Cafe Erde

I went to this café in the evening. There were many people sitting and talking. It took some time to get the food. The seitan burger was very good, chewy and tasty (better than mine :-$!). The price was ok.
The wrap my friend tried, was also good but she didn't like the cold salad used for part of the filling. It would have been good if it had had room temperature.
It was a bit difficult to talk because of the many people speaking around us but the atmosphere was good.

I came here three (!!!) times while staying at Graz for less than a week. I had the gyros and falafel wrap and both were amazing. The staff is friendly and it's cozy both inside and outside.

We saw all the reviews here and thought that this must be a great vegan place to eat. Far from it. This place is really nothing special if you have seen some other vegan places.... Unfortunately they don't offer any gluten-free options (except a salad and fries) and the taste of the other vegan dishes is not more than ok. We had a chili con soy and you tasted almost only cumin. Go there if you are very hungry but don't expect a very unique and delicious meal.

I arrived in the evening without a reservation. There were no tables available, but I found a seat at the counter. The place was very busy, but I was served quickly.

I had the seitan burger and salad from the à la carte menu. It was very tasty.

The music was understated and the atmosphere was animated with many conversations. It seemed like a nice place and it was very popular with the locals.

Cafe Erde was a lovely surprise to stumble across in Graz. They serve one set meal per day, and my partner and I were lucky enough to arrive on a day where the meal was conveniently gluten-free also (I have a feeling the staff would be more than happy to accommodate to dietary restrictions if asked anyway). We were served by the most friendly, down-to-earth staff and felt welcomed into their space. The meal consisted of soup, salad and a beetroot curry which was delightful and warming. A place not to be missed.

Dish of the day is always tasty and the menu has some good choices ranging from vegan Schnitzel to Wraps! On sundays you can have a "Breakfast" with Baked Beans, Veggie Plate or Scrambled Tofu.

First off: Cafe Erde now has a second room upstairs. so there is no longer the problem of it being booked out.

Next to Ginko my favorite place for vegan food in Graz. For these reasons:
* Reasonable prices, particularly the daily special, which I almost always end up taking and usually love.
* Kind of cool (Have burgers and such, which my kids, and sometimes I myself favor).
* Lots of cool-and-conscientious young people (bike couriers, green activists, but also general public), both among the staff and the guests.
* Doubles as place to eat and a nice bar.
* Central location (Managed to turn a "dead corner" into a lively space).
* True the outdoor space ("Gastgarten") is next to a quite busy space, but in summer I found it surprisingly accomodating none the less. Just don't expect a lush green garden or the like.
* Good beer.

We spent few days in Graz, and I had to eat something cooked. We tried this place, and it was a good choice. It's a small but lovely place, the food was perfect, and the waitress as well. I recommend it.

Best restaurant in Graz. all vegan. big portions and cheap. very nice personell.

I just spent 5 days in Graz and ate at Café Erde twice, plus I had take out once. Everything is vegan!! I had a seitan wrap (incredible sauce!) and a tofu sandwich (with pesto - mmmh!) from the à la carte menu, and twice their daily menu: Polenta pizza, and Semmelknödel. You get a lot of food for a fair price. The soup that came with the menu was big and delicious. Service is very friendly and warm, and there is almost no waiting time. It's cozy inside but you can also sit outside.
I wish I could eat there everyday!

Short summary in english:
Excellent food for a reasonable price in the center of graz. You can choose between 2 menues at lunchtime, in the evening its à la carte. The place is 100% vegan and the owner cares about every little detail. Even the cleaning products are vegan.
Brunch on sunday.

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Zuerst das Wichtigste für ein Restaurant:
Das Essen ist ausgezeichnet und preislich top !
Selbst Nicht-Veganer sind jeden Mittag begeistert. Das sieht man daran, dass das Lokal gesteckt voll ist zwischen 12 und 13 Uhr.

Alle Gerichte sind zu 100% vegan. Es gibt jeden Tag ein Menü (bestehend aus Suppe, Hauptspeise) für insgesamt 8 Euro. Beides kann auch einzeln bestellt werden. Da das Hauptgericht eine anständige Portion ist, empfiehlt sich das Menü nur bei größerem Hunger.

