• CLOSED: Dharma Kitchen

  • (32)
    21

    Closed

  • White Vegetarian
Vegan-friendly
Chinese
Organic
Asian
Honey

Vancouver Buddhist vegan food restaurant. Food is vegan except for honey offered on the side for teas (per report Aug 2013). Quiet atmosphere. Parking on street. Reported closed, Nov 2020.


Venue map for Dharma Kitchen
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32 Reviews

First Review by PDXVeganFamily

jessmonster

Points +98

Vegan
07 Feb 2020

kid friendly & scrumptious tempeh

The staff were so warm and friendly. Also, very kid friendly ( Had a basket of toys and crayons to share with our toddler :)) ambience was clean and so welcoming & relaxing. The chai was amazing and not too sweet! We ordered a green juice that was great and reasonably priced... I highly recommend the house tempeh. This was absolutely, hands don the best tempeh I have ever tasted!! Burger was scrumptious. We ordered a tofu dish that was good, but I would've preferred sprouted tofu & more veggies. Thanks Dharma for a lovely experience.

Pros: amazing tempeh & chai, friendly staff, kid friendly

Cons: some dishes are smaller portions

alinsen

Points +20

Vegan
10 Jan 2020

Quiet satisfying meals and environment

Lunch meal well preserved, served and delicious

Pros: Variety of dishes freshly made, Sizeable proportions without overdoing it, Calm ambience

CTSPhoto

Points +23

Vegetarian
28 Dec 2019

Fabulous every time

Have been going for many years, always great food and service. Try the chai tea it’s the best.

experimental_setup

Points +322

Vegetarian
09 Dec 2019

Kind of boring

Cannot comment on their burgers, but the bowl/main dish selection does appear to be a combination of similar veggies with different sauces. The basil tofu dish I had was nothing to come back for - not bad, but also nothing you'd need to go a restaurant for.
Service was friendly. They had some rather strange and annoying selection of music playing.
The place looks like it's in need of restoration: the little book the check came in apparently tore open at the binding, so they taped it together again; the unisex restroom door does not have a lock and the toilet bowl itself is somewhat loose - don't be startled when you sit down...

Pros: One of few veg* dinner options in that area

Cons: Not particularly noteworthy food, Place needs some repairs

sriteja

Points +50

Vegan
02 Aug 2019

Great place!

High quality food. Wasn't too rich or heavy.tjere was a good balance. Their sauces were fantastic.

Pros: Their food was very high quality.

Cons: Service was a bit slow.

trufflepiggy

Points +62

Vegan
08 Jul 2017

what the fuss?

not sure what's up with this place and why people on HC give it such glowing reviews. The service is moody at best (ever been scolded by your server, who constantly seems to be in a 'mood'?) and the tempeh isn't tempeh at all: it's seitan, aka wheat protein, aka gluten. celiacs, beware! the food is ok, especially if you like mould on the bun sandwiching your veggie patty.

each bowl on their menu can be found in ruth tal brown's recipe book 'refresh': the tofu marinade, the sauces and dressings, and the lot.

pretty inaccurate that I'm unable to give out one star; two is the lowest allowed?! one star for this place.

Pros: nice decor

Cons: moody server, not the freshest food

axelboot

Points +185

Vegetarian
07 Dec 2016

Awesome food...great ambience!

Wow...I can't say enough good things about this place.
Never disappointed. Atmosphere and decor are above average- very nice interior.
Service is prompt.
The food is so tantalizing, so tasty.
Incredible sauces. My fave is anything with tempeh!!

We've been eating here very regularly, virtually once a week now for almost three years.
The owner Tommy is simply terrific, works hard to keep his guests content and satisfied with their meal.

Strongly recommended.

Updated from previous review on 2008-05-15

Pros: Attentive service, generous portions, Good value for price

Cons: Kitchen can be a bit slow

BillyQ

Points +28

Vegan
07 Nov 2016

Cozy Thai fusion Hideaway

We have eaten many times over the years at Dharma Kitchen. We enjoy the mellow atmosphere, respectful service and comforting, tasty food. It can be busy sometimes but still feels more relaxing than most other places. Prices have gone up somewhat, but to be fair, so have the price of ingredients.

Recommendations: Spicy - Nu Cao Bowl; Umame with greens - Green Goddess; Warming/Comforting - Tamarind Soup; Salad: Avocado salad. You can also get bowls with roasted potatoes instead of rice. The tempeh doesn't taste like regular tempeh but is good; we sometimes get a side order to go with dinner. We only wish they would consider dropping the honey from their menu so it would be a fully vegan restaurant. Try the chai for "dessert".

Keep your eyes peeled if driving by - it's easy to miss as there is no big sign outside, only a sandwich board on the sidewalk.

