Take a walk on the Vegetarian Side

words by kim batto

Now is the time that vegetarians and vegans should rejoice. Gone are the days where you can rarely find a restaurant that caters to pledged plant-based eaters.

There are so many restaurants that have an amazing vegetarian menu, but I won’t talk about them. I’m listing places where they only serve food good for vegetarians and vegans. All your meat-eating friends don’t have a choice *insert evil laugh*.

Your friends might hate you at first, but trust me they will thank you afterwards.

Moroccan Soup Bar
Open Tuesday – Sunday from 6.00pm to 10.00pm, waiting for a seat is usual. You will get the full Moroccan Soup Bar experience as there are no a la carte, only banquet options. Their menus are spoken (make sure you listen carefully), and portions are very generous. I say this because I want to make sure you leave room for their famous Chick Pea Bake – this dish alone might make someone think they can go full vegetarian.

Trippy Taco
Bringing Mexican dishes to new heights is Trippy Taco. Their meat free street style Mexican dishes have people come back for more. The crowd favourite is their Breakfast Burrito with scrambled tofu and melted soy cheese (melted cheese – yes please). Not your thing? Their Tofu Asada Burrito is also a game changer.

Smith and Deli
You walk in and you think it’s wizardry. You wouldn’t even believe that all the things in the deli is catered for vegans. In their glass cabinets alone you would notice mozzarella, pastrami, turkey, as well as croissants, doughnuts, scrolls, and pain au chocolates. After you get over this magic, browse through their sandwich offerings – all drool-worthy, just check their Instagram.

Transformer
Although not inspired by Optimus Prime or Bumblebee, reassuringly this place is so much more. The restaurant is in a converted warehouse that manufactured electronic transformers once. Their interiors are extremely impressive (perfect for that date night), and their food AND cocktail list is just as amazing.

Shakahari
This iconic restaurant has graced the people of Melbourne with good food for more than 40 years. Their menu is a fusion between Indian, Thai, Japanese, and Chinese cuisine that caters to almost any intolerance. Famous people like Kylie Minogue and Carlos Santana gave this restaurant a thumbs up, I’m sure you will too.

The Alley
The newest kid on the block that serves 100% vegan food. Their goal is to change your whole plant based eating experience. For starters, they offer a Maple Bacon Burger that is as good as the original (be a believer, not a belieber). Leave room for their Key Lime Pie which is what inspired this whole venture – surely worth a try.

Now go green (even just for a meal), and you’ll appreciate the absence of your meat sweats later – believe me it still happens even in this bloody cold.