Vegan
Korean

Vegan restaurant serving home-style Korean vegan meal with soup and many different side dishes. Est. 2020. Open Mon-Tue 11:30am-8:00pm, Thu-Sat 11:30am-8:00pm. Closed Wed & Sun. Last order 7pm.


Venue map for Soban Vegan 소반 비건식당
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81 Reviews

First Review by Okvegan

joshyoatcakes

Points +54

Vegan
19 Nov 2024

The best vegan food in Busan!

Awesome selection of food, great vegan chicken also the noodles come with mock beef… great protein!

xinru_t

Points +8963

Vegan
08 Nov 2024

Vegan Local Dishes

Small cosy eatery serving fully vegan Korean dishes, along with a small retail corner selling vegan snacks such as candy, biscuits, and instant noodles. So happy to eat vegan versions of local food, and the items I ordered were all delicious! Friendly homely vibes, with the lady boss / chef serving us freshly cut fruits at the end of our meal too. While I was there, a bunch of Korean elderly entered the eatery without knowing it was vegan. The lady boss patiently explained to them what veganism was, and they ended up enjoying their food!! No MSG used in the cooking. Btw for the religious folk, the lady boss / chef said that all items in the menu can be made allium-free, except pyogo gangjeong fried spicy marinated shiitake mushrooms. Walking distance from Dongdaesin Metro Station, also within walking distance from Somang Stairs Monorail.

nobodysbird

Points +21

Vegetarian
01 Nov 2024

.

Tiny, modest place, delicious food, very attentive and kind service from the lady who owns it.

BernardoQueirós

Points +93

Vegan
08 Oct 2024

Feels like home! Thanks for existing :)

Very friendly lady who speaks English and cooks excellent food. The amount of side dishes each main comes with, the freshness of the ingredients and the cosy space - it's 200% worth the visit. I came here twice in a row and it saved my stay in Busan! 😁

bough

Points +432

Vegan
16 Aug 2024

Funny puffy rice

Had the puffed rice in sweet sour sauce which was really great!

EmilyBoo

Points +76

Vegan
12 Aug 2024

Amazing & Authentic

Very welcoming and accommodating. The food was exciting, traditional and super tasty. If you are vegan and in Busan, you must come here!

Pros: Authentic cuisine , Amazing chef / owner, Great selection

MLittl11

Points +630

Vegetarian
27 Jul 2024

Great food, very friendly but poor service

We had 3 small mains which were very tasty and the owner was very friendly spoke very good English and gave us a free soy drink at the end but the aircon was broken and unfortunately the service was very slow and I had to ask to settle twice before finally doing it. I just worry that the laid back approach will end up in less people going. The food is delicious and it was worth the little hassle and no aircon but it was close.

Updated from previous review on 2024-07-27

Pros: Soy chicken, Scorched rice, The owner

Cons: Slow service and response to payment request

parkristine

Points +63

Vegan
27 Jul 2024

Quality over Quantity

Ordered the daily soup dish (Jeongsik) and side dishes mushroom tangsu. Everything was delicious and tasted pretty much on point compared to what I remember eating growing up as a non-vegan. The hot soup hit the spot, even on a scorching day like today. The restaurant owner was also a sweetheart who offered me free apple juice on the way out.

I took down one star since the portions were really small - especially the mushroom tangsu- for the listed price.

Pros: Yummy !!!, Good vegan versions of classic Korean cuisine

Cons: No air conditioning (broken, today), Pricey // small portion sizes

Harpy23

Points +1407

Vegan
26 Jul 2024

Good tasty Korean food

We both got the spicy soft tofu jigae and a plate of fried mushrooms in sweet and spicy sauce to share. The stew came with a pot of rice and 5 banchan.

The stew was fine, it contained plenty of nice soft tofu and it was quite spicy but not too hot. The problem I had was there didn't seem to be much other flavour in there beyond it being spicy. The rice was a decent sized portion, it was a bit sticky and nicely seasoned. The mushroom were fine, good juicy shiitakes in batter with a nice sauce on the outside but it was expensive when you considr they cost more than the mains.