Ab 18 Uhr gibt es dann einzelne Gerichte, die täglich serviert werden. Empfehlenswert: Seitan Burger.

In diesem Restaurant hat man sich dem veganen Gedanken zu 100% verschrieben. Der Besitzer und Koch macht sich sehr viele Gedanken darüber wie das Essverhalten unseren Planeten beeinflusst.

Die teilweise kuriosen schlechten Bewertungen - Kommunismus :) - kann ich nicht nachvollziehen. Welche Unterhaltung sich die Leute in einem Restaurant erwarten, würde ich auch gerne wissen... Ein Clown auf einem Einrad ?

Besitzer und Bedienung ist sehr sympathisch und engagiert. Längere Wartezeiten im Mittags-Hauptgeschäft nehme ich aufgrund der leckeren Gerichte gerne in Kauf.

Falls wer mehr Infos haben möchte:
In meinem Profil gibt es einen Link zu meinem Blog. Dort gibt es einen Bericht mit Bildern zu diesem Lokal.

Enjoy !
Martina

Had the daily menu, which featured a creamy soup with lots of greens, some of the best grain burgers I ever had, and vegan tsatsiki (!). No overwhelming soy taste in anything either (which may happen if they use lots of soya cream or yogurt). *Huge* servings, BTW. Considering not ordering the soup next time, even though it was awesome.
The staff was super friendly, and I enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere after a day of moving.
Lots of great fruit juices, focussing on local products, and mineral water with real lemon juice. If you're interested in microbrewed beers, they have a nice selection of those too.

I liked the athmosphere and staff there. Just had the daily menue yet, which was quite good. Going for à la carte next time. Try!

first of all: 100% vegan - being for a few days in Graz, I had to try this!

well, apart from this initial quality, the place is super cozy, and the staff is young and extra friendly.

I had:

- an onion soup (daily one)
super tasty!

- a salad with grilled tofu
big, and so nice, with carrot petals, hummus, parsley pesto,
grilled mushrooms, apple, seeds and a delicious curry sauce.
tasty tofu, imagine that? and all that dressed with love

- a carrot-apple juice
bio, excellent

And to answer a critic: yes, I did wait a bit, but for a plate that was really dressed with love and care, every element being absolutely delicious - this does take time doesn't it?

In brief, just perfect for me! and really not expensive.

What could be even more incredibly fantastic would be to have on the menu some healthy dishes (lentil stew, seitan & veggies bowl, this kind of thing).

food is great, people are lovely, everyone seems to be open for a chat,it feels like you are on a visit at a friends house.

its probably not everyones taste but i personally love the gastgarten outgoing to the andreas hofer platz. sipping lovely vegan beer watching the cars go by.

ethicly its nice that cafe erde only , or at least tries to, use regional and current food to keep the co2 foodprint small.

to answer some of the previous critics. the soups are never watery at all, on the contrary i always get the feeling in 100% soup are somewhat like 200% vegetables. the other food is always playfully arranged and tastes exciting. in short: its awesome.

dass ich nicht öfter dort sein kann, jetzt gibts sogar den wein vom knaus und bier mit unkraut drin, das unglaublich gut schmeckt (hermax mit schafgarbe), das mit hanf drin is nur was für leute, die den typischen hanfgeschmack mögen. alles an essen was ich so probiert hab (haussalat, tofuburger + pommes frites und ein tagesgericht dessen namen ich vergessen hab) war sehr sehr lecker. nur der falafelwrap war nicht wirklich falafel und auch nicht wirklich hummus. es hat sehr gut geschmeckt, allerdings würd ich eher sowas wie "nach art des hauses" oder so dazuschreiben. vielleicht bin ich auch zu pingelig, ich bin araberin, ich kenn das anders, sry :)
alles in allem: cafe erde, ich liebe dich.

well... according to me cafè erde is the best vegan place to go to in graz.

