Eating Out: Forest Lake Vegan Restaurant

A new vegan Vietnamese restaurant recently opened at Forest Lake, called Forest Lake Vegan Restaurant. I have an old friend who lives out that way, and I hadn't seen her for ages, so it seemed the perfect time for a catch up. She also surprised me by arranging to have another old friend, who I had't seen for even longer, come by as well. It was so lovely to catch up!

So, on a very hot and muggy day we headed in to try out this new place. Three people meant we could order even more food!
The Fried Spring Rolls were outstanding, clearly the winner of the day. Normally I am not the hugest fan of fried spring rolls, I will eat one if it is super fresh and hot but then I find them just a bit oily and yuck. Not so with these ones. They were crispy and hot but had an amazing filling - so tasty! I am not really sure what was in them, but they were delicious.



The Fresh Spring Rolls, on the other hand, were disappointing. Normally fresh spring rolls are my favourite, but the filling in these fell flat. Firstly, none of us enjoy vegan prawns... we all picked those out. But then the noodle/lettuce/other mock meat remains were just kind of meh. Especially in comparison to the deliciousness of the fried spring rolls.



We shared three mains between us. First up was the Thick Rice Vermicelli with Veg Beef in Lemongrass Soup. This was really nice, the thick noodles were fun to slurp and the broth was yummy (though very peppery as you get towards the bottom of the bowl!). I think this was everyone's favourite.



The Soy Crispy Chicken Rice was exactly that. The crispy chicken was nice, and good dipped in the sauce, but the whole dish was just a little uninspiring compared to the yummy and complex soup.



We ordered the Hokkein Noodles with Stir Fried Vegetables because we thought it would be good to have a mostly vegetable dish... but when it came out it was full of about five different mock meats as well. This was tasty to eat and the noodles were good.



All up the verdict was fair. The fried spring rolls were exceptional, clearly the winner of the meal. One of the things I was surprised about was that there was pretty much no tofu on the menu, everything was mock meat. I would have liked some other options. I had been looking forward to some tofu that day, but I was thwarted. I think it is great that a place like this has opened up, though I am not sure I would make the drive out there too frequently. But if I had a friend who wanted to go there I would definitely join them again. And order about three plates of the fired spring rolls! Nom nom nom.

The restaurant is located in a local shopping centre and there was lots of parking on a Saturday at lunch. It was a hot day, but was delightfully air conditioned. You also get a free soft drink if you are eating there (I don't drink soft drinks, so I just had water). We didn't use the bathrooms, so I am not sure if they are inside the restaurant itself or not. Service was friendly and reasonably timed. A heads up, they are not open for lunch on Sunday, only dinner, so if you are looking to go there for a weekend lunch then Saturday is your day.

Vegan Restaurant Forest Lake - 200 Grand Avenue, Forest Lake - 0404456887

Cute Kitty Photo of the Post



Just in case you were wondering, Dim Sim is indeed judging you.