The banchan were good. I enjoyed the kimchi, it had the spicy and sour flavours I was hoping for. There was a mock beef with mushrooms that was excellent. The sautéed aubergines were also nicely flavoured and well cooked. There was some seasoned cabbage and something spicy and crunchy texture that I couldn't quite recognise.

There was also a selection of vegan products which was handy as we'd struggled a bit with vegan snacks in convenience stores so were happy to pick up some Vego chocolate here.

Overall, I enjoyed the food but it didn't really blow me away. This is how I have felt about a lot of the food I've had in Korea so it may just be my personal tastes.

Kayy_B

Points +759

Vegan
19 Jul 2024

Perfect spot for lunch!

So glad that we came across this spot on Happy Cow! We wanted to try everything that was on the menu! We ordered 2 main dishes with banchan and 3 additional side dishes. The dishes that we ordered were so rich in flavor. Their banchan were amazing and it was different from the other places that we had tried in both Busan and Seoul. The owner is so sweet and would constantly check in on us to see if we wanted refills for the small side dishes (banchan). My partner and I throughly enjoyed every bite and were so stuffed. Just when we thought we were done and ready to go home, the owner came back with more food for us to try!😄It was out of the way from our hotel, but we took an Uber there and it was worth it! We’ll definitely be back next time!

GalLllllllLl

Points +30

Vegan
15 Jul 2024

amazing

I'm so glad for this place! food was great and you can also buy some vegan products. arrived after a long journey in the train and was comforted by the good tasty food.

Pros: soybean soup, quite and clean

ItsHappyCow

Points +882

Vegan
26 Jun 2024

One of my top restaurants in Korea!

Small place, run a friendly lady. We tried a few dishes, some of which come with their own sides. There was a lot of food. My absolute favourite is the spicy tofu soup. One of the tastiest dishes I've ever had!
Absolutely recommended!

hanguko

Points +181

Vegan
14 Jun 2024

Good food but terrible service

As a vegan of 10 years it literally breaks my heart to have to criticize a vegan business but I went there twice and both times my experience made me really upset.

We got ignored at first and after I ordered we had to wait 25 minutes for no apparent reason, especially since other customers who arrived after us got served first. They also got over 5 types of banchan while we only got 3 (tiny) ones. I asked for a refill and required she gave us the same banchan as the other customers. She laughed and gave a ridiculous amount of refill and no other banchan. Is this a joke bc this isn't funny. We're customers, I speak Korean, there is literally no reasons to treat us differently compared to Korean customers? Then comes the time to pay and I didn't like the way she spoke to me. Not even mentioning how no one smiled to us.
I don't understand why this place is hot amongst foreigners if they get treated the same way. Or maybe they're tourists who don't realize they're being discriminated against. Or maybe they truly had a great experience, and that's great. But I won't become a regular here.

BrittainMcCall

19 Jun 2024

Some items come with different amounts of banchan. Some items also take longer to prepare than others. Because Soban is run by a small staff and the food is prepared to order, it can take some time to be served. Sorry you had an unfortunate experience!

ryanwhatt

Points +942

Vegan
03 Jun 2024

Amazing food, amazing owner

The owner is super sweet and helpful and makes incredible food. All the sides were amazing and I had the spicy soft tofu soup. There is also a vegan mini mart where you can get instant ramen and chocolates to take away (get the peanut chews!!)

Melbourne.Vegan

Points +113

Vegan
29 May 2024

Best in Korea (so far)

I stopped here on the way to Gamcheon Culture Village (30 min walk from this restaurant), and I was absolutely blown away. I had the soup of the day which was accompanied by rice and many, many sides, all for just 8,000 won. Everything was super delicious - I highly recommend.

Pros: Nicest staff, Cheap and good portion size, Incredibly delicious and authentic

MalinBengtsson

Points +79

Vegan
21 May 2024

Best food so far

It's a little place, away from the tourist area, but still very easy to find. Had the spicy soft tofu jjigae and it was amazing. Not too spicy and lots of side dishes. She speaks good english and this is the best place so far after 2 weeks in Korea. Highly recommend!

