Vegetarian restaurant and bar with courtyard, est. 2015 by the owners of Vegie Bar and Rice Queen. On the menu are dishes like king oyster mushroom with confit garlic pine-nut puree and smoked shallot, plus cocktails and pressed juices. Option to use almond feta and vegan mayo. Open Mon-Thu 5:30pm-10:00pm, Fri-Sat 11:30am-11:00pm, Sun 11:30am-9:00pm.
Categories: Vegan-friendly, Lacto, Organic, Western, Mediterranean, Beer/Wine, Australian
17 Reviews
First Review by SarahHunt
Contributions +150
great dining experience - Edit
very tasty and special dishes. completely different and creative. we really enjoyed it.
just to let u know the portions are very small and so it is quite expensive. but a really special dining experience.
Pros: great service
Cons: small plates, expensive
Contributions +26
feed me - Edit
Vegan feed me menu was on point and the vegan chocolate brownie was incredible ❤️🌱
Contributions +140
great vegan fine dining experience - Edit
The food was great, no question about it and the experience of fine dining is unmissable at some point in your life BUT their affiliated places to eat are also amazing and I thought the food was equally amazing as a standard across them.
Pros: atmosphere, experiences, quality of food
Cons: pricey , small portions
Contributions +1130
Tasty and beautifully presented but expensive - Edit
We shared the tacos and spelt bun for entrees and the persian rice and beetroot dish for mains and had the warm brownie for dessert. It was all tasty and beautifully presented but I was surprised at how expensive it all was. I also had an aperol based cocktail which was very good. The restaurant has a nice atmosphere (though probably a bit darker than I prefer). Although I enjoyed dinner, I won't be able to come here very much because of the cost.
Contributions +648
A night to remember - Edit
As an end of holiday treat we did the "feed me" option where the chef sends you a surprise variety of dishes for a set price, and specified that we wanted everything to be vegan.
It was superb! Such a great idea, too, as everything on the menu sounded good and it would've been hard to choose ourselves. Our dishes included: olives with roasted peppers, pickled garlic and chili; hot flatbreads; heirloom tomatoes with pistachios; brocolini with pumpkin seeds, barberries and saffron infused macadamia feta; three-grain pilaf with chickpeas, spouted lentils, pomegranate and fried onions; cumin braised eggplant with a quinoa crisp; vegan mozzarella with zucchini, pea and mint salad and current purée; and artichoke and white bean dip with flageolet beans and caper flowers.
Contributions +418
The best - Edit
This was probably the best meal we had in our recent four day eating tour of vegan Melbourne. Excellent food, superb wine (Yarra Valley Pinot Noir was just incredible) and very good service. Top place for Sunday lunch.
We will return !
Pros: Top quality food and wine, Good atmosphere, Helpful service
Contributions +212
breakfast - Edit
Always hard to find a good vegan breakfast, this place is not cheap but it is tasty
Contributions +33
loved it! - Edit
We had the feed me option for vegans. We loved everything and we were very full, couldn't quite finish everything. The dishes were brought out individually, they were beautifully presented and tasted delicious. The venue looked fantastic too. Would highly recommend and we're looking forward to returning.
Contributions +313
An expensive experiment, with mixed results. - Edit
The restaurant was nearly empty when we arrived. The staff member greeting us checked the bookings then sat us at a table right next to (as in we could reach out and touch) the one other couple in the restaurant! A bit more space would have been nice, as there was plenty of it!
The building was nice, with the original bricks and beams serving as a reminder that the building did used to be a transformer factory. Wire screens have plants scaling them giving an indoor-outdoor feel.
The menu was interesting, with vegan and gluten-free options clearly labelled. We were a bit surprised at the recommendation to order 1-2 entrees per person, and 2-3 mains each, given that most items were $15-20 each. We did debate the feed-me option, but it's $55 each (not including dessert) for Friday and Saturday evenings, so we took our chances.
The food all looked very pretty when it came out, but each dish had just a few too many flavours or textures for our tastes. Our favourite option was the tofu bruschettes - although the miso makes them very salty. We also tried the pumpkin dip (tasty, but the bread kept disintegrating in the dip!), the noodles (they come cold, but they are yummy), the yellow beans (expensive for essentially a bean salad), the broccolini (mostly tasty, but the almond feta was overpowering), and the rice dish (looked pretty, but far too many flavours).
We decided to investigate the desserts, and settled on the almond cake with ginger ice cream, peaches and meringue. There was the right amount for 2 people after everything else, and each bit was very tasty in its own right.
One little thing that seemed odd - while the staff were very attentive at filling water, bringing extra utensils etc. we spilled some dip on the table during our first course, and it was never cleaned up (we didn't want to stain the posh napkins!). It seemed at odds with the otherwise good service.
As others have noted, there can be quite a wait between some plates coming out, then two or three come at once - so don't visit if you're in a rush!
It was getting quite busy when we left, so if you're going at a weekend dinner time you might want to book.
I'm not sure we'll return soon - the food was too experimental for our tastes, but if you like new combinations and have cash to spare, give it a go.