the menu of the day is almost always extraordinary in appearance and taste. there's plenty of choice in the evening and saturdays. i had some of the best cakes i ever tasted.

the staff is open to criticism and particular wishes (due to an intolerance to various cereal i have a lot of special wishes). they're friendly and likeable. cafè erde is not a place where you can expect highly professional people who take your order within seconds and kiss your asses, but in my opinion - that's what makes their peculiar charm up.

the dishes are big and cheap. definitely worth the money. (even for poor students)

well, if you're not looking for perfectionism, but for good vibes and delicious food - cafè erde is AN ABSOLUTE MUST.

i had too wait too long, maybe i came at wrong time...

it was not so bad, it was vegan.

but the "gatsgarten" is noisy

So there are many vegan/vegetarian restaurants here in Graz, but there is no one except Cafe Erde, who offers such big menues to such little prices.
ItS always delicious and absolutely worth its price.
I also love the inside of the Cafe. The wood everywhere (no plastic stuff) and the books on almost every table... It feels like you are visiting a family dinner.
The guests are totally mixed up. There are students, grannies and meat-eaters. Everyone is so friendly and nice. No one is stressed or rude.
I love it, and you will too ;)


Updated from previous review on Saturday May 04, 2013

Jetzt hab ich extra einen Account eingerichtet, denn eine Bewertungen scheinen mir hier nicht ganz fair zu sein.

Ich war circa 10mal(+) im Café Erde essen. Meistens habe ich das Mittagsmenü konsumiert, aber des öfteren auch à la carte gegessen.

Die Auswahl fürs à la carte essen finde ich super, und wenn es um das Mittagsmenü geht sehe ich am Wochenplan nach was mich anlacht.
Ich finde beim Menü die Kombination der Suppe und Hauptspeise immer gut gelungen! Aber dank der ausreichenden Portionen ist es mir nur einmal gelungen Suppe und Tagesteller zu essen. Das ist sonst einfach zu viel.
Den Preis finde ich ok,da man gut satt wird,und das Essen bis jetzt noch jedes Mal vorzüglich geschmeckt hat! (Die Marinade des Salates finde ich besonders gelungen)
Wo ich mir nicht ganz sicher bin ist, ob alle Produkte die verwertet werden aus biologischem Anbau sind. Das würde ich mir wünschen, wobei mir klar ist,dass das Auswirkungen auf den Preis hat.

Das Ambiente des Cafes finde ich ganz nett, wenn sehr viel los ist (zu Mittag) dann schon eher eng. Da ist es super dass im Sommer vorne draussen ein kleiner "Gastgarten" ist.

Die WCs waren immer sauber, und ordentlich.

Die Kellnerinnen wirken teilweise ein bisschen langsam und zerstreut. (komme selbst aus dem Gastronomiebereich) Wobei letztens eine neue flotte dabei war.

Toll finde ich dass die Küche so offen ist,und man in den Bereich einsehen kann!

Ich empfehle vielen Freunden das Café Erde, auch nicht-Veganern/Vegetariern!
Bis jetzt hat noch jeder "Fleischesser" der mit mir hier war vom Essen geschwärmt!
Das spricht meiner Meinung nach für die exzellente Küche.

Ich komme gerne immer wieder,und finde es toll dass ihr so auf Kundenwünsche und Kritiken eingeht!



Das Veggie Corner mit extrem deftigen Essen darf man wirklich nicht mit euch vergleichen!

