Veggiebowl Vietnamese vegetarian restaurant opens in East Van

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      Fans of Vietnamese vegan food have a new place to eat in East Vancouver. Veggiebowl (2222 Kingsway), a family-run vegetarian restaurant, opened on May 30.

      Last week, I headed over to the Kensington-Cedar Cottage neighbourhood to check it out. The small eatery—located a block away from Vegan Pizza House (2119 Kingsway)—has a simple menu, on which four out of eight food items are labelled as vegan. The appetizers go for $3.50, and the mains are priced at $8 and $9 (cash only).

      I requested the bi cuon chay (shredded tofu rolls), bánh mi cà ri chay (vegetarian curry with baguette), and a glass of homemade soybean milk. The other vegan options are goi cuon chay (fresh tofu rolls) and bun hue chay (spicy vegetarian noodle soup).

      Everything I ordered was satisfying and MSG-free. The shredded tofu rolls contained carrot, lettuce, mint, and vermicelli. In the curry soup, I found fried tofu, large chunks of carrot, soybeans, and delicious cubes of veggie chicken. The soup was garnished with mint and came with three slices of baguette.

      Although Veggiebowl left a good first impression—the service was pleasant and the food came fast—my favourite place to get Vietnamese vegan food remains Three Jewels (1179 Commercial Drive). For one thing, Veggiebowl could use a somewhat larger menu. Might I suggest vegan versions of the pho and spring rolls?

      Veggiebowl is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day except Tuesday, when it’s closed. Customers get 10 percent off their bills on Meatless Mondays.

      Stephen Hui is on parental leave from his job as the Georgia Straight's web editor and technology editor. He blogs about vegan food at Veg Coast. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook.

      Comments

      1 Comments

      j

      Feb 21, 2014 at 7:07pm

      Have you tried Chau veggie express in Victoria? Super yummy Vietnamese veggie menu as well!