In this post you can find the restaurants and snack bars in the highlands of Vietnam where we ate. We only spent a day or even a few hours at each place, so unfortunately I don't have more recommendations for you. But I'm also sharing at the end of this post the addresses of restaurants with vegan options scattered throughout Vietnam that I found while researching or discovered on site on a Google map.
If you want to hear more about the Easy Rider Tour and our impressions and tips about the central highlands of Vietnam – apart from the food – you will find them at the very end of this article.
About the central highlands
The Central Highlands of Vietnam includes the provinces of Lam Đồng, Đắk Lắk, Đắk Nong, Gia Lai and Kon Tum and with the towns of Da Lat, Buon Ma Thuot, Pleiku and Kon Tum, located north-west of the famous beach resort of Nha Trang and again south of Hoi An. We would never have been able to get around there, had it not been for our Easy Rider motorcycle tour. We met our two guides in Da Lat and drove with them to Hoi An within 5 days. But the way is the goal: On the way we have seen how the Vietnamese live, how they earn their money and what products are produced in the country. From the production of garden and kitchen tools from old military vehicle parts to tea, guava, passion fruit and dragon fruit plantations to the production of nut oils and rice paper. We also had coffee with families of different Vietnamese minorities and learned a lot about the history of Vietnam, especially about the Vietnam War. This was a wonderful trip and one of our highlights in Vietnam.
Of course, I mentioned my diet right away in the meeting with the Easy Riders Thanh and Hoan. I had assumed that I could somehow provide myself with rice, fruits and vegetables, but wanted them to know and agree that it was not problematic. Fortunately, the two speak very good English and I quickly realized that they understood what I was talking about and also not the first time I come into contact with the topic. They were able to give me a good feeling directly, because the answer to the question if it will be difficult to find something for me to eat on the way "Easy! Easy!" read.
They were also the ones who told us about the pure vegan Buddhist restaurants and about "Chay", as I wrote in the introduction post about vegan in Vietnam. And indeed, the 6 days in the central highlands we ate very good vegan food. Sometimes just rice with vegetables, but then also a large menu in a purely vegan restaurant.
Prices in Vietnam
I have priced each restaurant for you. From what I derived the price levels and how much we usually spent on food, I described in the post Vegan in Vietnam.
- € = cheap, up to 45.000 VND/1,70 Euro per dish/serving
- €€ = medium priced, 45.000 – 80.000 VND/1,70-3,0 Euro per dish/serving
- €€ = "higher priced", 80.000 – 120.000 VND/3,0-4,6 Euro per dish/serving
- €€€€ = high priced, upwards of 120.000 VND/4,6 Euro
Vegan in Da Lat
Da Lat seems to be the city in Vietnam that divides minds the most among tourists. The Vietnamese, so our impression, love Da Lat. Alone because it is naturally relatively cool in the highlands due to the altitude. But also because Da Lat is simply different. For some it is small China, others appreciate the French influence. Precisely because it is so "un-Vietnamese", some tourists dislike Da Lat and others appreciate it.
We liked it very much, very clean, modern, lots of flowers and wide areas. But we can also understand that many prefer to look for a more authentic Vietnamese feel. Longer than a good day we would not have known how to spend the time in Da Lat. You can roam around flower beds, stroll through the market in the evening, check out the French Quarter and the "Crazy House" and eat delicious food. But there it already stops.
Where we ate vegan in Da Lat, that's what it's about now.
NhA HAng Chay Hoa Sen
Hoa Sen was mentioned and recommended to us as a pure vegan restaurant. The menu is really oversized… you don't even know what to eat, especially if you don't know the individual Vietnamese dishes that well.
The restaurant is probably best known for "Mock Meat", vegan meat alternatives that are sometimes closer, sometimes less close to the original and supposedly all homemade as well.
When we visited the Hoa Sen, we were the only non-Asian guests and were unfortunately not served insanely courteously. The Google reviews reflect similar experiences of other guests. English was not spoken by our waiter, but we just pointed to the dishes on the menu that we wanted to order. Unfortunately, our drinks were also forgotten.
However, the food tasted good to us and was cheaper than in restaurants geared towards tourists, which we would not count Hoa Sen as based on our experience.
Another time we ordered vegan banh mi to go. This was also very tasty.
As for a recommendation, I'm unfortunately torn, as the food was good but the trappings unfortunately not – I'd say if you're just stopping by for a quick meal, it's fine. You don't get a "restaurant experience" though.
- What did we eat? Tofu mushroom pot, mock beef pot, stuffed dumplings and "chicken thighs," banh mi
- Where? Phường 1, ThAnh phố ĐA Lạt, Lam Đồng, Vietnam
- What to eat? Vietnamese | (vegetarian) vegan
- What does the purse say? €€
- Recommendation? yes
Brew and Breakfast
The Brew and Breakfast is a very hip hostel with an attached, purely vegan, breakfast cafe. Offering a variety of specialty coffees, smoothies and juices, as well as a rich selection of breakfast options, including Oatmeal, Breakfast Burritos and Pancakes.
