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Vegan-friendly
Chinese
Asian
Malaysian, BYOB
Ren Dao Vegetarian Restaurant offers classic Singaporean cuisine prepared by a chef with 20+ years experience in vegetarian Asian cooking. Will cater to dietary needs, and has many vegan and gluten-free options. Has express lunch menu, with call-ahead option. Upstairs room available for receptions or special occasions. Directions: Located almost opposite the Elsternwick train station. Open Tue-Fri 5:00pm-9:00pm, Fri 11:30am-2:30pm, Sat 5:00pm-9:30pm, Sun 11:30am-2:30pm, 5:30pm-9:00pm. Closed Mon.
34 Reviews
First Review by inthemooood
chatreuse
Points +2806
Incredible mutton curry - Edit
- Mutton curry: so flavourful, loved the fresh bay leaves used, and perfect level of spice for me.
Read more- Tom yum hokkien: delish fake meat +soft textured tofu, maybe could be charred abit, and would benefit from the addition of some veggies.
- Thai fried rice: very good, tasty pineapple and charred chikn pieces, would be better with some veggies.
Lovely staff, knowledgable of vegan. Was told the roti and curry puffs are not vegan, not sure if that was marked in the menu though.
Pros: Mutton curry is DELICIOUS
Cons: could do with more veggies in couple of dishes
Guest
Raspberries
Points +403
So good! - Edit
Absolutely delicious. I highly recommend the Nasi Lemak!
Read moreGuest
Aspiedude
Points +28
No Singapore noodles - Edit
For a place described as Singaporean, I thought they would have one of my favourite dishes, but to my bewilderment, I couldn’t see it on the menu 😕
Read morekafca
The range is huge.
Read moreGuest
jessicalovescows
Points +216
Yum! - Edit
Really yum and a lot of variety.
Read moreGuest
abby_lemon
Points +119
Favourite! - Edit
I have been eating here for years and it is always delicious. The laksa is the best - I always order it and it is consistently amazing. All the other dishes I’ve tried have been great too. Absolutely incredible and high quality vegan food. Cannot recommend more.
Read moreGuest
Gaylef
Points +138
Delicious food - Edit
Fresh, delicious food and friendly staff.
Read moreGuest
aashkat
Points +590
Delicious Food - Edit
Had beautiful experience. Staff is super friendly and food is delicious.
Read morePros: Delicious vegan food
Guest
Ruwi
Points +759
Delicious - Edit
Delicious Malaysian cuisine. Vegetarian with lots of vegan options. Tasty food, good value for money.
Read moreGuest
RitaActress
Points +75
Omni friendly - Edit
I've been here a few times with omni fam and friends.
Read moreCrave their laksa every winter!
Pros: quality, friendly, good value
Guest
kikotakeda
Points +116
Great restaurant - Edit
I have been this place with vegan friends, non vegan friends everyone loves their food. I love all the food I had here but my favorite is curry laksa. Don’t forget to order loti bread with it. Can’t wait to eat at this restaurant again!
Read moreGuest
travellingbutterfly
Points +1303
My regular! - Edit
One word...laksa. I do try other dishes but always keep coming back to the laksa. It's consistent and comforting. I cannot say anymore except it's the signature dish that I rate higher than high. Staff are lovely and it's a nice little place to eat. But...laksa is why I go there.
Read moreGuest
Isa..Sav
Points +238
Yummy food, beautiful staff - Edit
We had the lunch specials which is a cheaper option. The dishes were so flavoursome and filling. The lady who served us was so nice, very kind atmosphere inside.
Read morePros: Large vegan menu, Lunch specials
Guest
MishyCampa
Points +28
Friendly Service - Edit
Had the butter chicken and green curry. It was delicious and the customer service was great!
Read moreGuest
Tahnee
Points +262
Great vegan Asian cuisine - Edit
I love this place! The noodle soups are delicious and less than $15. Mains are a bit more expensive though the portion size and quality is good. Lots of options on the menu including some that aren't Asian dishes (e.g. chicken parma). Highly recommend!
Read morePros: Vegan, Extensive menu
Guest
EliseBlack
Points +287
Such good food! - Edit
Super high quality Asian food, although their vegan parma is highly recommended !!
Read morePros: Best Asian vegan food I've had
Cons: Expensive
Guest
Chriskmadsen
Points +18
Best vegan restaurant in the area - Edit
This is simply an amazing vegan restaurant. There’s not many in the area around St Kilda and this is not only have Vegan option on every dish on the menu but also serves spectacular food.
Read morePros: Great food, Lovely service, Good location
Cons: Not using social media to promote
Guest
JessTravelsALot
Points +64
Best vegan Asian food - Edit
I eat here more often than I should! The whole menu is vegan now.
Read moreEverything is great but a few must try dishes are the Butter Chicken; Olive Fried Rice; Green Curry and the Roast Duck.
Also one of the best options in the area for vegans.
Pros: Lots of vegan options , Lovely staff, Consistently good food
Cons: Dishes come out at random times , Can be very quick or very slow , A touch on the expensive side
Guest
PotatoesTho
Points +13509
Chock full of mock - Edit
I have dined at Ren Dao a number of times and have mostly been very pleased with the meals. The last visit was a bit hit and miss and our dessert order was completely forgotten - previously the service has been exemplary.
Read moreThe menu is very mock-meat heavy but if you are after something vegetable or tofu based there are a fair amount of dishes to choose from.