Pros: Genuine, Tasty

mikasayshi

Points +78

Vegan
13 May 2024

If you want authentic, you get it here

. I wish this was closer to my hotel but I commuted 1 hour for it and it was so so so worth it. I can’t recommend it enough!!!!

VegoChouffe

Points +840

Vegan
13 May 2024

Worth the trek

Lovely local food and much to choose from. I tried the soup of the day (and the array of sides it comes with!) and the soy chicken. So much flavour and filling for a really reasonable price. Definitely worth it - practical opening hours and attentive owner😄

tiffyday

Points +1764

Vegan
29 Apr 2024

Excellent service and delicious homemade food

The lady who runs the place is so friendly, lovely and cute! It seems like she makes all the food herself, and it has a very homemade and authentic feel. We had the soup & side dishes for entree, then the sweet&sour mushrooms and soy chicken for mains - they were absolutely delicious. We also grabbed some vegan chocolate bars on the way out! We will definitely be back next time we are in Busan.

emsm

Points +22

Vegan
13 Apr 2024

Best vegan restaurant in Busan

I ate at a few different vegan places while in Busan and this one was my favourite! The food is sooo good, filling and with so much variety! I was craving something flavourful and hearty and this definitely delivered. The lady who owns the restaurant is so friendly and an amazing cook. This is a must visit place if you’re vegan or vegetarian.

Pros: Variety of flavours , Lovely host

Cons: None - was sooo delish!

GabiFig

Points +38

Vegan
11 Apr 2024

Excellent experience!

This place was amazing! We had the best fried chicken, the large portion is huge! The sweet and sour sauce is very tasty and the traditional side dishes were delicious! Everything is freshly made by two adorable ladies, who were so nice! And there are some vegan products and snacks to buy! There was a costumer who arrived 5 minutes before closing and they still served him, showing compassion and the true meaning of veganism!

LauraBartholomew

Points +48

Vegan
09 Apr 2024

Great food

A small quaint cafe, lovely ladies cooking there. It also had some snacks to buy there too. I bought a chocolate almond snack. The food is made from scratch so it does take some time... Best go when you're not starving!

I had spicy tofu stew, soy chicken and my friend had scorched rice. I really liked the soy chicken. The star was tasty too and it comes with bachun lots of side dishes.

Pros: The people , The food

Cons: The waiting time

veganwalrus

Points +174

Vegan
08 Mar 2024

Awesome and easy to find.

Excellent Korean meal, run almost solely by one very nice woman. This was the very first fully vegan place that I have been able to eat at since I arrived 5 days ago. Very tasty and very filling. The proprietor asks me if I wanted more of a dish that I had asked about, but I was full. I don’t think she would have charged me for that if I had accepted. One last nice thing about this place was that it was super easy to find, not like most restaurants that I’ve ventured to thus far…

Pros: Grat food, Wonderful host/owner who speaks good English, Easy to find!

monaachan

Points +20

Vegan
07 Mar 2024

Delicious vegan korean food!

This was my first vegan meal in Busan and omg it was too good. Highly recommend the soy chicken!
The lady is so lovely and kind as well. I'd definitely come back.

HannahBella

Points +62

Vegan
16 Feb 2024

Amazing

I’m so glad I came here. The lady who owns it was lovely, the food was amazing and really cheap, she kept bringing me more food as well, and I left so full! Will return again before I leave Busan

Cons: Saw a sign saying closed Wednesday and Sunday

Sly1234

Points +37

Vegetarian
31 Dec 2023

親切的老闆、好吃的餐點

可外帶,姨母會用英文跟你聊天。韓式炸雞大份的多到吃不完,餐點現點現做,辣的豆腐鍋必點,值得一訪。

Cryde

Points +70

Vegan
31 Oct 2023

Hidden gem

Si vous êtes de passage à Busan je vous conseille vivement d'y faire un tour
Nous avons pris les "Soy chicken", une soupe d'alges et le tofu stew (pas très piquant)
On en a eut pour 29€
Le restaurant est petit, l'ambiance est authentique

Pros: Pas cher , Très très très bon , Locale




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