Pros: Friendly staff, Lovely building, Tofu bruchettes
Cons: Expensive, Too many flavours/textures in some meals
Contributions +99
Masterchef meets vegetarian - Edit
If you are after tasty tidbits that are impeccably presented, then this is the place to go.
The food is tasty and varied with a menu that changes with the seasons. Their eggplant dish is a stand-out!
However... it is very pricy. $7 for a bowl of popcorn with crumbed seaweed is a lot. A salad will set you back $16 and main similarly.
Like with Masterchef, presentation and taste is paramount. The venue is spacious, airy and well decorated. Service is responsive and staff are friendly.
However you will need to order several dishes if you are hungry.
Cocktails are fairly ordinary... not something we would do again.
This is one of the few really impressive vegetarian restaurants for a special night out or fancy treat. But... if you want a cheap feed, you would be better going around the corner to their Vegie Bar restaurant.
Pros: Impeccible presentation, Tasty food, Great venue
Cons: Very expensive, Small portions (tasting plates), Cocktails fairly ordinary
Contributions +5698
Teeny tiny non-transformative tidbits - Edit
Great atmosphere and excellent presentation, yet the actual portions leave you high and dry. Out of the five selections we chose, only one was a stand-out. Poor value and left hungry.
Having said that, will consider returning for the "Feed me" option.
Pros: Atmosphere, Presentation
Cons: Tiny portions, High prices, Slow service between courses
Contributions +5353
Time to Transform - Edit
Very small servings of pricey food. Most people would need to spend about $70 per head to be satisfied.
The food itself has a lot of potential (The pumpkin dip was very good), but most items fell short of what they were expected to deliver.
The 'Feed me' option @ $35 lunch / $45 dinner per head may be interesting. The staff continue to bring you out dishes until you request that they stop, the food is the establishments choice. Hopefully they serve the food for the 'feed me' option at a much faster rate than we received our meals.
I would visit again, but only for a special occasion utilising 'feed me'
Pros: Nice decor etc
Cons: Small serves & menu, Pricey, Often very average food
Contributions +3643
Fantastic but pricy food... - Edit
I hadn't been here in a while and the menu has changed slightly, so I thought I'd update my review. The food here is generally absolutely superb, delicious and beautifully presented. It's damned expensive though, given the portion size and really only suitable for occasions unless you're rich. We ordered a couple of familiar dishes: the steamed bun with crispy tofu, the soba noodle salad and the king oyster mushrooms; and some new ones: the tofu brochette and the chargrilled leeks. The steamed bun is the best thing on the menu in my opinion: the tofu is delicious, crisp and perfectly complemented by the mayonnaise. The brochette was altogether very disappointing, although the pickled ginger condiment was interesting, but all I could think of was that I was spending $1.50 each time I put a small cube (with gritty spices) into my mouth. The soba salad was delicious, fresh and herby, presented beautifully in a (small) stack with nori garnish. The mushrooms were very nice, if just a little salty. The leek dish was minuscule but to my surprise it was delicious with the leeks just the right texture and not at all papery or chewy. We made the mistake of ordering a brownie each when we could easily have shared, but they were nice with chocolate ganache and creamy sorbet. Apart from the tofu dishes everything we ordered was around $13-$17 and, given the small portions and the recommendation of two or three dishes per person, it adds up.
Pros: Delicious food
Cons: Small portion size
Contributions +241
Disappointing for vegan breakfast/brunch - Edit
As vegan seeking a decent breakfast/brunch, I was disappointed with Transformer. With only three vegan or 'can be made vegan' choices, options are very limited. My wife & I ordered avocado on sourdough & and the Indian crumpets. The avocado on sourdough was OK but the spread was extremely salty. The indian crumpets were pretty tasty but didn't represent great value at $18. There are much better breakfast/brunch options available nearby.
Pros: Cool, hip decor, Excellent customer service
Cons: Very limited vegan options
Contributions +87
Beautifully done - Edit
Transformer is an amazing experience and one that will hopefully be replicated around Australia in the years to come. One of the best Vegetarian dining experiences in Australia.
Pros: great menu, great staff, nice drinks
Cons: not cheap - but worth it I think
Contributions +1070
Nice restaurant with great service - Edit
I ate here on a Saturday night recently. The dinner choices were delicious and perfect for sharing and maybe about half of them were vegan. They had 3 desserts and only 1 was vegan. I think they could have another option, but the dessert was tasty. The mushrooms were amazing!
The restaurant itself was really lovely and the service was great. I really enjoyed it.
Contributions +60
amazing chocolate brownie - Edit
Came here on a Saturday night and was amazed how easy it was to get a seat. Nothing like veggie bar (thankfully), this place serves delicious, nutritious and creative dishes with many vegan and gf options. The brownie with Chocolate and coconut ganache has to be one of the best I've ever tried. Be aware the prices are on the higher end - we paid $120 for two.
Pros: chocolate brownie, gluten free, creativity
Cons: price, serving size (relative to price)
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