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Vegan-friendly
Chinese
Buffet
Salad bar
Taiwanese
Buddhist
Located inside Hsi Lai Temple in Hacienda Heights, you will find a daily Chinese and Taiwanese home-style cooking lunch buffet and salad bar. The temple makes you feel as you are in Asia. Be sure to visit the temple museum while you're there. Take 60 Fwy exit Hacienda Heights Blvd. Open Mon-Fri 11:30am-1:30pm, Sat-Sun 11:30am-2:30pm.
7 Reviews
First Review by maryzaint
TinaCheong
Points +485
Worth the price! - Edit
I came here to visit the temple and also to eat at the cafeteria to try their food. It’s 8$ for AYCE and CASH ONLY! It’s cafeteria style, so you pile as much food as you want on your plate and go back for more if necessary. The food is very vegan friendly, and there’s always several options to choose from.
Read moreJust don’t expect anything fancy, but for 8$ it’s definitely worth trying out.
Pros: Vegan friendly , Beautiful temple , 8$ only!!
Cons: Parking can be difficult , Cash only
Guest
brififi
Points +91
Close to Enlightenment - Edit
Good, buffet style veg, at the temple. Worth a visit.
Read moreCons: Crowded on weekends
Guest
malcontent
Points +29
Convenient - Edit
This is a pretty convenient place to dine if you're looking for some grubs after visiting the Hsi Lai Temple which is the largest Buddhist temple in the Western Hemisphere around lunch time. I thought the lunch buffet was not bad at 7 dollars per head. It's mostly home style Chinese cooking which isn't heavy in grease and spices unlike typical restaurant food. Some people who might find it bland could try other restaurants in the area (like Happy Family). The amount of selection is not as much as you would expect from a typical buffet.
Read morePros: Big dining hall
Cons: Not a lot of selection
Guest
jennamichelle1
Points +337
Great day outing.... - Edit
The temple is beautiful to visit, especially during the New Year. Our photo club (one of our members worships there) went to take pictures and we all ate at the buffet afterward. The food was mild, no intense flavors or spicy food, but it was all vegan and we had a lot of options to choose from. We were very satisfied and left full. It's a great day trip so if you want to see a place that is amazingly beautiful that has a nice vegan buffet, this is a great place to go.
Read moreGuest
skymonkey
Points +131
cheap, delicious buffet food - Edit
we have been to a few of the buddhist light temples around the world, and usually go to their cafes with made to order food. this is the first time we have been to the hsi lai temple, a branch of the buddhist light based in taiwan. their buffet lunch serves a huge number of people. the lineup can be long, but they are pretty efficient at keeping the trays filled with hot food. at first sight, the food really does not look very appetizing, but it really tastes better then it looks. there isn't a huge selection. they take a few dishes which work and make huge quantities. we were only planning to stay for a light lunch, but ended up going back to fill our plates for the second, and third time. at 7 per person (they did not charge for our two-year-old son), it is obviously a steal.
Read moreGuest
chobesoy
Points +1048
Great sanctuary, great food - Edit
A follow up to the last post (thanks for answering the previous question, I highly doubt monks will call anyone back, let alone for something that isn't for the temple per se).
Read moreTo second the last post, there is an element of luck of the draw, the days I've gone have been good, and the last time was better than the previous. True, the experience is part of it. For such a small donation, this is a great outing. But overall we have to remember that this is a temple not a restaurant - they just happen to serve fantastic food! I would recommend it for anyone just interested in visiting the site or would like a good buddhist meal. The money is well spent and your tummy will be contect. Zen!
Pros: tasty, healthy, affordable
Guest
maryzaint
Points +35
vegan friendly? - Edit
does anyone know if the food is vegan friendly? I've tried calling a couple of times to find out to no avail. :(
Read morewebmaster
Hi, we love going there and the food may be all vegan. They don't use eggs or dairy, but there is some possiblity that some of their mock meats contain whey. There are plenty of choices that don't contain the mock meats, and you could ask them if you are concerned about it. Let us know.
Read more:-)
Guest
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