Thien Dang Vegetarian, Westminster, CA

 

 

If you need to take a break from all the meaty and possibly fatty meals you’ve been having and just want to “go light” for lunch or dinner, Thien Dang Vegetarian might just be the right place for that. Their specialty is vegetarian baguette sandwiches which are an excellent alternative for meaty sandwiches. Sandwiches here contain soy “pork” paste, “sausages”, and  “chicken”, pickles, carrots, jalapeno, and cilantro. I love the mayo-like spread they use inside the baguette. Eating a veggie sandwich doesn’t make me feel like I’ve overeaten.

Their sandwiches as well as iced coffee drinks are less than $3 bucks each. The menu board is somewhat misleading. They put a picture of cafe sua da (French iced coffee) in each frame making you think it’s a combo. It’s NOT. Everything is sold separately. 😀 I was wondering why a combo was so cheap. Ha!

They also serve quick veggie food that you can pick up to go for lunch or dinner. I haven’t tried these but they look rather interesting. Most of this stuff is made from soy, fermented tofu, bean curd skin, and veggies.

Thien Dang Vegetarian
14253 Brookhurst St
Westminster, CA 92683
(714) 531-4888

 

Happy Family Chinese Vegetarian Restaurant, Costa Mesa, CA

I’ve been to Happy Family Chinese Vegetarian Restaurant in Rowland Heights before, but didn’t know they had another location in Costa Mesa, thanks to my dad who found it online. So we took my vegetarian mom here for Mother’s Day dinner. 🙂

You’d think vegetarian food is boring – tofu this, tofu that. But that’s not the case here at Happy Family. You get the authentic Chinese food taste just as you would at a normal restaurant, minus the meat. 😛 They have all your favorite stir fried dishes, noodle and wonton soup, “chicken” and “beef” and “seafood” dishes made of mainly soy. Sure, a lot of those dishes have tofu, but each has a different name and flavor so you won’t think that you’re just eating plain tofu or soy.
We had a Mongolian beef dish, which was pieces of soy stir fried with various spicy herbs. Super yummy.
You can’t go to a Chinese restaurant and not order something kung pao, so we opted for this delicious kung pao chicken with mushroom. It was battered soy deep fried and stirred with mushroom in kung pao flavor. Seriously, it tastes just like chicken.

The restaurant has a rather quiet atmosphere which is great. Friendly service.

Au Lac, Fountain Valley, CA

 

 

This restaurant has been completely remodeled. When I first stepped inside, I thought I was in the wrong place. The Au Lac I remember was not this trendy looking. The decor was more on the peaceful, serene side, giving you a nice homely feeling when you’re there. The menu had more regular Vietnamese vegetarian food selections. Now, the entire place has turned into one of those posh, full-on vegan places where people go to eat vegan food because it’s the trend. The menu, staff, clientele are all different. But we were there already, so might as well give it a shot.

What’s interesting is that the sign says “Humanese Cuisine.” What the heck is that? So I looked it up and their website states that their chef coined this term “with the belief that we have more in common than we realize. Rather than see ourselves as separate, we are all merely … and wonderfully … human. No labels, no man-made borders to divide us.” So they only serve “plant-based” stuff, with quite a bit of selections focused on “raw and living” food. Awesome!

Now on with the food:

"Bo Luc Lac" - shaken beef made of soy, stir fried with veggies. Pretty flavorful. They serve it by itself so if you want rice, you'd have to ask for it. Also, they ONLY have brown rice.

Deep fried battered tofu, salt and peppered. Very crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, just how I like it.

Wonton soup. Not bad for vegetarian. Wonton soup tastes just right and the stuffing inside tastes like real meat. 🙂

 

Happy Family Chinese Vegetarian, Rowland Heights, CA

I haven’t had Chinese style vegetarian food yet so I was happy to try this place out. We ordered from the Lunch Special Menu.

House special crispy "chicken" mushroom. Battered deep fried mushroom in house special sauce that makes it taste just like fried chicken!

We wanted something seafood-y so we went for this:

"Fish" with black bean sauce, of course, made of soy. The seaweed lining makes it taste like fish. It was bit on the dry side. I don't really recommend it.

I’ll definitely come back and try other items on the lunch special menu.

Bo De Tinh Tam Chay, Westminster, CA

Ever since I embarked on a vegetarian excursion, I’ve been seeking out all these great veggie restaurants, with my vegetarian mom’s help, of course. And Bo De Tinh Tam Chay is so far one of the best there is.

