Listings
This site was created in early 1999 to help remedy the lack of English online info on vegetarian restaurants in East Asia (Taiwan, in particular). Since then many new sources have become available - with searching, better organization, and a nicer look than these pages. Here are some of the most noteable ones:
Happy Cow's Global Guide To Vegetarian Restaurants - The only site
I've seen that has a category Buddhist vegetarian (no onion/garlic) - a
search for Buddhist returned 33 places around the world. In 1998, I first approached Taiwan timidly, since I could find little English info on vegetarian restaurants there. Today's traveller is correctly assured by Happy Cow:
The note even gives a crash course in ordering in Mandarin! A well-informed site.Being a vegetarian in Taiwan is extremely easy. Nearly every road has a vegetarian restaurant of some sort.
VegEats is a mega-list of lists, claiming "2000+ veg*an restaurant guides". Travellers in Asia will appreciate the Asia Veg*an Restaurant Guides, grouped by geographic location.
VegDining.com must be mentioned, since it is at the top of many people's list - but not mine. Though it has its uses, it is more limited (only one listing for Taiwan!) and marred by obtrusive advertising - like the idiotic one that stereotypes non-vegetarians as (moronic-looking) "carnivores" and contrasts them with (utterly dull-looking) celebrity vegetarians.
Chinese Vegetarian Restaurants Outside Asia
One factor certainly contributing to the global popularity of Chinese cuisine is that the eminently practical chefs are masters at adapting to local tastes. In Singapore and Malaysia or Thailand, that means lots more chili. In the USA, that means palate-numbing blandness. Also, be aware that Chinese vegetarian restaurants in USA do not always follow the Buddhist advisory against onion/garlic family pungents. The Big Mouth has not visited any of the eateries mentioned in the links below. The Big Mouth has visited Chinese vegetarian eateries in San Francisco - maybe all of them - and in fact, they were my introduction to the cuisine. But "how you gonna keep 'em down on the farm after they've seen Paree"? Respecting the past, The Big Mouth will say no more.
Chicago, IL USA: Vegetarian Garden
London, UK: Veg Veg
Milpitas, CA USA: Lu Lai Garden
Norcross, GA USA: Fung's Vegetarian Chinese Restaurant
Seattle, WA USA: Bamboo Garden
Seattle, WA USA: Teapot Vegetarian House
Of Special Mention
- Shojin Ryori: When Ch'an (sudden enlightnment) Buddhism migrated from China to Japan in the 13th century, to become known as Zen, the vegetarian cuisine followed and assimilated under the name shojin ryori. Like its ancestor cuisine, it excludes pungent vegetables such as onion and garlic.
Shojin Ryori is an appropriately simple introduction by a Zen priest.
Here's a Zen paradox to ponder: if you think a cuisine that values simplicity should be inexpensive, you're due to be suddenly enlightened by a blow to your wallet. Take a look at the prices given at Tokyo Vegetarian and Health Food Restaurants (a section of the Tokyo Food Page). The cheapest place offers lunch/dinner for 2500/4000 Yen (US$21/$35), with the peak at 12,000/18,000 Yen (US$104/$156). Apparently, prices are somewhat more sane in Kyoto.
- Jain: As awareness of the more subtle ramifications of a vegetarian diet increases, the value of studying Jain food philosophy becomes more apparent. The Big Mouth was introduced to Jain food while travelling in India. I would request "Vegetarian, no onion or garlic, please", and the waiters would almost invariably reply, "Yes: Jain-style". Jain food philosophy is profound and can be challenging to the newcomer (particularly the specialized vocabulary!). I found Prof. P K Jain's Dietary Code of Practice Amongst Jains to be a helpful introduction. In addition, at www.jainworld.com, there is a list of foods that are not Jain, including garlic, onion, and carrot.
- Uptown: If you're heading for the Himalayan corner of India, check out KhanaNirvana Community Cafe, home of the Dharamshala Earthville Institute (DEVI). The DEVI website best describes the setting:
The north Indian town of Dharamshala is a true "Global Village"...the temporary home of His Holiness the Dalai Lama of Tibet and the Central Tibetan Administration (the "Tibetan Government-in-Exile")...which blends flavours of Lhasa with elements of a modern Euro-American town in the setting of an Indian shepherds' village...Dharamshala attracts a diverse assortment of people from all corners of the Earth who come to study and meditate and to make contributions to the Tibetan cause.
In KhanaNirvana Community Cafe, where DEVI is based, you can also relax and enjoy fresh, tasty, safe, all-natural vegetarian food and drinks while catching up on your email, websurfing, reading, writing or research in a comfortable atmosphere, in the company of our friendly local staff and other kindred spirits from across the globe.