Pros: Tasty food, Relaxing atmosphere, Good service

Cons: bit expensive

CandisePearce

Points +23

Raw
15 Jun 2016

Great Food, Friendly Service, Chill Atmosphere

***Try the Avocado Salad - Freshest Organic Salad in Vancouver! Dharma Kitchen sources organic produce and cuts everything by hand (many restaurants order their produce already cut and bagged). Sauces and salad dressings all made in house. I love the Raw Lemon Tahini! Also a great spot too for juices and smoothies. - Carrot, Ginger Immune Booster is delicious!
If you are looking for a place with healthy food made with love and integrity, check this place out. Also super chill, peaceful vibe with great music hand selected by owner.

Raw Vegan? I am. This is the best Freshest BIG salad in town:)

Pros: Great Music, Best Avocado Salad, Fresh Juices

12halbe

Points +64

Vegan
26 Feb 2016

Excellent tempeh burger

Warm and welcoming atmosphere and great service. The tempeh burger almost freaked me out - look, texture and taste was so close to a meat patty and the peanut satay sauce was outstanding. Also very tasty chai!

The.Vegan.Traveler

Points +60

Vegan
08 Dec 2015

Lots of selection

Huge selection to choose from. Most items have either tofu or tempeh. They claim the tempeh is homemade, but like a previous review of this place, it just looks and tastes like a boca burger cut into eighths. Our server was very nice and helpful. Also a fresh juice selection which was awesome.

Pros: Fresh juice menu

Cons: If you're not a fan of tofu or tempeh

Felisabanana

Points +28

Vegan
30 Sep 2015

DELICIOUS

This is one of my favorite restaurants ever. Its close by to where I live so I come quite often, and all their dishes are super tasty and good quality! I love the flavours and their tofu is the best.

VictorHugoLimachi

Points +381

Vegan
29 Sep 2015

I had an amazing rice bowl

This is my second best place to eat in Vancouver. No.1 is Graze.

The staff is very friendly and the chef is a master of food and tempeh.

/Vegan explorer

trematode

Points +149

Vegan
01 Sep 2015

Simple food, large portions

I'm always excited to eat at an all-vegan restaurant. They have a large menu and I love knowing that I could order anything.

I ordered a tempeh miso burger with side salad and my friends got a tofu peanut bowl. The patty on my burger didn't taste like tempeh: it reminded me of a veggie burger. I've never had tempeh that tasted that way! The miso gravy gave it a cheesy flavour which I wasn't expecting but it was delicious. The salad was a typical green salad with a miso dressing. I would have opted for a different side if I wasn't graving greens. I was interested in trying their Green Goddess Bowl bowl, which sounded pretty good.

The bowls were large portions. My boyfriend said the rice tasted old but the flavour of the peanut sauce was fantastic.

It was a little slow the afternoon we visited but we didn't mind because it was pouring down rain and we were travelling by foot.

Pros: Large portions, All vegan menu, Quiet restaurant

Cons: Service was a little slow

Strausskk

Points +23

Mostly Veg
08 Aug 2015

Good food, Chill Vibe

I don't go to Dharma Kitchen for explosive flavours to touch my palette and have a party in my mouth. The food has flavour but it's buddhist vegan food isn't it? The food is supposed to be calm and chill just like the food at this place. It was empty when I went, which I like. I hate when restaurants get crowded. Keep it Chill.

Zo

Points +207

Vegan
22 Feb 2015

Great Place To Sit Down

The server was very nice and the food was amazing, looks like a lot of time and effort is put into the dishes, definitely going back!

Kyleigh100

Points +73

Vegan
18 May 2014

The Spot for Healthy Food

There are times where you want to go out to eat, but you don't want to spend a ton of money, and you don't want to eat a bunch of heavy food. If that's the case for you then you need to check out Dharma Kitchen. This is really healthy food at it's finest. There are no 'vegan meats' or 'vegan cheeses' all the food is natural, whole foods. Many of the dishes seem simple in their ingredients but pack a lot of flavor and a ton of satisfaction. The menu is rather wide and varied and I wish we'd had more time to explore all the various options but since we no longer live in Vancouver we don't get the chance.

What we did eat was delicious, comforting and satisfying. My husband had the Green Goddess Bowl which he loved, and I had the Free Tibet Bowl which was amazing. The tempeh here is simply divine, in fact, it's some of the best tempeh i've ever eaten anywhere. It's real home-made tempeh, not the store-bought Light-life kind. Amazing, amazing stuff.

As far as atmosphere this place is cozy, and welcoming. We felt quite at home at our little table and the staff was very helpful, and very friendly. Very willing to take the time to chat with us about the menu and about food prep which we appreciated. Next time I visit my family in Van i'll definitely be going back for more!

Pros: Great food, Great Atmosphere , Friendly Staff

lovela5

Points +232

Vegan
02 Mar 2014

pretty good

I've been to Dharma once. The restaurant was empty, we were the only clients. I ordered some red curry which was alright. Nothing amazing but good enough. I think I will come back.