Liebe Grüße, und weiter so!
(ich hab grad wieder Lust auf euer Essen bekommen ;-) )
Theresa

Ich habe mein Büro in der Nähe und gehe hier 2-3 mal die Woche Mittagessen. Man bekommt hier eine Tagessuppe und/oder einen Tagesteller zu einem absolut fairem Preis. Das Essen war bisher immer köstlich. Man kann hier förmlich spüren mit wie viel Liebe das Essen zubereitet wurde. Am Abend gibt es außerdem Essen a la Carte. Hatte bisher nur einmal das Vergnügen eine Veggie Burger zu essen aber der war vom feinsten. Die Atmosphäre ist ruhig, angenehm und friedlich, ich genieße die kurze Zeit hier um ein bisschen die Gedanken in meinem Kopf zu ordnen während ich esse. Im Sommer kann man auch draußen im Gastgarten sitzen. Eine weitere sehr nette Idee ist der große Gemeinschaftstisch an dem man sich dazusetzen kann, wenn man alleine zum Essen kommt. Von allen Grazer vegetarischen und veganen Restaurants die ich kenne ist das Cafe Erde mein Favorit.

well i had a good impression from outside but then the tables wer not clean.

there semms to be NO choice (is this communism?) what you want to eat, only the prizce is like in northern europe.

i was happy to leave (i had pommes fries hlaf hour later, i was still hungry)

eigentlich mag ich ja nichts schlechtes sagen...

aber es war voll, und tortzdem hat keiner miteinander geredet. viell weil die musik zu laut war oder weil keiner was schlechtes über das essen dagen wollte.

ich mein es war einfach nicht gut, nicht einmal für billiger, schade um das schane gemüse.

ich geh da nicht mehr hin, schade. aber der veggier corner hat ein schanes neues lokal auch nicht weit.

I was so happy when I've found that place because it brings together all the things I like ... delicious vegan food, earthy atmosphere, wonderful people.

It's not only a cafe/restaurant. it is much more. all the employees are vegan, the whole food and drinks are vegan. I was told that even the cleaning stuff is vegan ;)

the place is small and has a warm atmosphere. the music is far from mainstream. and somehow it is such a mixed audience.. at lunch time you can see business WOmen as you can see alternative people.

in the evening cafe erde is even getting better than it is already at lunch time. I love it when it's getting crowded and you can see that it doesn't matter any more that you're at a vegan place.

whole graz is coming to that place and seems to enjoy it :-)

and I tell you something - the food is great!

go to that place and you won't regret it.

i don't now if the soup of the day is always so watery, but the main dish was lame also. (only the bill was spicy, the whole place looks cheap but it is not...)

there were not many people around and it seemed more like a joind for middle-aged people.

i liked that there was no music and noone was talking too much, i'm more a quiet guy.

i dont expect much, and there was not much.

well, the good thing is, it's 100% vegan. also not so expensive (portions are also not so rich)
when we ate there (we gave a try 2 times) it was rather dull taste, boring music, noone really communicating...
on the surface, it resembles a lively, young place.

The waitress was very nice, the price of the meals ist good, the cupcakes are delicious!
At lunchtime they sell warm meals and in the evening they also offer sandwiches.
The location is modern

It's a pity I only spent two days in Graz and managed to eat at Cafe Erde only once. The carrot curry soup and muffin were delicious, the service friendly and fast. The menu seems to be small, but changes daily. Looking forward to the next visit!

Graz is my hometown and I am so glad that Cafe Erde is open now with 100% vegan menue. I can come in, sit down on one of these nice tables, enjoy the lovely people and trust 100%. I love to have my favourite wine in Cafe Erde. I wish you all the best! Thank you for your courage to open a 100% vegan location in Graz, Austria! Love & Peace, Petra

Cafe Erde is a small, cozy Cafe in the inner city of Graz. They are serving a daily changing menu (7,9€) , including soup and salad but you can leave the soup (2,5€) away if you like. In the evenings you can choose your dishes from a menu card as well.
The food is very delicious and healthy too,the portions are good, the owner and the waiters are very friendly. Most of the time there is stylish lounge-music played in the Cafe which creates a cozy atmosphere. On fridays and weekends there are often served menus with seitan and soy (like schnitzel, soy-steaks or burgers), during the week it seem to be more vegetables on the plate. (for exaple, steamed vegetables with rice).
There are 1-2 delicious vegan cakes every day but they are not included in the menu. They are serving a lot of nice drinks and lemonades from regional producers.
You can sit outside the cafe if the weather is fine.
Opening Hours: Monday-Saturday 11:30-22:00, closed on Sundays.