really busy. They were on top of it and everyone else looked as happy as we were. I could tell there were a lot of regulars which is a good sign too. I almost forgot to mention the medicinals! Specialty teas for whatever ails you. We got a pot of the concentration tea and it was delicious, smooth, slightly sweet, floral and best of all zippy! I was so tired before and now my brain won't slow down. I'm gonna go back to see if I can get some to go. If I could give this place 10 stars I would!...