Pros: Very chill place, good food

mcgyver68

Points +81

Vegetarian
29 Nov 2011

I don't get it

I don't 'get' all the great reviews. Had dinner there last night. It is a typical "bowl place" where you can order a dozen or so different permutations of tempeh or tofu in a bowl with rice and veggies. Frankly, nothing looked too exciting, so I went for the signature dish, the "Dharma Bowl". Topping were dry and bland, yet the rice was soaked with miso gravy. I just didn't really care for it.

There was only one other customer in the place, an older couple. The guy at the table kept hollering the owner in mangled, Canadian-accented Spanish, for some peculiar reason. Seems he knew ten words or so, and was quite proud of his ability. Maybe this is why the owner was hiding most of the night. Why it took 45 minutes to put my bowl together. I don't know... it was just, 'off'.

Having said all that, the restaurant itself is beautiful and nicely appointed. This place has the right stuff to become fantastic. I hope they do.

Pros: Atmosphere, Inexpensive

Cons: bland, Need sopme cooking lessons

TinTin

Points +55

Vegan
17 Aug 2011

Vegan food at its best

Going into its six year of operation , the quality at Dharma Kitchen remains its priority. I have never had a bad meal here...fresh, qualiity ,organic where practical to keep pricing modest...the atmosphere is serene , music invigorating but peaceful ...a gem of a spot for vegans and mindful eating.

Pros: modest pricing, healthy, fresh ingredients

Cons: busy street, limited deserts

kimward8

Points +574

Vegan
16 Feb 2010

Delicious

The atmosphere is nice and peaceful in here, and the staff is really nice. I brought my three year old niece here and they gave her colouring books etc. The basil tofu is my favourite dish, and the tamarind soup and the lemongrass mushrooms are great too. They also make fresh juice.

Deneige

Points +36

Vegetarian
05 Dec 2009

Delisious!!!

A great little find in Vancouver.
Small and cozy, I felt like I was eating at home (a good thing). The staff were SUPER friendly and attentive.
I could eat here everyday and not get bored with the menu.

Every time I have eaten here I was able to take half my meal home or share a meal with my friend and still be sufficiently stuffed!

Pros: Vegan, Atmosphere, Excellent Food

Cons: None!

thelink

Points +165

Vegan
20 Sep 2009

Soso

We had dinner at Dharma Kitchen once while on holiday in Vancouver in June. Maybe I picked the wrong dishes but I wasn't very impressed.

I ordered the Miso soup but only ate a few spoon fulls because I didn't like it at all. It didn't have any Miso flavour at all, it just tasted sour and was laden with coriander. I've had Miso soups before and I've never come across a Miso soup that contained coriander and the menu at Dharma certainly didn't list it as an ingredient either. Unfortunately I hate coriander so I got a nasty surprise...

My partner had a different soup (can't remember which one) and liked it.

For mains we had one tofu and one tempeh potato bowl which tasted soso. The sauce was quite oily and very salty. I noticed that many reviewers mention how fantastic the tempeh tastes at Dharma. We thought it tasted a bit strange and wasn't really tempeh at all.

We liked the fresh juice cocktails and the soy chai latte was incredibly nice.

The atmosphere in the restaurant was very nice and the staff was very cheerful and friendly.

If we ever go back to Vancouver and have time for only one meal we wouldn't chose Dharma. But if we lived in Vancouver we would probably go back to see if we could find some dishes on the menu that we like.

T

Points +44

Vegan
16 Aug 2009

Great Meal

Had my first taste of Tempeh, and was immediately hooked. Have now had it elsewhere and I must say that although I still enjoy it, nothing has measured up to Dharma Kitchens tempeh. Mango tapioca pudding is divine, and the fruit smoothies are as good as mine (that means they are great).

Jeffrey

01 Nov 2009

Hi there T, nice review. Yep, tempeh can either be great or lousy, depending on how you cook it.

marla

Points +99

Vegan
08 Mar 2009

Dharma Kitchen

We decided to go to Dharma last night for our anniversary after reading the great reviews. I had rice bowl with miso gravy,artichokes,peppers and onions. Compared to Naam the gravy was only so,so. I probably wouldn't go back again.

Pros: friendly staff

Cons: food was ok

Maddymac

Points +32

Vegan
16 Oct 2008

Tempeh to die for!

The atmosphere is beautiful and chill. I had the rice bowl with tempeh the first time, i wasn't a fan of the rice bowl but the tempeh on top was amazing, i would come here just for the tempeh it's self. The "cocktails" were also delicious and i highly recomend there as well as the coconut miso gravy however i wish there was more on the menu than just rice bowls, veg burgers and salads.

skymonkey

Points +131

Vegetarian
29 May 2008

great restaurant

we make sure to stop by dharma every time we are in vancouver. the food is wonderful (we love the tempeh and coconut gravy). the service is excellent. and the restaurant itself is beautiful in a peaceful setting. best of all, it's all vegan! it is by far our favorite restaurant in vancouver.




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