I like the peaceful ambience of the place, with naturesque decor throughout. Many of the servers are Buddhists who are regulars at the temples my family and I go. That just adds a bit of familiarity to the place.

Let’s just get right to the food. 🙂

Crispy noddle with stir fried veggies (top left). Since I like crispy food, the noodle was perfectly fried golden. The veggies and sauce were just right, not salty or bland. Nice presentation.

Fried wonton appetizer (top middle). One word: WOW! The stuff inside tastes like real meat. AND the tomato sweet and sour sauce is excellent and makes it ten times better! These taste as good as the ones my aunt makes at home!

Com tam bi cha tau hu ky, or broken rice with shredded “pork”, tofu skin, egg patty (top right). This is one of their besh dishes. The shredded pork tastes just like real ones, and I totally dig the egg patty.

Mi nam vang, or egg noodle soup, (bottom left). Tons of veggie goodness – broccoli, mushrooms, tofu, some crunchie stuff, onions, shallots, etc. Had they added these crispy tau hu ky pieces (commonly served with these veggie noodle soups) it would’ve been perfect. Still, I highly recommend!

“Chicken” curry (bottom right). I’m not big on curry, veggie or not. My parents ordered this and I thought it was kind of bland. Don’t expect highly flavorful spiciness like you would with a meaty curry.

Bun hue, or hue rice noodle soup (bottom middle). Decent. The meaty version of this is called “bun bo hue” with slices of beef and a lot more spiciness. But since this is vegetarian, they call it “bun hue” without the “bo” (beef) and it’s not as flavorful. Restaurants tend to give you a buttload of noddles so I had to tell them to give me half the portion, but give me full portion on everything else. Haha. I’m not big on carbs, so the less the better!

Ca kho to (not pictured) is also delish. It’s soy cooked in a clay pot and tastes like fish because of the seaweed lining around it. A bit on the salty side but still a must-try.

There are 2 locations. For some reason I could not find the first location on Bolsa. This review is intended for #2, on Beach Blvd. It’s probably bigger and better here anyway. 🙂

Bodhi Tree Cafe, Huntington Beach, CA

I like the name Bodhi Tree, very fitting for a vegetarian restaurant, which is one reason I decided to dine here (also recommended by a friend.) Generally, food is good.

We got some eggless egg rolls for appetizers (bottom right). They’re not bad, though they could’ve been a bit crispier, especially if you’re going to be wrapping them inside lettuce and mint leaves.

My friend ordered spicy lemongrass “chicken” (top left) which was quite tasty and flavorful. There’s these soy pieces (I’m guessing tau hu ky?) that are soft and chewy that taste just like chicken! And I got “beef” stew with French roll (top right), which was OK, but I wish the French roll was crispier rather than soft since you’ll be dipping it in the stew soup. Yes, as you notice, I like eating crispy food. 🙂

Although a bit cold inside, but the lovely Buddhist decor makes you feel nice and cozy. Bathroom is a bit weird. Doesn’t look like they own it. You’ll have to ask for a key and walk down a hallway to get to it. I would hold it if I were you.

49-Day Vegetarian

My family and I have been eating vegetarian food for 49 days, for personal reasons. Well, most of my family is vegetarian, anyway, so it was pretty much me who started getting myself in on it.

Everyone knows I LOVE MEAT. So I have to say this has been quite an interesting experience. A journey, if you will. With help of my mom, rest of my extended family, and support from my friends, I was able to seek out these great veggie restaurants to dine in and take out. And a lot of the veggie eating happens at the temples where we go to do ceremonies. Temples and their volunteers are very hospitable. After an hour or so of mass, they tell you to go eat everything that they spent the last few hours cooking. And you just can’t say no. 🙂

Yesterday was officially the last day for me, so starting tomorrow, it’s OK for me to eat meat again. Yay! However, because not eating meat has actually helped me lose weight (and possibly lower my cholesterol!) I plan on being a vegetarian a few times out of each month. That’s pretty doable, right?? I’m doing this for both health and spiritual reasons – to purify the body and mind. 🙂

Since I’m a pretty visual person and I like making collages, here’s to sum up what I’ve been eating for the last 49 days, in collage form. Looks delicious, right? Who says you can’t have fun with vegging out? And, to add, I’m pretty proud of myself. ^_^