I don’t know about you but I often struggle when I travel to new places to find meals that are free from animal products. Unfortunately there are too few good vegetarian restaurants in this world or restaurants serving delicious vegetarian fare amongst their other non-vegetarian staples. I am not big on fancy food, preferring healthy hearty meals that speak volumes in taste. A holiday for me is less amazing if I have to compromise on food. And so I have started to compile this list of restaurants so that you too will have some informed choices when you travel. Just please note that restaurants come and go, though I will try my best to keep this list current and up to date.
Sydney, Australia
Iku
This is absolutely my favourite place to eat in Sydney. Iku is a vegan macrobiotic café, the food is so tasty, even non-vegetarians are with me on this one! I cannot decide which dish I like the best, there is so much choice with the tofu burgers, daily casseroles, soups, salads, laksa and curries. And the snacks and desserts are to die for, and since I’ve been abroad they have introduced a few breakfast items. What a welcome addition because I could easily see myself eating 3 meals a day at Iku. Primarily seen as a takeway café, Iku is the Japanese word for “to go”, this rapidly growing chain has locations throughout the city and bordering suburbs. The food is prepared at their central kitchens in Marrickville and they use a lot of organic and biodynamic ingredients. Have a look at their website for comprehensive information on ingredients and nutritional value of all menu items. They don’t hide anything from you!
Check their website for locations.
Mother Chu’s Vegetarian Kitchen
I first discovered Mother Chu’s, an institution in vegetarian circles, when I started to practice yoga at Acharyas Yoga Centre a few doors away from the restaurant. Often our late night 2 hour intensive yoga sessions on a Friday was followed by dinner at Mother Chu’s. Those glorious evenings with fellow yogis are amongst some of my fondest memories. The restaurant serves up Asian food in an endless variety of vegetarian incarnations. The menu almost reads like a weekly magazine there is so much choice. My personal favourites are the salt and pepper tofu, deliciously light with a hint of spice, the bean and tempeh and claypot meals. In all honesty I would enjoy any dish from Mother Chu’s. Run by the Taiwanese Chu family for over 13 years, it is a charming restaurant. If you are lucky you will see the grand dame Mother Chu in-house, she often pops in and sits at the back table.
Located at 367 Pitt St, Sydney.