Our first stop on my city-wide breakdown of my favorite Viet Veggie restaurants is, of course, Tan Dinh, where I'm comfortably located and where I do the most repeat visits (including my post highlighting the 7 coolest cafes in the area).

Here's Tan Dinh ward, in case you need a location refresher:

Here are a few of the best vegan restaurants around my new home in Tan Dinh ward, District 1, HCMC. Don't forget to check out the most important food vocabulary to decipher all-Vietnamese language menus.

To Tan Dinh, and to chay!

Nhà Hàng Chay Phương Mai

86F Võ Thị Sáu (down the alley), Tân Định, Quận 1

The undisputed gold standard of the ward's vegan scene, Phuong Mai wins in every category: service, atmosphere, and some really excellent vegan food. Not heavy on the mock meats, the kitchen uses a huge amount of fresh, delicious vegetables and tofu to craft very exciting versions of classic Vietnamese dishes.

It's colorful, invigorating, texturally interesting, and delicious food and I've only experienced one misfire here out of many visits (I hated the jicama-based banh xeo with a fiery passion).

Bánh Khọt Chay - Fried Rice cakes with Veggies

Bún Bò Huế chay

Mì Xào Giòn - Crispy Fried Noodles

Nấm Kim Châm Hanh Thông - Fried Enokitake (Needle) Mushrooms

Quán Chay Thực Dưỡng Thế Giới Sống Khỏe

10D Đường Trần Nhật Duật, P Tan Dinh, Quận 1

This cute little place got revamped and reopened during the first COVID wave and is much more attractive now, as well as adding an AC dining room on Floor 1, and a tea and coffee room on Floor 2. However, I usually visit in the evening and like to sit on the ground floor and watch the street.

Mock-meats is the name of the game here, and they're quite good all around! They take an approach that's less "Celebrate Vegetables" and more "Copy the tastes and textures of traditional dishes" which is fine - lots of people want the tastes and textures of meat sometimes, but without all the fat, unsustainable farming practices, or animal cruelty, and this place does a really excellent job making tofu/seitan-based versions of everything from beef, to pork, to duck. Particularly outstanding are the com tam (broken rice) and mi vit tiem (stewed noodles with duck), which I've had several times (and which you can see below).

Aside: The fried oyster (abalone) mushrooms have the best dipping sauce I've ever had.

Bào Ngư Chiên Giòn - Crispy Fried Abalone (Oyster) Mushrooms

Cơm Tấm chay - Broken Rice with mock porkrib and pork skin

Mì Vịt Tiềm Chay - Stewed Noodles with mock duck and veggies

Their update comes with a line of bottled teas - this is brown rice tea.

Buddha Chay

31 Đặng Tất, Tân Định, Quận 1

I'm about to break my 'no chain restaurants' policy, but I think it's worth it for Buddha Chay, since there's only a few, and it's so very good. This place is very popular and worth the very slightly elevated prices. (My pictures are a little yellow, sorry - the lighting is a bit dim inside).

This is the type of place you go with family for the chay days (see my Veggie Vocab and notes on finding chay) and big groups of office colleagues, and it probably ties with Phuong Mai for priciest (which honestly is NOT that pricey) on this list. The best items are the big ones to share, such as the rices, noodles, and hotpots, so bring a group if you can and order a feast to pass around. Their crunchy fried options are also reliably good.

Hoành Thánh Chiên Giòn - Crispy Fried Wontons

Bánh Khoai Tây Giòn - Crispy Potato Cakes

Com Chien Nam Rau Cu - Fried Rice with Mushrooms and Veggies

Rau Muống Xào Tỏi - Morning Glory stir-fried with Garlic

Quán Chay A Di Đà Phật

114D Trần Quang Khải, Tân Định, Quận 1

I believe lists like this should sample from a variety of price ranges, and so these final two are my extra-cheap entries (although none of the restaurants here are what you'd call excessively pricey). A Di Da Phat is a breakfast-to-lunchtime option, but I'd strongly suggest getting there before noon if you want to be sure that all your options are available. From 12-1pm it's absolutely non-stop service for sit in and takeaway, and by one pm, many of the options are gone, with the restaurant officially closing at 2pm.

No menu, but no worries - this is a point-and-grunt type of establishment. The Choose-Your-Own-Adventure white rice comes with 3 (or occasionally 4, I haven't figured out why) veg, tofu, or mock-meat sides and some canh (side soup) for 28k, which is a bargain. Additionally, they also have a special for each day of the week, such as Pho, Bun Bo Hue, Banh Cuon, etc.

I've read reviews from customers that think this is a bit too oily, but I disagree. I find the veggies flavorful and varied, and the tofu options the same. When I'm looking for an early, cheap lunch close to home, this is one of my go-to spots.

Choose your own Vegan adventure

Fingerprint Banh Mi Chay

155E Hoàng Sa, Tân Định, Quận 1

I only recently got around to trying this, because by the time I discovered it existed everything was closed for the April COVID lockdown, and then when I came back, I had come on two Sundays in a row, not realizing that's their day off. I'm glad I noticed it open a few weeks ago!

It's a tiny little gem, for takeaway and delivery only! There are no other dedicated banh mi chay places in the neighborhood, so it's nice to have this. The filling options are pretty varied, although the bread can get chewy quickly (baguettes have a tendency to do that when away from a warming case). However, the stuffings are fantastic, and they also serve a few rice and noodle dishes that I'm going to have to try eventually, because they sound great.

Tofu Lemongrass Banh Mi

Brown Rice Sushi Bowl

Fried Mushroom Banh Mi

I tried and discarded several restaurants in my search for my favorites here (usually because I felt their food just wasn't as good), but if you find something you like better, please let me know! I don't visit any one place often enough - so many dining options in this city! - to try everything off the menu, maybe 4-7 items tops, and I know I miss some gems.

For review, here's a rundown of all my food posts for this ward, for handy reference:

Happy chay hunting, and thanks for reading! Enjoy Tan Dinh!

A Ben Abroad

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Friday, August 14, 2020

The Best Vegetarian Restaurants in Tan Dinh, District 1, HCMC