We really enjoyed the food and it satisfied our needs for non-Vietnamese fare. The prices are according to the atypical dishes and certainly also adapted to the tourist target group somewhat higher, but measured against a German vacation budget still rather favorable. We can definitely recommend the breakfast at Brew and Breakfast with this.
We also had laundry done there once and can only give it a thumbs up.
- What we ate? Oatmeal, tofu scramble& Black Bean Bowl
- Where? 2 Trần Hưng Đạo, Phường 3, ThAnh phố ĐA Lạt, Lam Đồng 670000, Vietnam
- What to eat? European | vegan
- What does the wallet say? €€-€€€
- Recommendation? yes
Vegan in Buon Ma Thout
Quan Com Chay An Lac
In Buon Ma Thout the Easy Riders took us to the pure vegan restaurant Quan Com Chay An Lac. We didn't study the menu there at all, because it was already clear in advance what we were going to eat: A vegan hot pot.
Hot pots are apparently a popular thing in Vietnam, we saw them on every corner in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi as well. On the table, meat, fish, tofu or/and vegetables are cooked in tasty broth in a big pot on a hot flame. Served with rice noodles. Everybody at the table makes his own plate out of it.
As an appetizer, so to speak, we were allowed to try several varieties of vegan sausage with herbs and a kind of vegan feta. This was interesting and intense in taste.
The hot pot was filled with various mushrooms, v.a. with enoki and herb mushrooms, as well as natural and silken tofu. In addition, there were cabbage, okra and various herbs and of course rice noodles. This tasted very good to us, was extremely filling and even for 4 people a generous portion!
- What we ate? Vegan hot pot with mushrooms
- Where? 88 Nguyễn Cong Trứ, Tự An, ThAnh phố Buon Ma Thuột, Đắk Lắk, Vietnam
- What to eat? vietnamese | vegan
- What does the wallet say? €€
- Recommendation? yes
Vegan in Chu Se/Gia Lai
Quan Chay
While passing through Chu Se, we stopped at the little restaurant Quan Chay. Various vegetables, tofu and meat alternatives with rice as a side dish are offered. Our Easy Riders ordered a little bit of everything for us, so we got rice with tofu, vegan "Bo La Lot" (actually lot leaves filled with beef/Thai pepper leaf), stuffed bitter melon, spring roll and sour pickled figs. It was also accompanied by a herbal broth and a small bowl of pickled fruits and vegetables.
The food was delicious and it was totally nice to see how happy people were to have German vegans as guests and then to take pictures of the food as well. People wanted to take a souvenir photo with us right then and there.
- What we ate? Rice with various "toppings
- Where? M3QH+JR Chư Se, Chư Se District, Gia Lai, Vietnam
- What to eat? vietnamese | vegan
- What does the wallet say? €
- Recommendation? yes
Vegan in Kon Tum
Quan cơm chay NGHĨA
On our last evening with the Easy Riders they took us again to a purely vegan restaurant and ordered there without further ado (felt) once the whole menu. We were not asked at all. A "set menu" be that. Anyway, the whole table was full and the four of us had a hard time getting everything done.
There was vegetable soup, rice, tofu, spring rolls, beans, water spinach, pumpkin, several kinds of marinated meat and sausage alternatives and again the vegan alternative to Bo La Lot as well as stuffed bitter melon. We liked it very much here, too, although we found some dishes better than others. That's okay though, when you have so many different dishes and share them with other eaters. Definitely highly recommended and with ca. 45.000 VND per person a clear bargain (approx. 1,70 Euro).
- What we ate? vegan set menu
- Where? 65 Le Lợi, Thắng Lợi, Kon Tum, Vietnam
- What to eat? vietnamese | vegan
- What the wallet says? €
- Recommendation? yes
Other vegan addresses
See the linked map for more restaurants and bistros in Vietnam that offer vegan food according to my research. The map has the status April/May 2019, before you go to an address, check the internet again, if the spot still exists and has not changed its offer.
Vegan Asian recipes
After all the explanations and photos of delicious Asian food, you really feel like cooking yourself something Asian? Then check out my recipe collection for vegan Asian dishes.
Da Lat and the central highlands away from the food
We definitely wouldn't want to miss our time in Da Lat and the central highlands. Through the Easy Rider we have seen and learned so much. We actually didn't spend much time in the cities/towns themselves, so I can't say if there was much to do and see there at all. But without "tour guide" we definitely would not have liked it there so much.
Below you can see how we are pulled by hand with the motorcycles over a lake and a little bit of the beautiful nature.