....
Pleased to see the newest version of the menu is very clearly coded. A large portion of the menu is vegan, although it is still 'chock full of mock' which will please many no doubt.
Updated from previous review on 2015-08-07
Guest
v.rach
Points +78
The laksa! - Edit
Been addicted to the laksa for many years now.
Read moreGuest
EmmaZ
Points +875
Loved the place - Edit
Absolutely love this place. Soooo many vegan options and my non-vegan family loved it as well. So fun to try new vegan dishes. Will come back!!
Read moreGuest
Eda
Points +157
Asian food fix, gluten free vegan meats! - Edit
First time having gluten free vegan pork and is was so yummy! Also everything is labelled on the menu for gluten free and vegan which is amazing. Nearly everything is vegan, loads of Asian dishes!
Read moreGuest
ChiamLongThiam
Points +520
Ren Dao @ Melbourne - Edit
Very friendly owners, we reached quite late, almost their after lunch break. They still specially accept our last order.
Read moreAppreciate that a lot.
Pros: Nice food, without garlic & onions, Friendly owner, Cosy environment
Guest
vegiegirl18
Points +81
Vegan friendly eatery in Elsternwick - Edit
I've been here several times. They've changed the menu recently so fried noodles/rice can't be ordered Fri/Sat - I would think these days would be the most demand for them.
Read moreThe staff are friendly but don't seem to listen when ordering (i ordered 2 entrees instead of main & friend ordered main-we asked for them to come out at the same time). My friend had to wait till both my entrees came out before they brought hers despite explaining again what we'd like. The desserts came out before we'd finished eating the main/my entrees too.
Loved the food, but the extra $1 for soy ice-cream is a bit much given the size of the serve. It would be great to have a jug of water on the table so you don't have to keep asking for another glass-if it was filtered water I could understand but I'd expect you'd be paying for that.
Pros: kueh dadar-Love this dessert, good food, friendly staff
Cons: air conditioning inconsistant , ice-cream served in dish with 2 chips in it, tables seating 2 people too close together
Guest
ericacrombie
Points +491
Great restaurant all round - Edit
It was a while ago that I went but from memory this place was great! Everything was vegetarian, there were plenty of vegan options and the staff were really helpful. And the food - OMG - so good. I brought my extended family there, most of who are not vegan or vegetarian, and they loved it too! The faux meats were freakishly realistic so if you miss the taste and/or texture of animals - this is the place for you. I struggled to eat the faux prawns because they seemed so real! But it was all delicious. Perhaps a bit expensive compared to other Asian style places but the quality was much higher so it's fair.
Read morePros: Delicious, Realistic faux meats, Large variety of food
Cons: Faux meats were sometimes a little too realistic, A tiny bit expensive
Guest
CatherineM
Points +192
Great lunch - Edit
I came here for lunch and was not disappointed. There was an excellent value set meal for $16 which was like a bento bax, with curry, rice, soup and dessert. I asked for a spicy version of my meal, and it was just the right side of hot. Worth a visit if you are this side of town.
Read morePros: Lots of choice on the menu, Vegan choices clearly marked
Guest
Tofulicious
Points +1325
Underwhelming - Edit
Having read some good reviews, my dining companion and I ventured southside to try this well regarded Asian restaurant. With mains starting at $22, we were anticipating something a little more special than the type of fare on offer at our usual el-cheapo veg*n haunts. For entree, we opted for a Thai Tom Yum and Malaysian Laksa. While they were tasty, neither soup was like anything I've encountered either here or in Southeast Asia: thick, sweet broth filled with minuscule pieces of zucchini, carrot and broccoli reminiscent of frozen 'vegetable medley' mix (although they were clearly not frozen).
Read moreFor mains, we opted to start with brown rice and Assam Pedas, a soy 'fish' dish in sour and spicy sauce. The mock fish pieces - frozen ovals with seaweed skin you can find in many Asian groceries - sat around the rim of the bowl, were not submerged in the sauce and were cold and dry, as though they had been microwaved immediately prior to serving. The bowl was filled with slices of carrot and zucchini, and a few pieces of celery and capsicum in a thick sweet sauce. The zucchini, which made up the bulk of the curry, was so old that it tasted like very bitter pieces of wood. At $24.90, this dish was far worse than anything I've made at home, or paid $10 for in a diner - in short, a complete and utter rip off. To top it off, one of the serving plates the maître d' brought out was grotty and had a massive chip in it.
After politely declining twice, the maître d' continued on her hard-sell endeavour to persuade us to order dessert. Convinced that we had wasted enough of our stomach space, time and hard-earned at this overpriced sub-par eatery, we left satisfied with only the knowledge that we had crossed this venue off our 'to do' list.
Pros: many vegan options, no MSG, BYO
Cons: mediocre food bordering on terrible, *extremely* overpriced, pushy and intrusive staff
Guest
veganbliss
Points +25
Great food, great service - Edit
We have been here quite a few times and without fail, the food has been really really good. I highly recommend the vegetarian curry chicken, the Yam Treasure Ring, the dumplings, The chow mee and finally, the best laksa I have ever had!
Read moreThe staff are fabulous, especially Winnie, the head waitress who goes above and beyond the call of duty. They make their food with such love and devotion, we have to try everything on the menu!
Pros: Great food, wonderful staff, large portions
Guest
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